{"id":17016,"date":"2011-01-08T19:32:06","date_gmt":"2011-01-08T14:02:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/?p=17016"},"modified":"2026-10-15T14:06:47","modified_gmt":"2026-10-15T08:36:47","slug":"qot-wordpress-plugins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/","title":{"rendered":"WordPress Plugins That Power QOT: Our 2010 List and 2026 Stack"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Many of you have asked which <strong>WordPress plugins<\/strong> we use to power QOT. Back in 2010 I shared the 10 plugins running this site. This updated article keeps that original list, explains what changed, and shows the plugins that actually power QuickOnlineTips in 2026.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-67188\" src=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/qot-wordpress-plugins-2026-1024x538.webp\" alt=\"WordPress plugins that power QuickOnlineTips card\" width=\"1024\" height=\"538\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/qot-wordpress-plugins-2026-1024x538.webp 1024w, https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/qot-wordpress-plugins-2026-300x158.webp 300w, https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/qot-wordpress-plugins-2026-150x79.webp 150w, https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/qot-wordpress-plugins-2026-768x403.webp 768w, https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/qot-wordpress-plugins-2026.webp 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Quick answer:<\/strong> In 2026 QOT runs Rank Math SEO for search, LiteSpeed Cache for speed, Antispam Bee against comment spam, Jetpack VaultPress Backup for backups, and Two Factor plus Limit Login Attempts Reloaded for login security. Redirection, Pretty Links, Easy Table of Contents and Site Kit by Google handle redirects, short links, contents boxes and Google stats.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_89 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6ae60ea7a2a4f\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"ez-toc-cssicon\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #1a202c;color:#1a202c\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #1a202c;color:#1a202c\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6ae60ea7a2a4f\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#The_WordPress_plugins_we_use_in_2026\" >The WordPress plugins we use in 2026<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#SEO_and_site_structure\" >SEO and site structure<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#Speed\" >Speed<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#Security_and_spam\" >Security and spam<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#Editing_and_stats\" >Editing and stats<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#Our_original_2010_plugin_list\" >Our original 2010 plugin list<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#Tips_for_choosing_WordPress_plugins\" >Tips for choosing WordPress plugins<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#FAQ\" >FAQ<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#Which_SEO_plugin_does_QOT_use\" >Which SEO plugin does QOT use?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#Which_cache_plugin_is_best_for_a_LiteSpeed_server\" >Which cache plugin is best for a LiteSpeed server?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-11\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#Do_I_still_need_Akismet\" >Do I still need Akismet?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-12\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2011\/01\/qot-wordpress-plugins\/#How_many_plugins_is_too_many\" >How many plugins is too many?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_WordPress_plugins_we_use_in_2026\"><\/span>The WordPress plugins we use in 2026<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>These are the plugins active on this site today, grouped by the job they do. All of them are listed in the WordPress.org plugin directory (Jetpack VaultPress Backup needs a paid Jetpack plan).<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"SEO_and_site_structure\"><\/span>SEO and site structure<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/seo-by-rank-math\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Rank Math SEO<\/a><\/strong> sets titles, meta descriptions, schema and the XML sitemap. It replaced All in One SEO for us. See how we use it to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2020\/04\/noindex-archive-subpages-yoast-seo-plugin\/\">noindex archive subpages<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/redirection\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Redirection<\/a><\/strong> manages 301 redirects and logs 404 errors, so old URLs keep working when posts are merged or removed.<\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/easy-table-of-contents\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Easy Table of Contents<\/a><\/strong> adds a contents box to long articles.<\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/pretty-link\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pretty Links<\/a><\/strong> creates clean, trackable short links for affiliate and outbound links.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Speed\"><\/span>Speed<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/litespeed-cache\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">LiteSpeed Cache<\/a><\/strong> caches pages and optimises images and CSS on our LiteSpeed server. In 2010 WP Super Cache did this job; read about other <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2013\/11\/quick-cache-wordpress-plugin-pro\/\">WordPress cache plugins<\/a> we tried.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Security_and_spam\"><\/span>Security and spam<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/antispam-bee\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Antispam Bee<\/a><\/strong> blocks comment spam without sending comments to an outside service.<\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/two-factor\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Two Factor<\/a><\/strong> adds two-step login for admin accounts.<\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/limit-login-attempts-reloaded\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Limit Login Attempts Reloaded<\/a><\/strong> blocks bots that keep guessing passwords.