Website Speed Optimisation Tips (Plain-English Guide)
Is your website slow to load, images take ages to appear, or pages feel jumpy on a phone? This guide gives you simple, practical website speed optimisation tips you can do (or ask me to do) to make your site feel fast and friendly.
You’ll learn how to test your site, quick fixes with the biggest impact, and what to do if your current setup keeps fighting you.
Start with a quick speed check
Before you touch anything, take a baseline so you can see improvement.
- Use PageSpeed Insights (mobile first): it shows a score and three helpful measures — how quickly the main content appears, whether things jump about, and how responsive your pages feel.
Tools: PageSpeed Insights and the Mobile-Friendly Test - Resize your browser window: as you make it narrower, does the layout adapt smoothly without things jumping around?
- Note the big issues: oversized images, too many fonts, heavy pop-ups, or embedded widgets.
Prefer a friendly hand? Book a free website review and I’ll send you a plain-English action list.
Quick wins (high impact, low effort)
These are the 20% of changes that create 80% of the perceived speed.
- Compress images
Convert big JPG/PNG to WebP, and make sure your hero images aren’t thousands of pixels wide.
Thinking about a bigger refresh? See website redesign options - Lazy-load below-the-fold images
Images that sit lower on the page can load later, once the visitor scrolls. - Tidy your fonts
Keep your fonts simple, stick to 1–2 fonts and fewer weights. Use a setting that shows fallback text first so people aren’t staring at blank space. - Cut unused scripts & embeds
Remove old pop-ups, sliders or widgets you don’t need. The lighter the page, the faster it feels. - Defer non-critical JavaScript
Anything not needed for the first screen can wait until after the page shows. - Preload the important bits
Your main font and hero image can be prioritised so they appear quickly.
Need help making changes safely? I offer WordPress support & maintenance.
Speed foundations (worth the effort)
- Solid hosting matters
A reliable host with current PHP and enough resources keeps things consistently fast. - Caching
Page caching and browser caching mean visitors don’t have to download everything every time. - CDN (Content Delivery Network)
Useful if you serve the whole UK or have lots of images — it delivers files from a location nearer your visitor. - Database tidy-up
Clear out revisions, spam and temporary data now and then.
Ongoing care keeps speed steady. See WordPress support.
WordPress-specific tips
- Choose a lightweight theme (avoid themes that “do everything”).
- Keep plugins to minimum, trusted and up-to-date; remove what you don’t use.
- Go easy on animations, videos and sliders, especially on mobile versions of the website.
- Update WordPress, your theme and plugins regularly to keep your site secure.
Images & video without the slump
- Right-size images (especially the hero) and use responsive image sizes so mobiles aren’t asked to download desktop-sized files.
- Prefer WebP for most photos and images; keep PNG for when you need transparency.
- Video: host externally or lazy-load embeds; add a static poster image so visitors see something immediately.
Core Web Vitals — no jargon version
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): how quickly the main bit appears.
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): how much the page “jumps” while loading.
- Interaction to Next Paint (INP): how quickly the page reacts to taps/clicks.
Improve these by focusing on images, fonts, and deferring non-critical scripts.
Measure again & make it stick
- Re-run PageSpeed Insights on mobile and compare with your baseline.
- Create a monthly routine: updates, a quick image tidy-up, plugin review, backup.
- Need a simple plan? WordPress support can handle it for you.
When a redesign saves time (and speed)
If your theme fights every change or you still can’t pass basic checks, a responsive redesign often costs less time (and stress) in the long run — the speed is built in from day one.
See website redesign or small business web design.
FAQ’s
Use WebP for most photos. Keep PNG only when you need transparency or if ultra sharp graphics are essential.
No — but heavy effects (eg auto-playing sliders, parallax scrolling, pop-ups) and big libraries (eg whole font awesome pack) can slow things down. Keep layouts simple and avoid “everything on one page”
Aim for pages that feel responsive on a typical mobile connection. If the first screen appears quickly and nothing jumps, your website is on the right track.
Ready for a faster website?
If your site feels sluggish or confusing, want to check out these website speed optimisation tips, I’ll help you create a fast, customer-friendly experience.
Further reading: Responsive vs Mobile-Friendly: What’s the Difference?
