​​Google Page Loading Speed: How Fast Should Websites Load in 2023

What’s in this article

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Before we delve into how to accomplish Google’s advised page load times and another point of action to take so as to optimise the page experience for speed and user experience, let’s take a look at how the topic of speed has evolved over the years.

If you look deeply at the history of man, there has always been an interest in speed. Whether in technology, science, or the arts, we can see that each generation has contributed to increasing speed over time. Whether it’s buying a car to use for commuting or evaluating a courier who just handed over a parcel. Each individual’s performance is evaluated by the speed at which they complete a given task.

So, if you already know that speed is crucial in life, why should you look away from poor page experience on your site caused by slow page loads?

Google’s Page Load Time

Google does not put out particular schedules for page load times. However, the general knowledge among company gurus is that page load times of two seconds or even less can be marked as good. In 2010, Maile Oye, the then technical director of Google’s developer program, said; “Two seconds is the acceptable standard for e-commerce websites. At Google, we hope to achieve a speed of less than half a second.”

According to HTTP Archive, the average time it took for a mobile website to become interactive in 2022 was about 18.6 seconds. However, this average combines both fast-loading, and slow paced loading pages, so the exact load time for a particular page may be shorter or more extensive than this average result has gotten. Also, in the report, out of the over 8 million websites analyzed for compatibility with Web Vitals, only over 2.5 million websites had a good Core Web Vitals score.

Admirably, websites functioning on platforms such as Shopify, Wix, and Squarespace have been able to hit higher Web Vitals scores than WordPress websites. Only 27% of WordPress sites passed the Core Web Vitals mobile test, but as of November 2022, 43% of Wix sites, 47% of Shopify sites, and 36% of Squarespace sites have passed with an excellent Core Web Vitals rating.

If you’re vexed while driving through slow traffic on your vehicle, then you would find it more annoying when browsing slow-loading websites. Unlike slow-flowing traffic, the Internet offers multiple options.

Whenever you visit a site that is slow to load pages, you can always go back to the search engine, and select a direct competitor. If not, you can directly enter the address of another website that offers similar services. If you are a website owner, you need to look at your website from the perspective of your target audience.

If your website takes more than three seconds to load, redirecting your target user may give you an advantage over your competitors. According to a 2018 research conducted by AKAMAI, user expectations have increased along with page complexity, so traditional page load speed timings need to be revised.

An internal study conducted by Google found that 41% of brands were underperforming on the web. According to this research, around the year 2018, the mean value of internet users hopes to have a website that can be fully captivating as soon as it loads. It is stated that the user’s first reaction upon entering the page is to click a button or scroll down.

Unfortunately, the slow time-to-interactivity (TTI) leads to frustrating users who end up in click madness when they double-click repeatedly. For this reason, company run websites need to know how lengthy it would take a website to process, the point when a visitor interacts with the page site as a first attendant, and most essential, when the user gets a thrilling page experience.

Need help building quality backlinks to your site?

If you do wish to build links for your business site, get in touch with a trusted Gold Coast SEO company such as Heart Digital, who provide eCommerce SEO servicesGoogle Ads services and much more.

What is The Average Page Load Time for a Website?

The mean page load time is the average time it would take a web page to fully process, and begin to function in a web browser.

The set page load time is usually nothing lower than two seconds. Elements that alter page load time include;

  •  The size, and work protocol of the page. 
  •  The speed of the server hosting the website, and the speed of the user’s Internet connection.

As an individual or company running a website, placing focus on the average page processing time is essential, as it can have a massive impact on a user’s interactive journey, and also the webpage’s success. Tardy page load times can lead to a skyrocked bounce rate; users exciting your site quickly, lower rates in search engine results, and fewer page views, and conversions.

Faster page load times, on the other hand, result in a better user experience, more page views, and better website rankings in search engine results.

There are certain steps you can take to boost webpage average page load time:

  • Compress your pictures, and use the right file type to optimise your images.
  • Reduce the number of third-party plugins, and scripts you use on your webpage.
  • Enable browser caching to help to return visitors load the website faster. 
  • Use a content delivery network (CDN) to submit your content all over the world, and shorten the length your information travels.
  • Make sure you are using a fast, and reliable web hosting provider.
  • Web page size can affect processing speed, and page processing speed can hinder user experience. 
  • Google’s Web Vitals program focuses on the user experience of the users, especially on mobile, and this can affect your search rankings on Google.

Therefore, it is important to make an effort to keep your webpages as clean as possible in order to improve user experience, and potentially improve search rankings.

Is 500ms Load Time Best for a Website?

500 ms is half a second, and web pages that load within 500 ms are generally considered good. By the way, load time here refers to page interactive time (TTI), the time it takes for a website to fully load useful content, and other elements before users can interact with the page. However, keep in mind that your ideal page load time may vary depending on your website’s specific needs, and requirements.

How to Calculate Average Page Load Time?

There are several ways to calculate average page load time:

  • One way is to use website performance monitoring tools such as Google Analytics or Pingdom. These tools track your website’s page load times over time, and provide average page load times based on the data they collect.
  • Another way is to use a browser extension or plugin that measures page load times. These tools can be installed in your web browser and can measure the page load time of each web page you visit on demand. You can also manually measure page load time by measuring the time it takes for a web page to fully load, and appear in your web browser. 
  • You can use your phone’s stopwatch feature or a desktop timer tool to do this.

