WP Rocket vs WP Fastest Cache
WP Rocket is a premium caching and speed plugin that applies its optimisations with sensible defaults as soon as it is activated. WP Fastest Cache is a caching plugin with a simple settings screen that creates static pages and adds minification, GZIP compression, browser caching and image options. Both cover page caching, browser caching, CSS and JS minification, CDN support and database cleanup. The main difference is cost: WP Fastest Cache has a free version for page caching and basic optimisation, with database cleanup in its paid Premium edition, while WP Rocket has no free version.
| Feature | WP Rocket v3.23.3.3 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Paid Visit Details | WP Fastest Cache v1.5.3 · checked 23 Oct 2026 Free + paid · ★ 4.9/5 Visit Details |
|---|---|---|
| At a glance | ||
| Active installs | — | 1M+ |
| Last updated | — | October 10, 2026 |
| Editions | WP Rocket ($) | WP Fastest Cache · WP Fastest Cache Premium ($) |
| Pros | Page caching and minification with default settings; Preloading, critical CSS and unused CSS removal; Cloudflare and Sucuri integrations | Static page cache with a simple settings screen; Browser caching and GZIP rules written for the site; Cache is cleared when a post changes status; Cloudflare cache purge from the settings screen |
| Cons | No free edition; a licence is required; Several features call the vendor's cloud services; Usage analytics is opt-in but adds a vendor script in admin | Database cleanup, mobile cache and advanced minification are Premium only; Cache and browser rules are written to .htaccess files |
| Mentioned in our posts | 2 | 2 |
| Features (Speed Optimization plugins checklist) | ||
| Page cache | Paid | Yes |
| Browser cache | Paid | Yes |
| Minify CSS/JS | Paid | Yes |
| CDN | Paid | Yes |
| Object cache | No | No |
| Database cleanup | Paid | Paid |
| Free version | No | Yes |
| More features | ||
| Other features | Cache preloading ($), Critical CSS generation through vendor API ($), Unused CSS removal through vendor API ($), RocketCDN content delivery ($), Cloudflare API integration ($), Sucuri WAF integration ($), Scheduled database optimisation ($) | Clears cache when a post changes status, Delete cached and minified CSS/JS files, GZIP rules in .htaccess, Cloudflare cache purge, Clear all cache from a URL call, Skips caching when DONOTCACHEPAGE is defined, Exclusion rules by page type |
| Integrations | ||
| Analytics | Mixpanel ($) | — |
| Storage | RocketCDN ($) | — |
| Other | Cloudflare ($), Sucuri ($) | Cloudflare |
| Requires WordPress | 5.8 | 5.7 |
| Requires PHP | 7.4 | — |
| Tested up to | — | 7.1 |
| Phones home | Only if you agree | No |
| External services | cpcss.wp-rocket.me, api.wp-rocket.me, b.rucss.wp-rocket.me, saas.wp-rocket.me, rocketcdn.me, api.cloudflare.com, waf.sucuri.net, cdn.mxpnl.com | api.cloudflare.com |
Verdict
WP Rocket suits site owners and agencies who want results without detailed tuning on a paid licence. WP Fastest Cache suits beginners who want an easy setup and a free way to start.