Plugins or Direct Coding, Which is Better? | EP 108

Plugins or Direct Coding, Which is Better?

1. When you should use plugins or direct coding 01:12
   • We talked about the number of plugins on your website on episode 58.
   • If you have plugins or that same code directly in your website, it doesn’t make a difference because the website is using the same resources to render that code.
2. It depends… 02:03
   • For example, if you are doing a task that is extremely involved like building forms, then it is better to use a plugin than directly coding. Manually coding your forms every single time is a lot of extra work. It makes way more sense to use a form plugin.
   • On the other hand, you might want to use a snippet of code for small repetitive tasks. Tim has a snippet of code that he uses to hide the shipping field in Woocommerce. He only sells digital products, so it eliminates a field that he doesn’t need and  keeps his checkout process as lean as possible. Since it is only code, he doesn’t have to manage another plugin.
3. Another consideration 04:17
   • How much maintenance is the plugin or code going to need?
   • The plus side of using a plugin is that the developer is going to keep it up-to-date.