wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “ip based 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 “ip based login”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 of the top 20. 1 plugin is 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

FluentAuth – Login Security, Two-Factor Authentication, Passkeys & Social Login shows at wp.org #11 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 10K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.1★ average from 35 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk places #11 on merit, 4.8★ from 3220 reviews, but shows at wp.org #21. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

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

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

LoginWP (Formerly Peter's Login Redirect) 80K+ · 4.8★ (503) wp.org #7 4 too low 4

Advanced IP Blocker 3K+ · 4.9★ (27) wp.org #3 1 too high 5

Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #9 4 too low 6

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #8 2 too low 7 I IP Based Login 500+ · 4.9★ (23) thin reviews wp.org #4 3 too high 8

IP Location Block 10K+ · 4.5★ (35) wp.org #5 3 too high 9

Theme My Login 50K+ · 3.7★ (460) wp.org #10 1 too low 10

WPO365 | SEAMLESS WORDPRESS + MICROSOFT INTEGRATION (WPO365 | LOGIN) 10K+ · 4.9★ (154) wp.org #14 4 too low 11

Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3220) wp.org #21 10 too low 12

Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #16 4 too low 13

All In One Login 60K+ · 3.6★ (35) wp.org #6 7 too high 14

Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #20 6 too low 15

Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281) wp.org #24 9 too low 16

Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #12 4 too high 17

Loginizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1033) not PHP-current wp.org #19 2 too low 18

Redirection 2M+ · 4.4★ (703) wp.org #22 4 too low 19

FluentAuth – Login Security, Two-Factor Authentication, Passkeys & Social Login 10K+ · 4.1★ (35) wp.org #11 8 too high 20

Magic Login – Magic Link & Passwordless Authentication for WordPress – Login Without Password 3K+ · 4.8★ (26) wp.org #13 7 too high 21

Simple JWT Login – Allows you to use JWT on REST endpoints. 4K+ · 5.0★ (47) wp.org #23 1 too low 23

Melapress Login Security 3K+ · 4.8★ (20) thin reviews wp.org #17 6 too high 24

User Login History 10K+ · 4.6★ (29) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #18 6 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.