The best WordPress cache plugins

This article covers the topic of caching, including why you should use a caching plugin and the best options: WP Rocket, WP-Optimize, Cachify, WP Fastest Cache, FlyingPress, and Litespeed Cache. Read on to discover the right plugin for your website!

What is cache?

The first time you visit a website, it may take a little longer for the page to load. However, if you visit a page repeatedly, you'll notice it loads significantly faster.

This is primarily due to caching. Caching is a technique that stores data in temporary memory so that it can be served more quickly on future requests. This process creates a copy of your web page and saves it as a single file.

Instead of regenerating the page each time, WordPress displays the cached version, which significantly reduces loading times.

How caching works

1. A user visits a website and requests a page.
2. The web server checks whether a cached version of the page exists.
3. If a copy exists, it is sent to the user's browser.
4. If no copy exists, the server creates the page, caches it, and then sends it to the user.
5. The cached version will be used on future visits, which speeds up loading.

Caching has a huge impact on website performance.
It is a key technique to improve user experience and significantly reduce loading times.

Why should you use a caching plugin?

• Faster loading times: A cached page loads much faster because the data is retrieved from the cache and does not have to be generated again.
• Improved user experience: Visitors to your website benefit from shorter loading times, resulting in a better user experience.
• SEO benefits: Search engines prefer faster loading pages, which can lead to better rankings.
• Resource conservationCaching reduces the load on the server because fewer resources need to be used to load the page.

I use these cache plugins

• Litespeed cache on Litespeed servers
• FlyingPress and WPRocket on “standard web servers” (do not use them together, I will explain why!)

WP Rocket ($59/year)

WP Rocket is the most popular caching plugin, and for good reason: It ensures website loads extremely quickly. Due to its easy installation and almost instant functionality, I'm mentioning this plugin first—and thus at number 1.

It offers many features such as page caching, cache preloading, and database optimization. It's easy to use and requires no technical knowledge.

Advantages of WP Rocket

• Can be used directly without server configuration
• Very simple interface without a lot of frills
• 1-click configuration: Install and activate the plugin, and caching will be enabled automatically
• Integrated WooCommerce compatibility: Support for WooCommerce out of the box, no additional configuration required.
• Integrated lazy loading: Images are loaded only when needed, instead of loading all at once each time the page is viewed.

The surface

Easy to understand & ready to use. Check it out here:

The plugin doesn't have many settings—and that's a good thing. Plus, it works with any theme and plugin.

And the one-click exceptions are also recommended.

It also supports Preload & Autofill:

Negatives about WP Rocket…

Well, it costs money. But like anything good, it's definitely worth it.

Price for WP Rocket: $59/year

FlyingPress ($42/year)

Not quite as popular as WP Rocket, but sometimes even better: FlyingPress

FlyingPress is highly recommended because it is faster than WP Rocket (but harder to configure).

If you can take half an hour to configure the plugin, you won't regret it.

A particularly positive feature here is that it offers bloating features, meaning it "de-bloats" WordPress. You can disable features that could place a strain on the server:

Speed with Flyingpress

Litespeed Cache (Free)

LiteSpeed Cache (LSCWP) is a powerful, free WordPress plugin specifically designed to dramatically improve website loading speed. It works in conjunction with the LiteSpeed Web Server (LSWS), making it an ideal solution for those hosting on LiteSpeed-based servers.

Main features of LiteSpeed Cache:

1. Server-level full-page cache: The plugin saves complete pages at the server level, which reduces the number of requests to the server and significantly shortens response times.
2. Private Cache and Edge Side Includes (ESI): LiteSpeed offers both public and private caching and enables efficient caching of dynamic content via ESI.
3. Image optimization: Images can be automatically optimized, further reducing loading times.
4. Database optimization: The plugin also provides database optimization tools to further improve performance.
5. CSS/JavaScript/HTML optimization: LiteSpeed can combine and minimize these files, further optimizing loading times.
6. QUIC.cloud CDN: It integrates seamlessly with the QUIC.cloud Content Delivery Network (CDN), accelerating content delivery worldwide.
7. Lazy Load: Images are only loaded when they appear in the user's field of vision, which further improves loading time.

Advantages

• compatibility: LiteSpeed Cache works seamlessly with popular WordPress plugins like WooCommerce, Yoast, Elementor and many more.
• Increased website performance: The plugin not only increases the speed, but can also the SEO rankings improve, as faster pages are preferred by search engines.
• Flexible cache options: LSCWP offers a variety of caching options, including the ability to selectively delete cache and integrate external CDN services.

LiteSpeed Cache for WordPress is a great caching plugin for anyone running their WordPress websites on a LiteSpeed server. Featuring powerful optimization and caching tools, it offers a complete acceleration solution that improves loading speed while reducing server load.

It is also particularly useful for high-traffic websites where every millisecond counts.

WP Fastest Cache (Free)

WP Fastest Cache is one of the most popular cache plugins for WordPress and is very popular with website owners who want to optimize the loading times of their pages.

This plugin is free and offers basic features. The plugin has been downloaded more than 1 million times and is considered a reliable tool. It's easy to use and has good features. This plugin allows you to create static HTML files. This reduces the load on the server and makes your website run much faster.

After adjusting WP Fastest Cache's settings, you may want to install more plugins and make further improvements to boost your site's performance. One option is to use Perfmatters, which addresses many of these issues. Alternatively, you can switch to a better caching plugin that supports Core Web Vitals. I personally use FlyingPress for this.

The biggest drawback is that it isn't optimized for Core Web Vitals and lacks many features. The changelog shows that there have been no significant updates in years, and there are no dates listed.

Comparison of the plugins

The table shows that WP Fastest Cache is free and easy to set up, but compared to other plugins like FlyingPress or LiteSpeed Cache many advanced features and optimizations (like Core Web Vitals and CDN integration) are missing.

Which cache plugin should I choose?

Choosing the right caching plugin depends on your specific requirements:

• WPRocket is ideal if you want a premium plugin with comprehensive features.
• FlyingPress is a lightweight premium caching plugin focused on maximum performance. It offers advanced features like lazy loading, image optimization, and a simple user interface, making it especially well-suited for WordPress websites that require fast loading speed.
• LiteSpeed Cache is an excellent option if your web server uses LiteSpeed. It offers server-side caching, which can be significantly faster than traditional file-based caching. The plugin also supports features such as image optimization, minification, and HTTP/2 push.
• WP Fastest Cache is a free option.

While WP Rocket and Flyingpress are paid, LS-Cache is free.

Conclusion

All three plugins are great. The important thing is: You should only use one cache plugin and not several.

My choice #1 is Litespeed, followed by the other two. What do you think? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.