Read about the Best Content Delivery Network (CDN) Providers for WordPress - their solutions guarantee stunning performance, high loading speed, and reliability.
If you want to increase the speed of your WordPress website and make it more robust and secure, you should opt for a CDN (content delivery network). This is a superb solution for media-rich blogs and projects with a high traffic volume. In this article, you will read about the nuts and bolts of CDN technology, its key advantages, and 10 best CDN services for WordPress users in 2017. If you’ve been searching for a way to boost loading times and get maximum benefits of having a rapid website, that’s the right spot.
What is a Content Delivery Network (CDN)?
The content delivery network is a system of so-called “edge servers” that caches website static (images, CSS, JavaScript, fonts, etc.) assets and deliver it to end users. The main idea behind CDN is to reduce the distance for the content to travel by automatically connecting visitors with the closest points of presence (PoPs) – datacenters where the data is stored.
As soon as content is uploaded on the main server, it is cached on edge servers of a delivery network when the first user requests it. The next user(s) will then have this content transferred from network servers in the closest proximity. The fewer miles of wires overcome by data, the faster it is delivered.
Therefore, CDN is a versatile technology for website acceleration, no matter what sphere it belongs to (eCommerce, gaming, education, entertainment media, etc.). It not only boosts content delivery, but renders the full spectrum of many other advantages.
What are the Benefits of Using a Content Delivery Network (CDN)?
In fact, the merits of content delivery networks are not confined to high-speed only; there’s the whole gamut of other advantages including:
- Better SEO. In fact, it’s not the hosting solution that influences ranking in search engines, but the speed of the page loading. Therefore, if it takes 2-3 seconds for your website to open, visitors will be satisfied and they’ll visit your website often and spend more time on pages. Positive outcomes won’t be long in coming.
- Reliability. Since the clear majority of page content (and sometimes even entire pages) are stored in multiple caches, the risk of downtime equals to a zero. If one edge server is down, visitors are automatically redirected to other servers that function. Besides, this solution also guarantees 100% uptime, and you can sleep soundly knowing that your pages are always available for users and a total loss of information is impossible… provided your main server is secure.
- Excellent security. CDN makes HTTPS and SSL encryption possible: it protects sensitive users’ information (login credentials, payment data, etc.). The service also comes with the firewall that prevents DDoS attacks and other hacking attempts ensuring multiple layer security.
- Load balancing. Traffic is optimally distributed over servers to ensure excellent performance and avoid downtime. The load on the main server is reduced by 90%.
- CDN is very easy to implement in WordPress websites.
The 10 Best CDN Services for WordPress in 2017
If you’re searching for a reliable and efficient CDN solution, consider one of these 10 service providers in 2017.
SpaceCDN
Since SpaceCDN is a reseller offering the full spectrum of worthy CDN solutions from various providers including UCDN, AhCDN, HighWinds, EdgeCast, and CDNNow. However, a wide selection of networks is not the only advantage of this service. The main reason why we mentioned SpaceCDN first is its exceptional quality of services and agreeable prices. With CDN costs starting from as low as $10, every enterprise and individual user can afford this technology.
The providers that SpaceCDN partners with offer globally distributed networks with tens of PoPs in various regions (some have servers located in Russia, Asia, and Latin America). Reliability, security, and robustness are guaranteed. Another undeniable advantage is its pay-as-you-go system, meaning that users don’t have to overpay for resources they don’t use. No contracts are required, and a 30-day free trial is also available.
MaxCDN
Being one of the most popular CDN networks on the market, MaxCDN offers 100% SSD servers and Anycast routing with tens of PoPs located in the USA, Latin America, Europe, Asia, & Pacific region. Being united with StackPath, the network ensures global connectivity and strikingly fast loading. Additionally, built-in WAF prevents a wide range of attacks and hacking.
It’s worth mentioning that MaxCDN has agreeable global pricing, so the cost of networks is more than reasonable, and it’s equal for users from all over the world with no contracts required. This means that users can switch to another solution or cancel the service whenever they want without penalties. Developers will find scaling easy as a piece of cake. Wholly-owned routers balance load and help to optimize traffic distribution. Smart MaxCDN network is powered with more than 600 ISP agreements which allows virtually removing all obstacles between visitors and website assets. Instant SSL can be deployed within a few seconds. To top it off, instant purge and provisioning are provided to keep content fresh and relevant (the way edge servers deliver the content can be specified with EdgeRules). With real-time reporting, users can also keep tabs on the audience and website performance to make process-driven decisions.
CloudFlare
Being present on the market for 15 years, CloudFlare provides CDN networks of the next generation. The platform unites advanced technologies for users to enjoy enhanced security and excellent loading speed. This global network comes with predictable monthly bills, regardless of how much traffic was served from the edge servers. Simply put, this service won’t take a bite out of your wallet.
CloudFlare focuses on peering and provides more than 150 peering locations presently. Those who have a target audience in China are highly recommended to this service because Cloudflare started partnering with Baidu, which helped to reduce latency in China by 30% and raise availability in this region. Only SSD servers are used in the network: it means lower power consumption, better cooling, and far higher performance. The processing of a large amount of traffic over the network is optimized perfectly.
Although CloudFlare caches static files only, Page Rules can be specified so as to make more files cacheable. There are interesting Enterprise features like Query String Sort which sorts query strings in URL before obtaining cache from edge servers or requesting it from the origin.
Inxy
INXY is a well-established reseller with hundreds of CDN networks available. It offers more than 100 PoPs in different regions: the USA, Europe, Latin America, Asia, Russia, and CIS. Prioritizing excellent customer support INXY offers top-class solutions from such providers as HighWinds, EdgeCast by Verizon, UCDN, AhCDN, and CDNNow. It guarantees lightning quick loading speed, reliability, and reasonable response times. These CDN networks are truly robust and efficient, so they can be equally useful for individual blogs and websites, and enterprise web projects.
