When I first started working on my WordPress site, I struggled with site speed and performance. I knew that fast-loading pages not only improved user experience but also boosted my SEO rankings. So, I decided to create my own guide to follow the right best practices and improve my Core Web Vitals.
Running My First WordPress Health Check
The first step I took was performing a WordPress Health Status review using the Site Health Status tab under Tools > Site Health in the WordPress admin area. I quickly noticed some recommended improvements and a few performance problems.
Since I was working on an existing site I had migrated from localhost and a local server environment, I made sure to create a backup with UpdraftPlus and later tested Duplicator as well. I also checked the WordPress core setup with the default theme and reviewed the health audits. Having a backup using either a backup plugin or my WordPress host’s backup functionality gave me peace of mind before I started to optimize.
Choosing the Right Hosting Provider
I realized that poor server performance was holding me back. To get a clearer picture, I ran tests on HTTP Request TTFB, Full TTFB, and round trip times from the metrics overview.
After trying shared server hosting, I upgraded to a plan with dedicated resources. I tested VPS hosting, cloud hosting powered by Google Cloud Platform and AWS, and even a dedicated server. Eventually, I switched to a managed hosting provider like Rocket.net, Cloudways, and later explored Kinsta, all of which ran on Cloudflare Enterprise.
What convinced me was support for modern network protocols like HTTP/3, better GZIP and Brotli compression, and built-in CDN integration. The extra page caching options and enterprise-level performance made a huge difference.
Installing a Fast WordPress Theme
Next, I focused on my theme performance. I wanted one built with native features, modular design, and proper scripts management. I avoided heavy admin widgets that slowed the WordPress interface.
I reviewed themes like Astra, GeneratePress, OceanWP, Blocksy, Sydney, Zakra, and Kadence Theme. Using DebugBear with a test site on a subdomain and staging area, I imported demos such as the Persona demo and checked performance metrics like the Page Weight filter.
By following WordPress coding best practices from the WordPress Developer Handbook, I found the right balance. The results showed me which theme gave the best performance results, even if not every score was green.
Adding Must-Have Plugins
I knew plugin bloat could ruin performance, so I installed only essential WordPress plugins. I evaluated each plugin’s functionality, architecture, and coding practices.
For caching and CDN integration, I avoided monolithic solutions and instead used modular ones. I tested tools like Perfmatters and WP-Optimize for performance optimization, and ran each one through DebugBear using my speed testing tool.
The recommendations helped me spot performance issues introduced by certain plugins. Choosing plugins from authors with clean coding and efficient methods gave me confidence in their quality.
Removing Content Bloat
Over time, I had collected too many long pages, sidebars, widgets, and unnecessary menus. Using the Gutenberg block editor, I converted old page builders into native blocks.
I streamlined navigation, trimmed headers and footers, and reduced navigational elements that hurt user experience. This lowered the DOM size, reduced the network payload, and improved Interaction to Next Paint (INP).
I also worked on eliminating render-blocking resources and blocking unnecessary requests that delayed my page load.
Optimizing the WordPress Database
To make my site even faster, I cleaned my WordPress database. I removed old revisions, auto drafts, unused categories, tags, spam comments, orphan data, and expired transients.
I experimented with tools like Advanced Database Cleaner, WP-DBManager, and WP-Sweep. Some performance optimization plugins like Perfmatters and WP-Optimize already had built-in database cleanup features, so that helped too.
For more control, I even enabled the default tool by editing my wp-config.php file and setting WP_ALLOW_REPAIR to true. I tried both Repair Database and Repair and Optimize Database options, which checked and fixed database tables.
Testing After Optimization
After all the tweaks, I ran another free speed test on my site. I checked the Overview page, where I looked at metrics, recommendations, and green scores.
Using DebugBear, I set a feature filter to measure different performance metrics and validated improvements. The trendlines and historical data gave me insights into ongoing changes.
To stay ahead, I set up continuous monitoring with DebugBear, running tests from multiple test locations. The CrUX Report and Chrome User Experience data showed my Core Web Vitals improving steadily. The web vitals tab let me compare historical performance monitoring and how visitors actually experienced my site.
The 14-day trial was more than enough to convince me to keep using it for automatic feedback and proactive monitoring.
Final Thoughts
My journey into WordPress speed optimization taught me that no single change fixes everything. Instead, it’s a combination of server performance, theme performance, plugin efficiency, database optimization, and continuous performance monitoring that keeps a WordPress site fast.
By making intentional decisions and testing constantly, I was finally able to run a lean, high-performing website that serves my visitors well.