WP-Optimize
95Get caching and more with this powerful cache plugin. Cache, optimize images, clean your database and minify f...
Free
1M+ installs 4.8★ (2,606)
Falcon
A lightweight WordPress plugin for performance, security, cleanup, and everyday tweaks.
The facts
- Rating
- 5★ from 10
- Active installs
- 2k+
- Price
- Free
- Last updated
- 17 Aug 2026
- Added
- Dec 2015
- Requires WP
- 6.7
- Tested up to
- WP 7.0.4
- Requires PHP
- 7.4
- Downloads
- 72,933
Our analysis
AI-assistedFalcon is a lightweight WordPress plugin designed to enhance site performance, security, and maintenance. It provides a range of features that allow you to speed up your site, secure it against common threats, and clean up unnecessary elements without needing multiple tools.
You can toggle settings through a user-friendly interface, export and import configurations for use across different sites, and implement various optimisations to improve loading times and reduce server load.
Best for: This plugin is suitable for WordPress site owners looking to improve speed and security without using multiple plugins.
What it does well
- ✓Offers performance enhancements like HTML page caching
- ✓Includes security features such as limiting login attempts
- ✓Provides options for cleaning up unused markup
- ✓User-friendly settings interface for easy configuration
- ✓Allows export and import of settings for multiple sites
Where it falls short
- •Limited information on specific compatibility with themes and plugins
- •No details on support or documentation availability
Verdict
Falcon provides a comprehensive set of tools for performance and security in one package, making it a practical choice for those wanting to streamline their WordPress setup.
From the developer
Anh Tran's own description of Falcon, lightly tidied.
Falcon is a lightweight WordPress plugin that helps you speed up your site, harden security, clean up bloat, and fine-tune how WordPress works — without a heavy stack of separate tools.
Toggle only what you need from a clear settings UI. Export and import settings to reuse the same setup across sites.
Features
Performance
Make pages load faster and cut unnecessary front-end work.
- HTML page cache — serve static HTML and skip WordPress, themes, and plugins on cache hits
- Disable Heartbeat to reduce server load
- Remove
?ver=query strings from CSS/JS for better browser caching - Disable emoji scripts and styles
- Remove jQuery Migrate on the front end
- Load selected CSS files asynchronously to reduce render-blocking
Security
Reduce common attack surfaces and protect your content.
- Limit login attempts (block an IP after 3 failed tries for 1 hour)
- Hide detailed login error messages
- Force login to view the site
- Disable the REST API for unauthenticated requests
- Disable XML-RPC
- Restrict upload file types (including WebP and AVIF when enabled)
- Comment spam protection with a simple honeypot
- Block common AI crawlers via
robots.txt - Use scheme-less asset URLs to avoid mixed content warnings
Cleanup
Strip unused markup and keep the database lean.
- Hide WordPress version
- Remove shortlink, REST API link, adjacent posts links, feed links, RSD link, and WLW manifest link
- Use the site icon on the login screen
- Hide update nags
- Remove default dashboard widgets
- Remove admin footer text and the WordPress admin bar logo
Tagged as
Alternatives
Other plugins for making sites fast.
All-in-one unbeatable acceleration & PageSpeed improvement: caching, image/CSS/JS optimization...
Free
7M+ installs 4.8★ (2,764)
Comprehensive image optimization with WebP, AVIF, Lazy Load, and more. Optimize images automatically for Faste...
Free
1M+ installs 4.8★ (1,838)
Easy to use Under Construction Page & Coming Soon Page. Enable Under Construction Mode in seconds & sh...
Free
600k+ installs 4.8★ (1,285)
Smush
93Compress and optimize images, enable lazy load, serve WebP & AVIF, and speed up your site with a global im...
Free
1M+ installs 4.8★ (6,051)
Speed up your website by using our WebP & AVIF Converter. Optimize images and serve WebP and AVIF images i...
Free
500k+ installs 4.9★ (1,097)