wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “hide login”

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 “hide login”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 9 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

WP Last Login shows at wp.org #14 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 10K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.8★ average from 26 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin places #7 on merit, 4.9★ from 1281 reviews, but shows at wp.org #12. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

WPS Hide Login 2M+ · 4.8★ (2111) wp.org #1 2

Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1488) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3

Easy Hide Login 20K+ · 4.4★ (43) wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too high 4

Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ · 4.5★ (373) wp.org #5 ↑2 1 too low 5

WPS Limit Login 100K+ · 4.9★ (83) wp.org #7 ↓1 2 too low 6

Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445) wp.org #10 ↑2 4 too low 7

Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281) wp.org #12 5 too low 8

WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too high 9

Force Login 30K+ · 4.8★ (101) wp.org #9 ↑4 10

LoginPress | wp-login Custom Login Page Customizer 200K+ · 4.8★ (1077) not PHP-current wp.org #11 ↓2 1 too low 11

LWS Hide Login 20K+ · 4.7★ (12) thin reviews wp.org #4 7 too high 12

Custom Login Page Customizer 50K+ · 4.9★ (476) wp.org #16 ↓1 4 too low 13

Theme My Login 50K+ · 3.7★ (460) wp.org #13 ↓5 14

Clean Login 5K+ · 4.7★ (144) wp.org #17 3 too low 15

All In One Login 60K+ · 3.6★ (35) wp.org #8 ↑3 7 too high 16

WPO365 | SEAMLESS WORDPRESS + MICROSOFT INTEGRATION (WPO365 | LOGIN) 10K+ · 4.9★ (154) wp.org #24 ↓5 7 too low 18

Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #19 ↓3 20

FluentAuth – Login Security, Two-Factor Authentication, Passkeys & Social Login 10K+ · 4.1★ (35) wp.org #15 5 too high 21

When Last Login 40K+ · 4.7★ (37) wp.org #23 ↓5 2 too low 22

WP Last Login 10K+ · 3.8★ (26) wp.org #14 ↑6 8 too high 23

Hide Price Until Login 1K+ · 3.5★ (24) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews 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.