How to Optimize WordPress Database with Cloudways for Faster Performance

12 min read
wordpress database optimization

Let’s say you have an e-commerce website where you market your home decor products, but for the past few days your website is lagging, slow page loading and resulting in bad performance? Must have happened once, Right? If so, then Let’s sit back and learn about WordPress Database Optimization with CloudWays.

Newbies! No need to worry! Here, we are going to decode for you what WordPress Database Optimization actually is, Why Choose CloudWays for WordPress Database Optimizations (some excellent features that they provide), Step-by-Step guide How to clean up WordPress Database and many other exciting things as well.

What is WordPress Database?

Before we actually start with the main thing, Let’s know What is WordPress Database? So, in very simple words, WordPress Database is the basic component of your website that stores important information such as posts, pages, user’s data and web stories. 

However, at times, your database can get filled with unnecessary data, extra files, unused tables which can tremendously slow your WordPress website and thereby leading to loss of the e-business. 

If you do not want this to happen, then WordPress Database Optimization with CloudWays is the only way your website can perform skyrocketing and no issue would crop up related to your WordPress Database.

Why need WordPress Database Optimization?

WordPress Database Optimization is the need of the hour! Today, in this digital world, from business to education, everything runs online. Due to this reason, one needs to go with the CloudWays ultimate solution of WordPress Database Optimization for your website’s greater performance and following other reasons as well:

  • WordPress Database optimization drastically reduces the size of your website’s database and improves page loading speed.
  • Visitors can easily surf your website without any issues and can effortlessly navigate it, thereby increasing user satisfaction and more conversions.
  • As you all know that website’s speed is one of the ranking factors, so, by optimizing your WordPress database, you increase the chances of higher SEO.
  • A highly optimized Database consumes fewer hosting resources, such as CPU/ Storage/ Bandwidth, letting your website handle sudden traffic spikes with optimum resources.
  • WordPress Database Optimization brings quicker data restoration and extreme security to your website’s data, improving reliability.

There you go! So many benefits that you can grab from WordPress Database optimization. Now, What features do CloudWays offers, that makes WordPress Database Optimization cool and simple, Let’s read further 👍 

Why Choose Cloudways for WordPress Database Optimization?

Picking the right web hosting environment is very important when it comes to database optimization. Here, Cloudways offers you a high-performing hosting environment that is specifically designed for WordPress websites. But, what sets Cloudways apart from other hosting firms?

  • High-Performance Hosting Environment

Cloudways offers a robust hosting infrastructure backed by top cloud providers like DigitalOcean, AWS, and Google Cloud. This further ensures that your WordPress site has the muscle to handle database-related work with ease.

  • Features Supporting Database Optimization

Cloudways’ features are specifically designed to support database optimization, such as managed backups, advanced caching mechanisms, and one-click installations of performance-enhancing plugins.

  • Cloudways Managed Backups and Security

Security and reliability are crucial when it comes to database management. Cloudways offers automated and managed backups to ensure that your data is safe and secure, even when you make optimization changes.

In a nutshell, Cloudways doesn’t just offer hosting services, it even provides a friendly environment that supports and enhances the performance of your WordPress database.

Understanding the Components of a WordPress Database

Now, let’s first of all understand the Components of WordPress Database, that are essential to know before we actually learn to optimize WordPress Database effectively.

A typical WordPress database is made up of multiple tables, each serving a specific purpose and storing different types of data, from posts and pages to user information and site settings as well. Let’s break down the key components:

  • WP.users: Details and status of the users.
  • WP.posts: Posts types, page data and posts data.
  • WP.comments: Stores comments 
  • WP.terms: Tags and post categories
  • WP.links: Links that can be activated using a Link Manager
  • WP.options: Options that are set in by the user.

The tables mentioned above are the basic tables that get created by default. However, the number of tables in your WordPress Database can vary depending upon the themes and plugins installed.  

So coming back to the topic, What impacts your WordPress website’s performance then? It is actually:

  • Unnecessary Excessive Data 
  • UnOptimized tables 
  • No Proper Indexing 
  • Extra Unused Plugins and Themes
  • High Latency due to Traffic Spike

In a brief, poor database maintenance can lead to slower request times and overall bad site performance.

After so much discussion about Database and its importance in running the wordpress website smoothly, we get to know one fact for sure, and that is, Identifying old revisions of posts, deleted items, and even unused metadata, in other words, Identifying and eliminating bloat, happens to be the first step of WordPress database optimization.  

