I run several websites on WordPress, and over the last five years I have narrowed down all the plugins I need to seven.
Unless you're running a website that receives tens of thousands of visitors per day and you sell a number of products, you really don't need more than a dozen plugins at the most.
In this article I'll tell you which plugins I use and why. If you're planning on starting a blog or small website, here's what you need to install – and they are all free!
1. Google Analytics for WordPress
As the name suggests, this plugin helps me monitor everything on my WordPress website without having to visit Google Analytics. This is extremely useful as each day I can get a snapshot of how my website performed without having to log in to Analytics.
It also allows me to visit individual pages and measure page views, the bounce rate, and, more directly, the statistics off WordPress.
You can learn more about this plugin by clicking here.
2. Contact Form 7
Contact Form 7 allows customers, fans, and advertisers to contact me through my website. There are dozens of contact forms, but this is the easiest to set up and requires next to no maintenance.
You can learn more about this plugin by clicking here.
3. MailMunch
If you're growing an email list (you should), then MailMunch, in my opinion, is one of the best free WordPress tools to collect opt-ins.
Within minutes, you can create pop-ups, scroll bars, and embed forms on your website without having to code.
You can choose which devices to target, when to hide forms, and you can integrate it with several email tools like MailChimp and Aweber for free.
You can learn more about this plugin by clicking here.
4. Wordfence Security
The Wordfence Security plugin is a must for every single website owner. In an earlier blog post I showed you how one of my biggest sites got hacked and how it could have been avoided if I used this plugin.
When someone logs into your website, a plugin is out of date, or virus or malware has been installed, you receive an email alert. You can also run free scans and delete harmful content using the free version of the plugin.
You can learn more about this plugin by clicking here.
5. WP Smush
With more people accessing the Internet on mobile using 3G connections, the faster your website loads, the better. WP Smush compresses all your images to reduce their file size, ensuring a faster website load time.
Using the free version, you can compress up to 50 images at once.
You can learn more about this plugin by clicking here.
6. WP Wizard Cloak
WP Wizard Cloak is the plugin of choice for affiliate marketers. It allows you to cloak your affiliate links into URL-friendly links that won't scare users away from clicking.
An affiliate link usually has a long unique code (something like /ref-code1381121=websitename), which has been known to scare people away from clicking.
WP Wizard Cloak allows you to hide these link extensions and change them to anything you want.
You can learn more about this plugin by clicking here.
7. Yoast SEO
The final plugin on all my websites is Yoast SEO.
I have content writers for most of my websites. Whenever they upload an article, the first place I check is Yoast SEO to see if they have met all the SEO requirements, and then I'll read the article.
If you plan to build up an organic following, having Yoast SEO on your website is a great tool as it provides you with a checklist and advice on how you can better improve each page.
You can learn more about this plugin by clicking here.
Do you really need more plugins?
For the bulk of my websites, these are the only plugins I need. Depending on what you sell, you might need 1-2 more plugins such as a checkout cart for PayPal or share buttons if you're blogging.
If your website currently has more than 15 plugins, there's a good chance that you don't actually use half of them and they may be slowing down your website.
Which plugins do you use and think are a must for every WordPress website?
