Are you looking for the best WordPress caching plugins?
Caching helps you speed up your WordPress site and boost performance.
In this guide, we will share your site’s best WordPress caching plugins.
What Is a Cache?
A cache is a collection of temporarily stored data for quick access upon request. In computers, information is usually stored on a hard disk. When it is requested, a computer needs to run several processes before the information can be presented.
Caching solves this issue by processing the frequently requested information and storing it in temporary or memory. This allows computers to access the file quickly.
WordPress websites can also use the same caching concept to improve performance and make your website load faster.
You see, WordPress is a dynamic content management system. This means that each time a user visits your website, WordPress fetches information from the database and then runs several other steps before the web page is sent to the user’s browser. For details, see our article on how WordPress actually works.
This makes your website load slower when a lot of users are visiting it at the same time.
Caching allows your WordPress site to skip a lot of steps. Instead of going through the whole page generation process every time, your caching plugin makes a copy of the page after the first load and then serves that cached version to every subsequent user.
Why Is Caching Important?
Caching is important because it reduces the load on your WordPress hosting servers and makes your website run faster. You need a proper caching setup to improve your WordPress speed and performance.
A faster website improves user experience and encourages users to visit more pages. This also helps you boost engagement and the time users spend on your website.
A faster website helps you drive even more traffic to your website from organic search. Google gives a significant SEO advantage to faster websites, which helps you rank higher in search results.
That being said, let’s look at the best WordPress caching plugins you can use to boost your website speed.
1. WP Rocket
WP Rocket is the best WordPress caching plugin in the market. It is the easiest and most beginner-friendly caching plugin, which is a big help if you don’t know the technical terms used for different caching options.
It allows users to cache their website with one click instantly. Its crawler automatically fetches your WordPress pages to build up the cache.
The plugin then automatically turns on the recommended WordPress caching settings like gzip compression, page cache, and cache pre-loading.
WP Rocket also includes optional features that you can turn on to improve performance further. This includes lazy loading images, CDN support, DNS pre-fetching, minification, and more.
This is why we use WP Rocket on WPBeginner to speed up our site.
2. WP Super Cache
WP Super Cache is another popular WordPress caching plugin. It is free and comes highly recommended by many of the top WordPress hosting companies.
WP Super Cache plugin includes all recommended caching features that you will need to speed up your website. This includes gzip compression, page cache, cache pre-loading, CDN support, and advanced cache preload.
It includes a comprehensive settings section with a separate tab for easy setup. For detailed instructions, see our article on installing and setting up the WP Super Cache plugin.
3. W3 Total Cache
W3 Total Cache is one of the most popular WordPress caching plugins. It is a comprehensive WordPress caching plugin with a ton of options which may make it appear a bit intimidating for beginners.
It includes all the features you will need to set up a WordPress cache properly. This includes page cache, object cache, gzip compression, limited minification support, and CDN support.
Beginners may find W3 Total Cache a bit difficult to use. For detailed setup instructions, see our article on installing and setting up the W3 Total Cache plugin.
4. Sucuri Firewall
Sucuri is the best WordPress firewall and security plugin. As a website firewall, Sucuri comes with a built-in option to cache your website content and enable gzip compression with a click of a button.
It is the best option for any website because Sucuri is a DNS-level firewall. This means that they can serve cached content to your users even before their request reaches your website. This gives your website an incredible performance boost.
5. Built-in Cache Plugins from Hosting
Caching helps significantly reduce the load on hosting servers, allowing them to perform optimally. This is why many managed WordPress hosting companies now offer their own built-in caching solutions.
If your website is hosted with one of the following hosting companies, you can use their built-in caching plugins.
SG SuperCacher
SiteGround offers a built-in caching solution with all their hosting plans. It can be enabled from your hosting account’s dashboard.
Once enabled, their dynamic WordPress caching will improve your website speed anywhere from 50-500%. They have also added an option for site owners to enable Memcache.
SiteGround has also added Brotli compression, which can help you unlock 15-20% speed improvements.
Overall, SiteGround’s caching has improved a ton. If you’re on their platform, you wouldn’t need caching plugins like WP Rocket or others.
WP Engine Caching
WP Engine is one of the best-managed WordPress hosting companies. Their hosting plans come with built-in caching and performance optimization.
You can manage settings and clear the cache from your WordPress admin dashboard. Simply click on the WP Engine menu and under the General settings tab you can manage WP Engine cache settings.
Bluehost Caching
Bluehost is one of the biggest hosting companies in the world and an officially recommended WordPress hosting provider. Their hosting plans include built-in caching that you can enable from your hosting dashboard.
After logging into your hosting account, select your site from the ‘My Sites’ page and click the performance tab. You can turn the cache on / off and change other advanced caching settings.
We hope this article helped you find the WordPress caching plugin to speed up your website. You may also want to see our list of best WordPress plugins for business websites and our comprehensive WordPress SEO tutorial to help you boost your rankings.
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