Preload Images
v1.3.0by Ravikumar Patel · updated 2 days ago
Preload or prefetch images, site-wide or per page, for a faster page loading experience.
- Rank
- #7,040
- Down20 vs yesterday
- Active installs (est.)
- ≈ 953
- 900+ reported · High
- Total downloads
- 13.6K
- 13,571 all-time
- Rating
- 4.6/5
- 8 reviews
- Support resolved
- –
- 0 of 0 threads, last 2 months
Preload Images at a glance
Preload Images is a WordPress plugin by Ravikumar Patel with 900+ active installs, the #7,040 most popular plugin on WordPress.org. On a typical day it’s downloaded about 7 times, 50% more than the month before. It’s rated 4.6 out of 5 from 8 reviews. Version 1.3.0 came out on Nov 6, 2026 and is tested up to WordPress 7.1.4. Among the 22 plugins tagged “prefetch”, it ranks #4. It was first released in 2019.
Chart time range
Applies to every chart below. History from Oct 9, 2026, 31 days.
Downloads over time
Download stats161 downloads · the last 30 days
View as table
| Date | Preload Images |
|---|---|
| Nov 4, 2026 | 5 |
| Nov 3, 2026 | 8 |
| Nov 2, 2026 | 9 |
| Nov 1, 2026 | 10 |
| Oct 31, 2026 | 7 |
| Oct 30, 2026 | 6 |
| Oct 29, 2026 | 11 |
| Oct 28, 2026 | 7 |
| Oct 27, 2026 | 7 |
| Oct 26, 2026 | 10 |
| Oct 25, 2026 | 7 |
| Oct 24, 2026 | 5 |
| Oct 23, 2026 | 5 |
| Oct 22, 2026 | 7 |
| Oct 21, 2026 | 3 |
| Oct 20, 2026 | 2 |
| Oct 19, 2026 | 8 |
| Oct 18, 2026 | 1 |
| Oct 17, 2026 | 4 |
| Oct 16, 2026 | 6 |
| Oct 15, 2026 | 4 |
| Oct 14, 2026 | 4 |
| Oct 13, 2026 | 8 |
| Oct 12, 2026 | 4 |
| Oct 11, 2026 | 2 |
| Oct 10, 2026 | 6 |
| Oct 9, 2026 | 5 |
Unusual spikes are usually updates, not new installs.
Estimated installs
≈ 953 · -2.0% in the last 30 days
View as table
| Date | Estimated installs |
|---|---|
| Nov 8, 2026 | 953 |
| Nov 7, 2026 | 957 |
| Nov 5, 2026 | 958 |
| Nov 4, 2026 | 956 |
| Nov 3, 2026 | 955 |
| Nov 2, 2026 | 954 |
| Nov 1, 2026 | 958 |
| Oct 31, 2026 | 958 |
| Oct 30, 2026 | 960 |
| Oct 29, 2026 | 958 |
| Oct 28, 2026 | 957 |
| Oct 27, 2026 | 972 |
Rank over time
#7,040 · down 11 in the last 30 days
View as table
| Date | Daily snapshot |
|---|---|
| Nov 8, 2026 | #7,040 |
| Nov 7, 2026 | #7,020 |
| Nov 6, 2026 | #7,023 |
| Nov 5, 2026 | #7,016 |
| Nov 4, 2026 | #7,026 |
| Nov 3, 2026 | #7,026 |
| Nov 2, 2026 | #7,029 |
| Nov 1, 2026 | #7,011 |
| Oct 31, 2026 | #7,014 |
| Oct 30, 2026 | #7,006 |
| Oct 29, 2026 | #7,018 |
| Oct 28, 2026 | #7,035 |
| Oct 27, 2026 | #7,029 |
Growth %
Average -0.16% a day in the last 30 days
View as table
| Date | Growth |
|---|---|
| Nov 8, 2026 | -0.42% |
| Nov 7, 2026 | -0.05% |
| Nov 5, 2026 | +0.21% |
| Nov 4, 2026 | +0.10% |
| Nov 3, 2026 | +0.10% |
| Nov 2, 2026 | -0.42% |
| Nov 1, 2026 | 0.00% |
| Oct 31, 2026 | -0.21% |
| Oct 30, 2026 | +0.21% |
| Oct 29, 2026 | +0.10% |
| Oct 28, 2026 | -1.54% |
Active installs band
900+ on WordPress.org
View as table
| Date | Daily snapshot |
|---|---|
| Nov 8, 2026 | 900+ |
| Nov 7, 2026 | 900+ |
| Nov 6, 2026 | 900+ |
| Nov 5, 2026 | 900+ |
| Nov 4, 2026 | 900+ |
| Nov 3, 2026 | 900+ |
| Nov 2, 2026 | 900+ |
| Nov 1, 2026 | 900+ |
| Oct 31, 2026 | 900+ |
| Oct 30, 2026 | 900+ |
| Oct 29, 2026 | 900+ |
| Oct 28, 2026 | 900+ |
| Oct 27, 2026 | 900+ |
Search rankings
Where it appears in WordPress.org search for the searches you track, checked every day.
