Quick answer: most slow websites are slow because of oversized images, too many plugins or scripts, weak hosting and no caching. Fixing those four usually makes the biggest difference. Measure before and after with Google PageSpeed Insights, and focus on the Core Web Vitals for real mobile visitors.
Speed is one of the most common problems I find when I audit a website, and one of the most satisfying to fix. Visitors notice immediately, and a faster site tends to get more enquiries and sales. Here is how I approach it.
Why speed matters
- People leave. Every extra second of waiting on a phone makes visitors more likely to give up.
- Google measures it. Core Web Vitals are part of how Google judges page experience.
- It affects sales. Online stores feel slow pages directly in their checkout numbers.
Core Web Vitals in plain English
- LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): how long until the main thing on the page, usually the hero image or headline, is visible. Aim for under 2.5 seconds.
- INP (Interaction to Next Paint): how quickly the page reacts when you tap or click. Aim for under 200 milliseconds.
- CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift): how much things jump around while loading. Aim for under 0.1.
The usual reasons a website is slow
- Huge images. A 5 MB photo straight from a phone, shown in a 600 pixel box.
- Too many plugins or apps. Each one can add scripts and styles to every page.
- Cheap hosting. Overloaded shared servers respond slowly before anything even starts loading.
- No caching. The server builds every page from scratch for every visitor.
- Heavy page builders and sliders. Lots of code for effects visitors barely notice.
- Third-party scripts. Chat widgets, trackers, embedded feeds and fonts from many sources.
Fixes that make the biggest difference
Optimise images
Resize images to the size they are actually displayed, compress them and use modern formats like WebP. Lazy load images further down the page, but never the main hero image.
Add caching and a CDN
Page caching serves ready-made pages instantly. A content delivery network serves files from a location close to each visitor.
Upgrade hosting if needed
Good hosting is often the cheapest speed fix there is. For WordPress, managed hosting or a solid VPS makes a big difference.
Remove what you do not need
Deactivate unused plugins and apps, remove sliders nobody watches, and load chat widgets only after the page is ready.
Reduce layout jumps
Give images and embeds fixed dimensions, and load fonts properly so text does not jump when they arrive.
Keep the site maintained
Speed slowly degrades as content, plugins and database clutter build up. Regular care keeps it quick. I cover what that involves in website maintenance services.
How to measure
- Run your homepage and a key service page through Google PageSpeed Insights, on mobile.
- Look first at the field data (real visitors) if it is available, then the lab score.
- Write the numbers down, make changes one at a time, and test again.
- Check Core Web Vitals in Google Search Console over the following weeks.
Platform-specific notes
- WordPress: most gains come from hosting, caching, image optimisation and removing plugin bloat.
- Shopify: review apps, as uninstalled apps sometimes leave code behind in the theme.
- Wix and Squarespace: you control less, so focus on image sizes, fewer embeds and simpler pages.
- Custom code: usually the fastest option when built well, which is why I use it for some projects.
Speed and SEO go together
A fast site helps rankings, but it is only one part of SEO. For the rest, read my SEO guide for small businesses.
Want to know how fast your site really is? The free website audit checks speed along with SEO, content and design. If you want it fixed, my website speed optimization service includes a before and after report so you can see exactly what changed.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my website so slow?
The most common causes are large images, too many plugins or apps, cheap shared hosting, no caching, heavy page builders and third-party scripts like chat widgets and trackers.
What are Core Web Vitals?
They are Google's measurements of real user experience: how quickly the main content loads (LCP), how quickly the page responds to taps and clicks (INP), and how much the layout jumps around while loading (CLS).
What is a good PageSpeed score?
Aim for green Core Web Vitals in the field data for real visitors. A lab score above 90 on mobile is great, but a site scoring in the 70s with good real-world vitals is usually fine.
