What is Google Performance Score?


Google Performance Score is a measure provided by tools like Google Lighthouse and PageSpeed Insights to evaluate a website’s performance. It quantifies how well a website performs, especially in terms of speed, responsiveness, and user experience. The score is a number between 0 and 100, with higher scores indicating better performance.

Key Aspects of Google Performance Score

  1. Performance Metrics Evaluated: Google calculates the performance score using several Core Web Vitals and other metrics:
    • First Contentful Paint (FCP): Measures how quickly the first piece of content is rendered.
    • Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Measures the loading performance of the largest visible content.
    • Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Measures visual stability (to avoid content shifts while loading).
    • Time to Interactive (TTI): Measures how long it takes for the page to become fully interactive.
    • Speed Index: Measures how quickly the visible content is displayed.
    • Total Blocking Time (TBT): Measures how much time is blocked by long tasks, impacting interactivity.
  2. Score Categories:
    • 90–100: Excellent performance.
    • 50–89: Needs improvement.
    • 0–49: Poor performance.
  3. Factors Affecting the Score:
    • Page Load Speed: Slow-loading pages result in lower scores.
    • Server Response Time: Slow servers reduce performance.
    • Image Optimisation: Unoptimised images increase loading time.
    • JavaScript & CSS Optimisation: Unused or excessive scripts and stylesheets can negatively impact the score.
    • Mobile-Friendliness: A lack of responsiveness on mobile devices leads to lower scores.
  4. Importance of Performance Score:
    • User Experience: Faster, more responsive websites provide a better user experience.
    • SEO Benefits: Higher scores can lead to better rankings in Google’s search results.
    • Conversion Rates: Well-performing websites have higher engagement and conversions.
  5. How to Measure the Score:
    • Google Lighthouse: Open Chrome DevTools, navigate to the “Lighthouse” tab, and run an audit.
    • PageSpeed Insights: Enter your website URL into “PageSpeed Insights” for a detailed analysis and score.
  6. Improvement Tips:
    • Use modern image formats like WebP.
    • Minimise and compress CSS, JavaScript, and HTML files.
    • Enable browser caching.
    • Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN).
    • Optimise your server’s response time.
    • Reduce the number of render-blocking resources.

Why is the Score Important?

A high Google Performance Score indicates that your site is optimised for speed and usability, which helps retain visitors, improve SEO rankings, and boost conversions.

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