WP Rocket Review [2021] – The Best WordPress Caching Plugin to Speed Up Your Site

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WP Rocket plugin is known to be one of the best WordPress caching plugins to optimize a site for performance and PageSpeed. In this WP Rocket review, we’ll learn how to achieve guaranteed page speed with the WP-Rocket plugin.

We’ll also dig-deep and compare the WP Rocket alternatives and find out how WP Rocket is better than popular WordPress caching plugins like W3 Total Cache, WP Super Cache WP-Optimize plugins.

Fastest WordPress Hosting Anywhere!

But before we begin let’s discuss why your site should load faster and how it is beneficial for your business.

It is especially for newbies, you can skip this part if you think you already know.

Why You Should Increase Website Speed?

It is a known fact that speed makes or breaks your website.

If your site loads slower than 3 seconds, then you are bound to lose visitors. And, when you lose visitors, you also get less revenue.

Improved Page Load Time Boosts Conversions
Improved Page Load Time Boosts Conversions

Everything is connected, and that’s why as a business, your prime focus should be on optimal website load time.

According to the statistics, a one-second delay can result in an 11% reduction in views.

Website Speed is a Google Search Ranking Factor

Google is using site speed as an important ranking factor since year 2010.

Search engine rankings of slow loading webpages downgraded by the Google search algorithm considering less valuable to visitors.

That will lead to low organic traffic and conversions.

Nobody Like Slow Loading Websites

Nobody Like Slow Loading Websites
Nobody Like Slow Loading Websites

According to the study, people hate slow loading websites. Especially the mobile sites, 77% of mobile shoppers want to purchase from a faster mobile site.

So, it would be a good idea improve your site speed and get higher ranking in search results and your visitors will love your site.

If you are using WordPress, you are in luck as you can take advantage of the available plugins to speed up your site.

One such plugin that we are going to review today is WP Rocket.

As I mentioned earlier,

WP Rocket is one of the leading WordPress plugins that enable you to make your site faster with just a few clicks.

Technically, it is a caching plugin that offers plenty of tweaks and configurations so that you can get immediate results.

In this article, we will go through a detailed WP Rocket Review. But, before we start,

It is important to know that WP Rocket is not a free plugin. They have paid versions only. That’s why we will be focusing deeply on WP Rocket’s price vs. performance ratio.

What is WP Rocket?

WP Rocket is a caching plugin that improves WordPress site speed. It is feature-rich and offers access to page caching, cache preloading, static file compression, images on request, and many other features.

If you are on WordPress, enabling these features can save you a lot of time and help speed up your site. Also, you do not need to know any coding to use the plugin.

What is WP Rocket

In short, it is beginner’s friendly and let you boost your site by giving you features like:

  • Minify and compress HTML, CSS, and JavaScript files
  • Image lazy load
  • Browser Caching and GZIP Compression
  • Cache Preloading using specific and/or Sitemap links
  • DNS Prefetching
  • Google Fonts & Google Analytics Optimization
  • Defer JS Loading
  • Cloudflare Compatibility & CDN Features
  • Database Optimization
  • And many more optimization features!

WP Rocket is known for its quick setup and increases your site speed in a few clicks only.

The WP Rocket plugin helped us to increase our site speed significantly, now our site…

  • Loads in just 600ms
  • Google PageSpeed Score of 99
  • 100% performance score in GTmetrix Performance Grade

Based on these results, we highly recommend WP Rocket plugin.

Continue reading below for in-depth review and more test results.

What is Caching and How WP Rocket Speeds Up Your Site?

Before, we move further and learn what WP Rocket has to offer — it is important to know about caching.

By understanding caching, we can know how WP Rocket speeds up your site.

Caching is an age-old computer science method that enables processes or hardware to speed up things. It is a way of storing important information locally so that the website loads faster.

Let’s take an example to get a better idea.

So, if you visit a site for the first time, it loads all the server data. The server can solve the problem of requesting the same data again by caching some of the static content in the browser.

The next time the site loads, it simply fetches the browser’s cached data and the server’s rest dynamic content.

In short, caching reduces the time it takes for the site to load by storing frequently used static resources on the browser.

WP Rocket takes full advantage of the method as it offers to cache for static data. It also optimizes the sites which in return makes the site load faster.

How WP Rocket Speeds Up Your Site
How WP Rocket Speeds Up Your Site

The plugin implements the best settings out of the box after you activate the plugin and improves site speed in a few clicks.

