This is a guest post by Kip. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here.
Slow page loads cause visitors to leave your site and go somewhere else, leaving you without sales and without subscribers. Slow page loads can also prompt Google to downgrade your page rank, causing you even more lost revenue. WordPress pages can be slow because of the large number of files and database calls the system must process while the visitor waits to see it. By saving these dynamic pages as static HTML after they are viewed, subsequent page views are served much faster. Fortunately, adding caching to WordPress is as easy as adding a couple files to your server. Here are the 8 best WordPress caching plugins you can use to make your Web site more responsive and profitable.
1. WP-Cache is one of the first WordPress cache solutions ever to be created. With this plugin installed, WordPress can serve up hundreds more pages per second. This reduced server load accommodates hundreds or even thousands more visitors to your blog without any noticeable performance degradation. Although this is not the fastest cache plugin, it remains one of the most popular.
2. WP Super Cache uses three methods to cache data (Mod_Rewrite, PHP, and Legacy Caching) to make your content display quickly to your visitors even when your server is under a heavy load. With its recommended settings, WP_Super Cache will compress pages and cache PHP code while serving original pages to known users. The makers of the plug-in say that 99% of your visitors will see static pages, suggesting that search engines and visitors will all have a good experience on your site.
3. DB Cache is a WordPress plugin that professes to speed WordPress beyond traditional HTML caching to make it the fastest cache solution that is available. With DB Cache installed your WordPress cache takes less space and your server deals with a lighter load than with other cache plugins.
4. WP Widget Cache will cache WordPress widgets to make your blog go even faster than it does with a page cache only This is especially important for bloggers who have an above average number of widgets in use. Since widgets are found on most pages, this plugin can speed up every page (including unpopular pages) so users and search engines will have positive feelings about your blog.
5. Hyper Cache is a WordPress cache pluigin designed for installations on minimal hosting providers. This is important because the average low resource Web host doesn’t have the space and the horsepower to support a full blown hosting solution. This plugin serves cached pages without any database access and minimizes cached storage space to so that even low-end packages can host speedy WordPress blogs.
6. DB Cache Reloaded is a WordPress cache plugin that branched off of the original DB Cache after the original author didn’t promptly update the plugin for newer WordPress versions. This cache will work with the most recent versions of WordPress.
7. 1 Blog Cacher is an ultra lightweight cache that is gaining in popularity even though virtually all of its configuration options are set in a single PHP file. This is an HTML cache, meaning that dynamic pages are saved as HTML for future visitors. Because of its low profile, this plugin caches only GET requests on the server. The plugin also supports the ability to define the length of time before pages expire.
8. W3 Total Cache Is billed as one of the most robust caching plugins available. It offers impressive speed gains “out of box” with plenty of options to tweak it for your particular preferences. Several options for caching for pages and databases, minifying, and content delivery networks makes this an attractive option for experienced bloggers.
Try one or more of the 8 best WordPress caching plugins listed here to improve your page loading speeds. Your effort will be rewarded with more satisfied customers, better search engine ranking, and a bigger bottom line.
Kip is a tech writer for BroadbandCompare.com.au, an Australian website where you can compare broadband plans and deals from the best broadband providers.