Google's Core Web Vitals are now official ranking factors. Sites that fail these metrics lose both search visibility and customers. If your Core Web Vitals are poor, you're hemorrhaging traffic.
How to Improve Core Web Vitals?
Here are 8 proven steps to improve your Core Web Vitals scores and pass Google's Page Experience update:
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Improve LCP (Largest Contentful Paint) - Preload critical images using
<link rel="preload">, optimize hero images to under 2.5 seconds, reduce Time to First Byte (TTFB) by upgrading hosting or implementing a CDN, and defer non-critical resources using async/defer attributes. -
Reduce CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift) - Set explicit width and height attributes on all images and videos, reserve space for ads and embeds with min-height CSS, use font-display: swap for web fonts, and avoid inserting content above existing DOM elements that cause layout jumps.
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Optimize INP (Interaction to Next Paint) - Break up long JavaScript tasks using requestIdleCallback(), defer heavy computation to Web Workers, optimize event handlers to complete in under 200ms, and use Lighthouse to identify and eliminate event listener bottlenecks.
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Convert to Modern Image Formats - Replace JPEG and PNG with WebP format (25-30% smaller), use AVIF for maximum compression (40% smaller than JPEG), implement responsive images with srcset for device-specific sizing, and serve WebP with JPEG fallbacks using
<picture>. -
Implement Strategic Caching - Enable browser caching with Cache-Control headers (assets cached 1 month), use server-side caching (Redis/Memcached) for dynamic content, implement a CDN (Cloudflare, AWS CloudFront) for global delivery, and set proper Expires headers for static assets.
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Minimize Third-Party Scripts - Defer non-critical scripts (Google Analytics, ads) with async or defer attributes, use Web Workers to offload JavaScript execution from main thread, audit third-party performance with Chrome DevTools, and remove unused tracking or marketing scripts.
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Compress Assets Aggressively - Enable Gzip compression for all text-based assets (50-70% reduction), enable Brotli compression for modern browsers (15% better than Gzip), minify CSS/JavaScript/HTML with build tools, and remove unused CSS with PurgeCSS or similar tools.
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Monitor Continuously with Real Data - Use PageSpeed Insights for quick audits, check Search Console for real user CWV data, use Chrome DevTools Performance tab for debugging, set up continuous monitoring with Lighthouse CI, and create dashboards tracking LCP, CLS, and INP over time.
What Makes These Metrics Matter?
Studies show:
- +23% organic traffic after improving Core Web Vitals
- +15% conversion rate increase
- -40% bounce rate reduction
One e-commerce client saw these exact results within 8 weeks of implementing these optimizations.
Specific Fixes by Metric
For Poor LCP (>2.5s)
- Root cause: Unoptimized images, slow server, render-blocking JS
- Typical fix time: 3-5 days
- Tools: Lighthouse, Chrome DevTools, WebPageTest
For Poor CLS (>0.1)
- Root cause: Images without dimensions, dynamic content, ads
- Typical fix time: 1-3 days
- Tools: Layout Instability DevTools, Chrome UX Report
For Poor INP (>200ms)
- Root cause: Long-running JavaScript, heavy event listeners
- Typical fix time: 5-10 days
- Tools: Chrome DevTools, Web Vitals Library, Performance Observer
Tools to Test & Monitor
| Tool | Purpose | Cost | | --- | --- | --- | | PageSpeed Insights | Official Google audit | Free | | Chrome DevTools | Local debugging | Free (built-in) | | Search Console | Real user data | Free | | Lighthouse CI | Automated monitoring | Free/Paid | | WebPageTest | Advanced analysis | Free/Paid |
Next Steps
- Run your site through PageSpeed Insights
- Check your Core Web Vitals in Google Search Console
- Identify which metric is worst (LCP, CLS, or INP)
- Implement the corresponding fix from steps 1-3 above
- Retest after 1-2 weeks to confirm improvement
Still struggling? Get a free Core Web Vitals audit from Acefina - we'll analyze your specific bottlenecks and create an improvement roadmap.
Last updated: January 2025 | Reading time: 8 minutes