17 Recommended Tools for Elementor: Function, Speed, UX

One common question we get is about the best tools for the Elementor site builder. While Elementor Pro is a powerful web development tool, there are some tools you should consider for your arsenal.

Our recommended tools for Elementor include: WPForms, Happy Addons, WP Rocket, TablePress, OceanWP, RankMath, Malcare, and WP Migrate.

These tools help your site run faster, more securely, and improve user experience. Plus add functions to improve conversion rates and SEO.

Here are all the tools for Elementor sites with my recommendations and links to each developer and tool.

13 Recommended Tools for Elementor Sites

Here are the tools and plugins we recommend for Elementor site building, growth, and monetization. Did I miss one? Let me know in the comments.

1. Happy Addons (Function): This is a huge toolbox of elements and widgets for Elementor. Get 60+ widgets for free. And get another 65 widgets with the Pro version. If you hit a wall with Elementor, you’ll probably find a solution here. Like how to set equal column heights.
2. OceanWP (Function): Find 100’s of WordPress templates and extensions that integrate with Elementor. Choose from free or Pro options. See our favorite templates.
3. Elementor Pro (Function): Make your site design faster and more beautiful by accessing all Elementor features. The Pro version adds pre-designed kits and templates, saving you time. It also has a theme builder, popup builder, and dynamic content functions.
4. WPForms (Function): Many themes come with contact forms. And there are many free plugins available. But I like the premium version of WPForms. It is a drag and drop builder and works flawlessly. They even have a free lite version.
5. TablePress (Function): You can build tables in WordPress and many themes also have table styling functions. But I like the premium TablePress. It is actually responsive – and I can control appearance on different screen sizes. This is the best table plugin tool I’ve used.
6. WPEngine (Hosting/Speed): We’ve been customers of WPEngine since 2015 and currently host 28 sites with them. They are fast, stable, and have exceptional customer service. We saw increase in site speed and site traffic after switching to them. I don’t spend time troubleshooting site glitches (they are managed WordPress hosting). And I don’t remember the last time our sites went down.
7. ShortPixel (Speed): We’ve used ShortPixel for many years and love it. We use it to optimize our image library and convert images to WebP format. You can get 100 monthly credits for free, or buy a monthly plan or credit package. This is a fast way to improve site speed.
8. WP Rocket (Speed): Install this caching plugin and instantly improve page load time. Most settings are automatic, some additional tweaking is possible but not required. We saw noticable improvements in page speed rating and in user experience.
9. Rank Math (SEO): This simple SEO plugin comes in Free and Pro. Easily control metadata, schema, site maps, video and local SEO, and even track keywords. This is similar to Yoast, but better. Rank Math also has a 404 monitor (for broken links) and a redirection feature to fix broken links. I also use the redirection feature to shorten affiliate links.
10. Ahrefs (SEO): There are lots of tools to research and track keywords. And I’ve used most of them. And Ahrefs is my favorite. We use it to track important keywords and pages on our sites, to run site audits, and to analyze competitors sites. Here are more SEO tools we use.
11. Malcare (Security): This service monitors our sites for malware and removes it. It also does daily backups of each site and emails me if a site goes down. We use this plugin on our most important sites, even though WPEngine also does daily backups. A little redundancy promotes good sleep.
12. Patchstack (Security): So while we use Malcare for site security, we also use Patchstack. They work directly with 120+ plugin developers to keep WordPress sites safe. They detect and manager WordPress vunerabilites. They will also email if a problem is detected.
13. WP Migrate (Developers): If you are a site builder, you’ll enjoy this tool. It allows easy site migration from one domain to another (including theme, plugin, and image files). It also has a powerful find/replace function. This is great for fixing site wide errors and changing affiliate links after a site acquisition.

4 Monetization Tools for Elementor Sites

These monetization services aren’t directly related to Elementor, but they are great for any site developer.

1. Mediavine: We’ve monetized our sites with Mediavine since 2017. And we have five sites running Mediavine ads. They make us more money and their customer service is exceptional. We’ve found their Facebook group to be extremely useful – thousands of large publishers.
2. Raptive: This is a premium managed ad service, similar to Mediavine. I’ve planned to move a site to Raptive to compare, but haven’t gotten around to it yet.
3. CJ: This is an affiliate network, where you can find 100’s of potential companies you can promote. CJ is one of the larger networks and can be a little harder to get approved. We’ve worked with CJ since 2012.
4. Shareasale: This is also a large affiliate network, similar to CJ. They have a mix between digital and hard goods. I like their interface and the links track well.

You might also consider Amazon Associates and Google Adsense to monetize. But we’ve found that other ad and affiliate networks often perform better.

What tools do you recommend for building and growing Elementor sites? Please join me in the comments!