Cache Enabler vs xSpeed Cache
Updated 31 Oct 2026. 25 features compared side by side.
Lightweight free disk cache from KeyCDN that serves static HTML, with Gzip/Brotli pre-compression, WebP variants, mobile cache and WP-CLI.
Free WordPress cache plugin with static page caching, Redis and Memcached object cache, database cleanup and a built-in MCP server.
Choose Cache Enabler if…
- You prefer the more widely used option
Choose xSpeed Cache if…
- You need defer / delay JavaScript and remove unused CSS
- You also want browser caching rules and cache preloading
- You want the more complete feature set (100/100 vs 36/100)
- You weigh user ratings (5.0 vs 4.3 on WordPress.org)
xSpeed Cache has 15 that Cache Enabler lacks, including Browser caching rules, Cache preloading and Object cache. Both include 10 of the 25 features we track.
At a glance
Feature comparison
Click a screenshot to see both plugins side by side.
Cache Enabler xSpeed CacheCaching5/88/8
Stores static HTML copies of pages on disk.
Static HTML served by the web server before PHP; auto-purge on publish.
Does not set browser cache headers; supports 304 Not Modified.
Cache-Control and Expires headers with separate TTLs for assets and HTML.
No cache preloading; pages cache on first request.
Sitemap-driven preloader on a schedule; predictive and scheduled prewarming are Pro.
No object cache integration.
Redis and Memcached drop-in in the free plugin.
Optional separate cache variant for mobile devices.
Separate mobile cache free, with an optional separate tablet cache.
Cart/checkout excluded via cookie handling; clears cache on stock updates.
Cart, checkout and logged-in customers are never cached.
Works on any host; optional Apache/Nginx rewrites for extra speed.
Apache, nginx, LiteSpeed and IIS; nginx and IIS need pasted config snippets.
Supports multisite with per-site cache management.
Each network site gets its own cache; network-wide settings management is Pro.
CSS & JavaScript1/77/7
Minifies HTML and optionally inline CSS/JS; not CSS/JS files.
Minify HTML, CSS and JavaScript with a safe-minify fallback.
No file combining.
Combine CSS and JavaScript in the free plugin.
No defer or delay JavaScript.
Defer JavaScript and delay it until interaction, free.
No unused CSS removal.
Remove Unused CSS is Pro-only.
No critical CSS.
Critical CSS generation is Pro-only.
No font optimisation.
font-display swap, font preloads and self-hosted Google Fonts.
No preload/prefetch controls.
LCP image preload, extra image preloads and preconnect hosts.
Media & delivery3/77/7
No lazy loading.
Images, iframes and videos, with automatic missing image sizes.
Compression via KeyCDN's separate Optimus plugin (freemium).
WebP/AVIF conversion, bulk conversion and AI Smart Image are Pro.
Caches a WebP variant using existing WebP files; no conversion or AVIF.
WebP and AVIF conversion with server rewrite in Pro.
CDN URL rewriting via KeyCDN's free CDN Enabler plugin.
Pull-zone URL rewriting for any CDN.
No Cloudflare integration.
Zone connection, auto-purge and development mode free; APO and cache level controls are Pro.
No video embed placeholder.
Click-to-play video facade in the free plugin.
No bundled CDN; KeyCDN is a separate paid service.
Cloudflare Enterprise add-on ($5/month on a paid plan) serves the whole site from Cloudflare.
Housekeeping1/33/3
No database cleanup.
Cleans revisions, spam, trash, transients and orphaned meta on a schedule.
No Heartbeat control.
Dashboard, editor and front-end heartbeat control, free.
WP-CLI commands to clear the cache.
Full WP-CLI command set in the free plugin.
Statuses: Yes Pro Add-on Partial 3rd-party No ?
Pricing compared
Cache Enabler Free
| Free | $0 |
|---|---|
| Free | Free per year, Unlimited |
xSpeed Cache Freemium
| Free | $0 |
|---|---|
| Personal | $58 per year, 1 site |
| Business | $98 per year, 5 sites |
| Agency | $198 per year, 25 sites |
| Enterprise | $398 per year, Unlimited |
Downloads trend
Cache Enabler
8,718 downloads last week
xSpeed Cache
9,920 downloads last week
Verdict
xSpeed Cache scores higher on our feature checklist (100/100 against 36/100) and includes defer / delay JavaScript, remove unused CSS and browser caching rules that Cache Enabler does not. Check the features you rely on in the table below before deciding.
Biggest differences
Cache Enabler: not included. xSpeed Cache: included. Defer JavaScript and delay it until interaction, free.
Cache Enabler: not included. xSpeed Cache: paid version (Pro). Remove Unused CSS is Pro-only.
Cache Enabler: not included. xSpeed Cache: included. Cache-Control and Expires headers with separate TTLs for assets and HTML.
Cache Enabler: not included. xSpeed Cache: included. Sitemap-driven preloader on a schedule; predictive and scheduled prewarming are Pro.
Cache Enabler: not included. xSpeed Cache: included. Redis and Memcached drop-in in the free plugin.
Cache Enabler: not included. xSpeed Cache: paid version (Pro). Critical CSS generation is Pro-only.
Written from the feature, pricing and install data on this page, not from hands-on testing. How we compare.
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FAQ
Which is better, Cache Enabler or xSpeed Cache?
xSpeed Cache scores higher on our feature checklist (100/100 against 36/100) and includes defer / delay JavaScript, remove unused CSS and browser caching rules that Cache Enabler does not. Check the features you rely on in the table below before deciding.
Which has more features?
xSpeed Cache includes 25 of the 25 features we track, against 10 for Cache Enabler. Feature count is only part of the picture; check which of the differences matter to you.
Is Cache Enabler free?
Cache Enabler has a free version on WordPress.org.
Is xSpeed Cache free?
xSpeed Cache has a free version on WordPress.org. Paid plans start at $58/yr.
Feature data last changed 31 Oct 2026. Spotted something wrong? Suggest an edit to Cache Enabler or xSpeed Cache. Some links are affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no cost to you; it never affects our data or rankings.