to measure the real impact of a plugin on performance?
Posted: Mon Dec 09, 2024 8:26 am
This is a difficult question to answer. However, we can make an estimate.
We can check two different factors: the uploaded files and the number of database queries. Again GTmetrix helps us. I created a test installation on a subdomain and installed WooCommerce . Let's go to the waterfall and in the search box write "plugins/woocommerce" and see:
woocommerce plugin speed
In practice WooCommerce adds 7 requests, but these are very small files so only 23kb to the final size of the page. So all in all it's not bad, especially if we're going to merge these files after finishing the site optimization.
We can see the database queries through the Query Monitor plugin . We install it and visit the pages of our site. At the top of the admin bar we notice some numbers, clicking opens a section at the bottom.
query monitor elementer database requests
Going to “queries by component” we see that Romania Phone Numbers WooCommerce makes 22 queries in total in 0.0017 seconds, which is not a small amount, but in the end for the type of plugin and the features it adds it is not bad at all.
The problem is that there are no fixed numbers to make a decision based on. The idea is to check one plugin at a time when the site is finished and compare the various plugins on the same site. For example, on the old SupportHost site we used WPML and a very heavy theme. WPML did not add any files, but did 300 queries. The theme did 100 queries and loaded files for almost 1MB. For this reason we decided to change the system and have a super fast site.
What are the main problems with page builders like Elementor?
These page builders, as well as some themes, are designed to provide a solution for everyone.
For example, they allow you to create 5 different types of pricing tables, 4 different sliders. Different sections for each part of the site already created by the theme developer, or elements created ad hoc in the case of Elementor .
What does it mean?
Each of these elements requires CSS and javascript code. Your page builder or theme will then need to load all of these files, even if you don't use the pricing table.
This is why I fell in love with Oxygen Builder. It only loads the bare minimum resources needed for that page.
On a test installation I added Elementor. I ran the test on GTmetrix and then a search. The result?
slowdowns page builder Elementor plugin
Even though I only added a header, a text and a button, Elementor adds 10 files for a total of 107KB, nothing crazy, but since we don't need many of them it doesn't make much sense.
Conclusions
Adopting themes and plugins to speed up a WordPress site and improve the user experience on your site is often a complicated choice for those who do not deal with web performance.
You should rely on professionals who know the WordPress platform in depth.
You should explicitly request fast site loading times without fear of price.
You should find partners and collaborators who can get you good results in the long run.
And do you w
We can check two different factors: the uploaded files and the number of database queries. Again GTmetrix helps us. I created a test installation on a subdomain and installed WooCommerce . Let's go to the waterfall and in the search box write "plugins/woocommerce" and see:
woocommerce plugin speed
In practice WooCommerce adds 7 requests, but these are very small files so only 23kb to the final size of the page. So all in all it's not bad, especially if we're going to merge these files after finishing the site optimization.
We can see the database queries through the Query Monitor plugin . We install it and visit the pages of our site. At the top of the admin bar we notice some numbers, clicking opens a section at the bottom.
query monitor elementer database requests
Going to “queries by component” we see that Romania Phone Numbers WooCommerce makes 22 queries in total in 0.0017 seconds, which is not a small amount, but in the end for the type of plugin and the features it adds it is not bad at all.
The problem is that there are no fixed numbers to make a decision based on. The idea is to check one plugin at a time when the site is finished and compare the various plugins on the same site. For example, on the old SupportHost site we used WPML and a very heavy theme. WPML did not add any files, but did 300 queries. The theme did 100 queries and loaded files for almost 1MB. For this reason we decided to change the system and have a super fast site.
What are the main problems with page builders like Elementor?
These page builders, as well as some themes, are designed to provide a solution for everyone.
For example, they allow you to create 5 different types of pricing tables, 4 different sliders. Different sections for each part of the site already created by the theme developer, or elements created ad hoc in the case of Elementor .
What does it mean?
Each of these elements requires CSS and javascript code. Your page builder or theme will then need to load all of these files, even if you don't use the pricing table.
This is why I fell in love with Oxygen Builder. It only loads the bare minimum resources needed for that page.
On a test installation I added Elementor. I ran the test on GTmetrix and then a search. The result?
slowdowns page builder Elementor plugin
Even though I only added a header, a text and a button, Elementor adds 10 files for a total of 107KB, nothing crazy, but since we don't need many of them it doesn't make much sense.
Conclusions
Adopting themes and plugins to speed up a WordPress site and improve the user experience on your site is often a complicated choice for those who do not deal with web performance.
You should rely on professionals who know the WordPress platform in depth.
You should explicitly request fast site loading times without fear of price.
You should find partners and collaborators who can get you good results in the long run.
And do you w