Batcache
Batcache uses Memcached to store and serve rendered pages.
Consider an alternative
Batcache shows warning signs in 2026 — compare the alternatives below before installing. It runs on 700+ sites, is rated 4.5/5 and was last updated 7 years ago, and scores 33/100 on our health check.
- Small user base (700+ active installs)
- Very few reviews so far
- No update in 6 years
- Only tested up to WordPress 5.3 (latest is 7.1)
How does it stack up?
Side-by-side on installs, updates, ratings & support
Daily downloads
Download spikes usually follow a new release — each site that auto-updates counts as a download.
Rankings
Where Batcache stands todayWordPress.org search rankings
Live position in the plugin search, top 100| Keyword | Position |
|---|---|
| cache | >100 |
| memcache | #24 |
| memcached | >100 |
| performance | >100 |
| speed | >100 |
Version adoption
Share of active sites per release.
Rating breakdown
★★★★★★★★★★ 4.5 from 2 reviews
About Batcache
From the official readme · v1.5Description
Batcache uses Memcached to store and serve rendered pages. It can also optionally cache redirects. It’s not as fast as Donncha’s WP-Super-Cache but it can be used where file-based caching is not practical or not desired. For instance, any site that is run on more than one server should use Batcache because it allows all servers to use the same storage.
Development testing showed a 40x reduction in page generation times: pages generated in 200ms were served from the cache in 5ms. Traffic simulations with Siege demonstrate that WordPress can handle up to twenty times more traffic with Batcache installed.
Batcache is aimed at preventing a flood of traffic from breaking your site. It does this by serving old pages to new users. This reduces the demand on the web server CPU and the database. It also means some people may see a page that is a few minutes old. However this only applies to people who have not interacted with your web site before. Once they have logged in or left a comment they will always get fresh pages.
Possible future features:
- Comments, edits, and new posts will trigger cache regeneration
- Online installation assistance
- Configuration page
- Stats
Installation
-
Get the Memcached backend working. See below.
-
Upload
advanced-cache.phpto the/wp-content/directory -
Add this line the top of
wp-config.phpto activate Batcache:define(‘WP_CACHE’, true);
-
Test by reloading a page in your browser several times and then viewing the source. Just above the
</head>closing tag you should see some Batcache stats. -
Tweak the options near the top of
advanced-cache.php -
Optional Upload
batcache.phpto the/wp-content/plugins/directory.
Memcached backend
-
Install memcached on at least one server. Note the connection info. The default is
127.0.0.1:11211. -
Install the PECL memcached extension and Ryan’s Memcached backend 2.0. Use the 1.0 branch if you don’t have or can’t install the PECL extension.
Changelog
1.5
- Add stats for cache hits
- PHP 4 constructors are deprecated in PHP7
- Removed “HTTP_RAW_POST_DATA” variable replaced with input stream check
- Use Plugins API rather than the global variable
- Set page gen time to request start if possible
- Don’t use get_post() when cleaning post cache, use already passed $post object
- Only cache GET or HEAD
- Add Opt-in CORS GET request cache.
1.4
- Misc updates
1.3
- Code cleanup, multi-dc support improvements
1.2
- Add REQUEST_METHOD to the cache keys. Prevents GET requests receiving bodyless HEAD responses. This change invalidates the entire cache at upgrade time.
1.1
- Many bugfixes and updates from trunk
For developers
Is this your plugin? Show off the numbers.
Add a live badge to your site, docs or GitHub README. It updates on its own — no account needed.
Best Batcache alternatives
All cache plugins →
FAQ
Batcache: quick answers
Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.
Live data from WordPress.org · checked Sep 26, 2026
Is Batcache free?
Yes. Batcache is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.
Is Batcache safe to use in 2026?
Batcache shows warning signs in 2026 — compare the alternatives below before installing. It runs on 700+ sites, is rated 4.5/5 and was last updated 7 years ago, and scores 33/100 on our health check.
How many websites use Batcache?
Batcache is active on 700+ WordPress websites and has been downloaded 114,685 times since it launched in June 2008. It was downloaded 336 times in the last 30 days.
Does Batcache work with WordPress 7.1?
Batcache is officially tested up to WordPress 5.3.25, while the latest release is 7.1.2. It may still work, but try it on a staging site first.
When was Batcache last updated?
The latest version, 1.5, was released on March 28, 2020 (7 years ago).
Who makes Batcache?
Batcache is developed and maintained by Automattic.
What are the best alternatives to Batcache?
The most popular alternatives to Batcache are WP Super Cache (1M+ installs), WP Fastest Cache (1M+ installs) and WP-Optimize (1M+ installs).
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