CORE WEB VITALS: IMPROVING USER EXPERIENCE AND RANKING

Core web vitals are associated with user experience. Google considers user experience as an essential element for ranking. Core web vitals consist of three main factors for improving user experience. These are as follows. 

• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
• First Input Delay (FID)
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)

These core web vitals are a subpart of the measurement of user experience. Considering these core web vitals would be best for improved ranking. This article explains web vitals in detail. We will also go through the tools to measure these matrices. So, let’s discuss them one by one.

Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)

It tells how much time the page takes to display most of its elements. More accurately, we can say LCP (largest contentful paint) refers to when the largest image or text element is painted on the page. An LCP measures the time it takes for the most extensive content element to load and can be used to identify when the page’s main content has been rendered. A fast LCP is essential for delivering a good user experience, as it ensures that the page’s main content is visible to the user as soon as possible.

The largest contentful paint can be affected by several factors, including the size and complexity of the largest content element, the number of other stuff on the page, and the server response time. Optimizing the largest contentful paint can help improve a page’s overall user experience.

First input delay (FID)

The First Input Delay (FID) is a metric that measures the time from when a user first interacts with a page to when the browser can respond to that interaction. The browser is processing the JavaScript on the page, which causes this delay. 

The FID is a critical metric because it directly impacts the user experience. A high FID can cause a page to feel laggy and unresponsive, frustrating users. Conversely, a low FID will result in a smooth and responsive page that users will enjoy. A high FID can be caused by a slow server, heavy page weight, or JavaScript that is not optimized.

Cumulative layout shift (CLS)

CLS measures the total amount of layout shift that arises from when a page is loaded until the time the user leaves the page. More profoundly, we can say cumulative layout shift (CLS) is a metric that measures the total of all individual layout shift scores for every unexpected layout shift that occurs during the entire lifespan of a page.

 CLS is important because it captures the user’s experience of a page as a whole rather than just the experience of individual layout shifts. A page with a low CLS score is likely to be a smooth and enjoyable experience for users, while a page with a high CLS score is likely to be a frustrating and jittery experience. Several factors can affect a page’s CLS score, including the size and position of elements on the page, the amount of content being loaded, and the speed of the page load. To ensure a good CLS score, carefully considering these factors when designing and building a page is essential.

How to check Core Web Vitals score?

Different ways are available for you to check your Core Web Vitals score.

• The best way is to use the Google PageSpeed Insights tool. With this tool, you can obtain a score for each of the three Core Web Vitals metrics: Largest Contentful Paint, First Input Delay, and Cumulative Layout Shift.
• Secondly, you can use the Google Search Console to check your Core Web Vitals score. This tool will effectively show you your average score for each of the three Core Web Vitals metrics over the past 28 days.
• Last but not least you can use web.dev to check your Core Web Vitals score. This tool will show you your score for each of the three Core Web Vitals metrics and your Overall Performance Score.

Whichever method you choose, checking your Core Web Vitals score is an excellent way to see how your website is performing on these essential metrics.

Optimizing core web vitals

The following methods can be used to improve your Web Vitals. 

• Maintain a fast and responsive website.
• You can optimize your images to reduce file size and load time.
• It would be best to defer JavaScript loading to reduce the initial page load time.
• You can use browser caching to improve page load times for repeat visitors.
• You can minify your HTML, CSS, and JavaScript files to reduce file size and improve loading times.
• Reduce your server response time.

Conclusion

The Core Web Vitals is a set of metrics that measure a website’s performance. They include the First Input Delay (FID), the Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), and the Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS). These are essential because they provide insight into the user experience of a website. A website with good Web Vitals will load quickly, be responsive to user input, and have minimal layout shifts. A website with poor Web Vitals will be slow to load, unresponsive to user input, and have frequent layout shifts.

If you have optimized your website for these three parameters, the search engines will pull you towards ranking. It would be best if you also tried to provide engaging and informative content to make your users happy. Like Web Stories, which aim to engage and entertain users quickly and efficiently. So why you don’t try to make one?