ProRank vs W3 Total Cache: speed test and features
W3 Total Cache is free and one of the most configurable caching plugins for WordPress. ProRank takes a simpler route and adds image compression and the SEO tools. Here is how they compare, with our own speed test and its limits.
- Features and prices checked on .
- Speed test run by ProRank on , with W3 Total Cache 2.9.1.
ProRank and W3 Total Cache in brief
W3 Total Cache is free and gives you page, object and database caching with Redis, Memcached and other back ends, plus minification, lazy loading, CDN support and image conversion to WebP and AVIF (100 images a month on the free version).
Delayed JavaScript, unused CSS removal and removing scripts page by page need W3 Total Cache Pro. It has no SEO features and no database cleanup.
ProRank does less server-level caching for free (its object cache needs Pro), and adds database cleanup, local Google Fonts and the SEO tools.
Average mobile PageSpeed score, three themes
- ProRank95.0
- W3 Total Cache72.3
- No speed plugin72.0
- Mobile score by theme: ProRank higher on all 3 themes.
- Mobile Largest Contentful Paint: ProRank faster on all 3 themes.
- Average desktop score: ProRank 100.0, W3 Total Cache 98.0.
- One lab test by ProRank, scores out of 100; details and caveats are below.
Speed test results
Google PageSpeed Insights lab results for the same test site with each setup. Scores are out of 100, higher is better; for the timings and layout shift, lower is better and the better figure is in bold.
PageSpeed scores
| Theme | ProRank | W3 Total Cache | No speed plugin |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mobile score | |||
| Astra | 96 | 65 | 69 |
| Hello Elementor | 93 | 74 | 69 |
| GeneratePress | 96 | 78 | 78 |
| Average | 95.0 | 72.3 | 72.0 |
| Desktop score | |||
| Astra | 100 | 97 | 96 |
| Hello Elementor | 100 | 97 | 96 |
| GeneratePress | 100 | 100 | 98 |
| Average | 100.0 | 98.0 | 96.7 |
Astra
| Measure | ProRank | W3 Total Cache |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile | ||
| First Contentful Paint | 1.8 s | 4.7 s |
| Largest Contentful Paint | 2.4 s | 6.2 s |
| Total Blocking Time | 0 ms | 0 ms |
| Cumulative Layout Shift | 0.000 | 0.010 |
| Speed Index | 2.7 s | 5.4 s |
| Desktop | ||
| First Contentful Paint | 295 ms | 909 ms |
| Largest Contentful Paint | 407 ms | 1.2 s |
| Total Blocking Time | 0 ms | 0 ms |
| Cumulative Layout Shift | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Speed Index | 318 ms | 909 ms |
Hello Elementor
| Measure | ProRank | W3 Total Cache |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile | ||
| First Contentful Paint | 1.1 s | 3.2 s |
| Largest Contentful Paint | 2.6 s | 5.3 s |
| Total Blocking Time | 0 ms | 0 ms |
| Cumulative Layout Shift | 0.000 | 0.001 |
| Speed Index | 2.4 s | 3.2 s |
| Desktop | ||
| First Contentful Paint | 302 ms | 815 ms |
| Largest Contentful Paint | 561 ms | 1.1 s |
| Total Blocking Time | 0 ms | 0 ms |
| Cumulative Layout Shift | 0.000 | 0.015 |
| Speed Index | 864 ms | 815 ms |
GeneratePress
| Measure | ProRank | W3 Total Cache |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile | ||
| First Contentful Paint | 1.1 s | 3.6 s |
| Largest Contentful Paint | 2.7 s | 4.1 s |
| Total Blocking Time | 0 ms | 0 ms |
| Cumulative Layout Shift | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Speed Index | 1.1 s | 3.6 s |
| Desktop | ||
| First Contentful Paint | 304 ms | 681 ms |
| Largest Contentful Paint | 548 ms | 721 ms |
| Total Blocking Time | 0 ms | 0 ms |
| Cumulative Layout Shift | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Speed Index | 347 ms | 681 ms |
How the speed test was run
- Run by
- ProRank, on 16 February 2026. This is our own lab test, not an independent one.
- Measured with
- Google PageSpeed Insights (lab data). Median of three runs for each plugin and theme; the ProRank "v2" re-test used single verified runs.
