Preload LCP Image

78 Quality Score

Active Installs

16/30

With roughly 4,000 active installs, it sits in the middle of the long tail of WordPress plugins, niche enough to be specific but installed widely enough to have real-world feedback.

Update Freshness

25/25

The last update timestamp is April 2026 against WordPress 7.0, which suggests an actively maintained codebase tracked against current core releases.

User Rating

14/15

Five reviewers gave it 96/100, an excellent score but on a very small sample where one negative review would move the average noticeably.

Support Health

8/15

There are no support threads and none resolved, meaning either nobody has hit problems serious enough to file one, or the developer has not opened a public forum at all, which is a risk if you need help.

WP Compatibility

15/15

It requires WordPress 6.1.2 and PHP 8.0 and is tested with WordPress 7.0, lining up with current minimums set by WordPress core itself.

Scores higher than 64% of indexed plugins

About

Allows you to specify on individual pages or posts the Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) Image on that page to preload, making the page load quicker.

Active Installs 4k+

Rating ★★★★½ 4.8/5

Last Updated 2026-04-15 9:10am GMT

Requires WordPress 6.1.2+

Tested Up To 7.0.4

Requires PHP 8.0+

✓ No known vulnerabilities

What It Does

Preload LCP Image adds a per-post meta box where you point to the image that should be treated as the Largest Contentful Paint element, then injects a `<link rel="preload">` tag for that asset. The aim is to shave milliseconds off perceived load time on pages where your hero image is not automatically discoverable by the browser, such as single-image product pages or hero-heavy blog posts.

Who It's For

This is best for site owners running Core Web Vitals audits where Google PageSpeed Insights flags an LCP image that is loaded late, typically backgrounds, inline CSS images, or featured images set via custom fields. It suits photographers, e-commerce stores, real estate listings, and any page where one image dominates the viewport and is not the post thumbnail.

Who Should Skip It

If your LCP element is already the post thumbnail or a hero image the browser discovers naturally, this plugin will add no value and just duplicate a preload hint. Sites on hosts that already auto-preload above-the-fold images, or anyone running a full performance suite like Perfmatters or WP Rocket, do not need a dedicated preload-lcp plugin.

The Bottom Line

Preload LCP Image does one job and does it with a clean per-post meta box, scoring 78/100 with strong maintenance and compatibility but limited proof of popularity and zero public support history. It is worth installing on image-led sites that have a clear LCP image problem and no broader speed plugin; everyone else can skip it.

Related Plugins

Safelayout Cute Preloader 80/100

Pick this if you want a visual loading animation while the page assembles, not a Core Web Vitals preload fix.

WP Performance Score Booster 79/100

Choose this if you want a broader one-click speed plugin covering caching, GZIP, and preloading together rather than LCP-specific tuning.

Lazy Load Control For Elementor 78/100

Pick this if your LCP problem comes from Elementor applying lazy loading to a hero image and you only need to switch that off.

Preloader 78/100

Use this for a full-screen preloader animation effect rather than a targeted LCP preload hint.

Leverage Browser Caching 78/100

Choose this if your real issue is missing cache-control headers rather than a late-loading LCP image.