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CleanTalk Spam Protection vs WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam

Updated 6 Oct 2026. 46 features compared side by side.

CleanTalk Spam Protection

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.8 (3,221)

CAPTCHA-free cloud anti-spam for comments, registrations, WooCommerce and 100+ form plugins, with a firewall for known bots. From $12/year.

Free installs200K+
From$12/yr
UpdatedOct 2026
Visit site Full profile
VS

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam

★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 (1,472)

Honeypot anti-spam plugin that blocks bots on comments and many form plugins with no CAPTCHA, API key or external calls; Extended adds more forms…

Free installs400K+
From$19.99/yr
UpdatedSep 2026
Visit site Full profile

Choose CleanTalk Spam Protection if…

  • You need cloud spam filtering and country & language filters
  • You also want skip for logged-in users and MemberPress
  • You want the more complete feature set (85/100 vs 67/100)
  • You want the lower entry price ($12/yr vs $19.99/yr)

Choose WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam if…

  • You need works without an external service
  • You want to start with a free version
  • You prefer the more widely used option
  • You weigh user ratings (5.0 vs 4.8 on WordPress.org)

CleanTalk Spam Protection includes 6 features that WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam lacks, including Cloud spam filtering, Country & language filters and Skip for logged-in users; WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam has 1 that CleanTalk Spam Protection lacks, including Works without an external service. Both include 31 of the 46 features we track. 3 features are not yet verified for one or both plugins.

At a glance

CleanTalk Spam Protection
WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam
85/100
Feature score
67/100
40 of 46
Features included
32 of 46
4.8/5
WordPress.org rating
5.0/5
200K+
Active installs
400K+
97%
Support threads resolved
17%

Feature comparison

Click a screenshot to see both plugins side by side.

Feature
CleanTalk Spam Protection
WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam
Protection methods3/72/7
Google reCAPTCHA KeySupports Google reCAPTCHA (v2 checkbox, invisible or v3 score-based).
CleanTalk Spam Protection Not included

Designed as a CAPTCHA-free alternative; no reCAPTCHA option.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not included

Honeypot-only; no Google reCAPTCHA.

Cloudflare Turnstile KeySupports Cloudflare Turnstile, the privacy-friendly CAPTCHA alternative.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Not included

No Cloudflare Turnstile option.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not included

Honeypot-only; no Cloudflare Turnstile.

hCaptchaSupports hCaptcha challenges.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Not included

No hCaptcha option.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not included

Honeypot-only; no hCaptcha.

Built-in CAPTCHAOwn image, math or puzzle CAPTCHA with no third-party service.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Not included

No image or math CAPTCHA; protection is invisible.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not included

No visible CAPTCHA of any kind.

Honeypot fieldsHidden fields and timing checks that catch bots without a visible challenge.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Optional hidden honeypot field for supported forms, alongside JS and timing tests.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

JavaScript-injected hidden field with a unique name per site.

Cloud spam filtering KeySubmissions checked against a cloud spam database of known spammers.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

IP, email and domain checked against CleanTalk's cloud database of spam activity.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not included

Readme states it uses no external API such as Akismet or CleanTalk.

No challenge for real usersBlocks bots without asking visitors to solve anything.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Background JavaScript, timing and database tests with nothing for visitors to solve.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

Honeypot is invisible to visitors; no challenge to solve.

Where it protects7/77/7
Comments KeyProtects WordPress comments from spam.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Filters WordPress, Jetpack and wpDiscuz comments; can bulk-check existing comments.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

WordPress comments are protected in the free version.

Login & password reset KeyProtects the login and lost-password forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Via add-on

Login brute-force defence is in CleanTalk's separate paid Security plugin; SpamFireWall still blocks known bot IPs.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

Hooks into WordPress and WooCommerce login and lost-password forms.

RegistrationProtects the user registration form.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Blocks spam sign-ups and can scan existing users for spam accounts.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

WordPress registration is free; WooCommerce registration needs Extended.

WooCommerce checkout & account KeyProtects WooCommerce checkout, login and registration forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Checks checkout, registration during checkout and reviews; can store blocked orders.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Partial

Free covers Woo login and lost password; checkout and registration need Extended.

Form plugin support KeyWorks with popular form plugins such as Contact Form 7, WPForms or Gravity Forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

100+ form plugins including CF7, WPForms, Gravity Forms, Fluent Forms, Formidable and Ninja Forms.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

CF7, WPForms, Gravity Forms (non-Ajax), Formidable, Fluent and more; Extended adds others.

Page builder formsProtects forms built in Elementor, Divi or similar builders.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Elementor, Avada and Kadence Blocks forms are on the supported list.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

Elementor and Divi forms free; Bricks and Beaver Builder in Extended.

