After noticing the increasing numbers of progressive web app (PWA) users, if you are thinking to start using it on your WordPress blog, this article is especially for you. Here in this article, we will help you to install PWA on your WordPress website for free.
Enabling the progressive web app featured on your website is relatively easy. You have to install the PWA plugin, configure it, and you are done.
There are tons of free and paid plugins available out there. Talking about the free options, we suggest you go with Super Progressive Web Apps By SuperPWA or PWA for WP & AMP By Magazine3.
As we all know, a free plugin always has a limited number of features. If you have the budget, we suggest you go with the paid option, WordPress Mobile Soft.
It will cost you around $25, but this plugin offers you lots of advanced features like improved website performance on mobile and desktop, SEO-friendly URL, and standard code structures.
PWA is also great according to the SEO perspective. Not directly, but it’s an SEO factor that Google considers for ranking your website. According to the Google PWA guidelines, your website should load fast, even on 3G internet connectivity. Every page must have a URL.
Click here to check the Google guidelines for installing PWA.
3 Best Progressive Web App Plugins For WordPress
1. Super Progressive Web Apps By SuperPWA
When it comes to the best free progressive web app plugin, Super Progressive Web Apps By SuperPWA is the best available option. It is straightforward to configure, will take about 2 min to completely set it up on your websites.
SuperPWA is not an entirely free plugin. The paid version of the plugin is also available with more premium features. The paid version will cost you around $99 for one website.
And another good thing about it is that the plugin offers you a clean uninstall. It will remove all the database entries and files created.
Check here to Download
2. PWA for WP & AMP By Magazine3
PWA for WP & AMP is another best option for free. A great thing about this plugin is that it offers you AMP support also. That means, if you are already using AMP on your website, then this is the best plugin for you.
It comes with many features, including multisite support, OneSignal support; even with multisite, you can easily change the start URL. UTM tracking can also be enabled. Most importantly, you will get a cache expire option in it.
Check here to Download
3. WordPress Mobile Soft
WordPress Mobile Soft is the best-paid option for a progressive web app. It offers you all the necessary features and more advanced features like SEO-friendly URLs and standard code structures.
Talking about the pricing, this plugin will cost you around $25 on Codecanyon, and it is worth the price. The advanced cache system reduces your website’s loading time on both desktop and smartphone.
Check here to Download.
How Can You Install PWA In WordPress?
To enable the PWA feature on your WordPress website, you need to install and configure the PWA plugin, which is a super easy task. For this tutorial, we are using a free plugin called Super Progressive Web Apps By SuperPWA.
You can install Super PWA directly from the WordPress plugin library. One more thing, your website should have the SSL certified install and served over HTTPS to configure PWA.
Follow the below instructions carefully to kick things off.
First of all, your need to login into your WordPress admin area. Once you logged in, Go to Plugins >> Add new >> Search for Super Progressive Web Apps, you will get the plugin.
Click on Install and Activate the plugin. Now the plugin has successfully been installed on your website; you need to configure it. After the plugin is activated, you will be redirected to the configuration page.
Here you need to fill all the fields, enter your application name, a short name, description, and icons. There is an option to change the background color as well.
Scroll down, here you will get a few more options, carefully configured all of them. Like the Start Page, you need to choose the page you want to load when someone opens your website.
For Offline Page, choose the page you want to load when the user is not connected to the internet. After completing the configuration, click on the Save Settings button.
For additional customization, SuperPWA comes with a few add ons. You can activate and configure those addons to make the PWA of your website more user-friendly. To check the addons, go to SuperPWA > Add-ons.
Done, the PWA is now enabled for your website. You can check it by refreshing your website.
Google’s PWA Guidelines
Google has not mentioned anywhere, but PWA is one of the ranking factors according to my personal experience, you have to integrate it by following the guidelines. Below we have listed a few important things you should take care of while installing PWA on your WordPress website.
- SSL certificate should be installed
- The website should be responsive for different screen sizes.
- All app URLs load offline
- Optimized for speed, it should load faster in poor internet connectivity
- All pages must have a URL
- Websites need to have cross-browser compatibility.
You can use Lighthouse to check the implementation and errors of PWA quickly.
Is Progressive Web Apps Available For Desktop?
Not from starting, but now the PWA is available for Desktop. Not just for desktop, it is also available for all the other devices, including macOS, iPhone, Android, and Linux. But it will not work on outdated browsers.
After installing the PWA, you will see the Plus Icon beside the Bookmark Button in the browsers when you visit the website. By clicking on this Plus Icon, your visitors can install the PWA on their device.
Conclusion
This is how you can enable Progressive Web App (PWA) on your WordPress website. There is no need to go with the paid plugin; free plugins also have all the necessary options.
PWA is not a must-have feature for your website, but it will help you increase the web site’s performance on desktop and smartphone. We hope this article about progressive web apps (PWA) is helpful to you.