How to Implement Lazy Loading in WordPress Plugin
Posted on 17th June 2023
What is Lazy Loading?
Lazy loading is a technique used in software development to defer initialization of an object until it is needed. It can contribute to efficiency in the program’s operation if properly and appropriately used. The opposite of lazy loading is eager loading.
When to Use Lazy Loading?
Lazy loading is most effective when the cost of initializing the object is high, and the likelihood that the object will ever be used is low. The lazy-loaded object may represent a significant part of the total memory footprint of the program, and loading it only when needed can result in significant performance gains.
How to Implement Lazy Loading in WordPress Plugin?
If you’re a WordPress plugin developer, you’re probably already familiar with the process of loading files on demand, also known as “lazy loading.” In general, this refers to delaying the loading of certain files or data until it’s actually needed, rather than loading everything at once. This can be helpful in reducing server load and improving plugin performance.
There are a few different ways to go about implementing lazy loading in WordPress. In this post, we’ll take a look at some of the most popular methods and discuss when you might want to use each one.
1. Use the Lazy Load Plugin
One of the easiest ways to implement lazy loading in WordPress is with the Lazy Load plugin. This plugin works by delaying the loading of images until they’re needed, such as when they’re scrolled into view. This can help improve your site’s performance, especially on pages with a lot of images.
To use the Lazy Load plugin, simply install and activate it on your WordPress site. Once it’s activated, all images on your site will be lazy-loaded automatically.
2. Use the a3 Lazy Load Plugin
Another popular lazy load plugin for WordPress is a3 Lazy Load. This plugin works similarly to the Lazy Load plugin, but it can also lazy load other elements on your site, such as videos, iframes, and Gravatars. This can help improve your site’s performance even further.
To use the a3 Lazy Load plugin, simply install and activate it on your WordPress site. Once it’s activated, all images and other supported elements on your site will be lazy-loaded automatically.
3. Use the BJ Lazy Load Plugin
BJ Lazy Load is another excellent lazy load plugin for WordPress. Like the other plugins, it delays the loading of images until they’re needed. However, it also has some unique features, such as the ability to exclude certain images from being lazy-loaded.
To use the BJ Lazy Load plugin, simply install and activate it on your WordPress site. Once it’s activated, all images on your site will be lazy-loaded automatically.
4. Use the Autoptimize Plugin
Autoptimize is a WordPress plugin that can help improve your site’s performance in a number of ways, one of which is lazy loading. While it’s not specifically designed for lazy loading, it does include an option to enable it. When enabled, Autoptimize will automatically lazy load images on your site.
To use the Autoptimize plugin, simply install and activate it on your WordPress site. Once it’s activated, go to the “Images” tab and check the box next to “Lazy load images.”
5. Use the WP Rocket Plugin
WP Rocket is a WordPress caching plugin that includes a number of performance-enhancing features, one of which is lazy loading. When enabled, WP Rocket will automatically lazy load images on your site.
To use the WP Rocket plugin, simply install and activate it on your WordPress site. Once it’s activated, go to the “Basic” tab and check the box next to “Lazyload.”
Conclusion
Lazy loading is a great way to improve the performance of your WordPress site. By delaying the loading of certain files or data until it’s needed, you can reduce server load and improve your site’s overall speed. In this post, we’ve shared five different ways you can lazy load images in WordPress.
Lazy loading is a technique that delays loading of certain resources on a web page until they are needed. This can improve performance, especially on pages with many large images.
In WordPress, there is no built-in support for lazy loading, but it can be added by using a plugin. The Lazy Load for Videos plugin is one option that can be used.
To implement lazy loading, follow these steps:
1. Install and activate the plugin.
2. Go to the plugin settings page and enable lazy loading.
3. That’s it! Lazy loading will now be implemented on your site.
If you’re not using a plugin, you can lazy load images by adding the following code to your theme’s functions.php file:
function lazyload_images_add_image_placeholders( $content ) {
if ( is_feed() || is_preview() ) {
return $content;
}
// Don’t lazyload for content that has already been run through the filter.
if ( false !== strpos( $content, ‘data-lazy-src’ ) ) {
return $content;
}
// This is a pretty simple regex, but it works for the vast majority of images.
$content = preg_replace( ‘#]+?)src=[‘”]?([^'”s>]+)[‘”]?([^>]*)>#’, sprintf( ‘
${0}’, ‘$2’ ), $content );
return $content;
}
add_filter( ‘the_content’, ‘lazyload_images_add_image_placeholders’, 99 );
With this code in place, images will only be loaded when they are visible on the screen. This can greatly improve page load times, especially on pages with many images.
There are also a few other things that can be done to further improve performance. For example, you can specify the dimensions of images so that the browser can reserve the appropriate amount of space on the page. This prevents the page from having to reflow when images are loaded.
You can also specify the image srcset attribute to provide different versions of an image for different screen sizes. This can further reduce page load times.
Lazy loading can be a great way to improve the performance of your WordPress site. By delaying the loading of certain resources, you can make your site faster and improve the user experience.
