Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “block proxy”

wp.org orders by popularity, so a plugin a host bundled onto millions of sites, or a big-brand one that's slow and mediocre, can sit at the top. Our ranking is built to answer a different question: which of these is actually worth installing. How this works →

For “block proxy”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 1 plugin is pushed down for signals wp.org ignores: errors, a host-installed base, or removal risk.

wp.org search ranks on

Install count (uncapped), the raw star average, freshness, and support. Popularity dominates, so the biggest install base usually wins regardless of how it got there.

We add

A cap on the install boost, volume-weighted ratings, and signals wp.org can't see: whether the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

Fense Block Vpn & Proxy shows at wp.org #5 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 70+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

W3 Total Cache places #10 on merit, 4.4★ from 5420 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Kadence Blocks — Page Builder Toolkit for Gutenberg Editor 600K+ · 4.8★ (333) wp.org #1 ↑2 2 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5040) wp.org #4 ↓2 2 too low 3 IP Location Block 10K+ · 4.5★ (35) wp.org #2 ↑4 1 too high 4 Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #7 ↑1 3 too low 5 Proxy & VPN Blocker 1K+ · 3.8★ (33) wp.org #3 ↓2 2 too high 6 iQ Block Country 20K+ · 3.9★ (166) wp.org #6 ↑1 7 WP Fastest Cache – WordPress Cache Plugin 1M+ · 4.9★ (4229) wp.org #13 ↑6 6 too low 8 IP2Location Country Blocker 30K+ · 4.1★ (128) wp.org #8 ↓3 9 Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1489) wp.org #15 ↓5 6 too low 10 W3 Total Cache 900K+ · 4.4★ (5420) wp.org #19 9 too low 11 Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) wp.org #12 ↑1 1 too low 12 Instant Images – One-click Image Uploads from Unsplash, Openverse, Pixabay, Pexels, and Giphy 100K+ · 4.8★ (59) wp.org #17 5 too low 13 WPS Limit Login 100K+ · 4.9★ (83) wp.org #23 ↓3 10 too low 14 Advanced IP Blocker 3K+ · 4.9★ (27) wp.org #18 ↑5 4 too low 15 aBlocks – Gutenberg Blocks, User Dashboard Builder, Popup Builder, Form Builder & Animation Builder 2K+ · 5.0★ (26) wp.org #22 7 too low 16 Convert to Blocks 2K+ · 4.7★ (10) wp.org #14 ↑1 2 too high 17 VPN Guard – Block VPN, Proxy, Bots & Anonymous Visitors 200+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #16 1 too high 18 GutSlider – All in One Slider and Carousel Blocks for Gutenberg 6K+ · 4.9★ (14) wp.org #20 ↓2 2 too low 19 Video Gallery Block – showcase your videos in a filterable gallery 1K+ · 4.2★ (6) wp.org #11 8 too high 20 Block for Apple Maps 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #9 11 too high 21 Fense Block Vpn & Proxy 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #5 ↓1 16 too high 22 Country Block – Ultimate Geo-Blocker, IP Ban & Login Security 100+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #24 ↓2 2 too low 23 Gravatar Enhanced – Avatars, Profiles, and Privacy 100K+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #21 2 too high 24 Survey Form Block 500+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 ↑2 14 too high

Merit ranking caps the install boost at 1M (wp.org leaves it uncapped), replaces the raw star average with a volume-weighted Bayesian score and a Wilson lower bound, and keeps wp.org's own freshness and compatibility decays. Method from the plugin-directory source; see Meta Trac #8298. Positions are tracked daily from the first visit to a keyword, so the small arrows show movement since tracking began.