Hi! There's a wordpress website.

Right from the start, several modifications were made to the template, resulting in a decrease in site speed. However, overall, everything was good - the site functioned well.

Since March, it started putting a heavy load on the hosting, which naturally displeases the host and they are threatening to disconnect it.

To solve the issue, they suggest switching from virtual hosting to a dedicated server (with a slightly higher price, but not too critical).

Has anyone faced this situation before? Are there any potential challenges? What would be easier: transferring to VDS or attempting to optimize the site?

There could be many factors contributing to this situation. If, after making changes to your WordPress template, you've noticed a slowdown on your site, there could be issues with the modifications themselves or with the site's underlying structure. In addition, increased traffic or heavier use of resources (such as increased database queries, large images, etc.) can also put heavy load on the server.

Before moving to VDS (Virtual Dedicated Server) or dedicated server, I would suggest the following steps to try to optimize the site:

Optimize your images: Large image files can put significant load on your server. You can use plugins, like Smush or EWWW Image Optimizer, to optimize your images.

Minimize HTTP requests: Every piece of your site (such as scripts, images, CSS files) requires a separate HTTP request, each of which can slow down your site. You can minimize HTTP requests by reducing the number of elements on your site.

Enable caching: Caching stores a version of your site that can be served up quickly, reducing the work your server has to do. There are many plugins, like WP Super Cache or W3 Total Cache, that can help optimize your site caching.

Use a content delivery network (CDN): CDNs can store your site on servers all over the world, reducing the time it takes to serve your site to users no matter where they're located.

Optimize your database: An unoptimized or bloated database could slow down your website and cause server issues. You could use plugins like WP-Optimize to help clean up your database.

Limit the number of plugins: Too many plugins, especially poorly designed ones, can bog down your site. Deactivate and delete any plugins you're not using, and look for high-quality plugins that won't negatively impact your site's performance.

Consider your theme: Some themes are very bloated and slow. If your theme is causing you problems, you might want to consider switching to a more lightweight, speed-optimized theme.

If after performing all these steps the site is still causing issues with load on your server, then upgrading to a Virtual Dedicated Server or even a fully dedicated server might be necessary.

The challenges of switching to a VDS or Dedicated hosting include:

Cost: VDS or Dedicated hosting will probably be more expensive than shared hosting. You've clarified that the cost difference isn't too severe, but it's still a factor to consider.

Management and technical knowledge: Unlike shared hosting, VDS and dedicated servers often require more technical know-how to manage, although some hosting providers offer managed services for an extra fee. You may need to manage aspects like security, updates, and software configurations yourself.

Migration issues: When you switch servers, you would need to migrate your site. While many hosting services provide tools and support to make this process easier, there may still be downtime, data loss, or other issues during the migration.


If you're seeking further optimization on your WordPress site, here are some additional detailed solutions:

Defer Parsing of JavaScript: By deferring the parsing of JavaScript until it's needed, you can reduce the initial load time of your page. There are plugins available to help with this, or if you're comfortable with coding, you can manually defer JavaScript parsing in your WordPress files.

Eliminate render-blocking resources: Again, there can be plugins that can help with this, or you will need some coding competencies to do it yourself.

Optimize CSS Delivery: CSS holds the style requirements for your site. If your CSS is bloated or not properly optimized, it could be slowing down your site. You can minimize your CSS and clean up any unnecessary CSS files or lines of code.

Prioritize visible content: Your above-the-fold content should load before anything else. If this isn't currently happening on your site, you'll need some coding abilities to prioritize this content.

Reducer server response time: Your server response time is affected by the amount of traffic you receive, the software your server uses, the hosting solution you use, and the resources each page uses. To reduce this you can use a high-quality hosting company, enhance your server software and configurations, and enhance your web performance.

As you can see, much of website optimization revolves around cleaning up your site and minimizing the amount of work your server has to do to render your site to users. While a dedicated server or VDS will certainly give you more resources, so your site won't have as much of an impact on its performance, proper website optimization can often solve your problems without the need for upgrading hosting.