See where Preload Images ranks in search
Track this plugin to check its position for the searches you choose, daily, with an alert when it moves.
Change log
From our daily snapshot of WordPress.org- So far:Rank #7023 → #7040
- New short description
Preload or prefetch images, site-wide or per page, for a faster page loading experience.
Before
Similar to DNS prefetching, image preloading/prefetching with JavaScript to get faster page loading experience.
- Tags + images+ performance+ speedhtml preloadimage prefetchimage preload
- Tested up to 6.1.16 → 7.1.4
- Released 1.3.0 (was 1.2.1)
- Rank #7035 → #7016
- Tested up to 6.1.15 → 6.1.16
Versions in use
Share of active installs on each published version, from WordPress.org.
- v1.2100%
Rating trend
4.6★★★★★8 reviews · steady in the last 30 days
Requirements & info
Version history- Version
- 1.3.0
- Requires WordPress
- 6.1
- Tested up to
- 7.1.4
- Requires PHP
- 7.4
- First released
- Jun 7, 2019
- Last updated
- Nov 6, 2026
- Releases, last 12 months
- …
Questions about Preload Images
How many websites use Preload Images?
Preload Images is active on 900+ WordPress sites, as WordPress.org reports it. WordPress.org rounds the number down, so the real count is somewhat higher. That makes it the #7,040 most popular plugin on WordPress.org.
How many times has Preload Images been downloaded?
13,571 times in total since 2019. On a typical day it’s downloaded about 7 times. See download stats
When was Preload Images last updated?
Version 1.3.0 came out on Nov 6, 2026 (2 days ago).
Is Preload Images compatible with the latest WordPress?
Yes. It’s tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current version.
Is Preload Images still maintained?
Yes. Its last release was 2 days ago. No support threads were opened in the last two months.
What rating does Preload Images have?
4.6 out of 5 from 8 reviews on WordPress.org. 88% of them give 5 stars.
What are the best alternatives to Preload Images?
The plugins most like Preload Images, by the tags they share, are Flying Pages (20K+), WP Performance Score Booster (10K+) and Modern Image Formats (100K+). Compare all alternatives
Latest reviews
Analyze reviewsReview stats
4.6
★★★★★
8 reviews
- 5 stars: 7 reviews, 88%
- 4 stars: 0 reviews, 0%
- 3 stars: 0 reviews, 0%
- 2 stars: 1 reviews, 13%
- 1 stars: 0 reviews, 0%
- Positive
- 88%4–5★
- Mixed
- 0%3★
- Critical
- 13%1–2★
- About 1 more 5★ reviews would lift it to 4.7.
- Each new 1★ review takes 10 five-star reviews to balance out.
Compare with competitors
Add up to 1 competitor. No account needed.
| Metric | |
|---|---|
| Estimated installs | ≈ 953 |
| Reported installs | 900+ |
| Rating | 4.6 |
| Reviews | 8 |
| Total downloads | 13.6K |
| Author | Ravikumar Patel |
| First released | Jun 7, 2019 |
| Version | 1.3.0 |
| Requires WP | 6.1 |
| Requires PHP | 7.4 |
| Last updated | Nov 6, 2026 |
Alternatives to Preload Images
Compare all alternativesPopular plugins with the same tags, the most in common first.
Flying Pages
by Gijo Varghese
Preload pages intelligently to boost site speed and enhance user experience by loading pages before users click, ensuring instant page transitions.
- Rank
- #1,384
- Installs
- 20K+
- 4.9
WP Performance Score Booster
by Dipak Gajjar
Make website faster, speed up page load time and improve performance scores in tools like Google PageSpeed Insights, GTmetrix, Pingdom, and more.
- Rank
- #1,791
- Installs
- 10K+
- 4.6
Modern Image Formats
by WordPress Performance Team
Converts images to more modern formats such as WebP or AVIF during upload.
- Rank
- #355
- Installs
- 100K+
- 3.6
Image Placeholders
by WordPress Performance Team
Displays placeholders based on an image's dominant color while the image is loading.
- Rank
- #665
- Installs
- 60K+
- 3.5
Enhanced Responsive Images
by WordPress Performance Team
Improvements for responsive images in WordPress.
- Rank
- #784
- Installs
- 40K+
Image Optimizer
by Elementor
Image Optimizer is an easy-to-use WordPress plugin that reduces image size through various compression and resizing techniques – all of which preserve …
- Rank
- #58
- Installs
- 1M+
- 1.7
Side by side:Preload Images vs Flying PagesPreload Images vs WP Performance Score BoosterPreload Images vs Modern Image Formats