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wp.org search vs our merit ranking: “virus scan”

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 “virus scan”, we agree with wp.org on the top plugin, and our order differs from theirs on 8 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 the install base is organic or host-pushed, and its risk of being pulled.

Ranked above its merit

attachmentAV – Virus Scan & Malware Protection for form plugins like Contact Form 7, WPForms, Gravity Forms shows at wp.org #2 but places #7 on merit, a gap of 5 places. Its 30+ installs carry it up the search order; its 5.0★ average from 2 reviews, plus freshness and upkeep, place it lower on our volume-weighted scale.

How this rank is calculated

Each plugin's merit score multiplies these inputs together: how recently it was updated, how current its "tested up to" WordPress version is, its install base (log scale, capped at 10 million), its support thread resolution rate, and a rating score. The rating score weights the star average by review volume against a sitewide prior, then scales it by the lower bound of the share of 4 and 5 star reviews. A plugin with 3.7 stars from tens of thousands of reviews can still outscore a 4.9 with a few dozen, because the small sample carries less certainty.

A health factor between 0.4 and 1.15 then adjusts that score for what wp.org's search can't see: PHP fatals or failed activations on a test install, PHP and WordPress compatibility, memory and page-speed footprint, suspicious review patterns, closure risk, and a large install base with very few reviews. Clean, adopted plugins earn a small lift.

A keyword ranking starts from wp.org's search order for the term, weighting each position by 1 divided by its place, then applies the merit correction and health factor above. Relevance to the keyword stays in the result, so the order can differ from the all-categories list on /best, which scores plugins with no search term.

Hover a row to see the main reason for its position.

merit plugin wp.org
1 NinjaScanner – Virus & Malware scan 40K+ · 4.0★ (36) wp.org #1 2 Security Plugin, Firewall & Malware Scanner with Auto Removal 40K+ · 4.8★ (398) wp.org #3 ↑1 1 too low 3 NinjaFirewall (WP Edition) – Advanced Security Plugin and Firewall 100K+ · 4.9★ (220) wp.org #4 ↑1 1 too low 4 MalCare WordPress Security Plugin – Malware Scanner, Cleaner, Security Firewall 100K+ · 4.4★ (559) wp.org #6 ↑1 2 too low 5 Security Ninja – WordPress Security & Firewall 7K+ · 4.7★ (101) wp.org #7 ↑1 2 too low 6 Malcure Malware Shield — Removal, Repair, Monitor 10K+ · 4.4★ (74) wp.org #8 ↑1 2 too low 7 attachmentAV – Virus Scan & Malware Protection for form plugins like Contact Form 7, WPForms, Gravity Forms 30+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #2 ↑1 5 too high 8 WebDefender Security – Protection & AntiSpam 1K+ · 4.0★ (18) wp.org #12 ↑1 4 too low 9 Virus Finder 100+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #5 ↑1 4 too high 10 Segurium – Free Malware Removal & Auto Cleanup for Hacked Websites, Antivirus Scanner, Vulnerability Alerts 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #13 ↑1 3 too low 11 SEO & redirect 200+ · 4.2★ (10) wp.org #23 ↓2 12 too low 12 DevDome Malware Scanner – WordPress Malware Removal & Security Scanner 300+ · 5.0★ (2) wp.org #11 ↑1 1 too high 13 A Aabcore Security Malware & Virus Scan — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #9 ↑1 4 too high 14 NHR Database Cleaner & Optimizer – Revisions, Transients, Autoload & Options Manager 100+ · 5.0★ (3) wp.org #22 ↓2 8 too low 15 T Threat Scan Plugin 400+ · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #10 ↑1 5 too high 16 Nova Scan Lite – Malware Scanner, Backdoor & File Integrity — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #14 ↑1 2 too high 17 PCrisk Trust Badge – Website Security Seal & Malware Scanner — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #16 ↑2 1 too high 18 Wieczo's Virus Scanner 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #15 ↑1 3 too high 19 Forge12 Security – Firewall, Malware Scanner, 2FA & Login Security 60+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #17 2 too high 20 ice Scanner Security — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #19 1 too high 21 ESoftWave Project Manager – Projects, Tasks, Client Portal & Invoices — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #20 1 too high 22 Xerotact SHIELD-X Security — · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #21 ↓2 1 too high 23 MH Smart Firewall – Security, Malware Scanner & Login Protection — · 5.0★ (1) wp.org #18 ↓1 5 too high 24 Scanner FMS 10+ · 0.0★ (0) wp.org #24 ↓2

Merit ranking caps the install boost at 10M (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.