WordPress Speed Optimization Checklist

Most WordPress speed problems come from a few predictable causes. This checklist removes the guesswork.

1. Measure before changing anything

Core Web Vitals: LCP, INP, CLS.
Server response time.
Largest image and render-blocking resources.

2. Reduce image weight

Convert product and hero images to WebP, compress them, and set explicit dimensions. Most shared-host sites are slowed by images before the server becomes the bottleneck.

3. Configure caching

Enable full-page cache.
Add object cache if the host supports Redis.
Do not stack multiple page-cache plugins.

4. Audit plugins and database

Remove plugins that duplicate functionality. Clean revisions, expired transients, and large autoloaded options. Test on staging before production.

5. Fix hosting bottlenecks

If the stack is clean and the server response is still slow, move to Cloudways or a VPS. A faster server does not fix a bad theme, but it removes the ceiling.

Example audit order

Images.
Page cache.
Plugins.
Database.
Hosting.