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

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 customization”, we and wp.org disagree on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Login with Vipps and MobilePay shows at wp.org #14 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 900+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 832 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Custom Login Page Customizer 50K+ · 4.9★ (476) wp.org #2 1 too low 2

All In One Login 60K+ · 3.6★ (35) wp.org #1 1 too high 3

Custom Login Page Customizer 80K+ · 4.8★ (410) not PHP-current wp.org #3 4

LoginPress | wp-login Custom Login Page Customizer 200K+ · 4.8★ (1077) not PHP-current wp.org #4 ↑1 5

Admin Custom Login 10K+ · 4.6★ (388) wp.org #10 ↓1 4 too low 7

Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint wp.org #11 ↑1 4 too low 8

Custom Login 10K+ · 3.6★ (97) wp.org #7 1 too high 9

FluentAuth – Login Security, Two-Factor Authentication, Passkeys & Social Login 10K+ · 4.1★ (35) wp.org #6 ↑4 3 too high 10

User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (832) wp.org #22 ↑1 12 too low 11

Magic Login – Magic Link & Passwordless Authentication for WordPress – Login Without Password 3K+ · 4.8★ (26) wp.org #8 3 too high 12

Social Login, Social Sharing by miniOrange 10K+ · 4.6★ (356) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #12 ↓1 13

WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184) wp.org #19 ↑2 6 too low 14

Wp Social Login and Register Social Counter 70K+ · 4.6★ (67) wp.org #15 ↑3 1 too low 15

OAuth Single Sign On – SSO (OAuth Client) 6K+ · 4.9★ (327) wp.org #24 ↓5 9 too low 16

Teydea Login Customizer – Custom Login Page, Branding & Styling 10K+ · 4.8★ (14) thin reviews wp.org #9 ↓5 7 too high 17

AJAX Login and Registration modal popup + inline form 3K+ · 4.7★ (120) wp.org #20 3 too low 18

Sky Login Redirect 2K+ · 4.7★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #13 5 too high 19

OTP Login With Phone Number, OTP Verification 1K+ · 4.9★ (81) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #17 ↓3 2 too high 20

Disable User Login 6K+ · 5.0★ (6) thin reviews wp.org #16 5 too high 22

Loginfy – Custom Login Page Customizer 2K+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #21 ↓1 2 too high 24

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.