wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “malware protection”
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 “malware protection”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 7 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
DevDome Malware Scanner – WordPress Malware Removal & Security Scanner shows at wp.org #16 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 7 places. Its 300+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.
How this rank is calculated
Each plugin's merit score multiplies these inputs together: how recently it was updated, how current its "tested up to" WordPress version is, its install base (log scale, capped at 10 million), its support thread resolution rate, and a rating score. The rating score weights the star average by review volume against a sitewide prior, then scales it by the lower bound of the share of 4 and 5 star reviews. A plugin with 3.7 stars from tens of thousands of reviews can still outscore a 4.9 with a few dozen, because the small sample carries less certainty.
A health factor between 0.4 and 1.15 then adjusts that score for what wp.org's search can't see: PHP fatals or failed activations on a test install, PHP and WordPress compatibility, memory and page-speed footprint, suspicious review patterns, closure risk, and a large install base with very few reviews. Clean, adopted plugins earn a small lift.
A keyword ranking starts from wp.org's search order for the term, weighting each position by 1 divided by its place, then applies the merit correction and health factor above. Relevance to the keyword stays in the result, so the order can differ from the all-categories list on /best, which scores plugins with no search term.
Hover a row to see the main reason for its position.
Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5042)
wp.org #1 2 
Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (398)
wp.org #2 3 
Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408)
wp.org #3 4 
Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection 700K+ · 4.6★ (3992)
wp.org #5 ↓2 1 too low 5 
Limit Login Attempts Security – Brute Force Protection, 2FA, Firewall & Login Security 1M+ · 4.8★ (1489)
wp.org #6 1 too low 6 
Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157)
wp.org #4 2 too high 7 
Defender Security – Malware Scanner, Login Security & Firewall 80K+ · 4.8★ (334)
wp.org #9 ↓2 2 too low 8 
Sucuri Security – Auditing, Malware Scanner and Security Hardening 600K+ · 4.2★ (386)
wp.org #7 ↓1 1 too high 9 
MalCare WordPress Security Plugin – Malware Scanner, Cleaner, Security Firewall 100K+ · 4.4★ (559)
wp.org #10 ↓1 1 too low 10 
All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720)
wp.org #11 ↓1 1 too low 11 
Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (783)
wp.org #14 ↓1 3 too low 12 
Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8870)
wp.org #15 ↓3 3 too low 13 
Shield Security – Smart Bot Blocking, Brute-Force Login Protection & File Scanning 30K+ · 4.8★ (1039)
wp.org #19 ↓2 6 too low 14 
Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews
wp.org #8 ↑1 6 too high 15 
WP Encryption: Easy HTTPS / SSL & Free SSL certificate, HTTPS redirect 50K+ · 4.9★ (1146)
wp.org #23 8 too low 16 
NinjaFirewall (WP Edition) – Advanced Security Plugin and Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (220)
wp.org #17 ↑2 1 too low 17 
Jetpack Protect 100K+ · 4.6★ (123)
wp.org #18 ↓2 1 too low 18 
Quttera ThreatSign – Web Malware Scanner for WordPress 10K+ · 3.9★ (47)
wp.org #12 ↓1 6 too high 19 
NinjaScanner – Virus & Malware scan 40K+ · 4.0★ (36)
wp.org #13 ↑1 6 too high 20 
Security Ninja – WordPress Security & Firewall 7K+ · 4.7★ (101)
wp.org #24 4 too low 21 
BitFire Security – Firewall, Malware Scanner, Bot Blocker, Login Protection 300+ · 5.0★ (8) thin reviews
wp.org #20 ↓2 1 too high 22 
WebDefender Security – Protection & AntiSpam 1K+ · 4.0★ (18) thin reviews
wp.org #21 ↓1 1 too high 23 DevDome Malware Scanner – WordPress Malware Removal & Security Scanner 300+ · 5.0★ (3) thin reviews
wp.org #16 ↓1 7 too high 24 
attachmentAV – Virus Scan & Malware Protection for form plugins like Contact Form 7, WPForms, Gravity Forms 30+ · 5.0★ (2) thin reviews
wp.org #22 ↓1 2 too high Merit ranking caps the install boost at 10M (wp.org leaves it uncapped), replaces the raw star average with a volume-weighted 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.