noindex SEO vs Virtual Robots.txt
Two WordPress plugins head to head: ranking, active installs, downloads and ratings, from our daily tracking of the WordPress.org directory.
These aren’t all alternatives to each other — they do different jobs — so this page compares popularity only, not features.
At a glance
Virtual Robots.txt leads the WordPress.org popular list today at #868, ahead of noindex SEO at #3,966. Over the last 7 days Virtual Robots.txt held its place and noindex SEO climbed 5 places. Virtual Robots.txt has the largest install base, roughly 13× the next: 40K+ active installs against 3K+ for noindex SEO. Downloads this week: Virtual Robots.txt 670 and noindex SEO 166. Ratings: noindex SEO 5★ from 2 and Virtual Robots.txt 4.3★ from 10 reviews.
| Metric | noindex SEO | Virtual Robots.txt |
|---|---|---|
| Popular rank today | #3,966 ▲ 5 | #868 ▬ |
| Active installs | 3K+ | 40K+ |
| Downloads, last 7 days | 166 | 670 |
| Rating | 5★ (2) | 4.3★ (10) |
| Last updated | Aug 17, 2026 | Aug 20, 2026 |
| Current version | 3.1.3 | 1.10 |
| Best rank on record | #3,831 | #819 |
| Days in the top 50 | 0 | 0 |
| On WordPress.org since | Apr 2020 | Jun 2009 |
Highlighted cells mark the strongest figure in each row. Rank and installs are from the latest WordPress.org capture; downloads are the last seven captured days.
Ranking history Lower is better
Active installs
Downloads per day
More comparisons
- noindex SEO vs WP Robots Txt
- noindex SEO vs Head Meta Data
- noindex SEO vs Robots.txt Editor
- noindex SEO vs Title and Nofollow For Links (Classic Editor)
- Virtual Robots.txt vs WP Robots Txt
- Virtual Robots.txt vs Robots.txt Editor
- Virtual Robots.txt vs Head Meta Data
- Virtual Robots.txt vs XML Sitemap & Google News
Frequently asked questions
Which is more popular, noindex SEO or Virtual Robots.txt?
By active installs, Virtual Robots.txt: 40K+ sites run it against 3K+ for noindex SEO, according to WordPress.org figures captured on October 17, 2026.
Which ranks higher on WordPress.org, noindex SEO or Virtual Robots.txt?
Virtual Robots.txt, at #868 on the WordPress.org popular plugins list today, with noindex SEO at #3,966. The ranking reflects recent installs and moves daily, which is why this page shows the history rather than one snapshot.
Are noindex SEO or Virtual Robots.txt alternatives to each other?
Not all of them. Some of these plugins do different jobs and many sites run more than one. This page compares their popularity, not their features.
Where do these numbers come from?
WordPress.org publishes each plugin’s active install count and its position on the popular list. This site records both every day, along with per-day downloads and ratings, so the charts above show how the plugins have moved over time rather than a single day.