WordPress Plugins
We were asked to do a page about our favourite WordPress plugins – so here it is.
We will add to/edit this page as choice changes or other plugins are recommended
Security
Security is a must have for WordPress sites these days. They can all too easily be hacked, and without any protection in place you wouldn’t even know until your site is compromised or becomes blacklisted.
iThemes Security
http://wordpress.org/plugins/better-wp-security/
Our top choice at the moment. Not all sections of this plugin need to be active, but the important ones are all there.
Wordfence Security
https://wordpress.org/plugins/wordfence
The most popular security plugin. Checks for infection and scans core, themes and plugins
BulletProof Security
http://wordpress.org/plugins/bulletproof-security/
WP-Ban
http://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-ban/
Although the function is built in to the heavyweights above, this will ban an IP address and lets you tell them why.
Anti-Malware and Brute-Force Security by ELI
https://wordpress.org/plugins/gotmls/
Searches for Malware, Viruses, and other security threats and vulnerabilities
Simple Login Log
http://wordpress.org/plugins/simple-login-log/
Keeps track on who is logging in.
Backup
Regular backups of your website is essential. If and when disaster strikes you can simply restore from the last good backup and be up and running again quickly. For WordPress sites it is crucial to backup both Website and Database.
Updraft Plus
https://wordpress.org/plugins/updraftplus
Backup and restoration. Manual or scheduled. Backup to local or remote locations.
BackUpWordPress
https://wordpress.org/plugins/backupwordpress
BackUpWordPress will back up your entire site including your database and all your files on a schedule that suits you.
WordPress Backup to Dropbox
http://wordpress.org/plugins/wordpress-backup-to-dropbox
You can sign up for 2GB of free space at Dropbox and use that to backup your website with this plugin. It is fully automated so once set up will perform regular backups at intervals.
Guestbook
A guestbook could be set up by just using a page and enabling comments, but the plugins below take it a bit further and turn the page into a more refined guestbook.
WP-ViperGB
http://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-vipergb/
Comment Guestbook
http://wordpress.org/plugins/comment-guestbook/
Memberships
The s2Member® plugin from WebSharks
Optimisation
A site slowing down could be due to a bloated database. A large database takes up valuable processing time. Optimising a database has to be done with care (always backup first), but can improve performance. Some plugins will also take care of revisions, trashes etc.
WP-Optimize
http://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-optimize/
Optimize Database after Deleting Revisions
http://wordpress.org/plugins/rvg-optimize-database/
Revision Control
http://wordpress.org/plugins/revision-control/
Sets limit on number of revisions kept, and allows you to manually delete.
E-Commerce
There are several e-commerce plugins available for WordPress, the two most popular which have been downloaded millions of times are:
WP eCommerce
http://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-e-commerce/
WooCommerce
http://wordpress.org/plugins/woocommerce/
SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)
Don’t waste money with companies wanting to sell you their magic method of getting your site on the first page of Google search results. If your site is popular and unique it will get there anyway. What will help however is if your pages are optimised for search engines. These are plugins designed to make this job easier.
WordPress SEO by Yoast
http://wordpress.org/plugins/wordpress-seo/
All in One SEO Pack
http://wordpress.org/plugins/all-in-one-seo-pack/
Text Editor
The WordPress text editor works fine, but additional functions are available using the plugins below
TinyMCE Advanced
http://wordpress.org/plugins/tinymce-advanced/
CKEditor
http://wordpress.org/plugins/ckeditor-for-wordpress/
Replaces the built-in editor and also adds function to the comment box
Advanced Image Styles
https://wordpress.org/plugins/advanced-image-styles/
Adjust an image’s margins and border . Puts back the function removed in the current versions of WordPress
Developer Tools
DeBug
https://wordpress.org/plugins/debug/
Debug can help you to find errors in your wordpress website by editing the wp-config.php file.
Theme Check
https://wordpress.org/plugins/theme-check/
The theme check plugin is an easy way to test your theme and lets you know of any errors
Note: We do not endorse any product mentioned on this page. This is purely for information purposes. We are not responsible for any consequences as a result of downloading, installing or use of any particular product.