wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “simple captcha”

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 “simple captcha”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 13 of the top 20. 7 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

Kaya Login Captcha shows at wp.org #14 but places #22 on merit, a gap of 8 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

Shield Security – Smart Bot Blocking, Brute-Force Login Protection & File Scanning places #10 on merit, 4.8★ from 1039 reviews, but shows at wp.org #22. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262) not PHP-current wp.org #1 2

Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #2 3

Really Simple CAPTCHA 300K+ · 4.2★ (131) wp.org #3 4

Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3221) wp.org #8 4 too low 5

Simple Membership 40K+ · 4.6★ (475) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too high 6

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint wp.org #7 1 too low 7

reCaptcha by BestWebSoft 100K+ · 3.9★ (391) wp.org #10 ↑1 3 too low 8

Simple Download Monitor 20K+ · 4.7★ (158) wp.org #13 5 too low 9

Captcha Code 100K+ · 3.9★ (35) wp.org #6 3 too high 10

Shield Security – Smart Bot Blocking, Brute-Force Login Protection & File Scanning 30K+ · 4.8★ (1039) wp.org #22 12 too low 11

Simple Login Captcha 10K+ · 3.9★ (17) thin reviews wp.org #5 ↓1 6 too high 12

Admin and Site Enhancements (ASE) 200K+ · 5.0★ (423) wp.org #24 12 too low 13

Simple Link Directory – AI Powered 2K+ · 4.8★ (121) wp.org #19 6 too low 14

Simple Author Box 90K+ · 4.3★ (115) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #11 ↓1 3 too high 15

hCaptcha for WP 70K+ · 4.6★ (88) wp.org #20 5 too low 16

LukasApps CAPTCHA tools for Contact Form 7 100K+ · 4.1★ (48) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #9 7 too high 17

Simple Job Board 10K+ · 4.7★ (133) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #15 2 too high 18

Captcha by BestWebSoft – Advanced Spam Protection, Math & OCR-Friendly Captcha for Site Forms 10K+ · 4.1★ (21) thin reviews wp.org #12 7 too high 20

Kitgenix CAPTCHA for Cloudflare Turnstile 700+ · 5.0★ (6) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #18 3 too high 22

Kaya Login Captcha 400+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #14 8 too high 23

Simple Captcha for WPForms 200+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #23 24

BotShield CAPTCHA for Contact Form 7 80+ · 5.0★ (1) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #21 3 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.