Posted by Cameron Francis
on
05 Aug , 2022
in
Back in May of 2020, Google announced that Core Web Vitals (CWVs) would be added to their Page Experience update, making them a ranking factor. For those that don’t know, CWVs is an SEO performance metric that is used to measure user experience on the web. CWVs consist of three core metrics:
- First Input Delay (FID)
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP).
Before trying to improve CWV scores, it is advisable that you first consider the current standing of your website. This will make it easier for you to measure how it is actually progressing. Regularly assessing the CWV scores is a valuable part of website maintenance that needs to be taken note of.
With this in mind, the following is a look at some of the basic ways to measure Core Web Vitals:
PageSpeed Insights (PSI)
There are several online tools available today that you can use to measure your site’s Core Web Vitals, including GTmetrix and Pingdom. However, the tool most experts recommend for this is Google’s PageSpeed Insights. With this option, all you need to do is enter your website’s URL in the PageSpeed Insights webpage and click the analyse button.
After analysing your website, the web tool will grade its overall performance before providing a summary of key Core Web Vitals metrics and data. As a general rule of thumb, aim to ensure your website hits the following scores:
- CLS: Less than 0.1 second
- FID: Less than 100 milliseconds
- LCP: 2.5 seconds
Chrome User Experience Report
Another way to access your CWV metrics is through what’s known as the Chrome User Experience Report. This option can be especially useful for webmasters and developers as it provides real insights and data from visitors and is available through Google’s Search Console. The Chrome User Experience Report can help you understand how people visiting your site interact with it and use the web. To view the Chrome User Experience Report, visit your Search Console dashboard and click on the Experience section to find Core Web Vitals.
Core Web Vitals Chrome Extension
If you use Google Chrome, another useful tool you can use to evaluate your CWV is the Web Vitals extension for Chrome. This tool is designed to help you analyse your website’s performance and speed. It provides data on how well your site is performing, including requests made, page load time, and page size. It also offers suggestions on ways to optimise your site’s performance.
Final Thoughts
CWV metrics have become essential to search engine ranking over the last few years with millions of site owners and websites having put in a lot of work to improve their page speed, responsiveness, and performance.
However, Google’s latest CWV metrics are far more explicit, particularly when it comes to quantification. As a result, website owners and developers will soon be required by the search engine’s algorithm to improve in areas they are failing in so that they can maintain their search rankings.
Improving CWVs is not an easy job due to the complexity of different SEO ranking factors as well as the amount of time it takes to build positive core web vitals. That is why it is recommended that you start with improving your website’s user experience in accordance with Google’s guidelines today as the tools are available and easily accessible. Furthermore, Google may deliver its promised six-month notice any time from now.
Let ETRAFFIC optimise your website’s Core Web Vitals
Continually improving your website’s user experience is critical if you want to maintain a successful website. With so many plugins and tools available today, the process of improving your UX becomes easier than ever before.
However, for best results, it is best to seek the help of a Core Web Vitals expert. That is where ETRAFFIC are here to help. The team at ETRAFFIC has the expertise, skills, and knowledge required to help ensure your CWV improvements and other web design projects are carried out properly through our web development services.
To learn more about Core Web Vitals metrics and how they can help enhance the user experience of your website, please call us at ETRAFFIC today at 1300 887 151 or book a free strategy session below.
