Must have Wordpress plugins!

[whmcsguru]

Another one of those 'must have' threads? NOOOOO!

This time, let's talk wordpress plugins. What are some of the most essential, 'must have' plugins for your WP site? Let's hear 'em!

Depending on the site I'm working with, this will change, but usually, the list goes something like this:

1. CloudFlare Threat Management
2. Hide My WP
3. W3 Total Cache (or LS cache, depending on the server)
4. Wordfence Security (though I'm leaning a bit more towards All In One WP Security nowadays)
5. WP Slimstat Analytics
6. WP to Twitter
7. Yoast SEO
8. WP-SpamShield (or Disqus, depending on the site)
9. Contact Form 7

That's pretty much my essential list. What's yours?

 

[SenseiSteve]

Can I ask why the lean toward All In One WP Security? I add WP Edit to that list.

 

[whmcsguru]

Just personal preference. Wordfence is good, but I've seen quite a few occasions where it's scans just cause massive server load.

 

[bigredseo]

Not a bad list so far. Here's a few that are required on the WordPress sites we design;

Contact Form 7
Contact Form 7 db (stores a copy of all contact submissions)
Contact Form Honeypot (updated spammer list)
Wordfence Security
Yoast SEO
Smart Slider 3 (for those needing sliders it blows others out of the water)
SEO Redirection

We also tend to install these three to help reduce comment spam;
Antispam Bee
AVH First Defense
Bad Behavior

Depending on the client, and the host, sometimes a backup program is needed.
UpdraftPlus - Backup/Restore (uploads backups to dropbox etc too)

In all, there's 196 plugins that we've used on various sites (our staff keep a spreadsheet of every plugin, version and version used on client site). Handy to contact clients to suggest updates or notify if a plugin has a security breach.

 

[cheapdedicated]

I like that the "Must Have" are in quote since nothing like that actually happens BUT I get the context and these are my personal favorite depending on what I am dealing with.
Jetpack
CloudFlare
Wp Super cache
All In One WP Security
Contact Form 7

 

[Copahost]

WP Super Cache
Yoast
A3 Lazy Load
RICG Responsive Images

 

[Localnode]

A caching plugin.
I like WP-Rocket, but Cache Enabler is usually fastest.

CDN Enabler
I don't use CloudFlare anymore.

Contact Form 7.

Google Analytics by Lara.
Excellent plugin developed by the people who did the WHMCS Lara theme. Also, it can add google analytics tags.

A security plugin.
I lean towards iThemes.

Jetpack.
I use only Publicise from it.

Optimus.
Optimise images - it also works well with WebP when combined with Cache Enabler.

Reorder Posts.
TinyMCE Advanced.
Toolset Types.
TW Pagination.

WP to Twitter.
I use this for Twitter, not the Publicize one. Not sure why, but I prefer it.

WP-Auto-Tagging.
There're probably better ones out there, but I use this. It grabs the title of the posts and puts it in tags.

Yoast SEO.
The most used SEO plugin.

 

[whmcsguru]

Jetpack is starting to become a fave here for sure. I dumped wp to twitter in favor of publicize , after using it for years. That's just a much better option.

I agree with the Lara sentiment. It works beautifully.

 

[vladimir]

I really try not to fill up my wordpress site with too many plugins because it can cause security risks if not updated or can just slow your site down, but these are the must have plugins that i use.

Jetpack
Yoast SEO
Wp Super cache
Wordfence Security
Regenerate Thumbnails
Blue Admin (just because. lol)

 

[AviarHost]

It depends on the niche and the actual functionalities the website need to have. The only plugin I always install no matter what, is Yoast SEO.

 

[OffshoreDdcated]

Jetpack
SEO Yoast
Contact Form 7
Social Network Auto Poster [SNAP]
and other plugin depends on the purpose of the site.

 

[bigredseo]

Keep in mind that if you're not using a plugin, and you disable it, those files are still on the server and can be exploited still. If you're not using a plugin, delete it!

 

[WebHostGlobeCom]

SEO Ultimate - for SEO/SEM purposes, allows you to edit meta titles & descriptions etc.
WPtouch Mobile Plugin - to create a mobile-friendly version of your website

 

[persuasiv]

Be carefully with Wordpress plugins! More plugins you have installed the high predisposition of your website to be hacked! Actually, a lot of vulnerabilities which lead to compromise the website are found in Plugins.

 

[whmcsguru]

Be carefully with Wordpress plugins! More plugins you have installed the high predisposition of your website to be hacked! Actually, a lot of vulnerabilities which lead to compromise the website are found in Plugins.

Well, yeah, of course, that goes without saying.

If you utilize garbage plugins, you're going to get your site hacked.
If you don't keep your site up to date, you're going to get your site hacked

This is just common sense stuff here

 

[WalnutHost]

Akismet
Jetpack
Yoast
W3 Total Cache
Google XML Sitemaps
MarketPress eCommerce