To calculate the average page load time, you need to measure the page load time for a representative sample of pages on your site. This is a selection of the most popular pages or a random selection of pages. After tracking the sample page load times, you can calculate an average by adding all times and dividing by the number of pages. This gives you an idea of ​​the average page load time for your website.

It is important to note that page load times may vary depending on the size, and complexity of the page, the speed of the server hosting the website, and the speed of the user’s Internet connection. 

Conclusion

Google recommends that pages load within two seconds. Plus, slow page load times can lead to high bounce rates, which can negatively affect your website’s ranking in search engine results. Well, this article has discussed more facts you should know about the topic.

Frequently asked questions

Interested in finding out more about Heart Digital and our services? Here are some of our most frequently asked questions.

Got another question for us? Please contact us.

Search Engine Optimisation, or SEO for short, are the steps taken to appear highly on Google search results, or other search engines. For example, if you are based on the Gold Coast and have a power outage, you will need an electrician. In 2022, the first thing most people will do is an online search for “Gold Coast electrician” and then contact one of the highest-ranking businesses in the search results.

For the electricians that appear high in the search results, their ranking can be incredibly valuable and a steady source of new business. For those who do not rank highly, and appear beyond page one of the search results, they often rely solely on word of mouth and / or referrals to attract new business. For most businesses, limiting new business to a network of contacts can make growth almost impossible.

A good SEO agency can help get your business to the top of the Google rankings and turbocharge business growth.

A well-designed website is only half the battle. Afterall, a stylish website is of no value if no-one ever visits it.  Most businesses need a steady flow of visitors to ensure their website is front and centre for customers when they search for a specific product or service…and on Google there is more than enough traffic to go round – every second (on average) there are 63,000 Google searches!

Beyond attracting traffic, there are many other SEO benefits:

  • SEO offers much higher close rates (about 15 per cent) for new leads when compared with other forms of marketing (often less than two per cent).
  • SEO brings quality traffic to your website. When you begin an SEO campaign, your website is updated to incorporate specific keywords relevant to the traffic you need to attract. This ensures that you zero in on your preferred audience that are most interested in your business’ product or service.
  • SEO is very measurable, making it easy to understand results and return on investment.
  • SEO, particularly for e-commerce businesses, ensures your business is open 24/7. This means that potential customers can engage with your business, leave enquiries and even make transactions when your business is not ‘open’.
  • SEO can level the playing field among businesses sizes. We’ve helped small retailers outrank conglomerates like Myer and a family construction business dominate multi-nationals, among countless other examples. None have the budget of the bigger companies, but with a well-executed SEO campaign, they can thrive online.
  • SEO is very sustainable. For a relatively small budget, SEO can be an ongoing strategy that can be more effective than traditional marketing and thereby reduce spend in these areas.
  • SEO need not be tied to geographical boundaries. You can expand your SEO campaign as your business grows, with minimal additional expanse. For example, if you are a Gold Coast business looking for customers in Brisbane, or vice versa, increasing this reach is possible via an SEO campaign.
  • Utilising SEO techniques ensures you have a better website. At the heart of effective SEO, is an ongoing obsession to improve the user (visitor) experience. When Google sees this, they improve rankings, but it also means that websites that do SEO properly are generally more functional and easier-to-use.

A do-it-yourself approach is always a possibility. However, it is worth considering that the learning curve is incredibly steep (and the goal posts move regularly!). Those taking on an SEO campaign themselves will need to consider page optimisation, conversion rate optimisation, keyword research, Google My Business, link building, content creation, use of metrics ….the list goes on. The reality is that there are many moving parts in any successful SEO campaign.

Given these challenges, we think it makes sense to work with a reputable SEO agency. And our experience over the years has told us that the agency approach will always prove more successful, cheaper and faster than keeping SEO in-house.

Working with a team that lives and breathes SEO each day will represent your best chance of SEO having a material impact on your business’ growth.

With more than a billion websites in 2022, SEO campaigns can take a few months to gain traction. This is most relevant in competitive industries and/or major metropolitan locations. For more niche businesses and / or smaller geographic locations, we’ve often seen a surge in rankings within weeks.

SEO is not a short-term fix though – it does require an ongoing commitment from clients. Along with hard work, patience and expertise from your chosen SEO agency.

Brace yourself for a frustrating answer (sorry!) – it depends. The cost of SEO is determined by several factors including:

  • Industry competitiveness – some industries are far more competitive than others. Playing SEO catch up against businesses with well-established online presences, takes time and costs money.
  • Geographic locations – to state the obvious, Brisbane is going to be harder market to crack for SEO compared to Southport on the Gold Coast. That is definitely not to say it is impossible to see great results in Brisbane, it just can take more time and resources (which drives up the price).
  • Your website – is it SEO ready, or are you going to need major changes before you can launch an effective SEO campaign? Potentially this can add some cost to the start of your SEO campaign.

We’ve have to have a look at your website, as there could be a number of reasons why you’ve seen a drop in traffic.

If your drop in traffic is fairly sudden, we’d encourage you to have a read of our Google Penalty Recovery Services page.

If the drop in traffic has happened over a long period of time, the reasons are likely to be less sinister. One reason could be that your competitors are now focused on SEO and have got the jump on your business. Or it could be time for your business to revisit its own SEO and find out the reason for the deterioration.

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