W3 Total Cache vs WP Smush
Compare WordPress plugins and tools side by side. Pick products with “Compare” in the software directory.
| Feature | W3 Total Cache v2.11.0 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Free + paid · ★ 4.4/5 Visit Details | WP Smush v4.3.5 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Free + paid · ★ 4.8/5 Visit Details |
|---|---|---|
| At a glance | ||
| Active installs | 900,000+ | 1M+ |
| Last updated | October 20, 2026 | October 20, 2026 |
| Editions | W3 Total Cache · W3 Total Cache Pro ($) | Smush · Smush Pro ($) |
| Pros | Page, browser, object and CDN caching in one plugin; Minification of CSS and JavaScript; Works with many CDN providers in the free code | Bulk and on-upload image compression at no cost; Lazy loading for images and embedded video; Works with common page builders, WooCommerce and caching plugins |
| Cons | Large settings area that is easy to misconfigure; Some modules need external cache servers or CDN accounts; Pro upgrade notes appear in the free admin | WebP, AVIF, resizing and the image CDN need Smush Pro; Images are sent to the WPMU DEV API for compression |
| Mentioned in our posts | 3 | 3 |
| Features (Speed Optimization plugins checklist) | ||
| Page cache | Yes | — |
| Browser cache | Yes | — |
| Minify CSS/JS | Yes | — |
| CDN | Yes | Yes |
| Object cache | Yes | — |
| Free version | Yes | Yes |
| More features | ||
| Other features | Database query caching, Fragment caching for plugins and themes ($), Local usage statistics collection, Pro upgrade notes in the free admin ($), Pro licence check ($) | Bulk compression of the media library, Lazy loading for images and embedded video, WebP and AVIF conversion (Pro) ($) |
| Integrations | ||
| Analytics | New Relic | — |
| Storage | BunnyCDN, Google Drive, Rackspace Cloud Files | — |
| E-commerce | — | WooCommerce |
| Plugins | — | WP Rocket, Elementor, Divi, Gravity Forms |
| Other | — | WPMU DEV Smush API |
| Requires WordPress | 6.0 | 6.4 |
| Requires PHP | 7.4 | 7.4 |
| Tested up to | 7.1 | 7.1 |
| Phones home | Only if you agree | Only if you agree |
| External services | api.bunny.net, identity.api.rackspacecloud.com, api.newrelic.com, closure-compiler.appspot.com, management.core.windows.net | smushpro.wpmudev.com |
| Custom tables | — | 1 |