Core Web Vitals: What They Are and Why Do They Matter for Your Website ?
At Envisage Digital, we know how important website speed is. Having a converting website isn’t just about aesthetics, it’s about user journey, usability and of course - speed! Having a fast website is absolutely crucial, especially in 2025 where stats show
a huge 11% drop in page views for a one-second delay in page load.
So this is where Core Web Vitals comes in! These metrics are absolutely crucial for understanding web speed and usability - and also impact your Google rankings.
So what are Core Web Vitals? How do we test them? And, most importantly, how can you improve them and get that all-important speed up?
What Are Core Web Vitals?
Core Web Vitals are a set of metrics defined by Google that measure real-world user experience on your website. Core Vitals focus on loading speed, user experience and stability. CWV include:
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) – This metric measures loading performance. The largest visible element should load within 2.5 seconds of when the page starts loading.
First Input Delay (FID) – This metric measures interactivity. Your page should respond to user input in less than 100 milliseconds.
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) – This metric measures visual stability. Pages should maintain a CLS score of less than 0.1 to prevent elements from shifting unexpectedly.
Together, these metrics indicate how quick, interactive and stable your website is.
How to Test Your Core Web Vitals
Testing Core Web Vitals is straightforward, and several tools can provide a core web vitals test to give you a clear picture.
Lighthouse (Chrome DevTools) – This is a simple, free tool that gives an in-depth audit of page performance and user experience.
How to use it:
1. Open up your webpage on an incognito Chrome tab
2. Right click and choose Inspect
3. Click Lighthouse on the top bar
4. Set Desktop or mobile and click ‘analyse page load’
5. Scroll down past the score page (opposite) for detailed information on LCP, FID etc.
Google PageSpeed Insights – Provides a detailed breakdown of LCP, FID, and CLS, plus suggestions for improvement.
How to use it:
1. Go to Page Speed Insights
2. Enter the URL of your page and click “Analyze”.
3. Review the performance score and the Core Web Vitals metrics: LCP, FID and CLS.
4. Scroll down to see specific recommendations for improving images, scripts, server response times, and more.
Google Search Console – Monitors Core Web Vitals across your entire website and highlights pages that need attention.
1. Log in to your Google Search Console.
2. Select your website property.
3. In the left-hand menu, click “Core Web Vitals” under the Experience section.
4. Review the report, which separates pages into Good, Needs Improvement, and Poor based on LCP, FID, and CLS.
Expert Tips From The Pros at Envisage Digital
When reviewing your Core Web Vitals, there's some important elements to factor in. We checked in with the experts at Envisage Digital for some top tips!
Why Core Web Vitals Matter for SEO
Google has confirmed that Core Web Vitals are a ranking factor. Sites that perform well are more likely to appear higher in search results, particularly in competitive industries. Poor performance, on the other hand, can:
- Increase bounce rates
- Reduce time on site
- Negatively impact conversion rates
As Annie, our SEO account manager, points out, “A slow, unstable website frustrates users and erodes trust, which Google quickly recognises in its rankings.”
How Do You Improve Core Web Vitals?
Improving Core Web Vitals requires a combination of technical and design optimisations. At Envisage Digital, we find some of the most effective strategies include:
1. Optimise Images
Compress images without losing quality using tools like TinyPNG or WebP format.
Implement lazy loading so images load only when they enter the viewport.
2. Upgrade to a Fast Theme & Platform
Platforms like Hyvä for Magento
are built for performance and minimal front-end bloat.
Hyvä themes reduce unnecessary JavaScript and CSS, helping improve LCP and CLS significantly.
At Envisage Digital, we’re proud to be Hyvä Gold Partners, giving our clients access to expert theme builds and performance optimizations.
3. Minimize JavaScript and CSS
Remove unused scripts and styles.
Use asynchronous or deferred loading for non-essential scripts.
4. Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN)
A CDN ensures assets like images, scripts, and stylesheets are delivered from servers closer to your user, reducing load times.
5. Improve Server Response Times
Fast hosting can dramatically improve LCP and FID.
Consider upgrading to high-performance platforms or managed hosting solutions.
6. Monitor
Regularly test Core Web Vitals using Google Search Console or PageSpeed Insights.
Performance optimization is an ongoing process—small improvements compound over time.
Why Partnering with Envisage Digital Helps
Improving Core Web Vitals can be a big job, with a lot of different factors to consider.
Doing it properly requires expertise in development, design and SEO strategy, and sometimes requires an upgrade to a faster platform or theme.
Our team at Envisage Digital can help! We can either improve and optimise your current site, or migrate your site onto a speedier platform: such as Mangeto's Hyva theme. As Hyvä Gold Partners, we combine cutting-edge technology with best practices in site speed optimisation. This ensures your site not only looks great but performs brilliantly and ranks higher in Google.
Contact our team today for a quote on improving your Core Web Vitals.
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