Plugin Pulse Beta
← Rankings

wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “require password”

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 “require password”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 14 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

Teydea Login Security – Password Policy, Complexity Rules & Expiration shows at wp.org #8 but places #23 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 400+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 1 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 14387 reviews, but shows at wp.org #24. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin wp.org
1 Password Protected 300K+ · 4.4★ (142) wp.org #1 2 Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) wp.org #2 3 Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection 700K+ · 4.6★ (3992) wp.org #3 4 Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #11 7 too low 5 Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #15 10 too low 6 Frontend Reset Password 10K+ · 4.4★ (38) wp.org #7 1 too low 7 WP-Members Membership Plugin 50K+ · 4.6★ (272) wp.org #13 6 too low 8 Password Policy Manager 6K+ · 4.4★ (14) wp.org #4 4 too high 9 User Profile Builder – Beautiful User Registration Forms, User Profiles & User Role Editor 40K+ · 4.7★ (738) wp.org #21 12 too low 10 WPForms – AI Form Builder for WordPress – Contact Forms, Payment Forms, Survey Form, Quiz & More 5M+ · 4.8★ (14387) wp.org #24 14 too low 11 WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184) wp.org #16 5 too low 12 WPEPP – Essential Security, Password Protect & Login Page Customizer 3K+ · 4.1★ (19) wp.org #6 6 too high 13 FluentSMTP – WP Mail SMTP Plugin with Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, Cloudflare, toSend, Gmail and Any SMTP 700K+ · 4.8★ (410) wp.org #20 7 too low 14 All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #23 9 too low 15 hCaptcha for WP 70K+ · 4.6★ (88) wp.org #17 2 too low 16 PDF Ink Lite – Free PDF Watermark & Password Protection 2K+ · 4.6★ (51) wp.org #14 2 too high 17 Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262) wp.org #22 5 too low 18 A Add Password Field for Contact Form 7 3K+ · 4.6★ (5) wp.org #5 13 too high 19 Expire User Passwords 3K+ · 4.2★ (5) wp.org #10 9 too high 20 Teydea Password Reset – Force Password Reset & Expiration 500+ · 4.3★ (3) wp.org #9 11 too high 21 SiteGuard WP Plugin 600K+ · 4.3★ (15) wp.org #18 3 too high 22 N No Weak Passwords 400+ · 4.0★ (4) wp.org #19 3 too high 23 Teydea Login Security – Password Policy, Complexity Rules & Expiration 400+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #8 15 too high 24 PDF Password Protect 200+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #12 12 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.