wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “temporary user”

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 “temporary user”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 10 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

Almost Ready Temporary Page shows at wp.org #12 but places #24 on merit, a gap of 12 places. Its 40+ 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

Migrate Guru – Site Migration & Cloning places #11 on merit, 4.9★ from 1645 reviews, but shows at wp.org #18. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Temporary Login Without Password 90K+ · 5.0★ (1549) wp.org #1 2

User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder 50K+ · 4.8★ (832) wp.org #3 1 too low 3

User Role Editor 700K+ · 4.5★ (288) wp.org #2 1 too high 4

UpdraftPlus: WP Backup & Migration Plugin 4M+ · 4.8★ (8706) wp.org #6 ↓1 2 too low 5

LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ · 4.8★ (2778) wp.org #7 2 too low 6

Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk 200K+ · 4.8★ (3220) wp.org #10 ↓1 3 too low 8

New User Approve 20K+ · 4.3★ (131) wp.org #5 ↓1 3 too high 9

Import and export users and customers 70K+ · 4.7★ (259) wp.org #9 10

Open User Map – Interactive Leaflet Maps 10K+ · 5.0★ (70) wp.org #8 2 too high 11

Migrate Guru – Site Migration & Cloning 200K+ · 4.9★ (1645) wp.org #18 7 too low 12

WP-Optimize – Cache, Compress images, Minify & Clean database to boost page speed & performance 1M+ · 4.8★ (2617) wp.org #16 ↑1 4 too low 13

PrettyLinks – Affiliate Link Management, URL Shortener, Link Cloaking, Tracking & Branded Short Links 200K+ · 4.8★ (1322) wp.org #20 ↓1 7 too low 14

Maintenance 1M+ · 4.4★ (869) wp.org #13 ↓2 1 too high 15

Loginizer 1M+ · 4.8★ (1033) not PHP-current wp.org #14 ↑1 1 too high 16

Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection 700K+ · 4.6★ (3992) wp.org #24 8 too low 17

WP Super Cache 1M+ · 4.3★ (1346) wp.org #22 5 too low 18

Drag and Drop Multiple File Upload for Contact Form 7 60K+ · 4.8★ (94) wp.org #23 5 too low 19

Banhammer – Monitor Site Traffic, Block Bad Users and Bots 1K+ · 4.4★ (19) thin reviews wp.org #21 ↑1 2 too low 20

Block Temporary Email 400+ · 4.5★ (8) thin reviews wp.org #17 ↓1 3 too high 21

Temporary Login 30K+ · 4.2★ (5) thin reviews wp.org #15 ↓1 6 too high 22

Block User Account 1K+ · 4.3★ (7) throws errorsnot PHP-current thin reviews wp.org #11 ↓1 11 too high 23

Password Protect – Temporary Login Without Password & Password Protect Entire Site 100+ · 3.7★ (3) thin reviews wp.org #19 ↑1 4 too high 24

Almost Ready Temporary Page 40+ · 5.0★ (1) thin reviews wp.org #12 ↑1 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.