Tools and Plugins for WordPress Database Optimization

Database Optimization is no RocketScience, especially when you have the right tools and plugins at your disposal. Some of the top database optimization plugins that help you clean up redundant data, optimize tables, and schedule regular maintenance tasks include as under: 

  • WP-DBManager
  • WP Clean Up Optimizer
  • WP-Sweep
  • Optimize Database after Deleting Revisions
  • Advanced Database Cleaner
  • MySQL-specific tools
  • PostgreSQL-specific tools
  • Microsoft SQL Server-specific tools
  • Oracle-specific tools
  • Cross-platform tools

(Note: You should choose the Right tool, keeping in mind the size and complexities of your Database.)

Here, CloudWays plays an important role as it seamlessly integrates with various optimization plugins, making the process smoother. Amazing! Isn’t it?

Cloudways’ platform is actually designed to support easy integration of these tools and plugins mentioned above. Whether you’re using WP-Optimize to remove post revisions, drafts and spam or WP-Sweep to clean up your database, Cloudways ensures that the plugins work seamlessly with your hosting environment.

Step-by-Step Guide to Clean Up & Optimize WordPress Database for Improved Site Performance

Now that you’re familiar with the multiple plugins and components of a WordPress database, it’s time to dive into the practical steps of cleaning up and optimizing your database. 

The guide given below will walk you through the entire process from scratch using Cloudways as your hosting platform:

  • The first and the foremost step is to ensure that no data is lost during this WordPress Optimization process. Therefore, it is important to BackUp your Database. Cloudways makes this easy with its managed backup feature.
  • Simply Go to the official website of CloudWays >> Login to your application you wish to backup >> Go to Application Management >> Click on Backup and Restore. 
Go to Application Management
  • From here, you can easily backup or restore your WordPress site >> Click on the Take Backup Now Button to create a backup >> It takes less than a minute to complete Backup.
you can easily backup or restore your WordPress site
  • Now that you have created your Backup >> it’s time to Identify, Remove Unnecessary Data and Fix Database error. 
  • Go back to Access Details >> Navigate to MySQL Access >> Note the DB name, Username and Password >> Click the Launch Database Manager button.
Launch Database Manager button
  • On clicking the above option >> It opens the phpMyAdmin interface in a new tab >> Fill in the Database credentials and Login to your phpMyAdmin >> Pick the DB you want to repair.
 Pick the DB you want to repair
  •  After Choosing the required number of tables >> Press Check button to scan the selected tables for error >> Press the Repair button to sort out any issues in the selected table.
  • Lastly, review the result of the process >> Shows OK for the tables that doesn’t need repairing.
Shows OK for the tables that doesn't need repairing
  • Over time, your database accumulates a lot of redundant data, such as post revisions, drafts, and spam comments. Use plugins like WP-Optimize to safely remove these items and free up valuable space.
  • WP-Optimize, in simple words, is a WordPress plugin that specializes in optimizing or maintaining the Database of a WordPress website. 
  • It allows users to clean up unnecessary data such as spam, unnecessary trash posts and comments thereby freeing up some space.
  • On access WP-Optimize plugin >> List of options appears for removing unnecessary revisions, spam comments and data >> Now Click Run all selected optimizations button to initialize the process.
Now Click Run all selected optimizations button to initialize the process
  • Now, Let’s Optimize your WordPress database via phpMyAdmin. So What is it? In easy words, it is a powerful tool available in Cloudways that allows you to optimize your database tables manually as per your requirement.
  • Go to CloudWays Database Manager >> You’ll find an option for Optimization >> Select the tables from the list >> Click the Optimize button.
Click the Optimize button
  • For users, having technical knowledge and wanting to perform bulk operations, can make use of WP-CLI for Database Optimization, which offers a command-line interface to manage, clean up and optimize your WordPress database directly.

Automating WordPress Database Maintenance

After Cleaning the Extra Bloated data and Optimizing the Database, What Comes Next? It is Maintenance! Maintaining an optimized WordPress database isn’t a one-time task, instead it requires a regular Upkeep.

Luckily CloudWays offer amazing tools and features to help automate this process, thereby reducing manual efforts.

