WordPress Image Plugins - (Kraken Alternatives)
Following on from the question that I asked yesterday (Has Kraken Image Optimizer been abandoned?), that came about due to my blog post the day before (WordPress 5.5 Issues Affecting Thousands Of Users), while we are awaiting the official response from Carson, I thought I would let you know about the alternatives that we could use instead of Kraken.
A Quick Summary
There have been some issues with websites after upgrading to WordPress 5.5, however, these were mainly related to outdated plugins/themes. It then came to our attention that the Kraken plugin that comes with all of the WordPress installations here, has not been updated for over 15 months, and that it has not been officially tested with the three latest major versions of WordPress. There is a strong possibility that this plugin may no longer be supported, and that it may develop issues for your websites in the future.
Just to be clear, there are No Known Issues with the Kraken WordPress Plugin, at this stage.
Option A - Smush
Smush have a free option that allows you to optimise an unlimited number of images, as long as the initial file size is less than 5MB. Only the Pro version allows for the Next-Gen WebP images. Smush is currently active on over 1M+ WordPress websites, and was last updated 4 weeks ago.
https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-smushit/
Option B - EWWW Image Optimizer
EWWW Image Optimizer have a free option that allows you to optimise an unlimited number of images, of any file size. Only their paid plan allows for the Next-Gen WebP images. EWWW Image Optimizer is currently active on over 800K+ WordPress websites, and was last updated 4 days ago.
https://wordpress.org/plugins/ewww-image-optimizer/
Option C - Imagify
Imagify have a free option that allows you to optimise about 250 images per month of any file size (25MB per month). Their free plan also allows for the Next-Gen WebP images. Imagify is currently active on over 300K+ WordPress websites, and was last updated 4 weeks ago.
https://wordpress.org/plugins/imagify/
Option D - ShortPixel Image Optimizer
ShortPixel Image Optimizer have a free option that allows you to optimise 100 images per month of any file size. Their free plan also allows for the Next-Gen WebP images. ShortPixel Image Optimizer is currently active on over 200K+ WordPress websites, and was last updated 3 days ago.
https://wordpress.org/plugins/shortpixel-image-optimiser/
Summary
The choice of plugin comes down to personal preference, along with the number of images you have on your website, and whether you would like to use the WebP format.
I personally use Smush Pro on my websites, so that I get an unlimited number of images, of any file size, automatically sized per visitors' device, including WebP formats and delivered via their CDN.
I hope this helps you with your decision making when deciding upon your Kraken alternative WordPress plugin!
Recent Comments
91
Hi Chrystopher
Great info as always.
I had the free version of smush on my original site and it caused it to keep crashing - no matter what theme i used. Site support advised me to uninstall and they moved my site to the new servers with kraken.
It's disappointing to learn that it hasnt been updated.
Thanks
Dave
You're welcome Dave :-) Sorry to hear that Smush didn't work for you, how long ago was that? I haven't had any issues with it and with over 1M+ active installs, that's very strange. I wonder if you have/had another plugin that was causing the conflict with Smush?
Whatever it was - site support couldnt figure it out.
Its strange because i had the same theme on another site with smush installed and it caused no problems
No worries, makes me think there was another plugin on that one website that was causing it to conflict. I’m guessing you’re still using Kraken at the moment?
Yes I have kraken on the site that got moved to the new servers.
Maybe I need to revisit the problem and see if I can figure out what plugin caused the problem.
Having said that - everything is running smoothly so I might let sleeping dogs lie...
That’s fair enough, as long as you don’t leave it too long before Kraken breaks all of our websites, like the Social Media plugin still being recommended in the training that hasn’t been updated in over 7 years :-(
I realized the other day that my older websites still hadn't been updated withh Kraken so I contacted our support team.
They upgraded it instantly and, didn't say anything about it being an issue so, i'm following your post to see what comes about.
Also, just a side note: After the last WP update I'm sure everyone noticed all the options to opt-in to automatic updates. I'm not one to do that due to past experience but, I asked support anyway just to see what their input was.
They told me they don't reccomend using that option so I thhought I would pass thhat on.
Thank you for your insight Chrystopher as I too noticed Kraken hadn't been updated for over a year and it was concerning/ goes against what criteria we use when installing new plugins as per our training and pro-mentor advice.
I completely agree Jennifer :-) As for the update query, all WordPress websites here are installed with two variables added to the wp-config file to disable automatic updates and to disable the wp-cron (scheduled tasks). You can either enable these yourselves or ask SiteSupport to enable them. I personally have them set back to WordPress defaults, rather than WA defaults, so that it does not produce issues with my websites, such as scheduling post. It is down to personal preference as to whether you want updates to happen automatically or not, but if you choose to leave them as it is, you must make sure that you log in at least once a week, and no less than once a month, to apply any updates, otherwise you will be putting your website at risk, as most updates are to address security issues, not just to add new features.
I'm well aware about the importance of updates.
Anyone who has been here as long as I have should be as well but, a sound reminder for anyne reading!
As soon as I saw WOrdPress 5.5 had the 'enable auto-updates feature it made me pause ha. It makes you get that twitch reaction just like Windows updates or, graphics card updates (for those that feel me on thhat front ;)
That isn't a WA thing it's a WordPress thing though. If it was I'd pretty shocked considering my years of training here.
That said though and, again for your readers, weekly updates are super important. For the OCD/vigilant, daily checks and/or, every few days log-in and check tactics are also beneficial ...for peace of mind as well!
Thank you for this overview Christopher, that us awesome and really helpful.
Have a great day.
Jude
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If Kraken comes with wordpress, does that mean its useful on my site behind the scenes and I didnt know it? Or is it safe to delete it? Or how do I know if its needed?
I have:
classic editor
kraken
creative blocks
I do not believe I added any of these...do I need them?
Kraken doesn't come with WordPress, but WA do provide it free of charge on all of their newer servers here. You do need an Image Optimisation plugin, it's just which one. Personally, I would choose Smush, but that's why I provided the list above to help you decide for yourself.
So do I need to add Smush then delete Kraken?
Is there a way to see if they are being used?