Swift Performance
Swift Performance.
In my article on caching plugins, I briefly mentioned Swift Performance, among other plugins. In terms of scope, I haven't yet found a comparable plugin that combines so many features under one roof.
In addition to the actual caching plugin, Swift Performance includes the following features:
- Image Optimizer
Compared to other solutions, this one gets to work very quickly, and after a relatively short time, all my images were optimized and the corresponding WEBP versions were created. - Database Optimizer
Provides the database cleanup features familiar from other plugins - Plugin Organizer
This allows you to configure settings so that, for example, Plugin XYZ is loaded only on specific pages. This is helpful if the script for your contact form is loaded on all pages—but is actually only needed on the contact page.
All features are brought together in a nearly self-explanatory interface.
Reviews
Swift Performance has received some negative reviews in the past. These mainly concerned canceling the subscription and support response times.
I can't confirm either of these issues at this time. My subscription was canceled without any problems, so I was able to take advantage of the Lifetime Deal.
The support does indeed fall short of WPRocket's support (in terms of response times and documentation). Nevertheless, my questions were answered promptly in the plugin's Facebook group.
The same developer has now released what is essentially the successor to Swift Performance. The new plugin is called Swift AI, but unfortunately, version 0.3x is still causing issues for me.
I’ll take another look at it once Swift AI reaches version 1.x.
There’s a free, albeit stripped-down, version of Swift Performance. The free version is sufficient for now to get an idea of its capabilities.
Furniture
When setting up the plugin, I largely followed the instructions from WPJohnny. This gives me performance results that even WPRocket can’t match.
More on that below.
Of course, you’ll need to adjust the caching exclusions to match your WordPress installation. This can be done with just a few mouse clicks.
All in all, it took me about 90 minutes to configure all the settings (including the Image Optimizer, etc.).
As mentioned above, Swift Performance actually combines several plugins under one roof—so there are a few different configuration options.
After extensive testing on the website as a guest user, I exported the settings that worked. You can also export and import settings using the plugin.
That way, I always have a backup of the settings that work.
Performance
There's not much to say, except "Wow" :-)
No other plugin (not even my beloved SWIS) consistently achieves the scores that Swift Performance does. I haven’t yet achieved scores like 98 on mobile and 99/100 on desktop in Google Page Insights.
Whatever the developers are doing with caching, they’re clearly doing it better than at least some of the competition.
I haven’t encountered any issues on my sites using the settings recommended by WPJohnny.
Conclusion
I like the concept of combining multiple performance plugins under one roof. In particular, I think the integration of caching and the image optimizer is exceptionally well done.
The fact that Mein can specifically load individual pages into the cache using the warm-up table is especially helpful during testing and is another highlight.
As mentioned above, Swift Performance occasionally offers what are called “Lifetime Deals.” In my opinion, these are a better value than the subscription model. Of course, a Lifetime Deal (LTD) only makes sense if you plan to use the plugin long-term.
At some point, Swift AI will replace the old plugin. To my knowledge, however, Swift Performance will continue to receive updates until at least the end of 2023—which, at the time of this article, means at least another year.
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