  • Firstly, Plugins like WP-Optimize, allow you to schedule regular Database Cleanups, ensuring that your database remains optimized 24/7 without any sort of manual effort required.
  • SafeUpdates, one of the amazing features of CloudWays’ ensures that your database remains secure even as you make optimization changes. It automatically creates backups and checks updates before applying them, thereby minimizing any sort of errors.
  • Thirdly, CloudWays is designed to integrate with various database optimization tools. No matter if you are using a plugin or any other way like a custom script, CloudWays supports these integrations, making database maintenance tasks super easy.

So, by automating your database maintenance, you can focus on the growth of your website and engage with your audience, knowing that your database is running at peak performance 🙂

Monitoring and Analyzing Database Performance

Database Optimization is not just about cleaning up and maintenance, But it also includes close monitoring and Analyzing Database performance as well. 

Now, How CloudWays prove useful here? So, it provides powerful tools to help you keep an eye on your database and ping you once it locates any issues. 

  • Cloudways offers built-in monitoring tools that allow you to track your database’s performance in real-time. These tools review request performance, page loading times, and other important metrics.
  • Then there is Cloudways Analytics, a powerful tool that provides detailed insights into your database’s performance. With this tool, you can identify slow requests, monitor load times, and track overall database health.

So, with the help of these Real-Time Monitoring Tools, you can locate and fix common related Database issues, such as bloating and poor indexing. By instantly fixing these issues, you can maintain a fast, responsive WordPress site for sure.

Advanced Tips for Database Optimization on Cloudways

Exclusively for those wanting to take their database optimization to the next level, Cloudways offers a range of advanced features and best practices to ensure your WordPress site runs at lightning speed. 👍

  • Firstly, CloudWays offers Object Caching Pro, a premium plugin that significantly enhances database performance by drastically reducing the load on your database. (By processing the Database queries faster)
  • Don’t you think Poor Indexing hampers the performance of your WordPress website? In that case, CloudWays’ tools like phpMyAdmin and WP-CLI can be used to manage and optimize your database indexing.
  • Besides Object Caching Pro, Get Full Page Caching and query caching solutions. These tips may reduce the number of Database requests made by your WordPress site, thereby speeding up load times and reducing server load as well.

Case Studies: Improved Site Performance via WordPress Database Optimization

Let us consider a large e-commerce site that is hosted on Cloudways. Now, we’ll study the performance of the site Before the Optimization and After the Optimization. Thereafter, we’ll then make a comprehensive observation on their performance. So Let’s begin 🙂

  • Before optimization, the site usually struggles with slow load times due to bloated databases. 
  • After implementing a series of Optimizations such as cleaning up old data, optimizing tables, and making use of caching techniques, the site normally sees a 40% reduction in load times and a significant improvement in user engagement.
  • After optimizing the database, a WordPress blog on Cloudways reports a somewhat around 30% reduction in server response time and a 50% increase in page load speed. These metrics demonstrate the tangible benefits of regular database maintenance and optimization.

So we see, regular database maintenance is very important for long-term WordPress site performance. Plus it is also true that using Cloudways’ tools and features, such as Object Cache Pro and SafeUpdates, can significantly reduce the risk of optimization-related issues. Finally, 24/7 monitoring and analysis are too, a key to maintaining an optimized database.

Final Words

By now, you must have learnt that Optimizing your WordPress database is crucial for maintaining a fast, secure, and efficient website. 

Even if you are a newbie, in that case too, you must have gotten that simply by undergoing regular cleanups, using caching techniques and proper monitoring you can optimize your site thereby boost its performance 🚀 .

In this article, we even proved that Cloudways, a robust hosting platform, supports these WordPress Database Optimization strategies, offering the tools & plugins like WP-Optimize, WP-CLI and many more needed to keep your database in top shape. 

A well-optimized database leads to better SEO rankings, higher user engagement, and lower server costs. Cloudways is committed to helping you maintain an optimized WordPress site to enjoy the above mentioned benefits. 

CloudWays, with its high-performance hosting environment, robust security features, and seamless integration with optimization tools, provides everything you need to keep your database running smoothly. Whether you’re managing a small blogging site or a large e-commerce site, Cloudways offers the support and resources needed to ensure your site’s success.

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Written By:

Meet Mamta Goswami, a trialblazing web-hosting expert who has been making her mark in the industry since 2021. With a unique perspective and unwavering passion, she has been empowering individuals and businesses to thrive in the digital world.With her blog posts, Mamta aims to bridge the gender gap in the tech industry and inspire more women to pursue careers in web hosting. Through her relatable and informative content, she simplifies complex concepts, making web hosting accessible to everyone.

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