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

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 widget”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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 Widget for Ultimate Member shows at wp.org #10 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 14 places. Its 600+ installs carry it up the search order; its 3.7★ average from 6 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Custom Login Page Customizer places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 476 reviews, but shows at wp.org #17. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

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

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

Essential Addons for Elementor – Popular Elementor Templates & Widgets 1M+ · 4.9★ (4132) not PHP-current wp.org #4 1 too low 4

ElementsKit Elementor Addons – Advanced Widgets & Templates Addons for Elementor 1M+ · 4.9★ (2051) wp.org #5 ↑1 1 too low 5

Theme My Login 50K+ · 3.7★ (460) wp.org #6 ↓1 1 too low 6

Nextend Social Login and Register 200K+ · 4.9★ (446) wp.org #11 3 too low 9

WPS Limit Login 100K+ · 4.9★ (83) wp.org #9 ↓1 10

Sidebar Login 9K+ · 4.5★ (78) wp.org #7 3 too high 11

Custom Login Page Customizer 50K+ · 4.9★ (476) wp.org #17 ↓3 6 too low 12

LoginPress | wp-login Custom Login Page Customizer 200K+ · 4.8★ (1077) not PHP-current wp.org #14 ↓1 2 too low 13

Widget Options – Advanced Conditional Visibility for Gutenberg Blocks & Classic Widgets 100K+ · 4.9★ (1516) wp.org #22 ↓4 9 too low 14

Clean Login 5K+ · 4.7★ (144) wp.org #15 1 too low 15

Elementor Website Builder – more than just a page builder 10M+ · 4.5★ (7323) not PHP-currentheavy footprint wp.org #16 1 too low 16

Ultimate Addons for Elementor – Widgets, Templates, WooCommerce & Header Footer Builder 2M+ · 4.9★ (2528) wp.org #24 8 too low 17

When Last Login 40K+ · 4.7★ (37) wp.org #12 ↓2 5 too high 18

Custom Login Page Customizer 80K+ · 4.8★ (410) not PHP-current wp.org #21 ↓4 3 too low 19

Login No Captcha reCAPTCHA 50K+ · 4.5★ (63) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #18 ↓3 2 too high 21 L Login rebuilder 20K+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews wp.org #13 ↓1 8 too high 22

GR Widget – Google Reviews Widget 900+ · 5.0★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #20 ↓1 2 too high 23

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