WordPress Plugins – How Many is Too Many?

Over time WordPress has become much more than a simple blog software. WordPress can be modified to create almost any website you can imagine. This flexibility is in large part due to the wide selection of plugins available, but like anything, too much of a good thing can be bad.

I believe you have to look at each WordPress install on a case by case basis when asking if there is an excess use of plugins. I have seen cases of people happily running upwards of 20-30 active WordPress plugins with no issue, but I don’t recommend you run out and grab all the plugins you can.

If you asked me if I thought your WordPress install had too many plugins I would answer: probably. Chances are if you have to ask if you are running too many plugins, you are.

Factors Influencing Performance

What kind of plugins are you using?

Different plugins will load your server differently than others, some cause barely a dip in performance while others can be more detrimental. For example the related posts plugin – YARPP requires a high number of queries, and therefore reduces performance. Not to say that you shouldn’t use plugins like this, but if you find yourself unsatisfied with performance then they are something to look at.

The number of queries a plugin makes, along with the amount of memory it uses, determines how detrimental it is to performance.

What kind of hosting are you using?

If you have a dedicated server all to yourself, it might not be an issue. If you are using a crappy shared hosting account then you might not be able to run 20 plugins and have it perform well. You also have to keep page load time in mind.

I am running the standard plan from Dreamhost and haven’t ever had any issues running 10-15 concurrent plugins.

How is the plugin written?

A poorly written plugin can still cause troubles even if it potentially shouldn’t. Try to use high quality plugins that others are using, they are most likely well written, and if they aren’t you will be able to find out.

How much traffic are you getting?

Its no doubt that higher traffic blogs are under more stress. The more traffic, the less performance you will be able to sacrifice.

Recommendations

• Install plugins that are essential for your needs.
• Find other ways to get the functions you need.
• Always keep your plugins up to date.
• Run high quality, well written plugins.
• Make sure your plugins are compatible with the version of WordPress you are running.
• Keep WordPress up to date.

At the end of the day, if you experience a unacceptable performance drop when increasing the number of plugins that you have installed on your WordPress site, then it is time to look at removing excess plugins, finding non-plugin solutions, and using the highest quality plugins.