Is Akismet necessary? Akismet FAQs.

What is Akismet and is it necessary?

Akismet is an anti-spam plugin that comes with every WordPress installation built-in. Akismet is necessary if you want to prevent a lot of common spam on your WordPress blog or website. 

However, if you disable comments on your WordPress blog or website, then the general consensus is that Akismet and other anti-spam comment plugins are not necessary. 

So if you have disabled comments and you don’t feel that comments contribute to your blog or website, then why bother with them or with anti-spam plugins in general? 

Plugins are great, however, the fewer plugins you have on your WordPress site the better. Why? 

First, plugins actually weigh down a website adding extra unnecessary coding etc. This can slow down your website. 

In addition, plugins often need to be updated. 

Another reason why you don’t want too many plugins on your WordPress website is because with each plugin you add, you also risk potential hacking to your WordPress website and other security issues.

Is Akismet free?

The good news is Akismet is free for personal use. 

However, if you have a business or ecommerce site, then you will need to pay the monthly or yearly subscription which can run anywhere between $5 and $50 a month.

Is there an Akismet alternative?

There are a few Akismet alternatives on the market. However, Akismet is one of the oldest anti-spam commenting plugins on WordPress. 

The beauty of Akismet is that it gets stronger and stronger with each day, week, month, year, even hourly, etc. Why? 

Because Akismet’s AI or Systems are constantly updating spammy email addresses and domains. So for every user that Akismet marks as spam, Akismet then makes this part of their AI and distributes it to all the users of Akismet. 

So Akismet anti-spam builds from strength to strength. 

In my opinion, no other anti-spam plugin can’t compete. In fact, many actually use or integrate with Akismet like Disqus for example.

Is Akismet free for business?

Unfortunately, as I had mentioned above Akismet is only free for personal use and not for business or ecommerce.

Should I delete Akismet?

If you are concerned with too many plugins on your website and you’re trying to cut out as much bloat and improve loading times and speeds for your WordPress website. 

You also don’t need or you have disabled the commenting feature on your WordPress blog or website, then perhaps it may be a good idea to delete Akismet all together.

I mean, if you do not accept comments or have enabled that feature, then why would you need an anti-spam commenting plugin?

Do I need Akismet if I have Jetpack?

Although many Jetpack plans do include Akismet anti-spam as part of their overall plan and package. But not all of them do. 

Actually, all of Jetpack’s bundles do include Akismet. except the first and cheapest plan which does not.

Does Akismet slow down WordPress?

Every plugin in theory can slow down WordPress. It’s just the nature of the WordPress beast. 

However, you have to weigh the potential benefits of each plugin carefully before deciding whether or not to use it on your WordPress website. 

If you have disabled comments on your WordPress blog or website, then why have an anti-spam commenting plugin, right? 

However, if you do have comments, especially, if you have a lot of commenting and activity on your WordPress website, then you will want to keep Akismet activated on your site. 

In fact, you may want to upgrade your plan of Akismet to a more powerful version, if you your blog gets a lot of comments. 

Having an anti-spam plugin as good as Akismet will save you loads of time. Far more time than the monthly or yearly payment you would be.

Is Akismet anti spam good?

Akismet anti-spam is, if not good, then great for your WordPress website if you deal with comments and comment spam on a regular basis. 

In fact, is one of the best anti-spam software and plugins available on WordPress.

Do I need Akismet if comments are disabled?

As I mentioned above, you do not need Akismet if your comments or disabled, since Akismet is an anti-spam comments plugin.

Do I have to pay for Akismet?

You do have to pay for Akismet if you upgrade from the personal to one of their business plans. Here’s a link to Akismet pricing.

Does Akismet work with Gravity Forms?

Akismet does work with Gravity Forms. In fact, Gravity Forms goes out of their way to make Akismett and Gravity Forms integration as smooth as possible. 

Here’s a link to their documentation as far as implementing Akismet with Gravity Forms.

How do I install Akismet?

Akismet comes pre-installed with every WordPress installation. All you need to do is activate it. 

You can find Akismet in your plugin section of your WordPress dashboard. 

Just look in the left hand column and find plugins, click that and it will take you to your WordPress plugins where you will see Akismet along with the other preset WordPress plugins that come with your installation. 

If you want to upgrade your Akismet to one of their business or paid plans, simply click the link to the Akismet website. 

They will take you through the paid versions installation as well as give you the API you will need in order to activate your paid plan from your WordPress dashboard.

Is Akismet necessary conclusions.

As you can see, Akismet is not necessary if you disable comments on your WordPress blog or website. 

However, if you do allow comments on your WordPress website and don’t want to be spending all your days eliminating spam, then installing Akismet and activating is the bare minimum. 

In fact, if your blog or website does receive a lot of comments and you find you are spending more of your time trying to delete them, then Akismet is not only necessary, but vital if not to your website, then to your sanity.