Community & membership pluginsProtects BuddyPress, bbPress, Ultimate Member or similar.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Supports bbPress, Asgaros Forum and BuddyPress (including private messages).

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

bbPress is free; BuddyPress, BuddyBoss and Ultimate Member are Extended.

Rules & controls5/53/5
Block and allow listsBlock or allow specific IPs, emails, words or user roles.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Personal block/allow lists for IPs, subnets, emails and domains, plus role and URL exclusions.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Paid version Extended

Extended blocks repeat-spammer IPs and filters spam keywords.

Country & language filtersBlock submissions by country or language.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Paid version Extra Package

Country block list and stop-words come with the Extra Package (+50% of licence).

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not included

No country or language blocking in free or Extended.

Spam log & statisticsLog of blocked submissions with counts and reasons.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Cloud dashboard logs every request for 7 days (45 days with Extra Package).

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Partial

Free dashboard counts blocked attempts; Extended records submissions and IPs.

Skip for logged-in usersHide the challenge for logged-in or trusted users.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Logged-in users are skipped unless 'Protect logged in users' is on; roles can be excluded.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not included

No logged-in bypass; the honeypot is invisible so there is nothing to skip.

Custom labels & error messagesChange challenge text, errors, theme or language.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Paid version Extra Package

Custom block response messages are an Extra Package feature.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Partial

Spam error message is configurable; there is no visible challenge to style.

Privacy & performance2/42/4
Privacy & GDPR optionsNo tracking cookies, data minimisation or a documented GDPR mode.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Documented GDPR compliance, an option to stop setting cookies and field exclusions for personal data.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

Readme says no tracking, cookie storage or external server calls.

Works without an external serviceCore protection runs entirely on your own server.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Not included

SaaS: every check runs on CleanTalk's cloud servers.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

All checks run on your own server with no API calls.

Scripts load only where neededCAPTCHA scripts are only loaded on pages that have a protected form.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Not included

Bot-detection script and SpamFireWall run site-wide by design, not only on form pages.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not included

The small honeypot script is enqueued on every front-end and login page.

Multisite supportWorks across a WordPress multisite network.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Multisite compatible, with per-site settings or a global access key for the network.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not verified

Multisite support is not documented.

Form & plugin integrations17/1714/17
Contact Form 7 KeyProtects Contact Form 7 forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Contact Form 7 submissions are filtered out of the box.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

Contact Form 7 is protected in the free version.

WPFormsProtects WPForms forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Filters WPForms submissions for every form type.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

WPForms is protected in the free version.

Gravity FormsProtects Gravity Forms forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Gravity Forms is on the built-in supported forms list.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Partial

Free covers non-Ajax single-page forms; Ajax and multi-step need Extended.

Elementor Pro formsProtects Elementor Pro form widgets.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Elementor forms are on the built-in supported forms list.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

Elementor forms are protected in the free version.

Ninja FormsProtects Ninja Forms forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Ninja Forms is on the built-in supported forms list.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Paid version Extended

Ninja Forms protection needs WP Armour Extended.

Formidable FormsProtects Formidable Forms forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Formidable Forms is on the built-in supported forms list.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

Formidable Forms is protected in the free version.

Fluent FormsProtects Fluent Forms forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Fluent Forms is on the built-in supported forms list.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

Fluent Forms is protected in the free version.

ForminatorProtects Forminator forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Forminator forms are on the built-in supported list, including multi-step forms.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Paid version Extended

Forminator protection needs WP Armour Extended.

Divi contact formsProtects Divi contact form modules.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Plugin code detects and checks Divi contact form module submissions.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

Divi theme contact form is protected in the free version.

Easy Digital DownloadsProtects EDD checkout, login or registration.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Easy Digital Downloads is on the built-in supported list.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Paid version Extended

EDD checkout and registration need WP Armour Extended.

BuddyPressProtects BuddyPress registration and activity.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Checks BuddyPress registrations, plus a dedicated BuddyPress integration class.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Paid version Extended

BuddyPress and BuddyBoss protection needs WP Armour Extended.

bbPressProtects bbPress topics and replies.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

bbPress is on the supported list; topics, replies and registrations are checked.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

bbPress forum is protected in the free version.

Ultimate MemberProtects Ultimate Member login and registration.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Hooks Ultimate Member's registration submit to check new sign-ups for spam.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Paid version Extended

Ultimate Member protection needs WP Armour Extended.

MemberPressProtects MemberPress signup and login.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Validates MemberPress signups via its registration check.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not included

MemberPress is not in the free or Extended supported lists.

Mailchimp for WP (MC4WP)Protects MC4WP newsletter sign-up forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

MC4WP: Mailchimp for WordPress is on the built-in supported list.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Paid version Extended

MC4WP sign-up forms need WP Armour Extended.

wpDiscuzProtects wpDiscuz comment forms.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

wpDiscuz comments are on the built-in supported list.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not included

wpDiscuz is not in the free or Extended supported lists.

