Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “change username”

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 “change username”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20.

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

Admin login URL Change shows at wp.org #8 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 11 places. Its 2K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Temporary Login Without Password places #12 on merit, 5.0★ from 1549 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Username Changer 40K+ · 4.3★ (77) wp.org #2 1 too low 2 Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491) wp.org #5 ↑1 3 too low 3 Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #7 ↑5 4 too low 4 Change Username 4K+ · 4.6★ (7) wp.org #1 3 too high 5 Rank Math SEO – AI SEO Tools to Dominate SEO Rankings 4M+ · 4.8★ (7519) wp.org #10 ↓1 5 too low 6 E Easy Username Updater 10K+ · 4.2★ (38) wp.org #4 ↓1 2 too high 7 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #9 ↓4 2 too low 8 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5038) wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too low 9 Floating Chat Widget: Contact Chat Icons, Telegram Chat, Line Messenger, WeChat, Email, SMS, Call Button – Chaty 300K+ · 5.0★ (1244) wp.org #17 ↑3 8 too low 10 WP Edit Username 2K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #3 ↑1 7 too high 11 All In One Login 60K+ · 3.6★ (35) wp.org #6 ↑2 5 too high 12 Temporary Login Without Password 90K+ · 5.0★ (1549) wp.org #24 12 too low 13 Loginizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1033) wp.org #13 14 Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #19 ↓1 5 too low 15 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #21 6 too low 16 Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157) wp.org #15 ↑1 1 too high 17 R Restrict Usernames Emails Characters 1K+ · 4.5★ (25) wp.org #14 3 too high 18 Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) wp.org #18 ↓3 19 Admin login URL Change 2K+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #8 ↓1 11 too high 20 Change Author Link Structure 600+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #12 ↓1 8 too high 21 U Username 500+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #22 ↓3 1 too low 22 SiteGuard WP Plugin 600K+ · 4.3★ (15) wp.org #23 ↓6 1 too low 23 SmartUsername – Change Username, Admin Username Changer & Login Protection 10+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #16 7 too high 24 Edit Usernames 70+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 4 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.