SiteFort vs Sucuri: an honest comparison
Sucuri is well-known for its cloud WAF and cleanup service. SiteFort is a WordPress plugin with a different core strength: the entire WordPress hardening and active protection stack is free, with no DNS change required. They solve the same problem in architecturally different ways, and the distinction changes which one is right for a given situation.
Which one fits your situation
The clearest signal: SiteFort Free includes a working firewall, complete hardening, 2FA, CAPTCHA, and vulnerability scanning. Sucuri Free has no WAF. To get firewall protection from Sucuri you need to pay $199/year and change your DNS.
SiteFort is free to install. Full firewall, 2FA, and vulnerability scanning at no cost.
How the choice plays out in practice
Four common situations where the right answer is obvious once you understand the architecture.
Site already using Cloudflare
You cannot use both Cloudflare and Sucuri proxy simultaneously without a complex split configuration. SiteFort is the natural fit: it works inside WordPress and syncs rules to your existing Cloudflare setup. If the site is already behind Cloudflare, there is no reason to reroute traffic through a second proxy.
Site that has been hacked multiple times
If a site repeatedly gets reinfected, Sucuri's unlimited cleanup subscription may be more cost-effective than per-incident fees. SiteFort's Managed plan at $299/year also includes unlimited cleanup and is worth comparing directly at this use case.
Agency managing WordPress and non-WordPress sites
SiteFort only works on WordPress. If the agency portfolio includes Drupal, Magento, or Joomla, Sucuri can protect those under the same platform. SiteFort would only cover the WordPress portion of the fleet.
WooCommerce store on a budget
For a single WooCommerce store that cannot afford $199/year for a security platform, SiteFort Free is the more practical starting point. Full firewall, 2FA, hardening, vulnerability scanning, and country blocking at no cost. Upgrade to Pro at $99/year when scheduled scans and Slack alerts become necessary.
Sucuri and SiteFort work in completely different ways
This is not a minor implementation detail. It changes the setup process, what DNS records you control, whether Cloudflare is compatible, and what happens during a DDoS attack. Worth understanding before comparing features.
Installs inside WordPress. The firewall runs at the PHP level before WordPress loads. Scanning is cloud-powered but the plugin lives in your wp-admin. All settings are controlled from your WordPress dashboard. No DNS changes, no traffic rerouting, no third-party proxy.
SiteFort is WordPress-specific by design. Everything is built around how WordPress actually works: plugin vulnerabilities, login attacks, PHP execution paths, wp-admin hardening, and the quirks of shared hosting.
Sucuri's WAF and CDN work by routing all website traffic through Sucuri's proxy servers. To use the firewall, you point your domain's DNS to Sucuri. They inspect and filter traffic before it reaches your hosting server.
Sucuri is platform-agnostic and works on Drupal, Joomla, Magento, and other CMSes, not just WordPress. If you run non-WordPress sites, that breadth has real value. But the DNS change requirement is a meaningful operational consideration.
What this means in practice: Sucuri's WAF blocks traffic before it reaches your server. SiteFort's firewall blocks traffic at the PHP level after the request reaches your server but before WordPress processes it. Both stop attacks. The difference matters most during high-volume DDoS or bot attacks where even blocked requests at the PHP layer add server load. In that scenario, Sucuri's DNS-level blocking has a performance advantage.
What the free Sucuri plugin actually includes
Sucuri has a free WordPress plugin with over 900,000 active installs. It provides real value. Here is what it includes and where it stops.
