WordPress plugin comparison
Access Defender vs Akismet Anti-spam
At a glance
- Akismet Anti-spam has more active installs: 5M+, against 50+ for Access Defender.
- On a typical day, Akismet Anti-spam is downloaded about 40,362 times, Access Defender about 5.
- Akismet Anti-spam is rated higher: 4.7 out of 5 from 1,187 reviews, against 3.0 from 2 reviews.
- Akismet Anti-spam was updated more recently: Aug 18, 2026, against Oct 2, 2025 for Access Defender.
- Akismet Anti-spam is tested with a newer WordPress: 7.1.4, against 6.8.12 for Access Defender.
- Akismet Anti-spam has been around longer: since 2005, against 2024 for Access Defender.
Line by line
Akismet Anti-spam leads on 7 of 7 comparable lines.
| Metric |  Access Defender |  Akismet Anti-spam |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank | #21,325 | #8 |
| Active installs | 50+ | 5M+ |
| Downloads, last 30 days | 108 | 1.2M |
| Rating | 3.0(2) | 4.7(1.2K) |
| Support threads resolved | – | 0% |
| Tested up to | 6.8.12 | 7.1.4 |
| Search multiplier | ×0.13 | ×2.05 |
| Last release | 1 year ago | 2 months ago |
| Requires PHP | 7.4 | 7.2 |
From WordPress.org's public data, refreshed every night. Downloads are WordPress.org's official daily figures for the last 30 days.
Tags they share
More comparisons
- Access Defender vs NinjaFirewall (WP Edition)
- Access Defender vs Zero Spam for WordPress
- Access Defender vs Security Optimizer
- Access Defender vs Limit Login Attempts Security
- Akismet Anti-spam vs Anti-Spam, Spam FireWall by CleanTalk
- Akismet Anti-spam vs Antispam Bee
- Akismet Anti-spam vs Spam Protection
- Akismet Anti-spam vs ActiveLayer Anti-Spam
Is one of these yours?
Track your plugin against its rivals every day: rank, installs, downloads, ratings and their releases, with alerts when anything moves.
Start free