WP Rocket Review 2020

WP Rocket Review - The Best WordPress Caching Plugin to Speed Up Your Site
WP Rocket Review – The Best WordPress Caching Plugin to Speed Up Your Site

Now that we have a good idea about caching and WP Rocket, it is now time for us to review WP Rocket! and understand its features and impact on site performance.

WP Rocket Features

In this section, we will take a look at WP Rocket Key Features. Let’s get started.

WP Rocket Features
WP Rocket Features

# Combine Static (JS & CSS) files

Another very handy way to minimize the site size is to combine static files. WP Rocket lets you do just that.

If you have CSS and JS files on your site(which you should), you can use the plugin to combine them and reduce the size.

Moreover, by combining resources like this, you are reducing the number of roundtrips for resources, reducing your website’s loading time.

You can find the option to combine static files in the plugin’s File Optimization section.

Combine and Minify CSS & JavaScript files for Optimal Delivery
Combine and Minify CSS & JavaScript files for Optimal Delivery

# Minification

Another way to improve performance is to minify the files. But, what does minify mean?

Minifying is the process of removing the unnecessary space between the code so that its size is reduced. As web browsers do not need readability like humans, the files can be served in minified form and still be readable by the browser.

WP Rocket offers minifying options for CSS, HTML, and JavaScript. Also, you can un-minify the files if you intend to make changes to the code manually.

To minify the files, you need to go to the File Optimization option and enable the options from there.

Learn how to Minify JavaScript and CSS in WordPress to Increase site speed.

# Render-blocking CSS and JavaScript (JS)

When the site first loads, it requests a lot of resources from the server. These resources can include JS, CSS, and other scripts.

However, these resources are not required to optimally load the user’s site in the first few moments.

If the scripts are not deferred, they delay website loading time and hamper the above-the-fold(the screen is shown to the user when the site first loads) rendering time.

WP Rocket offers an easy way to fix this. You can simply use the defer scripts function so that the render-blocking issue doesn’t happen on your site. If you turn on the option, your site will load faster.

It is quite easy to optimize your site for render-blocking issues, learn more about removing render-blocking JavaScript here.

# Media Optimization

A site’s performance is heavily dependent on the media. The media can include images, videos, or GIFs.

With WP Rocket, you can use LazyLoad to load images, and videos when they enter the viewport. Apart from that, you can also disable emoji and embeds to improve your site’s media handling.

Lastly, you can also enable the WebP cache. It is a cache for WebP images on compatible browsers.

WebP is the latest image format that is lightweight and offers great image quality. They also recommend Imagify to create WebP. Read more about WordPress Image optimization in this complete guide.

Media Optimization and Lazy Loading to Defer Off-screen Images
Media Optimization and Lazy Loading to Defer Off-screen Images

# Lazy Loading

Lazy loading is a way to load images when needed.

So, if you have a page with five images — then not all images will be loaded at once.

The images will load when the user needs them. This improves loading time significantly, especially for sites that are image-heavy.

You can turn lazy loading by going to the image optimization options.

Other ways to defer offscreen images by lazy loading are here.

# Page Caching, Browser Caching and Compression

Apart from mobile caching, WP Rocket also enabled browser caching and Gzip compression by default.

Browser caching enables web browsers to store unmodified files on a local disk and deliver these local files on the next request instead of again downloading from the server. That increases the perceived page loading speed drastically.

Further, enabling Gzip/DEFLATE comparison on the server level significantly reduces the file transfer size from the server, which improves the page loading speed.

Learn more about leveraging browser caching and enabling Gzip compression without the plugin here.

Page Caching for Faster PageSpeed
Page Caching for Faster PageSpeed

# Mobile Detection and Caching

Right now, mobiles constitute the majority of traffic. That’s why WP Rocket offers some interesting features aimed at mobile users. One of those features is mobile detection.

The mobile detection feature detects whether the user is using a mobile device or not. Once done, it will give the user the ability to enable all the features.

This is handy for users who do not want the mobile version of your site and want the full experience.

Another key feature here is Mobile Caching where the plugin creates cache rules for mobile users. That ensures the delivery of superfast page loading speed on mobile devices as well.

# Database Optimization

An unoptimized database makes sites slower as it takes the server more time to access resources. That’s why WP Rocket offers database optimization.

