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WordPress Guide → Plugins → Anti-Spam
8 best anti-spam WordPress plugins [2025]
From claims of how to make hundreds of dollars working from home to less savory offers, no one likes spam. But if you run a WordPress website, you probably deal with a lot of it.
We’ve assembled this list of the best WordPress anti-spam plugins to help you combat unwanted comments, emails, and form submissions.
Protecting your site from spam increases the site’s security and ensures it won’t get slowed down by spam.
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What are anti-spam plugins?
Anti-spam plugins block spam submissions on your WordPress website. As your website traffic grows, you’re likely to see an increase in submissions from bots. WordPress user registration and comment forms are two of the most common targets for spammers, no matter what version of WordPress you use.
Key features to look for in WordPress anti-spam plugins
- User Friendliness. How does the plugin filter out spam? Does it make users solve a math equation or decipher a nearly illegible CAPTCHA? Look for a plugin that balances security and not annoying users.
- Registration Blocking. The default settings in WordPress allow registered users to post comments freely. Spambots utilize this loophole by registering an account for your site. Look for a plugin that blocks site registrations from bots to decrease spam comments.
- Trackback Validation. If you have trackbacks enabled, when someone links to your blog, their website is linked in the comments. Spammers use this technique to populate sites with links. Spam plugins with trackback validation use IP addresses to determine if the trackback is legitimate.
- Reporting. Reviewing the spam statics from your anti-spam plugin will give you an idea of whether you should adjust your settings.
Benefits of an anti-spam plugin
For small sites, managing and preventing spam is a mostly manual process. You can change the comment, registration, and trackback settings to reduce spam. But if your site has other contact forms or gets a lot of spam, manually adjusting settings and blocking spammers’ IP addresses might be too time-consuming. And it’s probably not the best experience if you’re newer to the WordPress platform.
You’ll end up playing a game of Whack-a-mole, where as soon as you shut down one spammer, three bots replace it. An anti-spam plugin automates the process, giving you the best protection and saving you time.
9 best WordPress anti-spam plugins
There are a lot of anti-spam plugin options. Below are the ones we recommend. Consider which one might work best for your site.
1. Akismet Spam Protection
Developed by the team behind WooCommerce, Jetpack, and WordPress.com, Akismet is one of the most popular anti-spam WordPress plugins. The plugin requires an API key to use. Keys are free for personal use, but business websites need to purchase a subscription. The plugin works by checking any comment or form submissions against a global spam database. Akismet flags suspicious submissions and prevents them from publishing to your site.
- Active Installations: 5+ million
- WordPress Repository Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
- Developer: Automattic
- Pricing: Free for personal use. Commercial plans range from $10 to $250 per month.
2. Spam Protection, AntiSpam, FireWall by CleanTalk
CleanTalk’s anti-spam WordPress plugin blocks spam with minimal disruption to your user experience. Users won’t have to put in a CAPTCHA phrase, answer questions, or count photos of bridges. When someone registers, subscribes, or comments, the plugin analyzes the content and automatically quarantines comments most likely to be spam. The plugin is compatible with many of the most popular WordPress plugins, including WPForms, Elementor, Gravity Forms, and Contact Form 7. After a seven-day free trial, the plugin requires a CleanTalk subscription.
- Active Installations: 100,000+
- WordPress Repository Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
- Developer: CleanTalk
- Pricing: Start at $8 per month for one website
3. Antispam Bee
Antispam Bee is a great option for people looking for a free anti-spam plugin for WordPress. The plugin’s limited options work well for preventing spam in comments. But, it doesn’t work for site registrations and forms. If you’re looking for one plugin to block spam on forms and comments or need more advanced features, consider one of the other plugins on this list.
- Active Installations: 700,000+
- WordPress Repository Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
- Developer: Pluginkollektiv
- Pricing: Free
4. Zero Spam for WordPress
Zero Spam for WordPress is another great choice for people who want a free anti-spam plugin for WordPress. Unlike Antispam Bee, this plugin works on comments, user registrations, and login attempts. Zero Spam for WordPress supports several popular form builder plugins, including Contact Form 7, WPForms, and Fluent Forms. Your users will love this plugin because it doesn’t rely on CAPTCHA. Instead, the plugin uses a combination of artificial intelligence, advanced spam detection techniques, and databases of malicious IP addresses to block spam submissions or login attempts.
- Active Installations: 30,000+
- WordPress Repository Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
- Developer: Highfivery LLC
- Pricing: Free
5. Titan Anti-Spam & Security
This all-in-one plugin offers spam protection, malware scanning, site accessibility checking, and security and threat audits. You can use the basic features for free but need to upgrade to unlock all the plugin’s advanced spam and security features.
- Active Installations: 100,000+
- WordPress Repository Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
- Developer: CreativeMotion
- Pricing: Limited functionality available for free. Paid plans start at $55 per year for one site.
6. Captcha by BestWebSoft
This plugin adds CAPTCHA to prevent spam on comment forms, login, password recovery, and registration. CAPTCHA options include an invisible CAPTCHA, character recognition, and simple math. The free version of the plugin works with most native WordPress forms. You can buy a premium license from CodeCanyon for a one-time fee if you need compatibility with additional form builders like Contact Form 7, Ninja Forms, or Gravity Forms.
- Active Installations: 8,000+
- WordPress Repository Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
- Developer: BestWebSoft
- Pricing: Limited functionality available for free. Upgraded version available for a one-time fee of $19.
7. WP Armour
Instead of an annoying CAPTCHA field, this plugin uses the honeypot approach. The plugin adds a hidden field to forms. Users can’t see the field, so they leave it blank. But spambots can’t tell it’s hidden, so they fill it out. If the honeypot field contains data, the plugin knows it must be spam and doesn’t submit it. The free version works with many popular forms and page builders. For additional spam settings or additional plugin compatibility, the developer offers a paid version for a one-time fee.
- Active Installations: 20,000+
- WordPress Repository Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
- Developer: Dnesscarkey
- Pricing: Limited functionality available for free. Upgraded version available for a one-time fee of $19.99 for one site.
8. Anti-Spam: Spam Protection
Stop Spammers Security offers more than 50 configuration options to protect your WordPress website from spam. The plugin has options for using CAPTCHA fields or the honeypot method. The free version protects the standard WordPress comments, login, and registration forms. To use the plugin with other plugins like Contact Form 7, you need to purchase the Premium version.
- Active Installations: 60,000+
- WordPress Repository Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
- Developer: Trumani
- Pricing: Limited functionality available for free. Upgraded version available for a one-time fee of $29.00 for one site.
Getting started with an anti-spam plugin for WordPress
If you’re just trying to prevent spam, Akismet is a great option. Millions of WordPress sites trust the app making it the best spam comments WordPress plugin. If you’re looking for additional security features, WP Cerber Security is a great choice because it offers the most features and integrations with other plugins.
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Additional resources
What is a WordPress plugin? →
A complete beginner’s guide to WordPress plugins and how to manage them
What is managed WordPress hosting? →
Discover everything managed hosting for WordPress includes and if it’s right for you.
How to check if a WordPress plugin is safe →
Be especially careful if you’re looking at free plugins. Watch for these common 🚩.
Lindsey Miller is a WordPress and WooCommerce expert and Chief Executive Officer of Content Journey. She has been working with WordPress since 2010 when she started her first WordPress blog. Since then she has attended WordCamps all over the world and had the honor of speaking at many WordCamps and other WordPress events such as WooSesh and WordFest.