How do I optimize WordPress to reduce CPU usage?

High CPU usage (e.g., 51.45% of 5.00% limit) can be caused by PHP scripts and database queries. Optimize with these steps:

• Check Stats: Review CPU Stats (https://us.cloudlogin.co/statistics/load-stats/), MySQL Stats (https://us.cloudlogin.co/mysql/stats/), and Web Stats (https://us.cloudlogin.co/statistics/web-stats/).
• Block Bots: Add to .htaccess:

  RewriteEngine On
  RewriteCond %{HTTP_USER_AGENT} ^.*(facebookexternalhit|meta-externalagent|GPTBot|Googlebot|GoogleOther|Amazonbot).*$ [NC]
  RewriteRule .* - [F,L]

• Use Caching Plugins: Install W3 Total Cache (https://wordpress.org/plugins/w3-total-cache/) with Memcached (https://us.cloudlogin.co/help/view-article/?id=521) or WP Fastest Cache (https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-fastest-cache/).
• Reduce Load: Limit front-page articles and monitor queries with Query Monitor (https://wordpress.org/plugins/query-monitor/).
• Disable WP Cron: Add

  define('DISABLE_WP_CRON', true);

  to wp-config.php and set a cron job in Advanced > Crontab (https://uk.cloudlogin.co/advanced/crontab/) with:

  wget -q -O - https://domain.com/wp-cron.php?doing_wp_cron >/dev/null 2>&1

  hourly.
• Upgrade Plan: Consider a Semi-Dedicated plan (https://us.cloudlogin.co/orders/new-plan/) for heavy usage.

See https://wordpress.org/support/article/optimization/ for more details.