Loading time is the holy grail of user experience (UX).
Sounds Bold?
Ok, let’s see this data……..A page load time on mobile of 10 seconds increases the bounce rate by 123% when compared to a 1-second loading speed.
In plain words:
The faster your website’s load time is, the happier your visitors will be. And let’s not forget the Google ranking factor. Loading time was one of the minor facts among Google Secret 200 ranking factors. But now it’s kinda a big deal.
But the good news?
Some small tweaks can shave time off that extra loading second. Yup, that’s right. Let us show you How to Speed Up a WordPress Website in mobile and desktop.
But……Why Does Website Speed Matter?
If your website takes longer than 3 seconds to load, approximately 40% of your visits will abandon your site.
As simple as it sounds! Let’s see how loading time is interconnected with other things……
- Boost Conversion Rate
Website speed significantly affects conversion rate. Walmart found that increasing website speed to 1 second increases their conversion rate by 2%. It’s clear that Users spend more time on faster sites and become loyal customers.
- Decreases Bounce Rate
The BBC found they lost 10% of their users for every extra second their pages took to load.
This stat speaks a lot about how a few seconds can dramatically change the scenario. The truth is Users don’t want to stay on a website page for more than 3 seconds if it is slow.
- To make Google Happy!
On June 16th, 2021, Google began to roll out a broad core algorithm update called “The Page Experience Update(which is basically rewarding websites with fast loading).
The message was clear….
If your website speed is poor, no matter how good your website is, Google will not give you rank. Your site speed must be faster on both computers and smartphones.
How Can I Optimize My WordPress Site Speed without Plugins?
Plugins are great.
So true!!!
But don’t forget it can slow down your website speed.
And as optimizing the site without a plugin is not rocket science, why won’t you try this? Why is your WordPress website so slow? Here are our 9 simple ways for optimizing a WordPress site without plugins.
#1 Invest a few extra bucks on a good Hosting
Listen:
Loading time is directly related to your hosting.
No matter how much effort you put into optimizing, building your site on unreliable hosting can waste all your blood sweat, and tears.
So, pay more attention to it.
#2 Don’t forget to Compressed Media Files before uploading
You will barely find a website without images or videos.
So how do they achieve it?
Compressing the media files. Wondering where I can compress media files?
Well, there are several websites providing media file compression services. Upload your media files to one of those websites, compress, and download them. Then, use it on your WordPress website.
#3 Optimizing Website Homepage is the Key
As they say…..
You’ll never get a second chance to make a first impression.
And what is the better way to make a fantastic first impression on websites with dizzying speed? Make the first introduction memorable (you know what we mean).
Loading time can also be improved by optimizing the website homepage. Simplicity is the key here. Remove unusual content, unnecessary widgets, and tools to keep your site as fast as possible.
Website homepage optimization creates a positive impression among visitors. Your website visitors can easily complete the tasks they have in mind if your website homepage is perfectly optimized.
#4 Don’t think twice to throw away Plugins that are Used Less Frequently
We love plugins!!
But the more plugins you have in your website database, the slower your website will be. Use fewer plugins to help you keep the website speed faster. Find out the unnecessary plugins and disable them as soon as possible.
#5 Update the Latest Version of PHP
Many bloggers skip this step.
But This is a great step to improve your website performance. Before updating the latest version of PHP, back up all essential data. In the worst case, your site may crash. Ask your hosting service provider to help you update the latest version of PHP.
# 6 Use a Lightweight theme
A theme is nothing but a bunch of JavaScript and CSS code. They may make your website looks cool but take a toll on the loading time.
So, choose a theme that is optimized for speed and performance to provide a good user experience. Here are some honorable mentions….
- Astra
- GeneratePress
- Betheme
# 7 Say No to giant videos on your websites
Nothing works like Videos for a high level of engagement.
True!
But it also ruins the loading score. To avoid uploading the videos directly on your websites. Instead, you can embed code from external video sites like Video or YouTube. This is the easiest shortcut to keep a balance on both engagement rate and loading speed.
