wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “bots”
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 “bots”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 of the top 20. 2 plugins are 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 it throws errors on current PHP, whether the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.
Ranked above its merit
Booter – Bots & Crawlers Manager shows at wp.org #6 but places #17 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 7K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.7★ average from 12 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
Buried gem
Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 8869 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.
Blackhole for Bad Bots 30K+ · 4.7★ (148)
wp.org #1 2 
Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3220)
wp.org #2 3 
Yoast SEO – Advanced SEO with real-time guidance and built-in AI 10M+ · 4.8★ (27821)
wp.org #4 ↑4 1 too low 4 
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5038) heavy footprint
wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too high 5 
Better Messages – Chat Rooms, Group Chat, Private Messages & AI Chat Bots 10K+ · 4.8★ (142)
wp.org #5 ↓2 6 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720)
wp.org #7 ↓2 1 too low 7 
Shield Security – Smart Bot Blocking, Brute-Force Login Protection & File Scanning 30K+ · 4.8★ (1039)
wp.org #11 ↓1 4 too low 8 
Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1488)
wp.org #9 ↓2 1 too low 9 
WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam 400K+ · 5.0★ (1471)
wp.org #13 ↓2 4 too low 10 
PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links 200K+ · 4.8★ (1322)
wp.org #18 ↓3 8 too low 11 Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869)
wp.org #20 9 too low 12 
Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157)
wp.org #10 ↑7 2 too high 13 
Maintenance 1M+ · 4.4★ (869)
wp.org #14 ↑10 1 too low 14 
Chat Button & Custom ChatGPT-Powered Bot by GetButton.io 20K+ · 4.5★ (175)
wp.org #15 ↓3 1 too low 15 
Forminator Forms – Contact Form, Payment Form & Custom Form Builder 600K+ · 4.8★ (2143)
wp.org #23 ↓3 8 too low 16 
BBQ Firewall – Fast & Powerful Firewall Security 100K+ · 4.9★ (160)
wp.org #24 ↓2 8 too low 17 Booter – Bots & Crawlers Manager 7K+ · 4.7★ (12) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews
wp.org #6 11 too high 18 
Banhammer – Monitor Site Traffic, Block Bad Users and Bots 1K+ · 4.4★ (19) thin reviews
wp.org #12 ↑4 6 too high 19 
Bot Traffic Shield – Block Bad Bots and Stop AI Bots Crawlers 800+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↑1 11 too high 20 
Advanced IP Blocker 3K+ · 4.9★ (27)
wp.org #22 2 too low 21 
Checkout Shield for WooCommerce – Stop Fake Orders, Spam Bots & Card Testing 400+ · 5.0★ (5) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↑7 5 too high 22 
Geeky Bot – AI Chatbot & Sales Assistant for WooCommerce 6K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews
wp.org #19 ↓6 3 too high 23 
EDH Bad Bots 50+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #17 ↓3 6 too high 24 
Email No Bot – Prevent bots from detecting emails 200+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews
wp.org #21 3 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.