When it comes to internet success, the name of the game is speed. Information travels very quickly these days and there’s no time for slow websites.
Website caching can be a fantastic tool for keeping your website performance strong and your website visitors happy. In today’s post, we’ll learn more about caching and how it can help improve your site performance.
What Is Website Caching?
Each time a non-cached web page loads, the server storing that page effectively renders that page from scratch. It figures out what’s supposed to be in each section of the page, loads the latest content, drops in image files, and configures everything you see when you open the page.
Loading a cached web page for the first time is very much like loading a non-cached page. The server hosting the website will run the necessary calculations and generate the HTML for that web page. It will then store the HTML generated for that page in the server’s random access memory banks.
When website caching is available, the next time someone loads that same page, the server won’t need to retrieve and render the whole page from scratch. Instead, it can send the pre-written HTML to the browser. This makes the page loading process much faster and it created a lot better user experience.
If you have a dynamic website that includes features like a blog or store, you may be wondering how content updates work. After all, if your server sends the same HTML it wrote for the last version of the page every time, how will your readers see your updated content? Luckily, caching systems are built with precisely these problems in mind.
Caching systems have protocols built-in for when to empty the cache and then regenerate it when the page is loaded. Whenever you publish new content, certain sections of your website have their caches deleted. For example, if you post a new blog post and this needs to be displayed on your main blog page, the server will delete the existing copy of your blog page cache and regenerate it with your new content included.
And the beautiful part of this process is it is all done for you. As the website owner, you don’t have to worry about what to load or when to load it. The caching process manages it all for you.
Different Types of Cashing
The two primary types of website caching are browser caching and server caching. Let’s break down each one so you can get a better feel for the different processes that speed up your website.
Browser Caching
When you visit a web page for the first time, your browser gets a lot more than just the plain HTML script from the server. It also downloads fonts, stylesheets, Javascript files, and more from the hosting server. This process is called browser caching.
Browser caching allows you to temporarily store all of these resources in your local web browser, rather than retrieving them from the server every time.
The first time you visit the web page, it may take a little longer for content to load while those elements download. But for a short time after that, you’ll notice significant improvements to page load speeds since your browser will already have all the background information it needs to load the page.
Server Caching
The other primary type of caching happens on the website provider’s end and is known as server caching. This is the process we described earlier in which a server saves the HTML code it generates for a web page.
The next time someone loads the page, the server sends the HTML to the browser, rather than rendering it all from scratch.
Server caching and browser caching happen on two different ends of the website loading operation. Browser caching is up to the end-user, though most browsers have this feature automatically enabled.
This means that both kinds of caching will work together to speed up page load speeds in an ideal scenario.
Full-Page Caching
Within server caching, there are two different approaches you can use to cache your web pages. The first, full-page caching, is the system we’ve already discussed here. Your server saves the HTML generated for an entire web page in cache and then sends that to users’ browsers as needed.
Full-page caching is a good approach for websites that experience a high volume of traffic, either regularly or as a part of large spikes. The server will send the entire web page in one go, rather than building anything out, which will significantly reduce server loads.
This approach can also work well for sites that regularly update content since only the updated pages will need to be regenerated in the cache; everything else can be streamlined.
Object Caching
Object caching is a somewhat smaller version of the caching process used to target code-heavy objects. Let’s say, for instance, that you want to use a video as the background image for your website header. Videos are large files and will take a long time to load, even if your users are using browser caching.
Object caching on Pressable is a cache of database query results designed to reduce the load on the database servers. This allows you to use more extensive, more complex elements on your website without slowing down your load speeds.
WordPress Plugin Options
There are several WordPress plugins that can help you set up website caching. Configuring one of these can allow you to start using either full-page or object caching.
Popular WordPress cache plugins include:
- W3 Total Cache: This plugin is developed by Boldgrid. It has over 4,000 5-star reviews and it has over a million active installs. It is also provided in 18 different languages and has a long list of features to offer.
- WP Super Cache: This plugin is developed by Automattic. It has over one million active installs and over 900 5-star reviews. It supports 32 different languages and offers a full wiki of documentation to help with installation and setup.
- WP Faster Cache: This is a third plugin option that was developed by Emre Vona. It supports over 38 languages, has over one million active installs, and has over 3,000 5-star reviews.
Keep in mind the golden rule of caching plugins is you should never have more than one cache plugin running at once. Using multiple caching plugins will cause your website to slow down dramatically and may even break it. In addition, you always want to make sure you delete one caching plugin before switching to another, and you never want to enable two simultaneously.
Why Managed WordPress Hosting Might Be the Best Option
If you use a managed WordPress hosting service to power your site, your website hosting plan may offer caching services as well. If this is the case and your hosting provider has already implemented caching, you should not install your own caching plugins. The redundancy will become problematic, and just like having multiple cache plugins installed, it will do more damage than good.
The important takeaway is you only need one cache solution implemented and caching at the hosting side will provide better performance.
Managed hosting providers will run caching at a much earlier step in the loading process than WordPress plugins. Their caching systems will also be perfectly optimized for the WordPress environment, which will help ensure that you’ll have the best caching setup and the most efficient web page load times possible.
If you’d like to give Pressable hosting a try, we’d love to provide a personalized demo so you can see how Pressable can keep your website running at top performance. Request your demo today!
Zach Wiesman
Zach brings a wealth of knowledge to Pressable with more than 12 years of experience in the WordPress world. His journey in WordPress began with creating and maintaining client websites, fostering a deep understanding of the intricacies and challenges of WordPress. Later, his knack for problem-solving and commitment to service led him to pursue a role at Automattic, where he excelled in providing customer support for WooCommerce. His expertise extends beyond technical proficiency to encompass a deep understanding of the WordPress community and its needs. Outside of work, Zach enjoys spending time with his family, playing and watching sports, and working on projects around the house.
