WordPress makes it easy for website owners to get online fast. WordPress started life as a blogging platform, but it has since grown into the world’s most popular CMS. The ease of use could leave you thinking that it’s only suitable for small websites with low traffic, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.
It is truly a flexible and scalable platform that can power high traffic websites with ease. It all depends on the initial setup and the architecture used to get you online. Still have your doubts about the WordPress CMS for high traffic websites? Read on to learn some of the reasons this platform is hard-coded for success.
Is WordPress good for high traffic sites?
The short answer is yes, WordPress is good for high traffic sites. There is nothing limited traffic within the WordPress CMS, only errors in setting up a website will result in traffic limits. There are a few factors that make WordPress particularly good for high traffic websites, whether you are running a media website or an eCommerce store.
Flexible hosting
With a WordPress website, you’re in charge of where you host it. This means you have complete flexibility over the hosting environment. And if a host isn’t working for you or offering sufficient support, you are always free to move.
If you’re setting up your site for success from the start, you’ll want to choose an enterprise cloud hosting package that will scale with you. A high availability setup will ensure that your website is always accessible, even when it is put under considerable strain from high traffic demands.
The most popular set-up for a high availability WordPress website is to use an elastic load balancer and mirrored instances to ensure website visitors always enjoy a fast and streamlined experience.
Custom architecture
WordPress is a blank canvas for your plans, and there are really no limits on what you can build on the platform. Through custom themes, plugins, and Javascript apps, there is a wide range of options available to build your website. Flexible architecture means that the only limits on your website will be self-imposed.
This is good news for website owners who are unhappy with their current setup. Rather than migrating their website to a new CMS, you can simply upgrade the architecture that powers your website. And if you find that your needs change in the future, you’ll always be ready to upgrade.
Integrations and plugins
Third-party integrations and plugins can be a blessing and curse for high traffic websites. On the one hand, running third-party integrations can help to boost your website performance by reducing the demands on your own hosting. But on the other hand, your website will only be able to perform as well as the third-party application you are using.
Relying on third-party integrations can be an ideal stopgap solution while you develop your website. As traffic grows and the demands on your website increase, it’s possible to bring third-party integrations under one roof by creating your own plugin to replicate the functionality.
Performance optimization
Another perk of working with WordPress is the flexibility of the on-page performance optimizations. If something isn’t working well with your website, you don’t have to live with it. There are many ways to upgrade the user experience to deliver a fast and reliable website, even at times of peak demand.
Something as simple as browser caching can help to optimize the user experience and increase page speed. One of the first signs that your website isn’t coping well with the demands of higher traffic will be a slip in performance, so keeping an eye on page speed metrics can help to prevent these common issues.
What can limit WordPress performance?
WordPress is in no way flawless, but the issues you might run into will likely stem from user error rather than an intrinsic problem with the CMS. The size of your website will play a big role in its performance. Thus, if your website is very large, ensure that the architecture and server are up to the task.
Another common problem that slows down WordPress websites is bloated code. If you use a WordPress theme out of the box, or if you use a page builder, there is a good chance that your website will be running excess code that isn’t needed. To remedy this, you’ll need to strip back to the code to make sure you’re only running what you need.
Javascript can also slow down your website, so it’s important to make sure that you’re only running what you need. All of these factors can limit performance and make the experience sluggish when demand peaks. But your choice of hosting will have the final say in how well your site performs under pressure.