there are many reasons why your WordPress admin (Admin) page might be slow. server issues, plugin overload, and lack of database optimization are the main culprits. below, we’ll walk you through the possible causes and solutions step-by-step.
1️⃣ Top Causes of Slow WordPress Admin Page
1. server performance issues
- Low PHP version: Performance degradation occurs when using PHP 7.4 or lower.
- LowPHP memory limit: A low default (128M) can cause slow admin pages.
- InsufficientCPU and server resources: Possible overload when using low-end shared hosting.
slower PHP version itself can slow down site performance, and a low PHP memory limit can slow down the admin page itself.
2. plugin/Theme Over-Installation and Conflicts
- over-installation of plugins: If you have a lot of plugins that you don’t need, it can slow down the loading of the admin page.
- using heavy plugins: e.g.) SEO plugins, security plugins, inefficient cache plugins.
- theme performance issues: Inefficiently written theme causing poor performance.
- theme and plugin conf licts: server errors caused by conflicting plugins that are incompatible with the theme
this can happen if unused plugins are not deleted properly, your site slows down if you have a lot of heavy plugins installed, or if an existing plugin conflicts with an existing plugin because it was not deleted properly.
conflicting plugins that are incompatible with your WordPress theme can also cause your site to slow down.
3. database overload
- outdated revisions (post revisions) and temporary data (transients) overwhelming the database.
- slow admin if there is a lot of data set to autoload in the
wp_options
table.
4. AJAX overload (admin-ajax.php)
- overloaded when there are many AJAX requests, such as real-time notifications, WooCommerce dashboard data, etc.
2️⃣ How to optimize WordPress admin speed
1. Optimize your PHP settings
- Upgrade your PHP version
- We recommend using PHP 8.0 or higher.
- upgrade your PHP version from your cPanel or hosting admin page.
- change your PHP-PHM settings
- changing PHP-FPM settings, PHP FPM plays an important role in improving the speed of your admin page.
- Increase PHP memory limit
- set
memory_limit
to512M
or higher in cPanel. - add the code below to your
wp-config.php
file.
- set
define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '512M'); define('WP_MAX_MEMORY_LIMIT', '512M');
2. optimize plugins and themes
- deactivate unnecessary plugins
- check all of your currently active plugins and deactivate the ones you don’t use.
- replace heavy plugins
- examples of plugins that can be problematic
- Elementor: Heavy page builder plugin.
- WooCommerce: Can cause inefficient AJAX requests.
- alternative: Use a lightweight plugin.
- examples of plugins that can be problematic
- test changing to the default theme
- to test admin page speed, check the performance after changing to a lightweight theme like Twenty Twenty-One and generaterpress.
- Use the WP-Optimize plugin
- Install the WP-Optimize plugin to perform database optimization tasks
- deleting post revisions.
- deleting temporary data (transient).
- removing trash and spam comments.
- Install the WP-Optimize plugin to perform database optimization tasks
- manual database optimization
- run the following queries in phpMyAdmin to delete expired and unnecessary data:sqlCopyEditDELETE
FROM wp_options WHERE option_name LIKE '_transient_%'; DELETE FROM wp_options WHERE option_name LIKE '_site_transient_%';
- run the following queries in phpMyAdmin to delete expired and unnecessary data:sqlCopyEditDELETE
3. Reduce AJAX requests
- Install the Heartbeat Control plugin from
- Reduce admin-ajax.php load by limiting Heartbeat API requests from WordPress.
- Install the Heartbeat Control plugin → Reduce or disable “Heartbeat Frequency”.
- Disable the WooCommerce dashboard
- WooCommerce → Settings → Advanced → Disable “WooCommerce Dashboard”.
4. optimize your cache plugin
- Optimize WP Rocket settings
- If WP Rocket is enabled, check the options below
- Disable CSS/JS minification: it can conflict with certain plugins or themes.
- limit cache preloads: to prevent excessive preloading.
- Run WP Rocket → “Clear Cache”.
- If WP Rocket is enabled, check the options below
- avoid conflicts with other cache plugins
- Avoid using other cache plugins like LiteSpeed Cache, W3 Total Cache, etc. with WP Rocket.
5. check server performance
- upgrade your hosting
- if you’re on a low-cost shared hosting, you may be underutilizing your CPU or RAM and need to upgrade the hosting server itself.
- Use the Query Monitor plugin
- Install the Query Monitor plugin to analyze the queries executed on your admin pages.
- identify which plugins or themes are causing inefficient queries and take action.
3️⃣ Additional checklists
- clear your browser cache and cookies
- if your admin page is slow, clear your browser cache and cookies and retest.
- Check your CDN settings
- If you are using a CDN (e.g. Cloudflare), check your CDN cache settings if the admin page is slow.
- check your site health
- Go to WordPress → “Tools → Site Health” to see recommendations regarding your server and plugins.
🚀 Conclusion
- Prioritizeoptimizing your PHP settings, disabling unnecessary plugins, and optimizing your database.
- Use plugins like Query Monitor and WP-Optimize to analyze performance and iterate on optimizations.
- if you continue to have issues, consider upgrading your server environment or seeking professional help.