- SiteCheck scanner: external remote scan that checks public-facing pages for known malware, blacklist status, and SEO spam from the outside
- Core integrity check: compares WordPress core files against official checksums and flags unauthorised modifications
- Security hardening: one-click actions for common WordPress security gaps
- Activity auditing: logs logins, plugin installs, settings changes, and other site activity
- Blacklist monitoring: checks whether the domain is flagged on Google Safe Browsing and other major blocklists
- ·Web Application Firewall: the WAF is paid and requires a DNS change to route traffic through Sucuri's proxy. The free plugin has no WAF capability
- ·DDoS and volumetric protection: only available through the paid cloud proxy
- ·CDN: content delivery network is paid-only
- ·Malware cleanup: expert removal by the Sucuri team requires a paid platform subscription
- ·Country blocking and rate limiting: firewall-level traffic controls are paid-only
The SiteCheck scanner in the free plugin scans from the outside, the same way a visitor would see the site. It catches malware visible in page source, injected scripts, and blacklist flags. It does not access your server files directly. Securewp offers a free remote scanner at /security-checker/ with similar external scanning at no cost and no signup required.
SiteFort vs Sucuri, feature by feature
Based on publicly available information as of June 2026. Features and pricing change, so confirm on each provider's site before buying.
| Feature | SiteFort | Sucuri |
|---|---|---|
| Firewall | ||
WAF availability When and how the firewall is active | Free, runs inside WordPress (PHP level) | Paid platform only. Requires DNS change to route traffic through Sucuri proxy |
DDoS protection Absorb volumetric traffic floods | Rate limiting and Cloudflare edge (if Cloudflare active) | DNS-level. Absorbs traffic before reaching server |
Cloudflare sync Push rules to Cloudflare edge | Yes, free. Push IP, country, bot rules to Cloudflare | Not available. Sucuri uses its own proxy, separate from Cloudflare |
Country blocking Block or allow traffic by country | Free | Paid platform |
CDN Content delivery network for speed | Not included | Included with all paid plans |
| Scanning and detection | ||
Malware scanning Detection architecture | Cloud-side. 3,000 credits/month free, unlimited on Pro | SiteCheck external scan (free), server-side scanner on paid plans |
Vulnerability scanning CVE detection in plugins, themes, core | Free | Paid platform plans |
CMS compatibility Which platforms are supported | WordPress only | WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, Magento, Shopify, and others |
| Login security and hardening | ||
Two-factor authentication | Free, all roles | Paid platform (via protected pages) |
Login CAPTCHA | Free | Not listed in free plugin |
Security headers (CSP, HSTS) | Free with header analyzer | Partial via WAF on paid plans |
Breached password detection | Free | Not listed as a feature |
| Management and reporting | ||
Multi-site console Central dashboard for connected sites | Free on all plans. Scan history, CVE status, uptime, SSL, alerts, team roles, client reports | Agency plans available. Paid dashboard with custom branding |
Uptime monitoring | Pro (1-minute intervals) | Available on paid platform plans |
| Cleanup and incident response | ||
Expert malware cleanup | $149 one-time, includes 12 months SiteFort Pro. Free in Managed | Unlimited cleanups included in all paid platform plans |
Reinfection warranty | 12 months per cleanup job | Covered while subscribed |
Response SLA | Agent assigned within 30 minutes. Full cleanup 5 to 12 hours | Varies by plan. Business plan: 6-hour response SLA |
What you actually pay
The free tier difference alone is the most important pricing signal here.
Full firewall, country blocking, 2FA, hardening, vulnerability scanner, CAPTCHA, Cloudflare sync, 3,000 scan credits/month
Unlimited scans, scheduled scans, uptime monitoring, Slack/Discord alerts. Volume pricing: $79/site at 5+ sites
Everything in Pro, plus dedicated agent, daily scans, plugin updates, CVE patching, 24/7 monitoring, unlimited cleanup included. Volume pricing: $249/site at 5+ sites
Includes 12 months SiteFort Pro. Agent assigned within 30 minutes. 12-month reinfection warranty
SiteCheck external scan, core integrity check, basic hardening, activity logging. No WAF, no cleanup, no CDN
WAF, CDN, unlimited malware cleanups, blacklist monitoring. Requires DNS change
Custom SSL, advanced WAF options, faster cleanup response
6-hour cleanup SLA, advanced DDoS, priority support
Pricing reflects publicly available information as of June 2026. Verify current prices on each provider's site before purchase.