CDN networks from INXY are HTTPS compatible, which means you can use SSL encryption, and user’s personal data will always stay safe and secure. Servers are located in reliable and robust datacenters that guarantee 24/7 excellent technical maintenance. Additionally, INXY customer support team can help you to solve various arising issues and answer questions concerning technology implementation and use.
What users find a compelling advantage is the low cost of CDN by INXY. Prices start from as low as $9/Tb for HighWinds network which is an unprecedented offer because CDN solutions from major providers are at least twice as expensive at the starting point. It’s always possible to negotiate the price and get a personal order based on user’s requirements and budget. Besides, you can test any CDN solution with a 30-day trial period.
CDNify
When designing CDNify network, its creators took users’ experience into consideration. Thus, they have managed to make a simple and yet efficient network that features everything you need, and nothing you don’t. The control panel is a pure joy to use. Real-time statistics allow seeing the most popular files, the countries where requests come from, and overall view of asset usage.
CDNify provides custom SSL where users can upload their certificates and customize CDN URLs. SSD-optimized network ensures stunning speed of connection and solid drives accelerate performance by 30% higher than legacy CDNs with regular hard drives. With full API users can purge resources and files automatically setting up their own purging rules.
What also makes this service perfect for WordPress website developers is that this CDN is easily integrated with different CMS, and it takes a few minutes to implement it. The service can be simply scaled up and down, and it’s possible to find a network with PoPs in suitable regions.
CacheFly
This is another popular provider that offers globally scattered servers in more than 40 PoPs (points of presence), which makes up for strikingly fast delivery of files and stable connection. The key advantage of CacheFly networks is TCP Anycast: it was created in 2002 to reduce latency and provide more reliable way of routing the nearest servers. It contributes to higher throughput performance of all networks. Therefore, CacheFly became the first company to prefer TCP anycast to DNS routing, improving the quality of connection considerably. The company keeps developing the network with recent TCP improvements, new peering partners, and proprietary HTTP software.
CacheFly offers PoPs in different regions, most of which are concentrated in the USA and Europe, with a few in Latin America, Africa, Australia, and Pacific. The service is also added up with GZIP compression, expiring headers, reverse proxy, instant purging and replication for better optimization and quick delivery of files to the end users.
Instead of manual file loading, CacheFly users can benefit from Reverse Proxy (Origin Pull) that automatically fetches non-cached objects by rewriting to point to CacheFly. If there’s cache missed, the request is sent back to the origin on the fly, and the user’s request is fulfilled. Files are updated in seconds, not in hours, so you can be sure that the content is always fresh and relevant.
CDN77
This is a very technically advanced yet affordable network that provides HTTP/2 and instant SSL. Although the company has a bit more than 30 PoPs, they are scattered over 5 continents which makes up for global coverage. You can order a network with servers in North America, Latin America, Russia and CIS, Europe, Asia (excluding China), Oceania and Middle East. Additional PoPs in Hanoi, New Delhi, Bangkok and Taipei can be activated on user’s request.
As for pricing, it’s also agreeable. CDN77 services can be used without long-term contracts, and their monthly plans are affordable for mid-size companies and enterprises. Discounts are also available for users going for annual contracts. Some paid additional options are also available (CDN storage, Raw Logs, SFTP, rsync).
Microsoft Azure CDN
Microsoft offers a pretty reliable and efficient content delivery network that ensures global coverage with its main advantages being better performance and affordability. Being globally scattered, the network allows for easy scaling, and a user can benefit from working with multiple CDN providers. It mostly partners with Akamai and Verizon, and users may choose an optimal solution based on traffic distribution, load balancing, and other factors. There’s a whole range of API interfaces and tools for developers.
No contracts are required, meaning a user only pays for the services and bandwidth that were used. Centralized customer support is 24/7 available. Microsoft offers several CDN packages – simple and extended. Security is also prioritized: DDoS protection is ensured thanks to FedRAMP certificates. Advanced analytic tools show user’s social metrics, the popularity of website assets, and other valuable statistics.
Incapsula
Being trusted by more than 100,000 organizations, Incapsula offers a CDN with numerous PoPs located in the USA, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Powered by intelligent caching and cache control features, it ensures high speed of connection, tools for optimization and a great boost of website performance with moderate bandwidth costs.
Incapsula CDN turns out to be 50% faster in many cases, and it helps to save bandwidth by 70% and more. Its unbeatable advantages include:
- dynamic caching enabled by machine learning
- robust self-healing mesh network infrastructure
- various cache control features
- Tier 1 transit system for better coverage
- Cache rule propagation
- Instant cache purge
Application developers will like the opportunity to redirect users’ requests to the network edge while providing assets based on request attributes without altering user-facing URL.
Jetpack Photon
Being a special solution for WordPress websites, Jetpack Photon accelerates image delivery; it filters content (images, post thumbnails, and pages) without making any alterations of the information in the database. The good news is that it automatically resizes image dimensions by looking at height and width attributes and adjusting to the applied theme.
Although Jetpack Photon is not a fully-fledged CDN, it’s a perfect choice for image-rich WordPress websites. It does all work for you by adjusting image size and dimensions and accelerates their delivery. Besides, installing Jetpack Photon is a piece of cake.
Now, you know which CDN services are worth being used in 2017. When making the final decision, consider your website needs, the location of the target audience and additional services that you may need.
Related Posts
5 Reasons Why Your Website Needs a CDN Today
Using CDN to Speed Up Your Website
Guide to Perform SEO Audit of WordPress Website
WordPress CDN Giveaway – Win One of Two KeyCDN Accounts
P.S. Just to make sure you get WordPress Templates in the right place.