Restrict Website Access
Password-protect your entire WordPress site with a simple access screen for private, staging, and under-development websites.
Solid choice
Restrict Website Access is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. It runs on 100+ sites, is rated 5/5 and was last updated 2 weeks ago, and scores 79/100 on our health check.
- Actively developed — last update 2 weeks ago
- Tested with the latest WordPress (7.1)
- Small user base (100+ active installs)
- Very few reviews so far
Daily downloads
Download spikes usually follow a new release — each site that auto-updates counts as a download.
Rankings
Where Restrict Website Access stands todayWordPress.org search rankings
Live position in the plugin search, top 100| Keyword | Position |
|---|---|
| access restrict | #2 |
| limit access | #7 |
| page lock | #27 |
| page restrict | #7 |
| password-protected | #45 |
Version adoption
Share of active sites per release.
Rating breakdown
★★★★★★★★★★ 5 from 3 reviews
About Restrict Website Access
From the official readme · v1.0.4Description
Restrict Website Access lets you protect your entire WordPress site with a password-based access screen. It is useful when a site is private, under development, in staging, or temporarily not intended for public access.
Key features:
- Password protection for the entire public-facing website.
- Simple setup with no coding required.
- Useful for private, staging, and under-development websites.
- Editable access-screen content and layout options.
- Lightweight interface with straightforward settings.
Logged-in WordPress users can continue working in the dashboard while public visitors are shown the password screen when protection is enabled.
Source Code
The plugin’s custom JavaScript and CSS source files are included in the distributed plugin under includes/admin/ and includes/public/.
The plugin also bundles the third-party Notyf library:
- Project: Notyf
- Source: https://github.com/caroso1222/notyf
- License: MIT
- Bundled location:
includes/admin/library/notyf/
Installation
From the WordPress Dashboard
- Go to Plugins > Add New.
- Search for Restrict Website Access.
- Click Install Now.
- Activate the plugin.
- Go to Settings > Restrict Website Access and configure access protection.
Manual Installation
- Upload the
restrict-website-accessfolder to/wp-content/plugins/. - Activate Restrict Website Access from the Plugins screen.
- Go to Settings > Restrict Website Access and configure the plugin.
Changelog
1.0.4
- Hardened input handling, output escaping, redirects, and WordPress coding-standard compliance.
- No intended changes to plugin features or access-screen behavior.
1.0.3
- Changed only the Description field to a rich-text editor.
- Added strict HTML sanitization for supported Description formatting and links.
1.0.2
- Added editable access-screen elements.
- Added a layout option.
- Confirmed compatibility with WordPress 7.1.
1.0.1
- Minor user-interface improvements.
1.0.0
- Initial release on WordPress.org.
For developers
Is this your plugin? Show off the numbers.
Add a live badge to your site, docs or GitHub README. It updates on its own — no account needed.
FAQ
Restrict Website Access: quick answers
Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.
Live data from WordPress.org · checked Oct 9, 2026
Is Restrict Website Access free?
Yes. Restrict Website Access is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.
Is Restrict Website Access safe to use in 2026?
Restrict Website Access is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. It runs on 100+ sites, is rated 5/5 and was last updated 2 weeks ago, and scores 79/100 on our health check.
How many websites use Restrict Website Access?
Restrict Website Access is active on 100+ WordPress websites and has been downloaded 1,796 times since it launched in February 2025. It was downloaded 352 times in the last 30 days.
Does Restrict Website Access work with WordPress 7.1?
Yes. The developer has tested Restrict Website Access up to WordPress 7.1.3, the latest release. It requires WordPress 6.0 or newer.
What PHP version does Restrict Website Access need?
Restrict Website Access requires PHP 7.4 or higher. Most hosts run PHP 8.x today, so it works on any modern WordPress hosting.
When was Restrict Website Access last updated?
The latest version, 1.0.4, was released on September 25, 2026 (2 weeks ago).
Who makes Restrict Website Access?
Restrict Website Access is developed and maintained by Zohaib Ali.
Powered by PageForge
Want thousands of pages that rank like these? Build them in an afternoon.
This directory runs on the same engine as PageForge. Turn any spreadsheet, CSV or API into thousands of fast, SEO-ready WordPress pages — with schema, internal links and AI-written copy baked in.
- CSV, Google Sheets & API data sources
- AI content, schema & internal links per page
- Works with Elementor, Gutenberg, Yoast & Rank Math
- Free on WordPress.org — no credit card
