wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “protected download”

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 “protected download”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 11 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 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

Customize Private & Protected: Password Form & Prefix shows at wp.org #9 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 13 places. Its 400+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.7★ average from 3 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 3220 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 signals wp.org

Password Protected 300K+ · 4.4★ (142) wp.org #1 2

Download Monitor 80K+ · 4.5★ (525) wp.org #2 ↑1 3

Download Manager 100K+ · 4.1★ (1006) wp.org #3 ↓1 4

Simple Download Monitor 20K+ · 4.7★ (158) wp.org #4 5

Easy Digital Downloads – eCommerce Payments and Subscriptions made easy 40K+ · 4.7★ (591) wp.org #6 1 too low 6

Download Attachments 8K+ · 4.5★ (46) wp.org #5 1 too high 7

Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3220) wp.org #20 ↓1 13 too low 8

Download After Email – Subscribe & Download Form Plugin 7K+ · 4.4★ (30) wp.org #7 1 too high 9

BackWPup – WordPress Backup & Restore Plugin 400K+ · 4.0★ (1323) not PHP-current wp.org #12 3 too low 10

Photo Gallery, Sliders, Proofing and Themes – NextGEN Gallery 300K+ · 4.3★ (4342) not PHP-currentheavy footprint wp.org #16 ↓2 6 too low 11

Loco Translate 1M+ · 4.8★ (453) wp.org #15 ↑2 4 too low 12

FooGallery Photo Gallery : Image, Video & Masonry Galleries 100K+ · 4.8★ (995) not PHP-current wp.org #18 ↓2 6 too low 13

Protected Video 1K+ · 4.7★ (15) thin reviews wp.org #8 5 too high 14

MailPoet – Newsletters, Email Marketing, and Automation 500K+ · 4.4★ (1435) heavy footprint wp.org #21 7 too low 15

Prevent Direct Access – Protect WordPress Files 10K+ · 4.6★ (297) wp.org #24 ↓3 9 too low 16

hCaptcha for WP 70K+ · 4.6★ (88) wp.org #17 ↑6 1 too low 17

File Manager Pro – Filester 100K+ · 4.9★ (155) wp.org #22 5 too low 18

WP Attachments – Smarter File Management & Download Lists 3K+ · 4.5★ (43) wp.org #13 5 too high 19

WPEPP – Essential Security, Password Protect & Login Page Customizer 3K+ · 4.1★ (19) thin reviews wp.org #10 9 too high 20

Download List Block with Icons 400+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews wp.org #11 9 too high 21

Serial Codes Generator and Validator with WooCommerce Support 700+ · 4.6★ (13) thin reviews wp.org #19 ↓1 2 too high 22

Customize Private & Protected: Password Form & Prefix 400+ · 4.7★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #9 13 too high 23

Secure Downloads 600+ · 4.1★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓3 24

Email Gated Downloads 100+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #14 ↑1 10 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.