Speed up WordPress with the page cache on Linux hosting
Turn on the built-in WordPress page cache on HyperDC Linux hosting, check that pages come from the cache and purge it; saving a post refreshes its pages.
- Beginner
- 5 min read
- Updated
On this page
Most visitors of a WordPress site see the same pages. The page cache keeps those finished pages and hands them out without running WordPress again, so pages load faster and the site holds more visitors at once.
How the page cache works
The page cache works in front of WordPress.
- Visitors who are not signed in get kept pages straight from the cache.
- Signed-in visitors, carts, checkout and account pages always reach WordPress.
- Publishing or changing content clears the pages it touches, such as the post, its archives and the home page, and the next visitor gets the new version.
Step 1: Turn on the page cache
- Open Performance on your service page and choose the site.
- Under WordPress optimizer, open Tuning.
- Next to Page cache, select Switch On and confirm.
Step 2: Check that it works
Visit your home page once in a private browser window, then select Check Again in Performance. Under Home page speed, First byte from the page cache shows Hit when the page came from the cache.
Verify: the second visit shows Hit, and the page loads noticeably faster.
Clear the cache
After a big change, such as a new theme or menu, select Purge next to Page cache and confirm. Every kept page is removed; the next visitors wait for WordPress once, and their pages are kept again.
To stop using the cache, select Switch Off. Every visit runs WordPress again.
Troubleshooting
The check keeps showing Miss. A plugin that gives every visitor a cookie, or a page that asks not to be kept, keeps it out of the cache. Recommendations in the same tab names what it found.
A change does not show. Select Purge, then reload the page.
Next steps
- More sites and PHP versions: domains, PHP and .htaccess on Linux hosting.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a cache plugin?
No. The page cache is part of the hosting and works in front of WordPress. Switching it on adds a small plugin of ours to WordPress, which tells the cache what to clear when your content changes.
Do my visitors see old pages after I edit a post?
No. Publishing or changing content clears the pages it touches, and the next visitor gets the new version.
Are carts and signed-in pages cached?
No. Signed-in visitors, carts, checkout and account pages always reach WordPress.
Should I keep another page cache plugin?
No. Two page caches on top of each other only get in each other's way. Deactivate the other one's page cache and keep its other optimisations if you like.