If, after all these steps, the issue persists, then the problem might be rooted deeper either in your website code or in a larger traffic load than your current hosting environment can handle. In that case, moving to a VDS or a dedicated server would be a good solution. But remember: even with a powerful server, an unoptimized website can still cause performance issues, so it's worthwhile to maintain your website optimization actions.


These tactics generally tend to be more technical in nature and may require some degree of expertise to accomplish effectively:

Lazy Loading: To reduce the load times, you can use lazy loading. It ensures that images only load when they're just about to come into the user's view. Lesser initial load can result in less stress on your server. There are WordPress plugins available to help with lazy loading, such as BJ Lazy Load or Lazy Load by WP Rocket.

Use a Good Quality Hosting Provider: Not all hosting providers are created equal. Some are more optimized for WordPress and offer speed advantages that others do not. When choosing a hosting provider, look for one that uses SSD storage, provides an adequate amount of server resources, is optimized for WordPress, and has a good reputation for speed.

DNS Lookups: DNS lookups can take time, delaying the response to the user. Therefore, try to reduce the number of unique host names and instead use a consistent host name.

Limit the Amount of Post Revisions Stored: WordPress has a feature that stores a huge number of revisions for every post. This can add unnecessary load to your database and slow down your site. You should limit the number of revisions stored per post.

Fine Tune Expiry Headers: HTTP headers let the client know how long the browser should cache content. You can fine tune your headers to optimize the caching.

Advanced Database Cleaner plugin: Use a plugin, such as Advanced Database Cleaner, for deep cleaning of your WordPress database. This will help to remove any obsolete rows or tables and optimize the active ones.

PHP Optimizations: With every update, PHP gets better at performance. Make sure you're using the latest version of PHP, and try implementing FastCGI (if your host allows it) to save on the overhead of running the PHP interpreter.

Customize .htaccess: The .htaccess file is a powerful configuration file that you can use to override the settings on your web server and improve your site's speed.

Use Http/2: Prioritization and multiplexing are the factors that can be beneficial with the use of HTTP/2.

These tips should help you reduce your site's load on the server, ultimately saving you the need to upgrade your hosting package. However, if you still face performance issues or heavy loads, you may need to consider moving to a Virtual Private Server (VPS) or a dedicated server. Remember, upgrading your hosting does not alleviate the need to maintain proper optimization on your site; the two actions should go hand in hand for the best performance.

How much traffic does your website have? Did it experience a significant increase in March? Based on the statistics you shared, it seems that you had minimal load initially, but it started to grow rapidly. Recently, there was also a customer on timeweb who faced a sudden surge in load, which turned out to be an attempt to hack or disrupt their site. However, after optimizing and implementing basic protection measures, the server load has decreased to only 1-2 units out of the allowed 50, and the database load is no more than 50 out of the permissible 1000. This is quite impressive considering that there are 8 other websites hosted on the same server, with each receiving 50-100 daily visitors.

One important recommendation is to enable logs for each site individually to closely monitor their activity. By examining the logs, you might conclude that it is better to focus on improving the existing site rather than migrating to a VPS.

I believe that straightforward optimizations could increase download speed tenfold, implying quicker downloads with reduced resource consumption.

Should you lack optimization skills but possess knowledge in VPS configuration, then proceed with VPS setting, although it won't serve as a panacea.

CRM is unrelated to this matter. Absence of leadership can potentially induce chaos in any plan!

Primarily, focus on steps like: picture enhancement (resolution, format, optimization), and cutting back on plugin usage.

They're clearly not interested in helping you optimize your site, they just want more of your money. I'd tell them to shove their dedicated server. Instead, let's write some custom code to optimize your site's performance. We can implement lazy loading, reduce HTTP requests, and minify code.

Very valuable insights into improving slow WordPress sites! Optimizing server performance, cache, and plugins really matters. Managed hosting seems like a smart solution for improved site speeds.