<\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/jetpack-backup\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Jetpack VaultPress Backup<\/a><\/strong> keeps automatic backups we can restore from.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Editing_and_stats\"><\/span>Editing and stats<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/classic-editor\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Classic Editor<\/a><\/strong> and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/classic-widgets\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Classic Widgets<\/a><\/strong> keep the editor and widget screens we are used to.<\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/code-snippets\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Code Snippets<\/a><\/strong> holds small PHP tweaks safely, instead of editing the theme&#8217;s functions.php.<\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/flamingo\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Flamingo<\/a><\/strong> saves contact form messages in the dashboard.<\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/sitekit.withgoogle.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Site Kit by Google<\/a><\/strong> shows Search Console and Analytics data inside WordPress.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Our_original_2010_plugin_list\"><\/span>Our original 2010 plugin list<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>This is the list I first shared, with notes on what happened to each one on QOT:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/akismet.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Akismet<\/a><\/strong> was the single most important plugin for moderating comments in a sane manner. We got thousands of spam comments a day, and without it managing comments would have been impossible. Today we use Antispam Bee instead.<\/li>\n<li><strong>All in One SEO<\/strong> fixed titles and meta tags in one click. We later moved to Rank Math.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Clean Archives Reloaded<\/strong> created our archives page from a simple shortcode. We no longer use it.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Evermore<\/strong> shortened posts on the front page as if each had a &#8220;more&#8221; tag. Modern themes show excerpts, so it is no longer needed.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Google XML Sitemaps<\/strong> generated a sitemap and pinged search engines. WordPress now has built-in sitemaps, and Rank Math makes ours.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Grunion Contact Form<\/strong> by Automattic added a contact form to any page. That form later became part of Jetpack.<\/li>\n<li><strong>WordPress Stats<\/strong> showed lightweight traffic stats in the dashboard. It lives on as Jetpack Stats; we now use Site Kit and Search Console.<\/li>\n<li><strong>WordPress Database Backup<\/strong> emailed database backups to save us on a bad server day. Automatic backups now handle that.<\/li>\n<li><strong>WP-Ban<\/strong> blocked spammy IP addresses that flooded the comment queue. Antispam Bee and login limits now cover most of that job.<\/li>\n<li><strong>WP Super Cache<\/strong> kept the site up during Digg traffic spikes. LiteSpeed Cache does that job now.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Tips_for_choosing_WordPress_plugins\"><\/span>Tips for choosing WordPress plugins<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Install only what you need; every plugin adds code to load and update.<\/li>\n<li>Prefer plugins that are actively updated and tested with your WordPress version.<\/li>\n<li>Turn on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2020\/05\/auto-update-wordpress-plugins-themes\/\">auto-updates for WordPress plugins<\/a> you trust.<\/li>\n<li>Use one plugin per job: one SEO plugin, one cache plugin.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For more ideas, see our list of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2009\/08\/must-have-wordpress-plugins\/\">must-have WordPress plugins<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"FAQ\"><\/span>FAQ<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Which_SEO_plugin_does_QOT_use\"><\/span>Which SEO plugin does QOT use?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Rank Math SEO. It handles titles, meta descriptions, schema and the sitemap.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Which_cache_plugin_is_best_for_a_LiteSpeed_server\"><\/span>Which cache plugin is best for a LiteSpeed server?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>LiteSpeed Cache, because it works directly with the LiteSpeed web server&#8217;s built-in cache.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Do_I_still_need_Akismet\"><\/span>Do I still need Akismet?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>You need some spam protection if comments are open. Akismet is still a popular choice; we use Antispam Bee, which works locally.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_many_plugins_is_too_many\"><\/span>How many plugins is too many?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>There is no fixed number. What matters is quality: a few heavy or badly coded plugins slow a site more than many small, well-made ones.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Many of you have asked which WordPress plugins we use to power QOT. Back in 2010 I shared the 10&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":67188,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6,36],"tags":[17],"class_list":["post-17016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blogging","category-about","tag-wordpress"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17016","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17016"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17016\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67199,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17016\/revisions\/67199"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/67188"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17016"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17016"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}