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

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 “secure login”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 2 plugins are 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

SiteGuard WP Plugin shows at wp.org #8 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 16 places. Its 600K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 4.3★ average from 15 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Login & Register Customizer – Forms, Popup, Profile & WooCommerce places #7 on merit, 4.8★ from 254 reviews, but shows at wp.org #15. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint wp.org #1 2

Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1488) wp.org #3 ↓1 1 too low 3

Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #10 ↑3 6 too low 5

All In One Login 60K+ · 3.6★ (35) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6

Secure Passkeys 2K+ · 4.8★ (19) thin reviews wp.org #5 ↓1 1 too high 7

Theme My Login 50K+ · 3.7★ (460) wp.org #12 ↓5 4 too low 9

Clean Login 5K+ · 4.7★ (144) wp.org #13 4 too low 10

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #19 ↑2 8 too low 12

Secure MCP Server for Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini and other AI Agents 8K+ · 5.0★ (10) thin reviews wp.org #6 ↑10 6 too high 13

Secure Copy Content Protection and Content Locking 20K+ · 4.3★ (62) wp.org #14 1 too high 16

WPO365 | SEAMLESS WORDPRESS + MICROSOFT INTEGRATION (WPO365 | LOGIN) 10K+ · 4.9★ (154) wp.org #24 ↓2 8 too low 17 L Login rebuilder 20K+ · 5.0★ (7) thin reviews wp.org #7 ↓1 10 too high 18

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #23 5 too low 19

Sidebar Login 9K+ · 4.5★ (78) wp.org #22 3 too low 20

Melapress Login Security 3K+ · 4.8★ (20) thin reviews wp.org #16 ↓1 4 too high 21

Magic Login – Magic Link & Passwordless Authentication for WordPress – Login Without Password 3K+ · 4.8★ (26) wp.org #21 ↓10 22

LWS Hide Login 20K+ · 4.7★ (12) thin reviews wp.org #17 6 too high 24

SiteGuard WP Plugin 600K+ · 4.3★ (15) throws errorsnot PHP-currenthost-installed base thin reviews wp.org #8 ↑1 16 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.