Last updated: 23 October 2026 · By Maurice, freeehouse team · About 3 minutes to read
Why does loading time matter?
Because most customers open you on a phone, often on the move with a mediocre connection. A page that stays blank for long gets closed. Google uses the Core Web Vitals as part of its page experience assessment. They are not the most important factor, content counts more, but between pages of similar quality, speed makes the difference.
What do the three values mean?
| Metric | What it measures | good according to web.dev |
|---|---|---|
| LCP, Largest Contentful Paint | when the largest visible content is there | up to 2.5 seconds |
| INP, Interaction to Next Paint | how quickly the page responds to taps and clicks | up to 200 milliseconds |
| CLS, Cumulative Layout Shift | whether content jumps while loading | up to 0.1 |
How do I measure loading time?
- 1
Open PageSpeed Insights and enter your address.
- 2
Look at the values for mobile devices, not just desktop.
- 3
If there are enough visitors, Google shows real user data. Otherwise lab data.
- 4
Search Console has its own Core Web Vitals report for all pages.
What slows small websites down most often?
- Images that are too big. A photo straight from the camera is often several megabytes. A fraction of that is enough for the website.
- Lots of code. Website builders and templates often load code for features the page does not use at all. In analyses we made in October 2026, a typical Wix home page loaded around one megabyte of code with 50 to 65 scripts.
- Many plugins. With WordPress, every plugin brings its own code.
- Third-party services. Embedded maps, videos, chat windows and tracking add to the load.
- Fonts from third-party servers. Locally hosted fonts are faster and better for privacy.
What can I do myself?
- Shrink images before uploading them and save them in a modern format.
- Remove unused plugins and apps.
- Load videos only when someone taps play.
- Use maps as an image with a link instead of an embedded map.
- In a website builder, choose lean templates.
What values do well-built sites get?
On the websites we built in October 2026, the measured Lighthouse performance scores were between 95 and 100 out of 100. This is mainly possible through little code, shrunk images and fonts on our own server.
At freeehouse every site is built without website-builder ballast: shrunk images, local fonts, no superfluous code, often with no cookie banner at all. We do not charge for the build, you only pay for hosting, cheaper than today. Claim your spot on the waiting list
How big should an image be?
As big as it is displayed, no bigger. An image that appears 1,200 pixels wide on the page does not need 6,000 pixels. Large images on the home page often need only a few hundred kilobytes, small thumbnails far less. Modern formats such as WebP or AVIF save a lot of space at the same quality. Many website builders shrink images automatically, but check the original you upload.
Frequently asked questions
How fast should my website load?
According to web.dev, the largest visible content should be there in 2.5 seconds or less.
Is loading time a ranking factor?
The Core Web Vitals are part of the page experience that Google takes into account. Good content matters more, but speed helps.
How do I make images smaller?
Use an image editor or an online tool to resize them to the width actually displayed, and compress them.
Is my hosting to blame for the slow site?
Sometimes. More often it is large images, a lot of code and plugins.
Sources
- web.dev: Core Web Vitals, accessed 23 October 2026
- Google Search Central: Core Web Vitals und die Google Suche, accessed 23 October 2026
- PageSpeed Insights, accessed 23 October 2026
Providers' prices and terms change often. What counts is what's in your customer account and your contract. Not legal advice.
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