# 8 Don’t underestimate the power of a good CDN
Content Delivery Network (aka CDN) works like a distributor to share your data in various places around the globe.
Sounds too complicated?
Allow us to explain. When a user requests a webpage, the CDN identifies the server closest to the user’s location and delivers the content from that server instead of from the original server.
That means a good CDN plays the role of hosting your webpage and files physically closer to your users. And as it reduces the distance, it eventually improves the website’s loading speed. That’s why we always recommend paying more attention to good CDN.
# 9 Update everything regularly- Keeping’ It Fresh
We mean everything.
…………. Content, plugins, and even a homepage.
Especially plugins are getting updated day by day. So, if you don’t keep those updated, you are missing a lot of new things. Plus, you put your site in a vulnerable position. So, try to login to the dashboard at least twice a month for schedule updates.
Let’s level up the speed game with plugins! Which plugins are used for speed optimization in WordPress?
Plugins are not always bad.
If you can use them smartly, they are pretty handy. In fact, the reason behind WordPress’s huge popularity is actually the plugins. Here is some great increase website speed WordPress plugin that helps us to keep the loading time fast.
1. WP Rocket
The automatic optimization features make it the marketer’s loved plugin for speed optimization. User-friendly interface and an easy setup process, the plugin is worth the premium price.
Some cool features of Wp Rocket:
- Static cache for both desktop and mobile
- Browser caching
- WooCommerce Refresh Cart Fragments Cache.
- Cross-Origin support for web fonts
- Combination of inline and 3rd party scripts
2. LiteSpeed Cache
For server-level cache, this is by far the most efficient plugin right now. And it’s completely free(for now at least). The biggest difference is its ability to remove unused CSS (Works way better than any paid plugins).
Some cool features of LiteSpeed Cache
- Free QUIC.cloud CDN Cache
- Image Optimization (Lossless/Lossy)
- Combine CSS/JS
- Minify CSS, JavaScript, and HTML
- Lazy-load images/iframes
- Responsive Image Placeholders
- Load CSS Asynchronously
3. NitroPack
Known as an all-in-one performance optimization plugin, NitroPack is undoubtedly an awesome lightweight solution. We love the fact that there is no risk of damaging the original site files.
Some cool features of LiteSpeed Cache
- The setup process is a breeze
- The plugin invalidates cache files instead of purging them
- Defer CSS and JavaScript
- Cloudflare integration
- Multilingual support
Ok, optimization is done! How do I Check My WordPress Site Speed now?
Once you follow the above hacks to increase your website speed, it is time to check whether it works.
So, what is the best way to check WordPress site speed?
A variety of tools are available to measure WordPress site speed. You can choose the below online tools to check the speed.
1. PageSpeed Insights: This tool is from Google itself (so the most reliable one). It visits your website, checks the performance on different devices, and shares a report. Moreover, it provides suggestions regarding how you can boost the speed.
2. GTMetrix: It is specifically designed to check your website speed and gives you a report on optimization opportunities. This tool is damn beneficial to know whether there are problems with your site speed.
3. Pingdom: The easiest tool to use, providing insights into your website performance, availability, and page loading time. With the help of this tool’s data, you can take the necessary steps to meet Google’s ranking factor.
So, What is a Good Site Speed actually?
According to Google, if your website provides visual content within 2 seconds, consider it a good speed. More importantly, your website must be interactive within 5 seconds. This applies to both desktops and smartphones.
I prepared the chart below, mentioning the score from poor to great as per Google’s documentation.
Scale | Poor/Good/Great |
|---|---|
0-50 | Poor |
51-90 | Good |
91-100 | Great |
Based on most research, it is clear that the faster the website speed you have, the better. Faster speed positively affects-
- The conversion rates
- bounce rate
- search visibility(+ranking)
- customer Loyalty
So, check your WordPress website speed periodically. It would always be best to maintain a faster speed.
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