Why is my website slow, and how do I fix it?

First, measure properly

"Slow" can mean different things: the page takes a long time to show anything, it appears but cannot be used, or it jumps around while loading. Before changing anything, measure. Two free tools from Google cover most needs:

• PageSpeed Insights tests a single page and shows both lab results, from a simulated visit, and field results, from real visitors using Chrome, when there is enough traffic to report.
• Search Console shows a Core Web Vitals report across your whole site, grouped by problem, once your site has enough visits.

Test on mobile, not only desktop. Most visitors to small business sites arrive on a phone, often on a mobile connection, and that is where slowness hurts most. Test your homepage and your most important service or product page, and write down the results so you can compare after each change.

Core Web Vitals in plain words

Core Web Vitals are three measurements Google uses to describe how a page feels to a real visitor. They are part of how Google assesses page experience, though good content and relevance matter far more for rankings; our guide to getting found on Google covers the bigger picture.

Largest Contentful Paint: does the main content appear quickly?

This measures how long it takes for the biggest visible element, usually the main image or headline, to appear. Google describes a good result as within 2.5 seconds. Large hero images and slow servers are the usual culprits.

Interaction to Next Paint: does the page respond when tapped?

This measures how quickly the page reacts when someone taps a button, opens a menu or types in a field. Google treats 200 milliseconds or less as good. Heavy scripts, such as chat widgets, trackers and complex sliders, are the usual cause of sluggish responses.

Cumulative Layout Shift: does the page stay still?

This measures how much content jumps around while loading, for example when an image or banner appears and pushes the text down just as you try to tap a link. Google considers a score of 0.1 or less good. Images without set dimensions, late-loading adverts and cookie banners that push content are common causes.

What usually makes small sites slow

Symptom	Likely cause	Fix
Long wait before the main image shows	Oversized photos straight from a camera or phone	Resize, compress and use a modern format such as WebP
Blank screen for a moment on every page	Slow or overloaded hosting	Better hosting, server caching, a content delivery network
Page visible but buttons slow to respond	Too many scripts: chat, tracking, pop-ups, sliders	Remove what you do not use; load the rest later
Text jumps while loading	Images without dimensions, banners inserted late	Set image sizes; reserve space for banners
Text appears late or flickers	Several web fonts and weights	Use fewer fonts and weights; allow a fallback font to show first
Slow page with a map or video	Full embeds loading immediately	Show a preview image that loads the embed on click

Fixes in order of impact

Work through these roughly in order. Re-test after each one so you know what helped.

1. Shrink your images. This is the biggest single win on most small sites. Resize to the largest size actually displayed and compress. Our guide to getting good website photos includes a short preparation checklist.
2. Remove what you do not need. Every plugin, widget, tracking script and social feed adds weight. List them and ask of each: does this bring customers? Remove the rest.
3. Tame embeds. Videos, maps, booking widgets and review feeds load a lot of code from other companies. Load them only when needed or replace them with a link or image.
4. Check your hosting. If the server takes a long time to respond before anything else happens, no amount of image work will fix it. Good hosting with caching makes a noticeable difference.
5. Simplify fonts. One or two families in a few weights is plenty.
6. Avoid heavy sliders and animations on the first screen. A single strong image and a clear headline load faster and usually communicate better.
7. Fix redirects and broken links. Chains of redirects add delay before the page even starts loading.

Special notes for self-hosted sites

If your site runs on a self-hosted system such as WordPress, a few extra points apply. Page builders and multipurpose themes can add a lot of code to every page, even for features you do not use. A caching plugin, or caching provided by your host, can make a large difference. Keep software updated, as newer versions are often faster, and remove deactivated plugins entirely. Many speed problems on older sites build up gradually, which is one more reason for regular website maintenance.

Keeping it fast over time

Websites rarely become slow overnight. They slow down gradually as new photos, plugins, tracking codes and widgets are added, each one small on its own. Build a few habits to stop that drift:

• Resize and compress every image before uploading, not afterwards.
• Before adding a new widget or script, decide what it must achieve and remove it if it does not.
• Re-run PageSpeed Insights on your key pages every few months and after any redesign.
• Keep an eye on the Core Web Vitals report in Search Console for new problems.

When to stop optimising

Speed scores are a tool, not a goal. Once your pages load quickly on a phone, respond immediately to taps and stay still while loading, further gains matter less than clearer wording, better photos and an easy way to get in touch. Do not remove something genuinely useful, such as a booking form, just to gain a few points on a test.

A hosted website builder takes the server side off your hands. Ours runs on hosting in the EU with the security certificate handled, so your remaining speed work is mostly about the images and embeds you choose to add.

Frequently asked