wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “two factor”

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 “two factor”, 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

Two Factor (2FA) Authentication via Email shows at wp.org #6 but places #21 on merit, a gap of 15 places. Its 9K+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 4 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

Buried gem

Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes places #12 on merit, 4.9★ from 491 reviews, but shows at wp.org #19. A smaller install base keeps it further down the default search order than its quality signals alone would.

merit plugin signals wp.org

Two Factor 100K+ · 4.7★ (209) wp.org #1 ↑1 2

Wordfence Security – Firewall, Malware Scan, and Login Security 5M+ · 4.7★ (5039) heavy footprint wp.org #2 ↓1 3

Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection 700K+ · 4.6★ (3992) wp.org #4 ↓1 1 too low 4

WP 2FA – Two-factor authentication for WordPress 100K+ · 4.7★ (184) wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too high 5

Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL) 3M+ · 4.9★ (8869) wp.org #8 ↑1 3 too low 6

Two Factor Authentication 20K+ · 4.4★ (77) wp.org #5 1 too high 7

All-In-One Security (AIOS) – Security and Firewall 1M+ · 4.7★ (1720) wp.org #10 ↓3 3 too low 8

miniOrange 2FA – Two Factor Authentication for WordPress (OTP, SMS, Email, Google Authenticator) 10K+ · 4.5★ (385) wp.org #11 3 too low 9

Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ · 4.8★ (1489) wp.org #12 ↓4 3 too low 10

Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (397) wp.org #13 ↑1 3 too low 11

Members – Membership & User Role Editor Plugin 300K+ · 4.9★ (1281) wp.org #17 6 too low 12

Simple History – Track, Log, and Audit WordPress Changes 300K+ · 4.9★ (491) wp.org #19 7 too low 13

FluentAuth – Login Security, Two-Factor Authentication, Passkeys & Social Login 10K+ · 4.1★ (35) wp.org #7 ↑3 6 too high 14

Jetpack – AI Agents & MCP, Security, Backup & Analytics 3M+ · 3.7★ (2408) wp.org #14 ↑2 15

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

Simple CAPTCHA with Cloudflare Turnstile 200K+ · 4.7★ (262) not PHP-current wp.org #15 ↓2 1 too high 17

Security Optimizer – The All-In-One Protection Plugin 1M+ · 4.5★ (157) wp.org #18 ↑1 1 too low 18

WebAuthn Provider for Two Factor 2K+ · 4.6★ (11) thin reviews wp.org #9 ↑3 9 too high 19

Titan Anti-spam & Security – Brute Force Protection, 2FA & Spam Filter 50K+ · 4.5★ (370) not PHP-current wp.org #24 ↓1 5 too low 20

Two Factor (2FA) Authentication via Email 9K+ · 5.0★ (4) thin reviews wp.org #6 15 too high 22

WP Hide & Security Enhancer 50K+ · 4.3★ (275) throws errorsnot PHP-current wp.org #21 ↑3 1 too high 23

Vigilant – 100% Free Security Suite: Firewall, 2FA, Login, Headers, Scanner… 3K+ · 5.0★ (24) thin reviews wp.org #23 ↓2 24

XO Security 30K+ · 5.0★ (11) thin reviews wp.org #22 ↓2 2 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.