With it, you can do post cleanups, auto drafts, and trashed posts. Apart from that, you can also do comments cleanup including spam and trash.

The database also contains transients created by plugins. You can also use WP Rocket to clean them as well. Lastly, it also lets you do database cleanup by optimizing tables.

To ensure that you do not have to do database cleanup now and then, you can actually set up an automatic cleanup schedule. We recommend doing a cleanup every one to two weeks so that it doesn’t tax your server.

Database Optimization
Database Optimization

Before you start using the database optimization option, you need to ensure that you do a proper database backup. Check out this guide for the best backup plugins for WordPress.

Also, WP Rocket does not let you delete tables that are created by left-over plugins. In that case, it is recommended that you utilize other WordPress database plugins such as WP-Optimize.

# Heartbeat Control

You can further optimize your site performance by turning on heartbeat control.

But what is Heartbeat Control and how it works?

Every site has a real-time way to showcase activity. For example, a user editing the post will be shown a message about the activity.

This is really helpful and is needed if you have multiple users accessing the site and performing activities.

By controlling heartbeat, you limit how real-time plugin notifications work and help improve the server performance.

To enable heartbeat control, all you need to do is go to the “Heartbeat” option in the plugin and enable it.

# Remove query strings

Whenever a user interacts with your site, they might generate data or information that needs to be stored or passed to the next page or database.

The data is transferred using query strings which makes the URL look ugly and complex.

The change in URL can have an impact on how search engines value your site. However, you cannot remove query strings from every resource out there. But, static resources like CSS and JavaScript files, can also have query strings.

WP Rocket gives you the ability to remove query strings. By doing so, you will get a better speed score as it enhances the user experience as well.

Here is a complete guide if you want to remove query strings without using a plugin.

# CDN Compatibility

CDN stands for Content Delivery Networks. They provide servers across the globe so that your site can be stored there for faster delivery to different users across the world.

CDN Compatibility
CDN Compatibility

WP Rocket gives you the option to connect to popular CDN providers and make your site more accessible to everyone out there.

You can opt to use their RocketCDN services which start at just $6.99 per month. However, you are also free to use other CDN providers like BunnyCDN, StackPath, and Sucuri. Check out our guide on the best free and paid CDN services for WordPress.

# eCommerce Friendly

eCommerce sites have different problems set to solve when it comes to caching. For example, eCommerce sites simply cannot enable caching on cart and checkout pages.

If caching is enabled, then it will interfere with the functionality of the cart and checkout process.

To counter it, WP Rocket automatically detects if you are running any eCommerce related plugin or solution including WooCommerce, JigoShop, Easy Digital Downloads, WP-Shop, and iThemes Exchange.

# Custom Cache LifeSpan

If you are running a site where you need to customize the cache lifespan, then you can set a custom cache lifespan.

It comes very handy for complex sites that rely heavily on the exchange of data. With customized cache sites, the owner can ensure that the user gets the latest and most up-to-date version.

# Exclude Content from Cache

Just like that, you can also use WP Rocket to exclude content from the cache.

For instance, if you have a live page where information is updated frequently, you might want to exclude the cache’s content.

# Web Hosting Cache Compatibility

WP Rocket is also compatible with the server-level cache provided by various web hosting. However, if your web hosting provider offers server-side caching, you need to disable it before you can use WP Rocket.

How to Setup WP Rocket Plugin

Let’s discuss all the options offered by the WP Rocket plugin and how to setup WP Rocket for optimum performance and to speed up your site.

Check out all the screenshots given below for the best WP Rocket Settings for improved page speed.

Detailed Setup of WP Rocket Settings

In this section, we will take a look at the WP Rocket settings.

If you are going to use the plugin for the first time, you need to configure it correctly to make the most of it.

After installing and activating the WP Rocket plugin.

Go to the Settings > WP Rocket on your WP dashboard. You will find the WP Rocket settings in a vertical-tabbed design, and the first option you will find the dashboard,

# Dashboard

The first thing that you will notice about the plugin is its dashboard.

The dashboard tells you details about your account including a subscription to RocketCDN. Here, you can also check your status regarding Rocket Tester and Rocket Analytics.

WP Rocket Dashboard
WP Rocket Dashboard

Here, you do not need to make any changes.

# Cache

Cache setting is where you get started with caching your site. Here, you can set mobile cache, user cache, and also set cache lifespan.

