VMP™ Security vs the Competition
A side-by-side, feature-level comparison of VMP™ Security (Free & Premium) against Wordfence, Sucuri Security, MalCare and Solid Security — so you can pick the right plugin for your site.
Pricing at a Glance
Annual list price for a single site. Multi-site pricing varies; see each vendor for current rates.
Free
Premium
Premium
Basic Platform
Protect
Essentials
Complete Feature Comparison
| Feature | VMP™ SecurityFree | VMP™ SecurityPremium — $149/yr | WordfenceFree & Premium | Sucuri SecurityBasic Platform | MalCareFree & Protect | Solid Security(now Kadence) Essentials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Plan & Coverage | ||||||
| Starting price | $0 | $149/yr | Free / $149/yr | Basic - $229/yr | Free / $99/yr | Essentials - $99/yr |
| Min WordPress version | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4.7 | 3.6 | 4.0 | 6.5 |
| Min PHP version | 7.4 | 7.4 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.4 |
| Multisite supported | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Privacy: scans on your server | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ (cloud) | ✘ (cloud) | ✔ |
| 2. Web Application Firewall | ||||||
| Web Application Firewall (WAF) | ✔ 750+ rules | ✔ 750+ rules, real-time updates | ✔ | ✔ (cloud) | ✔ Atomic Security | Partial |
| Real-time firewall rule updates | Partial new rules: 30-day delay | ✔ | ✘ 30-day delay | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ |
| Pre-WordPress (endpoint) firewall | ✔ WAF Optimizer | ✔ | ✔ auto-prepend | ✔ (off-host) | ✘ | ✘ |
| Zero-day pattern detection | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Partial (Patchstack, Pro) |
| Custom firewall rules | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | ✔ |
| Auto-detect Apache / LiteSpeed | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | ✔ | ✘ | ✘ |
| Built-in .htaccess backup before changes | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | Partial | ✘ | Partial |
| Block page customization | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ |
| 3. Malware Scanning | ||||||
| Specialized scanner count | 9 | 9 | 1 (combined) | 1 (remote + local) | 1 (cloud) | 2 (file change + scan) |
| Malware signature count | 170,000+ new sigs: 30-day delay | 170,000+ real-time | 44,000+ | Partial (proprietary) | Partial (proprietary) | Partial |
| WordPress core integrity (vs WP.org) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Plugin / theme integrity vs WP.org | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | ✔ | Partial |
| CVE / vulnerability scanning | ✔ NVD + WPScan | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | Partial | ✔ (via WPScan, Pro) |
| Binary / image-embedded malware | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | Partial | Partial | ✘ |
| Public file exposure (.env, backups, logs) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | ✘ | Partial |
| Server state audit (PHP settings, perms) | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | Partial | ✘ | ✔ |
| URL reputation (Google + URLVoid + VT + PhishTank) | ✔ | ✔ | Partial GSB only | ✔ | Partial | ✘ |
| Domain reputation scanner | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | ✔ | ✘ | ✘ |
| File repair from pristine sources | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ (via support) | ✔ | ✘ |
| Resumable / checkpointed scans | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | ✔ | Partial |
| Scheduled scans | ✔ | ✔ | Partial (Premium) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| 4. Login Security & 2FA | ||||||
| TOTP authenticator app (Google Auth / Authy) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Backup / recovery codes | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | ✘ | ✔ |
| Role-based 2FA enforcement | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | ✘ | ✔ |
| Frontend 2FA management (shortcode) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | ✘ | Partial |
| WooCommerce login / registration 2FA | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | ✘ | Partial |
| XML-RPC 2FA / disable | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Login CAPTCHA / reCAPTCHA | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Login attempt limiting | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Leaked / compromised password check | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | ✘ | ✔ |
| Username blacklist | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ |
| 5. IP Blocking & Geographic Controls | ||||||
| Block single IPs | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Block IP ranges / CIDR | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Block by hostname | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | ✘ | Partial |
| Block by user agent / referrer | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | ✔ |
| Wildcard + regex pattern matching | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | Partial |