Custom forms & developer APIProtect any custom form via shortcode, function or hooks.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Protects custom and external forms via settings, plus a check_message API for custom code.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not verified
Advanced protection6/64/6
Bot firewallBlocks known spam bots before pages load.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

SpamFireWall blocks known spam bot IPs before they load site pages.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Partial

No bot firewall; Extended only blocks IPs after repeated spam submissions.

Disposable email blockingRejects throwaway or fake email addresses.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Blocks disposable and temporary email addresses and checks emails exist.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not included

No email address checks; Extended adds a keyword filter only.

Card-testing protectionStops bots testing stolen cards at WooCommerce checkout.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Partial

Checks checkout and add-payment-method submissions for bots; no dedicated card-testing rules.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Paid version Extended

Extended covers WooCommerce checkout including card-testing orders.

REST API & XML-RPC protectionBlocks spam or abuse through the REST API or XML-RPC.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Partial

Blocks XML-RPC pingbacks and checks some plugin REST routes; no general API lockdown.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Not verified
Spam review & false-positive recoveryReview blocked submissions and approve false positives.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Spam goes to the Spam folder, blocked orders can be stored and restored, and a cloud log lists requests.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Paid version Extended

Extended records spam submissions for viewing; approving false positives is not documented.

Test mode & debuggingTest keys, debug logs or a test mode to check setup safely.
CleanTalk Spam Protection Included

Test with stop_email@example.com for forms and a special test IP for SpamFireWall.

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Included

Admins see a WP Armour test widget under protected forms to confirm it works.

Statuses: Yes Pro Add-on Partial 3rd-party No ?

Pricing compared

CleanTalk Spam Protection Premium

Anti-Spam 1 site$12 per year, 1 site
Anti-Spam 3 sites$24 per year, 3 sites
Anti-Spam 5 sites$36 per year, 5 sites
Anti-Spam 10 sites$69 per year, 10 sites
Anti-Spam Unlimited$27 per month, Unlimited

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam Freemium

Free$0
FreeFree lifetime, Unlimited
Extended Personal$19.99 per year, 1 site
Extended Business$49.99 per year, 5 sites
Extended Corporate$99.99 per year, 100 sites

Downloads trend

CleanTalk Spam Protection

123,528 downloads last week

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam

8,689 downloads last week

Verdict

Based on our feature data Checked 6 Oct 2026

CleanTalk Spam Protection scores higher on our feature checklist (85/100 against 67/100) and includes cloud spam filtering, country & language filters and skip for logged-in users that WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam does not. WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam still has the edge on works without an external service. Only WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam has a free version. Check the features you rely on in the table below before deciding.

Biggest differences

Cloud spam filtering

CleanTalk Spam Protection: included. WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam: not included. IP, email and domain checked against CleanTalk's cloud database of spam activity.

Country & language filters

CleanTalk Spam Protection: paid version (Extra Package). WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam: not included. Country block list and stop-words come with the Extra Package (+50% of licence).

Skip for logged-in users

CleanTalk Spam Protection: included. WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam: not included. Logged-in users are skipped unless 'Protect logged in users' is on; roles can be excluded.

Works without an external service

CleanTalk Spam Protection: not included. WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam: included. All checks run on your own server with no API calls.

MemberPress

CleanTalk Spam Protection: included. WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam: not included. Validates MemberPress signups via its registration check.

wpDiscuz

CleanTalk Spam Protection: included. WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam: not included. wpDiscuz comments are on the built-in supported list.

Written from the feature, pricing and install data on this page, not from hands-on testing. How we compare.

Which would you choose?

0 votes so far. Vote to see the results.

FAQ

Which is better, CleanTalk Spam Protection or WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam?

CleanTalk Spam Protection scores higher on our feature checklist (85/100 against 67/100) and includes cloud spam filtering, country & language filters and skip for logged-in users that WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam does not. WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam still has the edge on works without an external service. Only WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam has a free version. Check the features you rely on in the table below before deciding.

Which has more features?

CleanTalk Spam Protection includes 40 of the 46 features we track, against 32 for WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam. Feature count is only part of the picture; check which of the differences matter to you.

Is CleanTalk Spam Protection free?

CleanTalk Spam Protection is premium only. Paid plans start at $12/yr.

Is WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam free?

WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam has a free version on WordPress.org. Paid plans start at $19.99/yr.

Feature data last changed 6 Oct 2026. Spotted something wrong? Suggest an edit to CleanTalk Spam Protection or WP Armour – Honeypot Anti Spam. Some links are affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no cost to you; it never affects our data or rankings.