WP Rocket Cache Settings
WP Rocket Cache Settings
  • Mobile cache → Let you enable caching for mobile users. Here, you also get the option to create separate cache files for mobile users.
  • User cache → Here, you can set user cache. It is best to keep it off. Only turn it on if you are using bbPress or a similar plugin.
  • Cache Lifespan → You can set lifespan in hours and if you want the cache lifetime to be unlimited, then set it to 0.

# File Optimization

Next, it’s time for file optimizations. Here you can minify, combine, and optimize CSS, and JavaScript files.

WP Rocket CSS and JavaScript File Optimization Settings
WP Rocket CSS and JavaScript File Optimization Settings
  • Minify & Combine CSS Files → These options let you minify & combine CSS files into a single file. That will reduce the file size and HTTP requests. You can use Specify URLs if you want any file to exclude from modification.
  • Optimize CSS delivery → By optimizing CSS delivery, you will be able to eliminate render-blocking CSS on your website for faster PageSpeed.
  • Remove jQuery Migrate → Allow you to remove jQuery Migrate from the front-end of your site. Eliminating this JS file can improve load time. Most of the popular WordPress themes and plugins do not require jQuery Migrate in the front end. So it safe to eliminate it.
  • Minify & Combine JavaScript (JS) Files → Similar to the CSS files, it is always a good practice to minify & combine JS files as well. Minifying removes whitespace and comments to reduce the file size. Further, combining the site’s internal & inline JS files reduces HTTP requests. Excluding option is also available for JavaScripts.
  • Load JavaScript deferred → It eliminates render-blocking JS on your site and increases page loading speed. However, you are requested to test before you defer the jQuery file. First, Test with Safe mode for the jQuery option.
  • Delay JavaScript Execution → It Improves performance by delaying the loading of JavaScript files until user interaction such as scroll and click. It is quite useful if you use Facebook Like or Twitter Follow buttons, or embed, Tweets, Instagram posts/feed on your site.

# Media

As we already mentioned, you can also optimize media using WP Rocket. If you want to do so, all you need to do is a change to the Media page and enable the LazyLoad, Emoji, Embeds, and WebP compatibility.

WP Rocket Media Optimization Settings
WP Rocket Media Optimization Settings
  • Lazy Load → You should enable this option to ensure better loading time. This option delays the loading of iframes, videos, and images.
  • Disable Emojis → You can disable emojis to improve performance.
  • Disable WordPress Embeds → Here, you can prevent hotlinking so that your server resources are not used by someone else.
  • WebP Caching → With WebP Caching, you gain faster loading time.

# Preload

As the name suggests, WP Rocket preloads files in the background on the server as Preload Cache and on the visitors’ browser as Preload links on various triggers to improve the page loading speed.

WP Rocket Preload Settings
WP Rocket Preload Settings
  • Preload Cache → On enabling preloading, the WP Rocket automatically generates the page cache of the homepage links followed by the sitemap links. The cache auto-updates when you add or update content(s).
  • Preload links → It downloads the whole page in the background when a user hovers over the link that increases the perceived loading speed.
  • Prefetch DNS Requests → Allows prefetching DNS of external files (such as Google font files, Ads Scripts, Analytics scripts, etc.) which increases downloading speed.
  • Preload Fonts → Improves the PageSpeed by defining the font files in advance for the web browsers.

# Advanced Rules

In most cases, you may not be required to use these options. It is mostly for advanced web designers and developers or for custom plugins/pages.

Setup Advanced Caching and Purging Rules in WP Rocket
Setup Advanced Caching and Purging Rules in WP Rocket

It allow you to create some advanced rules to exclude specific files.

  • Never Cache Option for –
    • URL(s) → You can specify URLs that should never be cached i.e. custom login URL, sitemap, etc.
    • Cookies → Do not create browser cache of the pages with defined cookies. i.e payment pages, shopping cart pages, etc.
    • User Agent(s) → Do not deliver cache pages to specific user-agent, i.e. specific mobile (iOS), or web browser (Safari), etc.
  • Always Purge URL(s) → Pages you always wanted to be purged when you make any update. i.e. blog page, the home page, etc.
  • Cache Query String(s) → Allows you to Force cache pages with query strings.

Please do not engage with these options if you are not familiar with them. Follow the plugin documentation for more details.

# Database

In this tab, you will find the options to optimize the database of your site. Just select the desired option and click on Save Changes and Optimize.

