3 tips each for speeding up your server, optimizing content, and plugins that can be used to make WordPress load faster.

1. Speeding up WordPress
Jason Yingling
@jason_yingling
Jasonyingling.me

2. Where to Test
• Google Pagespeed Insights -
https://developers.google.com/speed/pagesp
eed/insights/
• GT Metrix - https://gtmetrix.com/

3. Pick good hosting
• Helps:
– Reduce server response time
– Leverage browser caching
– Enable compression

4. Server Speedup

5. Setup Cloudflare
• Easily minify and concatenate HTML, CSS, JS
• Bundle and load JS asynchronously
• Cache files
• Helps with:
– Minify CSS
– Minify HTML
– Minify Javascript
– Minify request size
– Prefer asynchronous resources
– Defer parsing of JS

6. Setup Caching
• Store static files in a cache so they are
accessed faster
• Most hosts have some form of caching
available
• Plugins:
– W3 Total Cache
• Helps:
– Leverage browser caching

7. Enable Compression
• Gzip it up via .htaccess or your host
• https://codex.wordpress.org/Output_Compre
ssion
• http://winningwp.com/how-to-enable-gzip-
compression-for-wordpress/
• Helps:
– Enable compression

8. Optimize Your Content

9. Crop and Resize Images
• Images make up > 60% of average site file size
• Don’t upload massive 3000 x 3000 images for a 150 x 150
square
• Editor Tip:
– Use Photoshop or Canva to crop images to smaller sizes
– https://photo-editor.canva.com/
• Developer Tip:
– Use add_image_size() to create thumbnail sizes to use within
themes
• Helps:
– Minimize request size
– Serve scaled images
– Optimize images

10. Optimize Images
• Reduce the file size of images
• ImageOptim
• Plugins
– WP Smush It
– Kraken.io
• Helps:
– Optimize images

11. Optimize Content
• Use embeds sparingly
– They’re nice but can load slow
• Be aware of what plugins add
– More JS
– More CSS
• Helps:
– Minimize request size
– Defer parsing of Javascript

12. Plugins

13. Jetpack Photon
• CDN for images
– Serves images from WordPress.com
• Scales images it serves to the browser
• Performs “blur up” method of loading
• Helps:
– Serve scaled images
– Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN)
– Optimize images

14. Autoptimize
• Minify and concatenate CSS and JS
• Works with scripts enqueued by plugins
• Helps:
– Minify HTML
– Minify CSS
– Minify JS
– Minimize request size
– Make fewer http requests

15. a3 Lazy Load
• Easily lazy load images and iframes below the
fold
• Helps:
– Defer parsing of Javascript
– Minimize request size
– Reduce server response time
– Prioritize visible content
– Eliminate render-blocking Javascript and CSS in
above-the-fold content