How fast should a website load?

The targets Google publishes

Google’s Core Web Vitals define “good” as:

• Largest Contentful Paint of 2.5 seconds or less. That’s when the main content appears.
• Interaction to Next Paint of 200 milliseconds or less. That’s how quickly the page responds to a tap or click. It replaced First Input Delay in March 2024.
• Cumulative Layout Shift of 0.1 or less, meaning content doesn’t jump around.

Each is measured at the 75th percentile of real visits, so most visitors need to get that experience, not just you on office Wi-Fi.

Why speed matters to a business

Many local searches happen on phones, often on mobile data in a parking lot or between appointments. A page that sits blank for several seconds loses people before they see your name. Speed also plays a part in search: Google uses page experience signals, which matter most when you and a competitor are otherwise close.

Speed also shapes how the business feels. A page that appears quickly and responds instantly to taps reads as competent. One that stutters makes people wonder what else is neglected.

How to test properly

Run your main pages through PageSpeed Insights. The top section shows field data from real Chrome users, if your site has enough traffic. That’s what counts. The score below is a lab test, useful for spotting problems. Also open the site on a mid-range phone with Wi-Fi off. The usual culprits are oversized images, too many third-party scripts and slow hosting.

Test the pages that matter, not just the homepage. Your main service pages and contact page are where enquiries happen.

I treat the Core Web Vitals thresholds as the floor, not the goal. Sites I build are prerendered, images are sized and served as WebP, and third-party scripts are kept to what’s genuinely needed. That usually puts the main content on screen well inside the target on a phone. If your site is slow, I’d look at the hero image and the list of scripts first. Those two are the most common culprits, and neither needs a rebuild to fix.