WP Rocket Database Optimization Settings
WP Rocket Database Optimization Settings
  • Post Cleanup → Option to delete post revisions, auto drafts, and trashed posts.
  • Comments Cleanup → Delete spam and trash comments.
  • Transients Cleanup → Remove expired transients (temporary options) generated in the database. It is safe to remove.
  • Database Cleanup → Allows you to optimize your database tables.
  • Automatic cleanup → Here you can schedule auto cleanup after a specific time interval.

# CDN

This WP Rocket settings tab allows you to integrate your CDN. The process is quite straightforward, just enter the CNAME of your CDN(s) and select the files which you want to serve from the CDN and you are done.

WP Rocket CDN Integration Settings
WP Rocket CDN Integration Settings

It also allows you to specify individual files to exclude from CDN which you do not want to be served by the CDN.

# Heartbeat

As I explained in the previous section, you can reduce or completely disable the WordPress Heartbeat API’s activity to reduce the server load.

WP Rocket WordPress Heartbeat Optimization Settings
WP Rocket WordPress Heartbeat Optimization Settings

Enable the heartbeat option to disable the live activity feedback option, improving speed loading time.

# Addon

One-click Rocket Add-ons offers integrations with popular services like Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, Server side Varnish Cache, Cloudflare, and Sucuri for optimized performance.

WP Rocket Add-on Settings
WP Rocket Add-on Settings
  • Google Analytics → WP Rocket can locally host Google Analytics JS file and updates it frequently in the background. It improves browser caching for Google Analytics and satisfies the PageSpeed recommendation for Leverage browser caching.
  • Facebook Pixel → Similar to the previous one, it can also host Facebook Pixels locally on your server and improves browser caching,
  • Varnish Cache → It is useful if your hosting server offers Varnish Cache. This function purges the server-side Varnish cache automatically when WP Rocket clears its cache.
  • Cloudflare & Sucuri → If you use either of the services, WP Rocket can sync the cache cleanup to ensure up-to-date content.

# Image Optimization & Tools

There are two other settings tab in your plugin. The one is Image Optimization, applicable only when you use Imagify (one of the in-house image optimization services by WP Rocket).

The other one is a Tools section, which allows you to import or export WP Rocket plugin settings in a JSON file.

And last but not the least option is for Google Fonts Optimization. It combines multiple font requests that reduce the number of HTTP requests and improves font performance.

Plans and Pricing of WP Rocket

WP Rocket is not free. That can be a bummer for WordPress users who may want to try out the plugin. Currently, they are offering three plans. Their basic plan starts at $49 per year.

WP Rocket Plans and Pricing
WP Rocket Plans and Pricing
  • Single → $49 per year for 1 site– comes with 1 year of updates and support.
  • Plus → $99 per year for 3 sies — comes with 1 year of updates and support.
  • Infinite $249 per year for 1 site — comes with 1 year of updates and support

All the plans come with 14-days 100% No-Risk Money Back Guarantee. This means if you think that WP Rocke doesn’t fit your requirements, you can ask for a refund.

WP Rocket Support and Documentation

As you can see WP Rocket provides 1-year support for each of their plans.

When it comes to supporting and documentation, they do have a good approach.

For getting support, you need to use their ticketing system. Tickets are a great way to get support but lack the urgency offered via live chat or phone support. You can create tickets from their support page.

Also, their support hours are from Monday to Saturday, normal business hours. Lastly, they provide support in English and French.

However, before you go ahead and create a ticket, you should check out their documentation which covers quite a bit about WP Rocket.

Access WP Rocket Help Section directly from WordPress Dashboard
Access WP Rocket Help Section directly from WordPress Dashboard

WP Rocket offers in-house documentation consists of a large variety of knowledgebase and video tutorials, which can be accessed directly from the WordPress dashboard.

WP Rocket - Video Tutorials
WP Rocket – Video Tutorials

Other Features

WP Rocket is mainly a cache plugin, but it does come with two other key features — WP Rocket CDN and WP Rocket Imagify Integration.

# WP Rocket CDN

If you are interested in the WP Rocket ecosystem, then you can check out the WP Rocket CDN service.

The WP Rocket CDN utilizes StackPath data centers. If you use the CDN service, it will be automatically configured to use their data centers.

I have not used the CDN service offered by WP Rocket yet, but I have used the StackPath CDN and they are one of the leading CDN providers around the globe. StackPath data centers are crazy fast and optimized for performance that delivers files in milliseconds.

