PageSpeed Ninja – Cache, Minify, Defer CSS JavaScript, Critical CSS, Optimize Images, Convert WebP
by PageSpeed · Performance
Boost page speed: cache, compress, optimize images to WebP, minify CSS/JS, defer loading, lazy load, generate critical CSS, improve Core Web Vitals
Try it live opens a temporary test site in your browser, which can take about 20 seconds to load. Plugins that rely on outside services or a full server may not work completely there.
Health
C 57/100
Stale · Likely abandoned
Active installs
5K+
≈5.6K estimated
Momentum
+40%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “convert webp” for “defer css”. “convert webp” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “defer css” sits at #22 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
57 health vs 69 average across 1,808 Performance plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →0.7%
of downloads still active
At least 5K of 710.6K lifetime downloads are still running, below its category: the median Performance plugin keeps 1.4%, across 1,103 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Performance plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
Removal-risk signals
28/100Maintenance and integrity signals that tend to precede a WordPress.org removal. Not an official status, a heads-up to act.
- Not actively maintained. No update in about 2 years.
Details
Directory ranking optimization
How it's scored →How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.
Well optimized
Most to gain: Update recency
Updated 766 days ago, past the ~180 days where wp.org starts discounting
Tested up to WordPress 6.6.11; the current branch is 6.8
4.5★ over 114 reviews, smoothed to 4.38★
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Last updated 766 days ago — ship an update; wp.org decays a listing's search weight after ~180 days.
Get the full rank-higher report →Search visibility
How it's tracked →Directory searches this plugin turns up in, and which way each one is moving. WordPress.org publishes no history of search positions, so this starts the day we first tracked a keyword and never backfills.
37
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.2
Velocity
places per keyword, 24d
13%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 24d
+0.3
Acceleration
recent half vs earlier
wp.org is where the directory puts the plugin for that search. On merit is where it would sit if results were ranked on rating, support and updates, without the install boost. The last column is how far the wp.org position moved, from our first reading in the last 90 days to the latest.
| Keyword | wp.org | On merit | wp.org move, 90 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| lazy load xt | #2 | #2 | 0 |
| defer css javascript your tag | #18 | #20 | 0 |
| defer css | #22 | #21 | down 2 |
| defer offscreen images | #17 | #11 | down 2 |
| convert webp your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| minify css your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| minify javascript your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| performance your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
20 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 4 listed. 16 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 4 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Swap “convert webp” for “defer css”. “convert webp” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “defer css” sits at #22 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,488 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 42.4K · peaks are release surges
Directory rank vs rivals
wp.org popularity rank over time · higher is better · when a rival's line climbs above yours, they've overtaken you
Rating trend
Star average over time · dips mark rough releases
Health trend
Composite health score, snapshotted daily
Update activity
How busy the existing users are, measured as downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites. A spike means a new release everyone's pulling; a long, slow decline means an aging user base that updates less.
Release cadence
No release in a yearHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
0
releases in the last 12 months
2.1y ago
latest release · v1.4.5 · 26 Sep 2024
84
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin · 49% run the current release. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.
Estimated active installs
The public count shows “5K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 5 months ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 59% of the way through.
Install history since 28 Apr 2018
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ adamnasser1.4y ago
horribly bad, you can’t change any settings until you pay a subscription! don’t waste your time
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ esoleybus2.5y ago
The plugin is successful in terms of optimization, but it automatically added a footer link without my consent. I thought it was spam, but I realized it wasn’t. You can remove it in advanced settings. This topic was modified 2 years, 2 months ago by esoleybus. This topic was modified 2 years, 2 months ago by esoleybus.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ ooftsauce2.5y ago
I was concerned about load speed for my pages and did a Google page speed and found that my desktop was around 70 and mobile around 55. I installed this package and I saw significant improvement immediately to 98 desk and 70 mobile. Tony Johnson ooftsauce.com
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ remzi172.7y ago
<font style=”vertical-align: inherit;”><font style=”vertical-align: inherit;”>Достали эти уведомления о лицензии на всех страницах админки!!! Идите в одно место с такой назойливостью.</font></font>
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ lagg3336730343.0y ago
The best pagespeed optimization plugin. 91/100 mobile, 100/100 desktop!
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Navin Sigamany3.0y ago
This plugin completely broke my mobile site – the reason? They wanted me to get a free licence. I’m happy to get a licence and pay for it – but messing with my website is not the best way to incentivize me.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ den77774.1y ago
Creates a folder “S” in the root of the site with suspicious content, as they say it’s a cache. But the plugin was disabled in the admin panel, and the “cache” was created, why? Breaks sometimes completely at a random moment the layout on the site
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ isma3814.6y ago
Spectacular! you just have to know how to use your settings well, 99 on desktop and 62 on mobile
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 6.6.2
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 7 languages, 0 at 90% or more
AI assistants
How it's measured →Whether ChatGPT and Claude name this plugin when asked the category question, and whether the readme gives them something to quote.
Not measured yet for this plugin’s topics. Its tracked searches are not among the measured topics. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
8 of 8 pass · checked 27 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "Boost page speed: cache, compress, optimize images to WebP, minify CSS/JS, defer loading, lazy load, genera..."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 4 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 4 of 4 read like questions a user would type.
- ✓ Names who it is for Names its audience or use cases ("suitable for", "if you have").
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions Google Analytics, Facebook, Twitter.
- ✓ Headings and lists 28 headings and 1 list.
- ✓ Enough to quote 16,216 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 3 of 5 tags appear in the text; "convert webp", "defer css javascript" do not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-06-06 6K+ → 5K+ down after 155 days in tier
- 2026-01-02 7K+ → 6K+ down after 137 days in tier
- 2025-08-18 8K+ → 7K+ down after 110 days in tier
- 2025-04-30 9K+ → 8K+ down after 107 days in tier
- 2025-01-13 10K+ → 9K+ down after 543 days in tier
- 2023-07-20 20K+ → 10K+ down after 293 days in tier
- 2022-09-30 30K+ → 20K+ down after 859 days in tier
- 2020-05-24 20K+ → 30K+ up after 206 days in tier
Competes with
The plugins that solve the same job, ranked by shared tags then reach, closest match first. The letter on the right is each plugin's health grade (A best, F worst).
-
Image Optimizer – Compress Images and Convert to WebP or AVIF 1M+ installs · 2.0★ · 2 shared tags C -
Asset CleanUp: Page Speed Booster 100K+ installs · 4.9★ · 2 shared tags A -
Hummingbird Performance – Cache & Page Speed Optimization for Core Web Vitals | Critical CSS | Minify CSS | Defer CSS Javascript | CDN 70K+ installs · 4.7★ · 2 shared tags A - B Better WordPress Minify 7K+ installs · 4.2★ · 2 shared tags D
-
LiteSpeed Cache 7M+ installs · 4.8★ · 1 shared tag B -
WP Super Cache 1M+ installs · 4.3★ · 1 shared tag A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for PageSpeed Ninja – Cache, Minify, Defer CSS JavaScript, Critical CSS, Optimize Images, Convert WebP into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/psn-pagespeed-ninja" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="PageSpeed Ninja – Cache, Minify, Defer CSS JavaScript, Critical CSS, Optimize Images, Convert WebP — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> PageSpeed Ninja – Cache, Minify, Defer CSS JavaScript, Critical CSS, Optimize Images, Convert WebP: 5K+ active installs, 4.5★ (114 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/psn-pagespeed-ninja
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