LiteSpeed: why this web server is faster

LiteSpeed is faster than traditional web servers like Apache because it processes requests more efficiently, uses fewer server resources, and has built-in caching that serves pages directly from memory. The result: shorter load times, more concurrent visitors per server, and better performance under peak load. Below you’ll read exactly what causes this difference and what it means for your website.

What exactly is LiteSpeed

LiteSpeed is web server software, just like Apache or Nginx. It is the layer that handles incoming visitor requests and returns the correct web page. LiteSpeed is built as a replacement for Apache and can use virtually all Apache configurations directly, such as .htaccess files and mod_rewrite rules. This makes switching easy, without having to adjust your websites.

The difference lies in the architecture. Apache processes each request with relatively high overhead per process, while LiteSpeed uses an event-driven model that handles many requests simultaneously with less memory and CPU usage per request.

Why LiteSpeed is faster than Apache and Nginx

Three technical factors make LiteSpeed faster:

• Event-driven processing: instead of starting a new process or thread for each request, LiteSpeed processes large numbers of requests within a limited number of worker processes. This saves memory and prevents the server from getting overloaded with many concurrent visitors.
• More efficient PHP handling: LiteSpeed uses LSAPI (LiteSpeed API) for PHP instead of the traditional CGI method. PHP processes remain active and are reused, allowing scripts to start and execute faster.
• Less overhead with HTTP/2 and HTTP/3: LiteSpeed supports modern protocols natively and efficiently, which speeds up connections, especially for websites with many images, scripts, and stylesheets.

LSCache: the built-in caching engine

A major advantage of LiteSpeed is LSCache, a caching system that is built directly into the web server instead of being a separate module alongside it. For platforms such as WordPress, Magento, and Joomla, there are special LSCache plugins that cache pages at the server level. This means that a cached page is delivered without PHP or the database needing to be accessed again.

This provides the biggest benefit during busy periods: while a server with only Apache and a slow caching solution slows down with many simultaneous visitors, a LiteSpeed server with LSCache continues to perform stably.

What you notice as a visitor and as an administrator

As a visitor, you’ll mainly notice shorter load times, even during peak moments such as a promotion or a lot of traffic via social media. As a website administrator, you benefit from more stable performance, lower memory usage, and less chance of an overloaded server with many concurrent visitors.

Because LiteSpeed is compatible with Apache configurations, you can usually migrate an existing website without any adjustments. With web hosting on LiteSpeed servers and NVMe storage, these advantages are combined with fast disk access, which is especially noticeable for database-driven websites such as webshops.

If you manage your hosting via Plesk, you’ll find the LiteSpeed settings and cache options clearly laid out in the control panel, along with options for business email and domain management.