Based on that I would recommend you to go for WP Rocket CDN if you want one. However, RocketCDN is not free and you need to pay a subscription price for it.

# WP Rocket Imagify Integration

When it comes to image optimization, WP Rocket offers Imagify integration out of the box. All you need to do is install Imagify and you are done!

WP Rocket - Imagify Integration Panel for Image Optimization
WP Rocket – Imagify Integration Panel for Image Optimization

However, in our testing, we found out that Imagify is not able to do a complete lossless conversion. If your business is completely dependent on the highest possible image quality, it is better to look for alternatives.

You can check out alternative plugins such as TinyPNG, Smush, and ShortPixel.

WP Rocket Performace – The Speed Test Results

In our testing, we found out that WP Rocket did a good job when it comes to reducing the website loading time, page size, and requests.

We used a fairly new site and tested website speed with WP Rocket ON and OFF.

Test Site Configuration

We have tested a fresh WordPress site (wpchimp.com) installed on the best-shared hosting plan offered by Bluehost. The test site configurations are following –

  • Fresh WordPress Installation
  • Hosting – Pro plan from Bluehost shared hosting
  • Theme – GeneratePress Premium
  • 20 moderately long blog posts
  • No CDN, No Server Level Cache
  • Default test settings of WP Rocket plugin – Page Caching, Minification, Preloading, Lazy Loading, WebP images (Generated by ShortPixel), and Google Analytics & Font Optimization.

WP Rocket Performance Test Results – 100/100 PageSpeed Score

Here are the results of the WP Rocket performance test conducted on popular page speed test tools.

WP Rocket Performance Test ResultsOverall ScoreLoad TimePage SizeNo. of Requests
WP Rocket OFF
Google PageSpeed (Desktop/Mobile)92/83
GTmetrix Performance Grade811.70s
Pingdom Performance Grade721.62s198.8KB32
KeyCDN Website Speed Test862.71s163.7KB30
Lighthouse Test (Performance)92
WP Rocket ON
Google PageSpeed (Desktop/Mobile)100/96
GTmetrix Performance Grade100600ms
Pingdom Performance Grade95622ms141.1KB18
KeyCDN Website Speed Test99671ms107.4KB12
Lighthouse Test (Performance)100
WP Rocket Performance Test Results

# Google PageSpeed Results

The WP Rocket plugin helped us to achieve a 100 out of 100 on Desktop and 96 out of 100 on Mobile in Google PageSpeed test results.

While, without the plugin, the score was 92 and 83 on desktop and mobile respectively.

# GTmetrix Test Results

When the WP Rocket was disabled, it took 1.7s seconds to completely load the site on GTmetrix.

However, once we turned the WP Rocket plugin ON, we found out that the site loading time is now reduced to 600ms. That’s a huge 65% improvement in page load time!

# Pingdom Test Results

In the Pingdom test result, 198 KB size page took 1.62s to load with 32 requests without WP Rocket.

While, the same page loads in just 622ms with the WP Rocket plugin, the page size also reduced by ~25% to 141 KB with 40% less no. of requests.

It’s more than 60% performance boost in page load time.

# KeyCDN Website Speed Test Results

KeyCDN Website Speed Test results were even more encouraging.

With WP Rocket activated, the page loads in just 671ms, which is a whopping 75% improvement over the baseline (2.71s) when was not activated.

The page size also reduced by 34% and no. of requests reduced from 30 to just 12.

# Lighthouse Test (Performance)

# How WP Rocket helped us to achieve these results

Now, let’s discuss a bit more and understand the results.

  • Minification of CSS & JS files reduces the page size,
  • Combining of CSS & JS files and Lazy Loading reduces the no. of requests,
  • Deferred loading of JS and Optimized CSS delivery eliminates the render-blocking,
  • Optimization of Google Analytics & Google Fonts files delivery,
  • Further, the server delivered the cached page created by the WP Rocket.

All these functions worked together to improve performance and page speed.

< 1 second page loading time, 40% fewer requests, and a 34% decrease in page size. Overall, 2x to 3x performance increase with WP Rocket plugin.

# Test results of TechNumero with WP Rocket plugin

Further, we are also using the WP Rocket on this site (technumero.com) as well and you can consider it as a slightly heavy site.

