CloudFlare DNS
Posted: Tue Mar 18, 2025 3:42 am
In a previous WPBeginner Insider article, we shared our case study on moving from Sucuri to Cloudflare .
Besides security, using Cloudflare DNS gives WPBeginner a significant performance advantage.
The Domain Name System (DNS) is a kind of phone book for websites.
When you enter a website address into your browser or click on a link, a DNS service looks up the domain name and directs your website to that particular website's IP address.
Typically, websites use their hosting company's name servers to manage DNS. These home owner database aren't as fast as Cloudflare, which allows DNS resolution at the network edge in their data centers located in over 310 cities worldwide.
Why we use Cloudflare DNS
Fastest DNS Resolution: Cloudflare's global network resolves DNS to the closest location to any user.
Security Version: Since all traffic goes through Cloudflare's DNS, their Web Application Firewall (WAF) is able to quickly mitigate and block DDoS attacks , spam, unnecessary bots, SQL injections, hacking attempts, and much more.
CDN Delivery – Their network automatically caches static assets and delivers them through their global network, making websites load faster . And because this happens at the DNS level, you don't need to have separate subdomains for CDN assets.
We use the Enterprise plan, but Cloudflare offers a free CDN and DNS for smaller sites, which essentially does the same thing with fewer features.
3. Performance Optimization with WP Rocket
For further performance optimization, we use WP Rocket , which is one of the best WordPress performance plugins on the market. Among other things, it handles caching, which means it saves copies of your site so pages load faster for returning users.
Besides security, using Cloudflare DNS gives WPBeginner a significant performance advantage.
The Domain Name System (DNS) is a kind of phone book for websites.
When you enter a website address into your browser or click on a link, a DNS service looks up the domain name and directs your website to that particular website's IP address.
Typically, websites use their hosting company's name servers to manage DNS. These home owner database aren't as fast as Cloudflare, which allows DNS resolution at the network edge in their data centers located in over 310 cities worldwide.
Why we use Cloudflare DNS
Fastest DNS Resolution: Cloudflare's global network resolves DNS to the closest location to any user.
Security Version: Since all traffic goes through Cloudflare's DNS, their Web Application Firewall (WAF) is able to quickly mitigate and block DDoS attacks , spam, unnecessary bots, SQL injections, hacking attempts, and much more.
CDN Delivery – Their network automatically caches static assets and delivers them through their global network, making websites load faster . And because this happens at the DNS level, you don't need to have separate subdomains for CDN assets.
We use the Enterprise plan, but Cloudflare offers a free CDN and DNS for smaller sites, which essentially does the same thing with fewer features.
3. Performance Optimization with WP Rocket
For further performance optimization, we use WP Rocket , which is one of the best WordPress performance plugins on the market. Among other things, it handles caching, which means it saves copies of your site so pages load faster for returning users.