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

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 secure”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 15 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

SiteGuard WP Plugin shows at wp.org #6 but places #19 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 600K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.3★ average from 15 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection places #10 on merit, 4.6★ from 3992 reviews, but shows at wp.org #23. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5038) wp.org #1 2 Advanced IP Blocker 3K+ · 4.9★ (27) wp.org #2 3 Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #7 ↑2 4 too low 4 Secure Copy Content Protection and Content Locking 20K+ · 4.3★ (62) wp.org #4 5 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #8 ↓1 3 too low 6 Login IP & Country Restriction 8K+ · 4.6★ (52) wp.org #5 1 too high 7 Secure MCP Server for Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and other AI Agents 8K+ · 5.0★ (10) wp.org #3 4 too high 8 Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1488) wp.org #11 3 too low 9 Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #16 ↓1 7 too low 10 Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection 700K+ · 4.6★ (3992) wp.org #23 ↓3 13 too low 11 Loginizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1033) wp.org #15 ↑4 4 too low 12 Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #24 12 too low 13 Login Lockdown & Protection 100K+ · 4.3★ (61) wp.org #12 ↑1 1 too high 14 I IP Based Login 600+ · 4.9★ (23) wp.org #10 4 too high 15 User IP and Location 3K+ · 4.2★ (9) wp.org #9 ↓1 6 too high 16 Easy MCP AI – Connect Claude to WordPress: MCP Server for ChatGPT & AI Agents 30K+ · 4.9★ (16) wp.org #19 ↓1 3 too low 17 Royal MCP – Secure AI Connector for Claude, ChatGPT & any LLM via MCP 10K+ · 5.0★ (7) wp.org #13 ↓1 4 too high 18 Secure Gateway for Authorize.net and WooCommerce by Pledged Plugins 10K+ · 4.9★ (34) wp.org #22 ↑1 4 too low 19 SiteGuard WP Plugin 600K+ · 4.3★ (15) wp.org #6 13 too high 20 Secure Downloads 600+ · 4.1★ (10) wp.org #17 ↓1 3 too high 21 Secure Encrypted Form 50+ · 5.0★ (4) wp.org #18 ↓1 3 too high 22 Easy IP Blocker 400+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #14 8 too high 23 A little more secure 100+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #20 ↑1 3 too high 24 IP & Country Blocker Lite 300+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #21 ↑1 3 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.