What Are Core Web Vitals?
Core Web Vitals are three specific measurements that Google uses to evaluate your website’s user experience. Google created these metrics to help website owners understand how visitors experience their sites.
The three Core Web Vitals are:
• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
• First Input Delay (FID)
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)
Think of these as your website’s health checkup scores. Google measures these automatically for every website and uses them to determine search rankings.
Breaking Down Each Metric
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
LCP measures how long your website takes to load its main content. This includes the biggest image, video, or text block that visitors see first.
Good LCP score: 2.5 seconds or faster
Poor LCP score: 4 seconds or slower
Your customers expect fast loading. A slow LCP means people leave your site before seeing what you offer.
First Input Delay (FID)
FID measures how quickly your website responds when someone clicks, taps, or types something. This metric captures the delay between a user’s action and your site’s response.
Good FID score: 100 milliseconds or faster
Poor FID score: 300 milliseconds or slower
Poor FID frustrates visitors. They click your buttons and nothing happens immediately. This creates a broken experience.
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)
CLS measures how much your webpage elements move around while loading. This includes text jumping, images shifting, or buttons changing position.
Good CLS score: 0.1 or lower
Poor CLS score: 0.25 or higher
Layout shifts annoy users. They try to click something and the page moves, causing them to click the wrong element.
Why Core Web Vitals Matter for Your Business
Direct Impact on Revenue
Slow websites lose customers. Amazon found that every 100-millisecond delay in page load time decreased sales by 1%. For a business earning $100,000 annually, this equals $1,000 in lost revenue per year from a single delay.
Search Engine Rankings
Google uses Core Web Vitals as ranking factors. Websites with poor scores appear lower in search results. Lower rankings mean fewer potential customers find your business.
Customer Experience
Good Core Web Vitals create satisfied visitors. People stay longer, browse more pages, and complete purchases. Poor scores drive customers to competitors.
Mobile Performance
Most customers browse on mobile devices. Core Web Vitals matter more on mobile because connections are often slower and processing power is limited.
What Impacts Your Core Web Vitals Scores
Factors That Hurt LCP
• Large, unoptimized images
• Slow web hosting
• Excessive plugins
• Heavy website themes
• Too many fonts loading
• Uncompressed files
Factors That Hurt FID
• Too much JavaScript code
• Heavy third-party scripts
• Slow server response times
• Render-blocking resources
• Outdated website code
Factors That Hurt CLS
• Images without defined dimensions
• Ads that load after content
• Fonts that change after loading
• Dynamic content insertion
• Pop-ups that appear suddenly
How to Check Your Scores
Google PageSpeed Insights
Visit pagespeed.web.dev and enter your website address. This free tool shows your Core Web Vitals scores and specific improvement suggestions.
Google Search Console
If you have Google Search Console set up, check the Core Web Vitals report. This shows which pages need improvement and tracks your progress over time.
Regular Monitoring
Check your scores monthly. Website changes, new content, and plugin updates affect your Core Web Vitals performance.
Quick Wins for Improvement
For Better LCP
• Compress all images before uploading
• Choose faster web hosting
• Remove unnecessary plugins
• Use a content delivery network
• Optimize your largest images first
For Better FID
• Minimize JavaScript usage
• Remove unused plugins
• Update your website regularly
• Choose lightweight themes
• Defer non-essential scripts
For Better CLS
• Set width and height for all images
• Reserve space for ads
• Avoid inserting content above existing content
• Use font loading best practices
• Test layout changes before publishing
Working with Professionals
Most business owners need technical help to improve Core Web Vitals. Web developers understand the code changes required. SEO specialists know which improvements provide the biggest impact.
When hiring help, ask candidates to:
• Show examples of Core Web Vitals improvements
• Explain their approach in simple terms
• Provide before and after performance data
• Offer ongoing monitoring services
Timeline for Results
Core Web Vitals improvements take time to show results. Google needs 28 days of data to update your scores. Some technical changes show immediate improvement, while others require weeks to fully impact your rankings.
Plan for a 2-3 month timeline to see significant search ranking improvements after making Core Web Vitals optimizations.
Cost Considerations
Improving Core Web Vitals requires investment. Basic improvements might cost $500-2,000. Complex websites need $3,000-10,000 in optimization work.
Compare this cost to lost revenue from poor performance. A website earning $50,000 annually could lose $5,000-15,000 per year from poor Core Web Vitals scores.
Maintaining Good Scores
Core Web Vitals scores change over time. New content, plugin updates, and design changes affect performance. Schedule quarterly reviews to maintain good scores.
Create a checklist for new content:
• Compress images before uploading
• Test page speed after major changes
• Monitor scores after plugin updates
• Review mobile performance regularly
Your website’s Core Web Vitals directly impact your business success. Good scores bring more customers through better search rankings and improved user experience. Poor scores cost you revenue and competitive advantage.
Start by checking your current scores, then prioritize the improvements that will have the biggest impact on your business goals.
