OpenLiteSpeed vs Nginx vs Apache: The Ultimate WordPress Benchmark (2024)

If you are running a high-traffic WordPress site or a WooCommerce store, your choice of web server isn’t just a technical detail—it’s the single biggest factor in your site’s speed and concurrency handling.

For years, Nginx was the undisputed king of performance. But in 2024, OpenLiteSpeed (OLS) has completely shifted the landscape.

At KloudBoy, we moved our entire infrastructure to OpenLiteSpeed. In this benchmark, we’ll show you exactly why.

The Contenders

1. Apache (The Old Standard)

Apache is the default for most shared hosting (cPanel/WHMs). It’s compatible with everything (.htaccess works out of the box) but uses a process-based architecture that consumes massive RAM under load.

2. Nginx (The Fast Proxy)

Nginx is event-driven and extremely fast at serving static content. For WordPress (PHP), it usually sits in front of PHP-FPM. It requires complex configuration and doesn’t read .htaccess files.

3. OpenLiteSpeed (The New King)

OpenLiteSpeed (OLS) combines the high performance of Nginx with the usability of Apache (it reads .htaccess!). But its secret weapon is LSCache, an engine-level caching module that blows plugins like WP Rocket out of the water.

Benchmark Setup

We tested three identical servers on our KloudBoy Cloud:

CPU: 4 vCPU (AMD EPYC)
RAM: 8 GB
OS: Almalinux 9
Target: WooCommerce Store with 500 products (dummy data)

Test 1: Requests Per Second (RPS) - Cached

Serving a static homepage from cache.

Web Server	Plugin Used	RPS (Requests/Sec)	Result
Apache	W3 Total Cache	2,400	Baseline
Nginx	FastCGI Cache	15,000	6x Apache
OpenLiteSpeed	LSCache	28,000	11x Apache

Winner: OpenLiteSpeed. The server-level LSCache integration is significantly more efficient than Nginx FastCGI.

Test 2: Concurrent Users (The “Viral Effect”)

How many users can browse simultaneously before the server crashes?

We simulated a traffic spike using k6.io.

Apache: Crashed at 350 users.
Nginx: Slowed down at 1,500 users.
OpenLiteSpeed: Held stable at 4,000+ users.

Impact: If you run a flash sale or Black Friday event, OpenLiteSpeed can handle 3x more traffic on the same hardware compared to Nginx.

Why OpenLiteSpeed Wins for WooCommerce

1. The LSCache Advantage

Most caching plugins (WP Rocket, W3TC) rely on PHP to serve cached files. This is slow. LSCache handles requests before PHP is even touched.

Instant Page Loads: 10-20ms TTFB.
Smart Purging: Update a product? LSCache instantly updates the category page, homepage, and related product widgets automatically.

2. ESI (Edge Side Includes)

This is a game-changer for eCommerce. ESI allows you to cache a whole page (public) while keeping specific “holes” dynamic (private).

Scenario: A user is logged in.
Nginx/Apache: CANNOT cache the page. PHP must generate the whole page for every user.
OpenLiteSpeed: Caches the page but dynamically injetcs the “Hello, Bajpan” and “Cart (2 items)” fragments.
Result: Logged-in users get static-like speeds.

3. QUIC & HTTP/3 Support

OLS was the first to support HTTP/3. It drastically improves performance for mobile users and those with unstable connections (common in India/GCC).

Conclusion

The data is clear. For modern WordPress and WooCommerce hosting:

Apache is obsolete for high performance.
Nginx is fast but complex and lacks the specialized caching of OLS.
OpenLiteSpeed is the superior choice, delivering 2x the throughput of Nginx and vastly better handling of dynamic WooCommerce content.

This is why all KloudBoy Hosting Plans are built 100% on OpenLiteSpeed Enterprise.

Ready to fly? Migrate your slow Nginx/Apache site to KloudBoy for FREE. We’ll handle the benchmark for you.