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

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 “login box”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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

FluentAuth – Login Security, Two-Factor Authentication, Passkeys & Social Login shows at wp.org #6 but places #13 on merit, a gap of 7 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

Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 4132 reviews, but shows at wp.org #16. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7322) wp.org #1 2

Custom Login Page Customizer 50K+ · 4.9★ (477) wp.org #4 2 too low 3

Popup Box – Create Countdown, Coupon, Video, Contact Form Popups 40K+ · 4.6★ (82) wp.org #3 1 too high 5

LoginPress | wp-login Custom Login Page Customizer 200K+ · 4.8★ (1077) wp.org #7 2 too low 6

Clean Login 5K+ · 4.7★ (144) wp.org #5 1 too high 7

Admin Custom Login 10K+ · 4.6★ (388) wp.org #10 3 too low 8

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #8 9

Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #12 3 too low 10

Nextend Social Login and Register 200K+ · 4.9★ (447) wp.org #14 4 too low 11

Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) wp.org #16 5 too low 12

Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281) wp.org #17 5 too low 13

FluentAuth – Login Security, Two-Factor Authentication, Passkeys & Social Login 10K+ · 4.1★ (35) wp.org #6 7 too high 14

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #24 10 too low 15

Teydea Login Customizer – Custom Login Page, Branding & Styling 10K+ · 4.8★ (14) thin reviews wp.org #9 6 too high 16

Persistent Login 5K+ · 3.9★ (26) wp.org #11 5 too high 17

My WordPress Login Logo 10K+ · 4.9★ (12) thin reviews wp.org #15 3 too high 19

Gallery Box 1K+ · 4.1★ (18) thin reviews wp.org #13 6 too high 20

Osom Modal Login 400+ · 5.0★ (15) thin reviews wp.org #21 1 too low 21

Disable User Login 6K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #18 3 too high 22

Protect Login 700+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #23 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.