wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “force password”

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 “force password”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Teydea Password Reset – Force Password Reset & Expiration shows at wp.org #8 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 500+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.3★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) places #12 on merit, 5.0★ from 423 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.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Password Protected 300K+ · 4.4★ (142) wp.org #1 ↑2 2

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint wp.org #2 ↓1 3

Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection 700K+ · 4.6★ (3992) wp.org #3 ↓1 4

Temporary Login Without Password 90K+ · 5.0★ (1549) wp.org #6 2 too low 5

Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1489) wp.org #5 6

Force Login 30K+ · 4.8★ (101) wp.org #4 ↑3 2 too high 7

PPWP – Password Protect Pages 30K+ · 4.7★ (271) wp.org #7 ↓3 8

Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (783) wp.org #14 ↑1 6 too low 9

Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #12 ↑1 3 too low 10

Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #15 ↑3 5 too low 11

Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157) wp.org #10 ↑1 1 too high 12

Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #20 ↓1 8 too low 13

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #19 ↑1 6 too low 14

SureForms – Contact Form Builder, AI Forms, Payment Form, Survey & Quiz 500K+ · 4.8★ (102) wp.org #16 ↓2 1 too low 16

WPForce Logout – WordPress User Login Logout Management Plugin 8K+ · 4.8★ (66) wp.org #18 ↓1 2 too low 17

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #22 5 too low 18

Loginizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1033) not PHP-current wp.org #24 6 too low 19

Password Policy Manager 6K+ · 4.4★ (14) thin reviews wp.org #9 ↑1 10 too high 20

Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #21 1 too low 21

WPEPP – Essential Security, Password Protect & Login Page Customizer 3K+ · 4.1★ (19) thin reviews wp.org #13 ↓1 8 too high 22

Teydea Password Reset – Force Password Reset & Expiration 500+ · 4.3★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #8 14 too high 23

Teydea Login Security – Password Policy, Complexity Rules & Expiration 400+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #17 ↓1 6 too high 24

WP Force Password 100+ · 0.0★ (0) thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓1 1 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.