In 2021, Google introduced Core Web Vitals as an official ranking factor. Since then, the speed and user experience of a site directly influence where it appears in search results.
The problem? Most business owners have never heard of this, and neither have their competitors.
What Are Core Web Vitals?
They are three metrics Google uses to measure the real experience of a user on your site:
1. LCP: Largest Contentful Paint
Measures how long the largest visible element on the page takes to load, usually the main image or prominent heading.
Target: under 2.5 seconds Poor: above 4 seconds
If your site takes more than 2.5 seconds to show the main content, Google considers the experience poor and penalises the ranking.
2. INP: Interaction to Next Paint
Measures the responsiveness of the site when the user clicks a button, opens a menu or fills in a field.
Target: under 200 milliseconds Poor: above 500 milliseconds
A site that takes time to respond to clicks feels slow and unprofessional, even if it loads quickly initially.
3. CLS: Cumulative Layout Shift
Measures the visual stability of the page. Have you ever been reading an article and the text suddenly jumps because an image loaded? That’s CLS.
Target: under 0.1 Poor: above 0.25
High CLS is frustrating for users and signals to Google that the site wasn’t well built.
Why This Matters for Your Business
Impact on SEO
Google confirms that Core Web Vitals are a ranking factor. Between two sites with similar content, one with good Core Web Vitals and one with poor, the first will appear higher in results.
Impact on Conversion
Studies show that:
- A 1-second delay in loading reduces conversions by 7%
- 53% of mobile users abandon a page that takes more than 3 seconds to load
- Fast sites have significantly lower bounce rates
For an Algarve business that relies on tourists searching on mobile, this isn’t a detail. It’s money.
Impact on Brand Perception
A slow site sends a silent message: “this business doesn’t care about details.” The digital experience is often a client’s first interaction with your brand.
How to Check Your Site’s Score
Google PageSpeed Insights
Go to pagespeed.web.dev and enter your site’s URL. You’ll get a score from 0 to 100 for:
- Performance: includes LCP, INP, CLS
- Accessibility: ease of use for all users
- Best Practices: development best practices
- SEO: technical optimisation factors
What each score means:
- 90–100: Excellent (green)
- 50–89: Needs improvement (orange)
- 0–49: Poor (red)
Test both the mobile and desktop version. Google prioritises mobile.
What Affects Core Web Vitals?
The most common factors that hurt scores:
For LCP:
- Unoptimised images (old formats like JPEG/PNG without compression)
- Slow server or server far from the user
- Web fonts blocking loading
For INP:
- Excessive JavaScript being executed
- Unnecessary third-party plugins and scripts
- Poorly implemented animations
For CLS:
- Images without defined dimensions in HTML
- Ads or embeds loading after content
- Fonts that change size when loading
How Technology Affects These Numbers
The choice of technology has a direct impact on Core Web Vitals. At Sueste Creative we choose the right technology for each project: modern frameworks like Astro and Next.js, deployed on Vercel, Cloudflare and other high-performance platforms, ensuring minimal JavaScript and ultra-fast loading.
Our sites consistently achieve scores above 95/100 on Google Lighthouse across all criteria. Not by accident. It’s an architectural decision from the start of the project.
Unlike WordPress, which loads dozens of plugins and scripts even on the simplest pages, Astro sends only the strictly necessary code for each page.
What You Can Do Now
- Test your site at pagespeed.web.dev: mobile and desktop
- Note the score: it’s the starting point for any improvement
- Review the specific errors: the report shows exactly what’s penalising the score
- Compare with competitors: test your main competitors’ sites with the same tool
If the score is consistently below 70, the impact on SEO and conversions is real and measurable.
When to Optimise vs. When to Rebuild
If your site has scores consistently below 50, especially on mobile, it’s often more efficient to rebuild than to optimise. This is particularly true if built on WordPress with many plugins or on a limited site builder.
See our web design and development services to understand how we can help, or use the quote calculator for an estimate.
Summary
| Metric | What it measures | Target |
|---|---|---|
| LCP | Visual loading speed | < 2.5s |
| INP | Response to interactions | < 200ms |
| CLS | Visual stability | < 0.1 |
Core Web Vitals aren’t just a technical metric. They’re a reflection of the quality of experience you offer your users. And Google treats them as such.
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Want to know your site’s score and what to improve? Talk to us. We provide a free analysis.