Where each genuinely has the edge
An honest breakdown. Sucuri is better at a few important things. So is SiteFort. The right answer depends on which advantages actually matter for the site in question.
- Complete hardening and protection, entirely free. Firewall, country blocking, rate limiting, CAPTCHA, 2FA, security headers, PHP execution blocking, custom login URL, vulnerability scanner: all free in SiteFort. Sucuri Free has no WAF. To get active traffic protection from Sucuri you need to pay $199/year and change your DNS.
- No DNS change required. SiteFort installs like any WordPress plugin. Some managed hosts restrict DNS changes, and some teams simply do not want a third party in the request path for all their traffic.
- Works alongside Cloudflare. If the site already uses Cloudflare, SiteFort syncs firewall rules to the edge. Running Sucuri and Cloudflare simultaneously as proxy layers is not possible without complex configuration.
- Much lower entry cost. SiteFort Pro is $99/year. Sucuri's entry paid platform is $199.99/year. For an agency managing 10 sites, that is a $1,000+ annual difference per site.
- ·Unlimited malware cleanups included. Every Sucuri paid platform plan includes unlimited malware removal. For sites that get hacked repeatedly, this is a meaningful difference over per-incident fees.
- ·DNS-level DDoS protection. Sucuri absorbs volumetric traffic floods before they reach the server. SiteFort with Cloudflare can push rules to the edge, but without Cloudflare, high-volume attacks hit the origin server even if blocked at PHP.
- ·CDN bundled. Sucuri includes a global CDN with every paid plan, which can meaningfully improve page load time alongside protection.
- ·Platform-agnostic. Sucuri protects Drupal, Joomla, Magento, and Shopify. SiteFort is WordPress-only.
You want a DNS-level WAF and CDN in front of the site, need protection across non-WordPress platforms, prefer unlimited cleanups included in the subscription, or a DNS change is not a constraint.
Common questions about SiteFort vs Sucuri
Does Sucuri require a DNS change to protect my site?
Yes, if you want the WAF. The free Sucuri WordPress plugin does not require a DNS change and provides scanning and hardening. But the firewall, CDN, and DDoS protection require you to point your domain DNS to Sucuri. If a DNS change is not possible on your hosting setup, the free plugin is all you can use from Sucuri.
Can I use Sucuri and Cloudflare at the same time?
Not as simultaneous proxy layers. Both Sucuri and Cloudflare route traffic through their own network. You cannot proxy through both at once without complex configuration. If the site already uses Cloudflare, you would need to choose between them. SiteFort works alongside Cloudflare without conflict and syncs rules directly to the Cloudflare edge.
Is Sucuri worth $199 per year for a WordPress site?
It depends on what the site needs. If it gets hacked regularly and unlimited cleanups in the subscription saves money over per-incident fees, the price is easy to justify. For standard daily WordPress protection without a DNS change, SiteFort Pro at $99/year covers comparable ground at roughly half the cost.
What does the free Sucuri plugin protect against?
Remote malware scanning via SiteCheck, core file integrity checking, basic hardening actions, activity auditing, and blacklist monitoring. It has no firewall, so it will not block malicious traffic in real time. Think of it as a monitoring and hardening layer, not active traffic protection. The WAF requires a paid platform plan and a DNS change.
The short version
SiteFort's entire hardening and protection stack is free. For most WordPress sites that is the decision made. If you need DNS-level DDoS absorption, a bundled CDN, or unlimited cleanups included in a subscription, Sucuri is the stronger choice. If you want full WordPress protection without a DNS change, without a paywall for hardening basics, and without $199/year as the entry point, SiteFort is.
Server-side vs cloud scanning, Cloudflare sync, free tier differences.
Cloud scanning vs file integrity. Backup bundling, virtual patching, warranty.
Free plan depth, automated cleanup, plan flexibility, agency pricing.
35-capability table covering all five plugins in one place.
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