Hi there! 👋 My name is Alex, and I’m here to guide you through the recent Core Web Vitals update that Google released. If you’re new to the world of web development, or even if you’re a pro, this update is something you should be aware of. After all, who doesn’t want to improve their site’s user experience? 😁

What are Core Web Vitals? 💻

Core Web Vitals are a set of website performance metrics that Google deems essential to providing a good user experience. The metrics include loading speed, interactivity, and visual stability. These metrics are based on actual user experience rather than just technical aspects of a website. In other words, Google is now measuring how users interact and feel with a website rather than how it operates.

Why is it important to care about Core Web Vitals? 🤔

Here are a few reasons why you should care about Core Web Vitals:

  • Better ranking on Google search: Google has made it clear that Core Web Vitals are a ranking signal. So if you don’t focus on improving your site’s performance, you might see your site ranking drop. 📉
  • Better user experience: Your website should be designed to provide an optimal user experience. Otherwise, people won’t visit or stay on it for long. And poor user experience can lead to loss of traffic, sales, and even damage to the reputation of your brand.
  • Better data insights: Core Web Vitals can help you gain insights into how users interact with your site. By measuring real-world experience, you can pinpoint where your website is lacking in performance and where improvements can be made.

How to measure Core Web Vitals? 🔍

To measure your website’s Core Web Vitals, Google provides the Google PageSpeed Insights tool. It provides a report that highlights areas that need improvement and offers suggestions for how to improve them.

LCP: Largest Contentful Paint

LCP measures the time it takes for the largest content element (such as an image or video) to load on your website. This is critical because users are more likely to abandon a website if it takes too long to load the primary content.

How to improve LCP? 🚀

Here are some significant steps to take to improve LCP:

  • Optimize images: Ensure that all images on your website are compressed so that they load faster. Use image formats that are supported for the web.
  • Prioritize loading: Optimize your website’s code to ensure that the larger content loads first before any other asset.
  • Use a reliable hosting provider: A significant factor in the speed of your site is the server where it is hosted. Select a host that offers reliable and fast servers.

An image showing how to optimize images for faster loading

FID: First Input Delay

FID measures the time taken for a website to respond when a user clicks a button or performs an action. Slow FID can lead to frustration and users navigate away from your site.

How to improve FID? 🚀

There are some significant steps you can take to improve FID:

  • Optimize JavaScript: Ensure that your website’s JavaScript is minified, compressed, and deferred loading to avoid any bottlenecks.
  • Reduce third-party scripts: Third-party scripts like ads, widgets, or chatbots can increase your FID. Only use them when necessary.
  • Use a reliable hosting provider: Server response time is important. Ensure your host provides fast and reliable servers.

An image showing how to optimize JavaScript

CLS: Cumulative Layout Shift

CLS measures how much the content of your website shifts around as the page loads. This can be frustrating when a user is trying to click on something or viewing content.

How to improve CLS? 🚀

There are some significant steps you can take to improve CLS:

  • Prioritize loading of critical content: Ensure that your website’s primary content loads first before anything else.
  • Set dimensions for all media: Ensure that all images and videos have dimensions defined in HTML or CSS.
  • Use responsive design: Your website should be designed to be used on any device, whether it’s a mobile or desktop computer.

An image showing how to set dimensions for images and media

Final thoughts 🤔

Google’s Core Web Vitals update is a game-changer for website performance and user experience. You now have an opportunity to improve your website’s performance and ranking on search engines. By focusing on LCP, FID, and CLS, you can drastically improve your users’ experience with your website. Remember that it takes time, effort, and resources to achieve these goals, so be patient and persistent. 😀

An image showing a rocket taking off to symbolize the improvement of website performance