To Jetpack or not to Jetpack?

To Jetpack or not to Jetpack?

It’s a common question.

Depending on the hosting company you’re with, Jetpack often comes pre-installed with new WordPress installations (along with the completely useless ‘Hello Dolly’ plugin — which you can delete immediately, BTW.)

On the surface, Jetpack looks great. It comes packed with a raft of seemingly useful features that a website would need. The feature set can be tempting.

But do you really need ALL of these features? More often than not, you don’t.

If you have no need for 30% of what Jetpack offers, don’t install it. Delete it.

If you do need some of the features that Jetpack offers, you’re much better off choosing alternative plugins from the WordPress plugin repository that can provide the functions you do need.

People who say “you HAVE to have it” just because they deem it “essential” really don’t know what they’re talking about. Jetpack’s main failing is that it attempts to do far too much rather than being the best at one thing.

Bottom line is this: Jetpack is a bloated plugin. Even when most of the features are disabled, it still adds a hefty pile of code that will slow down your website.