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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “ip allowlist”

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 “ip allowlist”, we and wp.org disagree 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

IP & Country Blocker Lite shows at wp.org #8 but places #20 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 300+ 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

Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 491 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #2 ↑1 1 too low 2 IP Location Block 10K+ · 4.5★ (35) wp.org #1 1 too high 3 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #5 ↑1 2 too low 4 GTM4WP – A Google Tag Manager (GTM) plugin for WordPress 700K+ · 4.5★ (155) wp.org #4 5 Defender Security – Malware Scanner, Login Security & Firewall 80K+ · 4.8★ (334) wp.org #7 2 too low 6 Easy MCP AI – Connect Claude to WordPress: MCP Server for ChatGPT & AI Agents 30K+ · 4.9★ (16) wp.org #3 ↓1 3 too high 7 hCaptcha for WP 70K+ · 4.6★ (88) wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too high 8 WPVibe – MCP Server for WordPress, works with Claude, ChatGPT & other AI MCP agents 100K+ · 5.0★ (199) wp.org #12 ↓1 4 too low 9 Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491) wp.org #17 ↓1 8 too low 10 Web-Art Login Shield with reCAPTCHA 100+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #16 ↓1 6 too low 11 Atlant Security 700+ · 5.0★ (8) wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too low 12 Injection Guard 1K+ · 5.0★ (5) wp.org #10 2 too high 13 Agent Abilities for MCP – Connect Claude and ChatGPT with Permission Controls and Audit Log 800+ · 4.8★ (5) wp.org #11 ↓1 2 too high 14 WPEPP – Essential Security, Password Protect & Login Page Customizer 3K+ · 4.1★ (19) wp.org #18 4 too low 15 BotBlocker Security – Complete security platform 3K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #21 ↓4 6 too low 16 Advanced Country Blocker 2K+ · 5.0★ (6) wp.org #15 ↓1 1 too high 17 Admin Country Allowlist 80+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 8 too high 18 Protect Login 700+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #22 ↓1 4 too low 19 CaptchaFox for WordPress 70+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #19 20 IP & Country Blocker Lite 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 12 too high 21 WPLifeCycle – Free PHP Version Info & Website Manager 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #13 ↓1 8 too high 22 Password Protected Site and Store 90+ · 4.0★ (3) wp.org #24 2 too low 23 A little more secure 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 3 too high 24 Advanced Email Filter for Elementor Forms 200+ · 5.0★ (1) 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.