- Site
- WordPress 6.9.1, PHP 8.3.6, Nginx 1.28.2, hosted with Hetzner, Germany. Elementor Pro, tested on Astra, Hello Elementor, GeneratePress.
- Versions
- W3 Total Cache 2.9.1 (the current version is 2.11.0, so results may differ today). ProRank is recorded as "v2" of ProRank SEO Premium.
- Settings
- Each plugin was configured by ProRank for its best result.
- Raw reports
- Not published. The figures on this page are the recorded results. PageSpeed lab scores move between runs, so treat differences of a few points with caution.
- Other plugins active
The test site ran 27 plugins, including both Yoast SEO and Rank Math SEO at the same time, which a real site would not do:
WooCommerce, BuddyPress, bbPress, Elementor Pro, Rank Math SEO, Yoast SEO, Jetpack, Contact Form 7, WPForms Lite, Wordfence Security, MonsterInsights, UpdraftPlus, WP Mail SMTP, All-in-One WP Migration, Classic Editor, Redirection, TablePress, Simple Custom CSS and JS, Insert Headers and Footers, Starter Templates, Akismet Anti-Spam, Health Check & Troubleshooting, Query Monitor, WP Super Cache (disabled), Safe SVG, User Role Editor, Advanced Custom Fields.
- W3 Total Cache in this test
W3 Total Cache 2.9.1 was tested with page cache, browser cache, lazy loading, deferred and delayed JavaScript and unused CSS removal on.
Its minify setting produced files that returned 404 errors on this Nginx server, so minify was off for its results. With a different server setup it may work.
Features compared
What each plugin offers today, and which ProRank plan you need for it. W3 Total Cache is checked against its own website and documentation.
| Feature | ProRank | W3 Total Cache |
|---|---|---|
| Caching | ||
| Page caching | Free plan | Included |
| Cache preloading | Pro plan | Included |
| Browser caching headers | Free plan | Included |
| CDN integration | Free plan | Included |
| Database cleanup | Free plan | Not includedDatabase caching only |
| Redis or Memcached object cache | Pro plan | IncludedRedis, Memcached and more |
| CSS and JavaScript | ||
| CSS and JavaScript minification | Free plan | Included |
| Delay JavaScript until interaction | Free plan | Paid planPro |
| Remove unused CSS | Pro plan | Paid planPro, rules set by hand |
| Turn scripts off page by page | Pro plan | Paid planPro |
| Images and fonts | ||
| Lazy loading | Free plan | Included |
| Image compression | Free plan | Included100 images a month free |
| WebP or AVIF conversion | Free plan | Included100 a month free; Pro unlimited |
| Host Google Fonts locally | Free plan | Not included |
| Remove WordPress extras (emojis, embeds) | Free plan | Included |
| SEO | ||
| SEO titles and meta descriptions | Free plan | Not included |
| XML sitemaps | Free plan | Not included |
| Schema markup | Free plan | Not included |
| Redirect manager | Free plan | Not included |
Checked on against W3 Total Cache’s own pages (version 2.11.0):
“Paid plan” means the feature needs W3 Total Cache’s paid version; “Paid add-on” means a separate paid product or service. “Not included” means the vendor’s own feature list and documentation did not offer it on that date. Rows we could not confirm are left out. ProRank’s plan labels come from our pricing page. Plugins change often; if you spot something out of date, tell us and we will correct it.
The speed settings in ProRank
Caching, CSS and JavaScript, images and the database each have their own switch in ProRank, and the presets set them in one step.
What each costs
Both have a starting point you can try first. Competitor prices are as shown on their own pricing pages on . Prices change and sale prices end, so check before you buy.
ProRank SEO
- Free
- Free, on WordPress.org
- Pro
- $99 a year, 1 site
- Business
- $199 a year, 5 sites
- Agency
- $399 a year, 25 sites
US dollars, excluding VAT, billed yearly. 30-day money-back guarantee. The speed test ran ProRank SEO Premium; page caching itself is in the free plan.
W3 Total Cache
Free version on WordPress.org. Paid version from:
$99 a year
W3 Total Cache Pro, one site. 30-day money-back guarantee. The free version on WordPress.org stays free.
Try ProRank on your own site
The free plugin includes page caching, image compression and the SEO tools. It recognizes 39 common caching, asset and image plugins and turns off only its own overlapping features, so you can compare on your own pages.