Caching uses and advantages for websites

Caching is an important part of optimizing website performance. Here is an overview of the uses, advantages and types of website caching today:

I. Purpose of Caching for Websites

Caching helps temporarily store frequently accessed data such as HTML, CSS, JavaScript, images, or database query results to reduce page load time and optimize server resources.

Specific purposes:

1. Faster page load: Data is retrieved from cache instead of reloading.
2. Reduce server load: Avoids repeated backend processing. Backend resources will be generated static records from which when accessed the server will reduce queries to reduce the load on the server.
3. Improve user experience: Users find the website more responsive because dynamic queries are reduced and replaced with static file queries. Reducing server workload reduces server response time, and reducing dynamic queries saves time processing information.
4. Save bandwidth: Reuses data instead of retransmitting. Modern caches reduce the load on resources loaded based on in-browser memory, in-browser memory reduces the transmission between the browser and the server.
5. Improve SEO: Faster load time helps improve Google rankings.

II. Advantages of Caching

III. Types of Website Caching

1. Browser Cache
   • Stored on the user’s browser.
   • Caches images, JS, CSS for reuse.
   • Configured via HTTP headers like Cache-Control, Expires.
2. Page Cache
   • Stores fully rendered HTML pages.
   • Avoids repeated PHP/database processing.
   • Suitable for websites with static content.
3. Opcode Cache
   • Stores compiled PHP opcode.
   • Example: OPcache (available in PHP 5.5+).
   • Reduces PHP execution time.
4. Object Cache
   • Stores database query results or computed objects.
   • Improves performance of dynamic applications.
   • Often used with Redis or Memcached.
5. Database Cache
   • Caches SQL query results.
   • Reduces redundant database access.
6. CDN Cache
   • Stores static assets on CDN servers.
   • Improves speed for users globally.
7. Edge Cache
   • Advanced form of CDN cache.
   • Caches content closer to end-users.
   • Effective for dynamic or personalized content.

Caching = Faster performance, lower load, better UX

Combining multiple cache types will give the best performance for your website, especially for high traffic websites.