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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “malicious code”

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 “malicious code”, 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

Upload SVG shows at wp.org #13 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 10 places. Its 1K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 3221 reviews, but shows at wp.org #20. 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★ (5039) wp.org #1 2 WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers + Custom Code Snippets – WordPress Code Manager 3M+ · 4.9★ (1916) wp.org #2 3 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #3 4 Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too low 5 Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6 Defender Security – Malware Scanner, Login Security & Firewall 80K+ · 4.8★ (334) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #6 1 too high 8 Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1489) wp.org #9 ↓3 1 too low 9 Jetpack Protect 100K+ · 4.6★ (123) wp.org #8 1 too high 10 Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3221) wp.org #20 ↓7 10 too low 11 File Manager Pro – Filester 100K+ · 4.9★ (155) wp.org #15 ↑3 4 too low 12 Security Ninja – WordPress Security & Firewall 7K+ · 4.7★ (101) wp.org #12 13 Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (783) wp.org #22 ↓3 9 too low 14 Loginizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1033) wp.org #14 15 Translate WordPress with GTranslate 900K+ · 4.9★ (4962) wp.org #24 ↓3 9 too low 16 Advanced IP Blocker 3K+ · 4.9★ (27) wp.org #10 ↑1 6 too high 17 SecuPress with Simple SSL – Simple and Performant Security 40K+ · 4.1★ (106) wp.org #17 ↓2 18 Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) wp.org #18 ↓1 19 Nexter Extension – Security, Performance, Code Snippets & Site Toolkit 10K+ · 4.7★ (13) wp.org #11 ↓1 8 too high 20 Sucuri Security – Auditing, Malware Scanner and Security Hardening 600K+ · 4.2★ (386) wp.org #23 ↓3 3 too low 21 Zero Spam for WordPress 20K+ · 4.1★ (143) wp.org #21 ↑2 22 Virusdie | One-click website security 2K+ · 4.0★ (9) wp.org #19 ↓3 3 too high 23 Upload SVG 1K+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #13 10 too high 24 DevDome Malware Scanner – WordPress Malware Removal & Security Scanner 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #16 8 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.