Featherweight
Featherweight makes your site faster by switching off the features you don’t use. Every disabled item is one less HTTP request, one less script, or one less query — adding up to lighter pages and better Core Web Vitals…
Solid choice
Featherweight is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. It runs on 10K+ sites, is rated 4.1/5 and was last updated 4 months ago, and scores 75/100 on our health check.
- Proven at scale on 10K+ active sites
How does it stack up?
Side-by-side on installs, updates, ratings & supportDaily downloads
Download spikes usually follow a new release — each site that auto-updates counts as a download.
Rankings
Where Featherweight stands todayWordPress.org search rankings
Live position in the plugin search, top 100| Keyword | Position |
|---|---|
| Disable Embeds | #4 |
| Disable Emoji | #4 |
| optimization | >100 |
| performance | >100 |
| remove query strings | #3 |
Version adoption
Share of active sites per release.
Rating breakdown
★★★★★★★★★★ 4.1 from 45 reviews
About Featherweight
From the official readme · v2.2.3Description
Featherweight makes your site faster by switching off the features you don’t use. Every disabled item is one less HTTP request, one less script, or one less query — adding up to lighter pages and better Core Web Vitals. Pick only what you need; nothing is forced on.
Formerly WP Disable. Same plugin, new name. Featherweight is part of the Folium Studio suite — your existing settings carry over untouched on update.
Reduce requests & strip front-end bloat
- Disable emojis (removes the emoji detection script and styles)
- Remove query strings from static assets (
?ver=...) for cleaner caching - Disable oEmbeds (the auto-embed script that loads site-wide)
- Disable Gravatars
- Remove jQuery Migrate on the front end
- Combine and asynchronously load Google Fonts and Font Awesome
- Add DNS-prefetch hints for external hosts
- Remove the password-strength-meter script where it isn’t needed
- Drop Dashicons on the front end when the admin toolbar is hidden
Clean up the page header
- Remove the generator tag, shortlink, RSD, Windows Live Writer, and REST API link tags
Comments & discussion
- Disable comments everywhere, or selectively per post type
- Close comments on older posts and paginate long threads
- Strip links from comments
- Disable pingbacks and trackbacks
- Schedule automatic spam-comment cleanup
Admin & performance controls
- Limit or disable post revisions and autosave
- Control the WordPress Heartbeat (frequency and where it runs)
- Disable the REST/XML feeds (RSS), XML-RPC, author archive pages, and admin notices
SEO helpers
- Remove the Yoast SEO HTML comment from the head
- Remove duplicate names in Yoast breadcrumbs
Optional WooCommerce optimisations
When WooCommerce is active, you can stop its scripts and styles from loading on non-store pages, defer cart fragments, disable product reviews, and skip the password-strength meter on unrelated pages.
Good to know
- Disabling emojis does not affect normal emoticons — it only removes the extra emoji-detection script.
- Removing query strings can interfere with some CDNs that key cache on them; leave it off if unsure.
- Everything is optional and reversible — toggle a setting off and the behaviour returns.
Have an idea or found a bug? The plugin is developed in the open — see the public GitHub repo to contribute or open an issue.
Installation
This section describes how to install the plugin and get it working.
- Upload the plugin files to the
/wp-content/plugins/plugin-namedirectory, or install the plugin through the WordPress plugins screen directly. - Activate the plugin through the ‘Plugins’ screen in WordPress
- Open the Folium → Featherweight screen to configure the plugin
Frequently asked questions
I would like to contribute/I have an idea
Public repo on GitHub if you would like to contribute or have any ideas to add.
What about Minification, do I still need it?
Yes — minification helps on-page performance, but that’s outside the remit of this plugin. Featherweight focuses on removing the requests and bloat WordPress adds by default; pair it with a dedicated minification tool if you want that too.
Changelog
2.2.3
- Visual refresh: the Featherweight dashboard now uses the same hero-card treatment as Cache by Folium.
- Folium suite overview now includes the live Cache by Folium plugin with its WordPress.org link.
2.2.2
- Fixed: “headers already sent” warning on REST, AJAX and feed requests when the DNS-prefetch option was enabled — the prefetch tags now print in the page head instead of at plugin load.
- WordPress.org compliance pass: tightened escaping, i18n domains, file deletion, feed query handling, uninstall naming, script versioning, and Plugin Check warnings.
- Spam-comment cleanup now uses WordPress core comment APIs instead of direct database deletion.
- Removed the placeholder “Folium Images” card from the Folium suite overview.
2.2.1
- Tested up to WordPress 7.0.
- The Folium suite menu now uses a leaf icon (fitting — “Folium” is Latin for leaf).
- Sitewise now shows as “Coming soon” in the Folium overview until it’s publicly released, rather than linking out.
2.2.0
- WP Disable is now Featherweight — a new name and look as part of the Folium Studio suite. Nothing else changes: same plugin, same slug, same settings (everything you’ve configured carries over automatically on update).
- New plugin icon and banner.
- Refreshed the readme and FAQ.
- Coming soon: Rank Math support, alongside the existing Yoast SEO helpers.
- Housekeeping: removed the unused pre-Folium dashboard, the old cross-plugin add-on installer, and their assets — a smaller, lighter download. No change to any optimisation feature or setting.
2.1.0
- New admin experience: WP Disable now opens inside the shared “Folium” menu with a redesigned, tabbed settings screen (dashboard, live optimisation count, instant search). All existing settings and their behaviour are unchanged.
- Settings are saved over ajax using the same validation as before — no change to what gets stored.
2.0.2
- Hardening: block direct access to all plugin PHP files.
- The SEO tab now only appears when a supported SEO plugin (Yoast SEO) is active, and fixed a settings message typo. Props @JeroenSormani.
- Refreshed the plugin description.
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 Featherweight alternatives
All Disable Embeds plugins →| Rank | Plugin | Active installs |
|---|---|---|
| 2 |
Speed Up – Clean WP
Removes unused scripts (emoji, jquery-migrate, comment-reply) and cleans unnecessary…
|
200+ |
| 3 |
GeniiPress Disable Embeds
Disables the oEmbed feature from core, for a performance gain.
|
<10 |
FAQ
Featherweight: quick answers
Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.
Live data from WordPress.org · checked Sep 27, 2026
Is Featherweight free?
Yes. Featherweight is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.
Is Featherweight safe to use in 2026?
Featherweight is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. It runs on 10K+ sites, is rated 4.1/5 and was last updated 4 months ago, and scores 75/100 on our health check.
How many websites use Featherweight?
Featherweight is active on 10K+ WordPress websites and has been downloaded 328,055 times since it launched in March 2017. It was downloaded 1,367 times in the last 30 days.
Does Featherweight work with WordPress 7.1?
Featherweight is officially tested up to WordPress 7.0.6, while the latest release is 7.1.2. It may still work, but try it on a staging site first.
What PHP version does Featherweight need?
Featherweight requires PHP 7.4 or higher. Most hosts run PHP 8.x today, so it works on any modern WordPress hosting.
When was Featherweight last updated?
The latest version, 2.2.3, was released on June 13, 2026 (4 months ago).
Who makes Featherweight?
Featherweight is developed and maintained by jody nesbitt.
What are the best alternatives to Featherweight?
The most popular alternatives to Featherweight are Speed Up – Clean WP (200+ installs) and GeniiPress Disable Embeds (<10 installs).
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