Antispam Bee vs Native PHP Sessions (2026)
Detailed side-by-side comparison of two WordPress plugins, based on real-time data from WordPress.org.
Quick Verdict
As of April 2026, Native PHP Sessions has a higher user rating (4.9/5 from 16 reviews) while Antispam Bee leads in active installations (700K+ vs 10K+). Both are free WordPress plugins. Antispam Bee has accumulated 11M+ total downloads while Native PHP Sessions has 1.3M+.
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | Antispam Bee | Native PHP Sessions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.8/5 | ► | 4.9/5 |
| Total Reviews | 225 | ◄ | 16 |
| Active Installs | 700K+ | ◄ | 10K+ |
| Total Downloads | 11M+ | ◄ | 1.3M+ |
| Support Resolution | 100% | N/A | |
| Last Updated | 5 days ago | ◄ | 4 months ago |
| First Released | 2009 | 2014 | |
| Age | 17 years | 12 years | |
| WP Requires | 4.6+ | 5.3+ | |
| PHP Requires | 5.2+ | 7.4+ | |
| Business Model | Free | Free | |
| Latest Version | 2.11.10 | 1.4.5 |
Rating Breakdown
Antispam Bee
Native PHP Sessions
Download Trends
Over the past 30 days, Antispam Bee averaged approximately 18,823 daily downloads while Native PHP Sessions averaged 491.
Recent Reviews
Antispam Bee Reviews
Works better than JetPack
Simple to set up and use. Catches all the spam and deletes it before I get a chance to see it. Might miss one or two pieces a week, but that’s still better than JetPack and it preserves my users’ priv
Nice!
Very Well Done, easy to get started, clear nav, easy easy easy, thank you.
Just Works ™
The plugin does exactly what you are expecting it to do: it stops comment spam. It is non-intrusive and extremely efficient. I haven’t seen a single spam comment on my blog for many years now. Kudos.
Native PHP Sessions Reviews
Wow! This plugin works great!
I did not have high hopes for this, looking for plugins to resolve the issue my site was having in Site Health and figured I might as well try this after running across it on Google. I installed it,
Holy Smokes!
I have no idea how this plugin even works. As I was going through the list of popular/recommended plugins, this one was way down on the list. I installed it on my test site and it didn’t break anythin
Excellent
Native PHP Sessions is easily another plugin that should be standard for WordPress. And, support is excellent too.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Plugin data sourced from WordPress.org. Comparison and analysis by PluginSift.