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

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 theme”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 6 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

Weaver Xtreme Theme Support shows at wp.org #15 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 8 places. Its 8K+ 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

Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) places #9 on merit, 4.9★ from 8869 reviews, but shows at wp.org #13. 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

Theme My Login 50K+ · 3.7★ (460) wp.org #2 3

WPS Hide Login 2M+ · 4.8★ (2111) wp.org #3 4

Ultimate Member – User Profile, Registration, Login, Member Directory, Content Restriction & Membership Plugin 200K+ · 4.4★ (1445) wp.org #4 5

LoginWP (Formerly Peter's Login Redirect) 80K+ · 4.8★ (503) wp.org #5 ↑1 6

Temporary Login Without Password 90K+ · 5.0★ (1549) wp.org #7 1 too low 7

Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342) not PHP-currentheavy footprint wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too high 8

Custom Login Page Customizer 50K+ · 4.9★ (476) wp.org #10 2 too low 9

Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #13 ↑1 4 too low 10

Clean Login 5K+ · 4.7★ (144) wp.org #9 2 too high 12

LoginPress | wp-login Custom Login Page Customizer 200K+ · 4.8★ (1077) not PHP-current wp.org #17 ↓1 4 too low 14

Custom Login Page Customizer 80K+ · 4.8★ (410) not PHP-current wp.org #16 ↓1 2 too low 15

FluentAuth – Login Security, Two-Factor Authentication, Passkeys & Social Login 10K+ · 4.1★ (35) wp.org #8 7 too high 16

Defender Security – Malware Scanner, Login Security & Firewall 80K+ · 4.8★ (334) wp.org #22 6 too low 17

Admin Custom Login 10K+ · 4.6★ (388) wp.org #23 6 too low 18

Social Login, Social Sharing by miniOrange 10K+ · 4.6★ (356) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #24 5 too low 20

Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #20 1 too high 22

LWS Hide Login 20K+ · 4.7★ (12) thin reviews wp.org #19 3 too high 23

Weaver Xtreme Theme Support 8K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #15 ↓2 8 too high 24

WPS Child Theme Generator 6K+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews wp.org #21 ↓3 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.