WordPress plugin comparison
Defender Security vs Wordfence Security
Defender Security
by WPMU DEV - Your All-in-One WordPress Platform
80K+ installs4.8
Wordfence Security
by Mark Maunder
5M+ installs4.7
At a glance
- Wordfence Security has more active installs: 5M+, against 80K+ for Defender Security.
- On a typical day, Wordfence Security is downloaded about 36,011 times, Defender Security about 546.
- Defender Security is rated higher: 4.8 out of 5 from 335 reviews, against 4.7 from 5,045 reviews.
- Both were last updated on Nov 9, 2026.
- Wordfence Security resolves more of its support threads: 86% in the last two months, against 67% for Defender Security.
- Both are tested up to WordPress 7.1.4.
- Wordfence Security has been around longer: since 2012, against 2017 for Defender Security.
Line by line
Wordfence Security leads on 6 of 7 comparable lines.
| Metric | Defender Security | Wordfence Security |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank | #519 | #11 |
| Active installs | 80K+ | 5M+ |
| Downloads, last 30 days | 32.1K | 1.4M |
| Rating | 4.8(335) | 4.7(5K) |
| Support threads resolved | 67% | 86% |
| Tested up to | 7.1.4 | 7.1.4 |
| Search multiplier | ×1.74 | ×10.97 |
| Last release | today | today |
| Requires PHP | 8.0.0 | 7.0 |
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
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