Why Would You Do a Plugin Audit On Your WordPress Site?
Doing an audit on your plugins is not just a way to be extra organized or obsessed with control over your site. It’s actually a great way to accomplish some much needed tasks to care for your website and ensure it runs smoothly.
Cleaning up plugin list (lots of plugins, lots of unused plugins)
In your audit you can find plugins to delete which can help you clean up your plugin list to only show the plugins you actually use and need. This makes it easier to navigate to plugin settings you want to manage and updates you want to perform.
Speeding up site
While removing plugins you’ll also find that you can speed up your site by getting rid of greedy plugins that run all the time even when they aren’t in use (or even when they aren’t useful to begin with). We have a list of those for you later in this guide. These plugins are popular but unnecessary in many situations.
Mitigating Risk
Truth is, when you have less plugins, you have less risk of plugin code conflicts and outdated plugins… the #1 cause of WordPress websites being compromised. By auditing your WordPress plugin list you’ll be able to identify plugins that can be removed to not only lessen the quantity of plugins you use, but the likelihood of a crash occurring when they don’t get along. Most plugins operate fine during updates but some by lesser-known authors, or plugins that are old and out-of-date may be more likely to cause issues.
Saving money by cancelling unused premium plugins
Not only can you protect your site from nasty accidents caused by conflicts and greedy plugins, but you can also potentially save money by removing and cancelling Premium plugins you pay for and don’t use, or that you do use and can be replaced by an effective, free alternative.
What is the Objective of a Plugin Audit?
A plugin audit is designed to accomplish 4 steps that help you keep your WordPress website healthy.
- Determine what plugins can be removed
Just because you installed a plugin doesn’t mean you can’t uninstall it! Uninstalling plugins is like getting rid of dust bunnies under the couch. It’s humane (because they aren’t real bunnies) and also healthy and satisfying to clean up. When you discover a plugin you don’t need you’ll be able to remove it and never worry about it again.
- Find plugins that were installed on a whim but never configured
Sometimes we install plugins that sound like a great idea during one of those late-night website editing sessions but then we forget about them or decide against them. Yet they remain in our plugin list, neglected. Set them free by removing them and this can usually speed up your site when they are used for editing or specific formatting purposes in your website’s pages.
- Reduce site resource usage for efficiency and stability
Like in your internet browser, every tab you have open makes things run a little slower. The browser usually runs all the open tabs at the same time and keeps them alive. This can eat your computer’s resources for breakfast. So what do you do? You close tabs you aren’t using.
Similarly, in WordPress, plugins are a little more greedy. In order to fully remove a “tab” per se, you have to deactivate the plugin and ultimately delete it. The more plugins you have the more “tabs” you have open. And the more tabs you have open… the more life sucks.
- Find plugins that can be replaced by code or a multi-functional plugin
Sometimes we install plugins because we don’t know how else to do something that seems absolutely critical to our goals. A very popular example is installing a plugin to add a Google Analytics tag to your site for traffic monitoring. But the truth is you can add Google Analytics in other ways that are more efficient and don’t require a plugin, especially if you use Divi by Elegant Themes.
How Do You Perform a Plugin Audit?
(Want some help getting this set up? Download our Free Plugin Audit Template here. This is what we use to provide audit reports to our clients!)
You can, of course, do this however you like but here’s what we recommend…
First, create a spreadsheet with multiple heading columns for the first row.
Here are the column headings and what they are for…
Plugin Name – What is the plugin called?
Plugin Status – Is it activated or deactivated?
Purpose – Why do you have this plugin? What does it do? Why would you maybe want to keep it?
Notes – What are you noticing about the plugin? Is it set up? Is it not in use? Is it missing a license key? Is it seemingly pointless?
Recommendation – What, based on the purpose and your notes, do you think you should do with this plugin? Keep? Delete? Configure? Investigate? Etc.
Once you have these columns in your first row titled with these headings, enter the names of all your plugins in the first column, and say they are activated or not in the second column. You could say ”Active” or “Inactive” or you could change the column heading to ”Active?” And then put “Y” for yes, and “N” for no. However you do it, make sure it is clear you know which plugins are actively running and which ones are deactivated. Deactivated plugins do not run on your site and should not affect your site in any way while deactivated.
Once you’ve entered the names and active status of your plugins you’ll need to determine the purpose for each one. This answers the question “why do I need this?” Or “why do I want this for my site?” Be as specific as possible. If you cannot remember what a plugin does, this might be a sign you may not need it!
Next, go to each plugin and make sure you configured it correctly. Every plugin will have a different way of showing settings and controls. Check to see if any settings are in place or customizations have been made. If you find a plugin that isn’t configured, make a note of this in your notes column.
If you notice a plugin is a premium plugin (one you have to pay for) make a note of this, too. These plugins will usually say “Premium” or “Plus” or “Pro” and will have an area in its settings to enter a license key.
Next look for these popular but heavy plugins to flag for possible removal
- JetPack (unnecessary, bloated, slows site down)
- W3 Total Cache or other caching plugins besides Litespeed Cache if you are on HostHuski (on HostHuski we already provide you amazing caching power with Litespeed Cache plugin which is exclusively designed to work with our server technology.)
- Monster Insights Google Analytics (most themes have a place you can put your analytics code, otherwise this plugin is always trying to make you upgrade and is very annoying)
- Askimet (don’t need if not subscribed)
- Hello Dolly (don’t need)
- Insert Headers and Footers (most themes support this ability without a separate plugin, especially Divi in Theme Options -> Integration)
Look for other plugins that are used to “embed” or “inject” tracking codes or scripts into the site. These can be for Google Analytics, affiliate tracking for a separate platform, chat systems, and more. Make a note of these. Depending on your theme’s features (and especially if you are using Divi) you may not need these.
OK. I Did the Plugin Audit. Now What?
Glad you asked. Now, here’s the fun part.
The following are suggestions for how to make changes to plugins based on your audit. Follow at your own risk!
- Note the plugins that are installed but not active and remove them. If they are deactivated it means you haven’t needed them.
- Note the plugins that are active but not configured, you don’t need these since they haven’t been set up.
- Note the plugins that each do a very small thing for the site. Consider doing without these. A faster, safer site is better.
- Note the plugins that add a tracking tag or script to the site. Your theme (especially if Divi) may support adding these tags as code. You can get rid of most plugins that do this by adding the code to the setting.
Would You Rather Have a Done-For-You Solution?
Do you want to save time and money by optimizing your WordPress plugins, but don’t want to do it yourself?
Let HostHuski take care of it for you! Our expert team will conduct a thorough WordPress plugin audit, providing you with:
- A comprehensive review of your plugin list, identifying unused, outdated, or redundant plugins
- A professional report outlining our findings and recommendations for optimization
- Expert advice on how to streamline your plugins, improve site performance, and reduce conflict risks
By letting us handle your plugin audit, you’ll:
- Save time and focus on growing your business
- Enjoy a faster, more secure, and more efficient website
- Reduce costs by eliminating unused premium plugins
Let us take the hassle out of plugin management.
Contact us today to request your WordPress plugin audit and take the first step towards a more optimized, more efficient website!