Core Web Vitals: What You Need to Know

Core Web Vitals are a set of metrics that measure the performance of a website. They include things like page load time, first contentful paint, and time to interact.

Page load time is the amount of time it takes for a page to fully load. First contentful paint is the amount of time it takes for the first element of a page to appear on the screen. Time to interact is the amount of time it takes for a page to become fully responsive to user input.

Google's new ranking factor

Google has announced a new ranking factor called Core Web Vitals. This factor measures the loading, interactivity, and stability of a site. Sites that meet these criteria will be given a higher ranking in search results.

This is good news for site owners and developers who have been working to improve the user experience of their sites. However, it's important to note that this is just one factor among many that Google uses to rank sites. So while it's important to focus on improving your site's performance, don't forget about the other factors that are also important.

If you're not sure where to start, there are many tools and resources available to help you improve your site's performance. Google's PageSpeed Insights is a good place to start. This tool will give you specific recommendations on how to improve your site's speed and performance.

CLS, FID, and LCP

CLS, or Cumulative Layout Shift, is a metric that measures how often users experience unexpected layout changes on a page. This can be caused by things like images or ads loading in unexpectedly, or by buttons moving around as the page loads. A high CLS score can be frustrating for users and can lead to them bouncing from your site.

FID, or First Input Delay, is a metric that measures how long it takes for a page to become interactive. This is the time from when a user first clicks on something on your page to when they can actually start using it. A high FID can make your site feel slow and unresponsive, and will likely lead to users bouncing.

LCP, or Largest Contentful Paint, is a metric that measures how long it takes for the largest element on your page to load. This is often an indication of how quickly the rest of the page will load. A high LCP can be frustrating for users and will lead to them bouncing.

Site speed optimization is vital for a good user experience.

How to measure Core Web Vitals

There are three metrics that make up the Core Web Vitals: Largest Contentful Paint, First Input Delay, and Cumulative Layout Shift. You can measure these metrics using Google's PageSpeed Insights tool.

To measure Largest Contentful Paint, you need to record the timing of when the largest image or text element on the page is rendered. To do this, you can use the Chrome Developer Tools' Performance panel. First, open the panel and run a performance recording. Then, look for the largest contentful paint event in the summary view and note its duration.

To measure First Input Delay, you need to record the time from when a user first interacts with your page (e.g., clicks a button) to when the browser responds to that interaction.

How to improve your core web vitals

There are a few key things you can do to improve your web core vitals.

First, make sure you're using a modern browser that supports web standards. This will ensure better performance and compatibility with new technologies.

Second, optimize your images for the web. This means compressing them so they load faster and using the correct file format for the best quality.

Finally, minify your CSS and JavaScript files. This means reducing the file size by removing unnecessary characters like whitespace and comments.

Conclusion

As we've seen, core web vitals are important factors in maintaining a healthy website. By monitoring and improving your web core vitals, you can ensure that your website is running smoothly and providing a good experience for your users.

While there's no magic formula for perfectly optimized core web vitals, following the tips in this article will help you get started on the right track. Keep an eye on your metrics, and continue to make improvements as needed. With time and effort, you can achieve great results!

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