It’s WordPress Wednesday, and it’s getting late, so I wanted to do a quick post about my Top 6 favorite plugins for the backend of my WordPress installation – the things that aren’t obvious but make a big difference in the reliability and effectiveness of your site. So, instead of a big preamble, here they are:
- WP-Security Scan – This plugin checks your WordPress installation for security vulnerabilities and offers suggestions on fixing them. I have had some issues with bad people injecting code into my WordPress index pages, and this plugin with the next helped fix some of the holes.
- AntiVirus – This plugin offers some protection against exploits and spam injections, and it’s done a wonderful job (so far) of keeping these types of malware off my sites.
- Akismet – Akismet has been wonderful in weeding out the spam commenters (of which there seem to be 1,000s) on my sites. I don’t know how I would manage all the spam comments without this wonderful plugin!
- WP-DB-Backup – Database backup is one of those things, like insurance, that is only needed when there’s trouble. And, if you want to recover years worth of posts, then having a recent backup saves tons of time. This is the best plugin I’ve found for WordPress backup.
- Google XML Sitemaps – A proper sitemap for Google is necessary for getting your WordPress blog indexed and moving up in the rankings. This is a simple, easy-to-use plugin that does the trick.
- Google Analytics for WordPress – This plugin helps add Google Analytics code to your site so you can get a better feel for your site visitors and traffic. And, if you add the Google Analytics Dashboard plugin, the stats are readily available in your dashboard.
These 6 (or 7 plugins with the Dashboard) are indispensable parts of every WordPress site I set up. Check them out and let me know what you think.
Chuck
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I have been looking for the top 6 plugins for my backend.
Thanks Chuck.
- MG
I use 3 of these already on my WP blogs – Akismet, WP-DB-Backup, and XML Sitemaps. I’m going to look into the other 3. They look like some I could really use. Thanks.