And here are the test results of TechNumero with WP Rocket plugin –

  • Google PageSpeed – 99 for Desktop and 92 for Mobile.
  • Pingdom Performance Grade – Overall performance grade is 89. Page load time is 334ms and the page size 367.7KB with 25 requests.
  • KeyCDN Website Speed Test – The 273.2KB page scores 93 out of 100 and took 606.85ms to load after 17 requests.
  • GTmetrix Performance Grade – 100% performance score and 600ms load time.

These are quite similar results, our site pages load under 1 second. WP Rocket plugin really helped us to increase the overall performance of our site(s).

Keep in mind that, on this site, we have also implemented some advanced levels of optimizations.

Overall, WP Rocket did very well in our tests and we think it is worth the investment. Go for it.

WP Rocket Pros and Cons

WP Rocket is not perfect. It does have its pros and cons. Let’s go through them below.

Pros

  • It offers a complete package.
  • Installing and using some of its features provides you great speed optimization.
  • It comes with Add-ons that let you further expand its features.
  • It is easy to use and configure.

Cons

  • It offers no free version. Paid versions only.
  • The Imagify integration might not offer the desired result for many users.
  • There are free alternatives that offer almost similar performance and feature-set.
  • The plugin can be overwhelming for some users, as it is more than just a caching plugin.

WP Rocket vs W3 Total Cache vs WP Super Cache vs WP-Optimize

This section will compare the four popular plugins solution when it comes to optimizing your site for speed.

You may consider the other plugins as a WP Rocket alternative. However, non of them offers a whole package like WP Rocket did.

#WP RocketW3 Total CacheWP Super CacheWP-Optimize
In a nutshellCache plugin with additional featuresComplete cache pluginComplete cache pluginDatabase optimization solution
CachingPage Caching, Yes, PreloadDisk Caching, OPcache support, YesYesYes, Page Caching, Preload
OptimizationStatic File, DatabaseCombining & Minifying of CSS & JS filesCombining & Minifying CSS & JS filesJS & CSS Files, Database
Image OptimizationYes with IMAGIFY integrationNo such integration or features applicable hereNo such integration or features applicable hereYes, via reSmush.it. But not effective
SupportTicket based supportEmail-based support forEmail-basedForm-based
TrialNoFree option availableNot applicableNot applicable
PriceStarts from $49 per year per siteFree with a paid option available, paid versions starts at $99 per yearFreeFreemium. Paid option starts at $39 per year/ 2 sites.
Refund policy14-days refund policyNot applicableNot applicableRefunds for issues caused by WP-Optimize defect
Best WordPress caching plugins compared

If you are looking for free options, read our latest post on the best WordPress speed optimization plugins.

Conclusion

Well, I have tried to cover all the significant features and performance aspects in this WP Rocket WordPress plugin review, and based on my experience, here are my recommendations.

There is no doubt that WP Rocket provides excellent features. It advertises itself as a cache plugin but is more than that.

If you are a business that wants to improve site speed without the need to spend time and effort, then WP Rocket is a great choice.

However, WP Rocket is not for everyone.

First of all, it is not free. So, if you are on a budget, it is better to look for WP Rocket alternatives like WP Super Cache and WP Total Cache as they offer almost similar performance with the need to pay.

Also, if you are looking for a database optimization plugin, then you should check out WP-Optimize.

Overall, I recommend the WP Rocket even after considering the WP Rocket plugin cost.

WP Rocket is a must-have plugin for bloggers and small business owners with Shared hosting plans. It will certainly help you to achieve a 2x performance boost or more. Try it Today!

So, what are your thoughts on our WP Rocket Review? Comment below and let us know.

FAQs

Is WP Rocket Free?

No, WP Rocket is not free. You could purchase the Plugin for just $49. You will get the WP Rocket plugin for one site with unlimited updates for a year.

Is it safe to use nulled WP Rocket?

One should never use the nulled plugins and themes. Nulled plugins are not safe and usually stuffed with spam and virus. This could harm your site or server badly. No, nulled WP Rocket is not safe.

WP Rocket is the best WordPress Caching plugin?

In our in-depth testing, we found that WP Rocket offers a lot of speed optimization options along with caching. It’s default setting could give your blog a 2x performance boost. I can surely say that it is not only the best WordPress caching plugins but offers much more optimization.

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Saurabh K
Saurabh K is a technology enthusiast and part-time blogger. He loves to explore the efficient use of technology and gadgets. He is an outlier and lensman. Add him in your social circle to know more.
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