| Country blocking | ✔ (Free!) | ✔ | ✔ (Premium) | ✔ | ✔ (Protect) | Partial (Essentials) |
| Bulk unblock / export blocked IPs | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | Partial | ✘ | Partial |
| GeoIP database (auto-updating) | ✔ IP2Location | ✔ | ✔ GeoLite2 | ✔ | ✔ | Partial |
| Allowlist / IP whitelist | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| 6. Audit Log & Monitoring | ||||||
| Audit log available | Partial 50-entry preview | ✔ full history + off-site sync | Partial Premium only | ✔ | Partial | ✔ (Essentials) |
| User events (login, role, create) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | ✔ |
| Content events (post / page edits) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | ✔ |
| Plugin-internal action logging | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | Partial | ✘ | Partial |
| Live traffic monitoring | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | Partial | ✘ |
| Dashboard widget | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| 7. Multi-Site / Central Management | ||||||
| Centralized console | ✔ VMP Portal | ✔ VMP Portal | ✔ Wordfence Central | ✔ Sucuri Dashboard | ✔ MalCare Dashboard | ✔ Solid Central |
| Console price | Free | Free | Free | Bundled with plan | Bundled with plan | Bundled with plan |
| Email alerts | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Centralized policy / template push | Partial | Partial | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| 8. Tools, Compatibility & Support | ||||||
| Settings export / import | ✔ token-based cloud sync | ✔ token-based cloud sync | ✔ file download | Partial | ✘ | ✔ file download |
| Diagnostics tool | ✔ 15+ checks | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | Partial | ✔ |
| WHOIS lookup | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ |
| WooCommerce integration | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | ✔ | ✔ |
| REST API endpoints | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Translation-ready (i18n + POT) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Partial | Partial | ✔ |
| Free .org forum support | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Email support | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ + cleanup SLA | ✔ | ✔ |
Where Each Plugin Stands Out
A quick read on each product's biggest strengths so you can match them to your needs.
VMP™ Security
- 9 dedicated single-purpose scanners (vs 1 unified scanner)
- Country blocking, audit log & real-time rules on Free
- 170,000+ malware signatures on Premium
- Binary / image-embedded malware scanner
- WAF Optimizer with one-click pre-WordPress setup
- Off-site audit log sync via VMP Portal (Premium)
- Privacy-first — nothing leaves your server
Wordfence
- 13+ years of research-team maturity
- Real-time crowd-sourced malicious-IP blocklist (Premium)
- Identity-aware firewall rules (user / role context)
- Wordfence Central with SMS & Slack alerts
- Full IPv6 support across blocking features
- Care / Response tiers for hands-on incident response
Sucuri Security
- Cloud WAF off-host — mitigates DDoS at the edge
- Hack-cleanup SLA bundled with paid plans
- Strong reputation & integrity monitoring
- CDN included with most paid plans
- Better for enterprise / agency portfolios
MalCare
- Cloud-based scanning — zero load on your server
- 1-click automated malware removal
- Lightweight footprint, ideal for resource-constrained hosts
- Bundled with BlogVault backups
Solid Security (now Kadence Security)
- Strong WordPress hardening defaults
- Trusted Devices & passwordless / passkey login
- Patchstack-powered virtual patching (Pro)
- Affordable Basic plan at $99/yr
- Good fit for sites that just want hardening, not a full WAF
Why Pick VMP™ Security?
Most competitors gate country blocking, audit logs, and full firewall rule sets behind a paid tier. VMP™ Security puts all 9 scanners, 750+ WAF rules, 170,000+ malware signatures, country blocking, and audit log preview in the Free plan — with new rule and signature additions reaching Free 30 days after Premium. Premium unlocks real-time updates, full audit log history with off-site portal sync, and priority support — $149/yr per site.
See Pricing →One-Paragraph Verdict
If you want the most generous Free tier — all 9 specialized scanners, country blocking, a 50-entry audit log preview, and the full firewall at no cost — VMP™ Security is the strongest choice. Wordfence is the most mature ecosystem with a real-time crowd-sourced IP blocklist and Care/Response tiers. Sucuri shines for sites that want an off-host cloud WAF and bundled cleanup SLA. MalCare is the lightest-weight option thanks to cloud scanning, and Solid Security is best when you primarily need hardening & passkey-grade login security without a heavy WAF.
Comparison compiled from each vendor's plugin source, public documentation, WordPress.org
readme.txt files and vendor websites. Pricing reflects single-site annual list price at the
time of publication and may change — please verify with each vendor before purchasing.