Website speed and performance are critical for delivering a smooth WordPress and WooCommerce experience.
One of the most effective ways to achieve this is through caching. W3 Total Cache (W3TC) is a powerful WordPress caching plugin that improves website performance, reduces server load, and enhances Core Web Vitals by storing static versions of your site.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through the recommended W3 Total Cache settings for WordPress on the Cloudways Platform.
These configurations will help you achieve faster load times, better resource optimization, and improved user experience.
Note:
Cloudways also offers its own cache solution — Breeze – WordPress Cache Plugin — built for simplicity and optimized for Cloudways servers. If you’re exploring alternatives, Breeze is lightweight and pre-configured for best results.
Table of Contents:
Configuring W3 Total Cache on Cloudways
This guide covers the recommended W3 Total Cache settings for WordPress and WooCommerce websites hosted on the Cloudways Platform.
By following these steps, you’ll ensure your website runs efficiently, with faster load times and reduced server resource usage.
We’ll focus on the most important sections of the W3 Total Cache plugin:
Page Cache
Database Cache
Object Cache
Browser Cache
Reverse Proxy (Varnish)
Important:
Other sections of W3 Total Cache are not required to be modified when using Cloudways, as the above configurations are sufficient to deliver optimal performance.
How to Configure WordPress W3 Total Cache
To configure W3 Total Cache on WordPress, follow the step-by-step instructions below to enable caching features that improve speed, reduce load, and optimize performance on the Cloudways Platform.
Step-by-Step Configuration Guide
Step #1 - Log in to the WordPress Admin Area:
Log in to the WordPress admin area of the site with your credentials.
Step #2 - Get into the Plugins Section:
On the left bar, click on Plugins.
Step #3 - Locate W3 Total Cache:
Locate the W3 Total Cache plugin and click Settings to start the configuration (if W3 Total Cache isn’t installed, then click Add New at the top and search for W3 Total Cache and install it before proceeding).
Note:
These settings are applicable for the latest W3TC version 0.9.5. If you are not running the latest, you can easily update it from the WordPress admin or with the following WP-CLI command wp plugin update w3-total-cache executed in your application webroot.
Step #4 - Configuration of Page Cache:
Check Enable and then select Disk: Enhanced from the drop-down menu.
Click on Save all settings.
Step #5 - Configuration of Database Cache:
Check the Enable button. Then select Memcached from the drop-down menu and click on Save all settings.
Step #6 - Configuration of Object Cache & Browser Cache:
Object Cache: Check Enable and then select Alternative PHP Cache (APC / APCu) from the drop-down menu. Click on Save all settings.
Browser Cache: Check Enable and then click on Save all settings.
Step #7 - Configuration of Reverse Proxy (Varnish):
Check Enable varnish cache purging.
For non-SSL-protected websites, add your application URL (e.g.:wordpress-1828-XXX-XXXXX.cloudwaysapps.com) under the Varnish servers section and click on the Save all settings button.
Note:
These settings will be effective only when Varnish is enabled on your web application in the Cloudways console. (To check Varnish status, navigate to the Application Management area and click on the Application settings section).
If you are using an SSL certificate on your website, you need to append port number 8080 at the end of your application URL (e.g. wordpress-1828-XXX-XXXXX.cloudwaysapps.com:8080) and then save the settings.
The W3 Total Cache is now correctly configured according to Cloudways' recommended settings.
That's it! We hope this article was helpful.
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