Best heartbeat plugins for WordPress
The most popular heartbeat plugins for WordPress in November 2026, in WordPress.org’s own popular order, which follows active installs. Heartbeat Control leads with 70K+ active installs, ahead of Heartbeat Controller (1K+) and Dynamic Front-End Heartbeat Control (1K+). All 18 plugins tagged “heartbeat” are below, with figures from WordPress.org that update every day.
Installs aren’t everything: a recent release, a “Tested up to” that matches the current WordPress, and support threads that get resolved show a plugin is looked after. Open any plugin for its downloads, rank history and alternatives.
Research this niche or see all plugins.
Top 10 heartbeat plugins
- 1.
Heartbeat ControlThe most installed heartbeat plugin, with 70K+ active installs. Rated 4.2 from 68 reviews, last updated 3 years ago. Tested only up to WordPress 6.3.14.
- 2.
Heartbeat Controller1K+ active installs. No reviews yet, last updated 1 year ago. Tested only up to WordPress 6.8.12.
- 3.
Dynamic Front-End Heartbeat Control1K+ active installs. Rated 4.8 from 12 reviews, updated 1 month ago.
- 4.
AJAX Heartbeat Tool300+ active installs. Only 4 reviews so far, last updated 5 years ago. Tested only up to WordPress 5.7.21.
- 5.
TrimPress100+ active installs. Only 1 review so far, last updated 1 year ago. Tested only up to WordPress 6.8.12.
- 6.
SlimPress60+ active installs. No reviews yet, updated 4 weeks ago.
- 7.
OrderPulse20+ active installs. Only 1 review so far, updated 2 months ago.
- 8.
Presence API10+ active installs. No reviews yet, updated 2 days ago.
- 9.
Lightweight Performance Optimizer10+ active installs. No reviews yet, last updated 1 year ago. Tested only up to WordPress 6.8.12.
- 10.
PrunekitFewer than 10 active installs. No reviews yet, updated 2 weeks ago.
All 18 plugins tagged “heartbeat”
Heartbeat Control
#562by WP Media3 years ago
Allows you to easily manage the frequency of the WordPress heartbeat API.
- Installs
- 70K+
- Rating
- 4.2(68)
- Downloads
- 166/day
Heartbeat Controller
Up in the last 7 days:23#5,598by Abdur Rahman1 year ago
Control WordPress Heartbeat API to reduce load. Allow, disable, or set custom frequency for Dashboard, Post Editor, and Frontend.
- Installs
- 1K+
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 11/day
Dynamic Front-End Heartbeat Control
Down in the last 7 days:37#6,714by Codeloghin1 month ago
An enhanced solution to optimize the performance of your WordPress website and automatically achieve the best Heartbeat API values.
- Installs
- 1K+
- Rating
- 4.8(12)
- Downloads
- 23/day
AJAX Heartbeat Tool
Down in the last 7 days:1#10,338by Mikel King5 years ago
Provides a method of turning the WordPress heartbeat off as well as change some settings.
- Installs
- 300+
- Rating
- 4.5(4)
- Downloads
- 0/day
TrimPress
Down in the last 7 days:97#16,189by David Matthew1 year ago
TrimPress optimizes and trims some of the cruft from WordPress for a lighter, more secure theme!
- Installs
- 100+
- Rating
- 5.0(1)
- Downloads
- 0/day
SlimPress
Up in the last 7 days:953#19,906by Mac29 days ago
Switch off WordPress core features you do not use. Every toggle explains what it might affect, including any compatibility concerns.
- Installs
- 60+
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 11/day
OrderPulse
Up in the last 7 days:264#27,271by RoundBorders2 months ago
Auto-refresh your WooCommerce Orders list in real time — no manual page reloads required.
- Installs
- 20+
- Rating
- 5.0(1)
- Downloads
- 0/day
Presence API
Down in the last 7 days:1,836#28,984by WordPress.org2 days ago
System-wide presence and awareness for WordPress.
- Installs
- 10+
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 116/day
Lightweight Performance Optimizer
#33,249by Mehul Lakhatariya1 year ago
Speed up WordPress with simple page caching, lazy loading images, and heartbeat control—lightweight and privacy-friendly.
- Installs
- 10+
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 0/day
Prunekit
#49,867by nimboo16 days ago
Switch off the parts of WordPress you don't use. Safe defaults, one-click recommended settings, nothing changes until you turn it on.
- Installs
- <10
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 0/day
WebsiteFix One-Click Performance Optimizer
Up in the last 7 days:16,539#54,513by websitefixcom5 months ago
Activate 7 WordPress performance and security fixes with one click. Safe, reversible, no code editing required.
- Installs
- <10
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 0/day
NIVA Guard
Down in the last 7 days:4,469#56,905by Ali Mohajer24 days ago
See and control every outgoing connection of your plugins and themes: log with timing, block ads and notices, cache licenses, fast 404.
- Installs
- <10
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 0/day
Fixora Heartbeat Manager
#58,013by Fixora Labs1 month ago
Manage WordPress Heartbeat frequency in admin, editor, and frontend to reduce admin-ajax CPU load.
- Installs
- <10
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 0/day
Sleekode Performance Core
#64,364by ms13th2 months ago
Lightweight performance and maintenance toolkit for WordPress.
- Installs
- <10
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 0/day
Cronjob.de
Down in the last 7 days:1,838#65,514by cronjobde27 days ago
Run WP-Cron on a fixed schedule instead of on page views – set up in two minutes, with a safe fallback and an optional heartbeat.
- Installs
- <10
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 0/day
Payloadless
Down in the last 7 days:13,612#65,648by George Vasiliades2 months ago
Fifteen switches that turn off what WordPress loads by default and most sites never use. No caching, no minification.
- Installs
- <10
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 0/day
Cloud Manufactory Heartbeat Control
Down in the last 7 days:15,692#70,870by icurdinj4 months ago
Fine-tune the WordPress Heartbeat API frequency and behavior.
- Installs
- <10
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 0/day
Heartbeat Manager
#71,390by sonofgod8012 days ago
Stop high CPU spikes and fix admin-ajax.php slowdowns. Granularly control WordPress Heartbeat frequency to boost backend speed and save hosting costs.
- Installs
- <10
- Rating
- –
- Downloads
- 11/day