Core Web Vitals are Google’s metrics that are implemented to measure and evaluate the speed, responsiveness, and visual stability of websites, and also, importantly, offer more opportunities for a rankings boost, if done correctly.
There are three main areas of Core Web Vitals which are:
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
- First Input Delay (FID)
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)
Breakdown: LCP
- This metric measures when the largest content element within a page if first visible to the user.
- Ideally, this should occur in 2.5 seconds from the start of the loading time.
- Poor LCP can be caused due to multiple reasons such as slow server responses, lagging loading times or client-side rendering.
Breakdown: FID
- This metric measures the load responsiveness from the time when the user first interacts with the page.
- This should ideally occur in 100 milliseconds or less.
- Poor FID can be caused by heavy JavaScript bundles, render-blocking resources, and long JavaScript execution.
Breakdown: CLS
- This metric measures the largest burst of layout shift that occurs during the lifespan of the page
- An ideal CLS score is of 0.1 or less
- Poor CLS can be caused by images that do not have dimensions, dynamically injected content and ads, embed, and iFrames without dimensions.
Core Web Vitals 2021 Update
Google rolls out these updates to its Core Algorithm a few times a year, which is their way to make sure that websites are keeping up with the growing user expectations and to ensure they are performing appropriately.
The new Core Web Vitals update that rolled out during June 2021 not only focuses on LCP, FID and CLS but also Mobile Friendliness, HTTPS and that there are No Intrusive Interstitials.
How to ensure your website is optimised for core web elements?
The first step is to use Google Search Console, specifically the Enhancement tab. This provides a report that not only assesses your website but also provides a list of affected URLs with areas that need improvement, including LCP, FID, and CLS.
Also, make sure to make the most of Google’s PageSpeed Insights which offers in-depth insights and recommendations for both mobile and desktop pages. If utilised well this can provide a great way to improve the page’s Core Web Vitals!
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