What Does my Pagespeed Score Mean for my Website?

Over the last 20 years, many companies have marketed their website builders as easy-to-use solutions that create great websites. However, these claims can be misleading, especially for small businesses.

If you care about your business and your website's performance, take 2 minutes to check your PageSpeed score. We promise it's worth your time! Then, come back to this post where we've explained what everything means, so you can finally understand how your website performs and what it means for your business.

The Easy Numbers: Your Website's Report Card

Think of these big numbers as your website's report card. While they don't directly influence your SEO ranking, scoring high in these four key areas is crucial for a well-functioning website:

1. Performance (0-100): This score reflects how quickly your website loads on a 4G connection. A score of 90+ ensures a fast, user-friendly experience. Remember, a slow website can frustrate users and drive potential customers away.
2. Accessibility (0-100): This measures how easily people with disabilities can use your website, including those who rely on screen readers or keyboard navigation. A high score here shows your commitment to inclusivity and expands your potential audience.
3. Best Practices (0-100): This indicates whether your website has been built correctly using the right technical tools. Following best practices ensures your site functions smoothly and reliably.
4. SEO (0-100): This score reflects how well your website follows the basics needed to be shown by search engines like Google. Good SEO practices improve your online visibility, driving more potential customers to your site.

The Technical Numbers: Under the Hood

These smaller, more technical numbers give insights into specific aspects of your website's loading process:

1. First Contentful Paint (FCP): The time it takes for the first piece of content to appear on the screen. A fast FCP reassures users that your site is loading, reducing bounce rates.
2. Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): The time it takes for the largest text block or image to appear. This is often used as the measure of "how fast your website loads".
3. Total Blocking Time (TBT): The amount of time your site is unresponsive to your customers due to scripts and other elements. Lower TBT means better responsiveness.
4. Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): This measures how much your page layout shifts during loading. Lower CLS ensures a stable, predictable layout.
5. Speed Index: This reflects how quickly content populates your page during loading. A good score here means users see content quickly, improving satisfaction.

What Does This Mean for My Business?

While the PageSpeed scores don't directly affect your SEO rankings, they're closely related to what Google calls "Core Web Vitals". These Core Web Vitals are based on real-world usage data from your site visitors over the past 28 days.

Here's the key: Core Web Vitals will directly affect your SEO.

So, if you're scoring well on the PageSpeed test (which uses slightly outdated technology), you're likely to excel in Core Web Vitals with users on more current devices. This can give your website a significant boost in search engine rankings.

Our Green PageSpeed Guarantee

Understanding and improving your PageSpeed score is vital for your website's success. It's not just about technical benchmarks; it's about ensuring your visitors have a seamless and enjoyable experience. Take the time to check your score, make necessary improvements, and watch your business grow as a result.

If you're struggling to optimize your PageSpeed and Core Web Vitals scores, we're here to help. As part of our packages for static, small business websites, we guarantee you'll get at least 90 on performance, accessibility, best practices, and SEO (the "Easy Numbers"). Often, we achieve scores closer to 100.

Remember, your website is a reflection of your business - make sure it's performing at its best. Don't let poor performance hold you back from reaching your full potential online.