TLDR

General consensus among industry experts is that a page load time of 2 seconds or less is considered good...

Before we get into how to get Google-recommended page load time and other steps to optimize your page experience for better speed and user experience, let's take a look at how the concept of speed has evolved over time.

Looking back through history, there has always been a fascination with speed.

You will notice that each generation has contributed to making speed enhancements during their time, regardless of whether they are in the field of technology, science, or arts.

There is no such thing as a coincidence.

Be it while buying the car you use for commuting or rating a delivery guy who just handed you a courier.

Each one's performance is judged based on the speed at which they complete a particular task.

Why turn your gaze away from the poor page experience of your website caused by slow page load speed when you already know that speed has become all-pervasive in life?

What is the Google Page Load Time?

Google has not published specific guidelines for recommended page load times. However, the general consensus among industry experts is that a page load time of 2 seconds or less is considered good.

In 2010, the then Developer Programs Tech Lead at Google, Maile Ohye said "Two seconds is the threshold for eCommerce website acceptability. At Google, we aim for under a half second."

According to data from the HTTP Archive, the average time for a mobile web page to become interactive in 2022 was around 18.5 seconds. This average, however, includes both fast and slow-loading pages, so the actual load time for any given page may be shorter or longer than this average.

According to the report, only 3 million of the 9 million sites analyzed for web vitals compatibility had a good core web vitals score, which is around 39%.

In fact, if you're frustrated while driving in slow traffic, you'll be even more frustrated when you visit a website that takes forever to load.

When it comes to the web, you have more options than you do with slow-moving traffic.

If you end up on a website with a slow page load speed, you can always return to the search engine and select the next closest competitor.

If this is not the case, you can go directly to another website that offers similar services and access it.

Put yourself in the shoes of your target audience if you own a website.

If you haven't already, you should do so.

According to an AKAMAI study conducted in 2018, the traditional Page Load Speed timing must be revamped as user expectations have grown in tandem with page complexity.

According to a Google internal study, 40% of brands regress in web performance after six months.

According to the study, the average internet user in 2018 expects a web page to be fully interactive as soon as it loads.

It states that when a user enters a page, their first reaction is to either click a button or scroll down.

Unfortunately, because of the slow Time To Interactivity (TTI), users experience "click rage," which is nothing more than repeatedly double-clicking out of frustration.

This is why it's critical for website owners to understand how long it takes for a page to load, when the user first interacts with the page, and, most importantly, whether the user has an immersive page experience.

These aspects are being innovated by SEO agencies and webmasters, and many improvements can be expected in the coming days across the web to ensure the page experience remains pleasant and engaging for users.

Google has been at the forefront of making page experiences faster, and Lighthouse - an open-source, automated tool for improving website speed quality - has been developed.

Lighthouse comes pre-installed with the Chrome browser, allowing even non-technical users to test a website's page speed.

What Is Average Page Load Time?

The average page load time is the time it takes for a web page to fully load and display in a web browser.

The ideal page load time is generally thought to be less than 2 seconds. Factors that can affect page load time include the size and complexity of the page, the speed of the server hosting the website, and the speed of the internet connection of the user.

As a website owner, it's critical to monitor your average page load time because it can have a significant impact on user experience and website success.

A slow page load time can result in a high bounce rate (when users leave your website immediately after arriving), which can harm your search engine ranking and reduce the number of page views and conversions.

A fast page load time, on the other hand, can improve the user experience, increase the number of page views, and improve your website's ranking in search engine results.

You can improve your average page load time by doing the following:

  • Compress your images and use the appropriate file format to optimize them.
  • Minimize the number of plugins and third-party scripts you use on your website.
  • Enable browser caching so that repeat visitors can see your website faster.
  • Use a content delivery network (CDN) to distribute your content globally and shorten the distance that data must travel.
  • Check that your web hosting provider is fast and dependable.

The weight of a web page can affect its loading speed, and page loading speed can affect the user experience. Google's Web Vitals programme places a strong emphasis on user experience, especially for mobile users, and this can have an impact on Google search rankings.

As a result, it is critical to make every effort to keep web pages as light as possible in order to improve user experience and, potentially, search rankings.

Is 500MS Load Time Good for a Web Page?

500ms equals.5 seconds and any web page that loads in less than 500 ms is generally considered good.

The load time here refers to the Time to Interaction (TTI) of a page, which is the time it takes for a website to completely load its helpful content and other elements before a user can interact with the page.

However, keep in mind that the ideal page load time can vary depending on your website's specific needs and requirements.

If your website is intended for a global audience and contains a lot of content and features, you should aim for a page load time of less than 500 ms.

A page load time of 500 ms or even slightly higher may be acceptable for websites with a smaller or more targeted audience.

It's important to remember that page load time is just one factor that can affect the user experience and the success of a website.

Other factors to consider include the website's design and usability, the quality and relevance of the content, and the website's availability and dependability.

By focusing on these factors and working to improve the overall performance and user experience of your website, you can increase the number of page views, conversions, and overall success of your website.

When it comes to mobile devices, a page load time of less than 2000ms or 2 seconds is generally considered acceptable.

However, unlike the desktop, users may be more likely to abandon a page if it takes too long to load on their smaller screens. So, for mobile websites, aiming for a page load time of less than one second is a good goal, especially if they have a lot of content or features.

How do you determine the average page load time?

There are several ways to calculate average page load time:

  • A website performance monitoring tool, such as Google Analytics. These tools can track the page load time of your website over time and provide an average page load time based on the data they collect.
  • Another method is to use a browser extension or plugin that measures page load time. These tools can be installed in your web browser and provide on-demand page load time measurements for any web page you visit.
  • You can also manually calculate page load time by timing how long it takes a web page to fully load and display in your browser. You can do this by using your phone's stopwatch or a desktop timer tool.

To calculate the average page load time, you must measure the page load time for a representative sample of your website's pages.

This could be a selection of your most popular pages or a random sample of pages.

Once you've gathered all of the page load times for the sample, you can compute the average by adding them all up and dividing by the number of pages.

This will give you your website's average page load time.

It's important to remember that page load time varies depending on the size and complexity of the page, the speed of the server hosting the website, and the user's internet connection.

It's best to use a performance monitoring tool or browser extension that can account for these factors to get an accurate measurement of the average page load time.

What is Google Page Experience?

Google is actively developing strategies to improve the user's search experience.

Google has made systematic improvements to its algorithm to provide users with the best search results because the entire Search ecosystem is based on the quality of the results provided.

When it comes to search results, Google initially focused on the content and link aspects.

However, as users access and share information (some of which is highly sensitive) from a variety of devices, Google has expanded its ranking signals to include page experience.

Page Experience is a set of signals that Google uses to assess the overall quality of the user experience provided by a page.

Even though quality content and links are still important, the page experience will be one of many supporting factors that determine a webpage's ranking.

When multiple websites provide highly relevant content to users, the page signal becomes a critical ranking factor. In such cases, Google's algorithm will now favour pages that pass all page experience signals.

How Can We Reduce the Average Page Load Time?

You can improve your average page load time by doing the following:

  • Compress your images and use the appropriate file format to optimize them.
  • Minimize the number of plugins and third-party scripts you use on your website.
  • Enable browser caching so that repeat visitors can see your website faster.
  • Use a content delivery network (CDN) to distribute your content globally and shorten the distance that data must travel.
  • Check that your web hosting provider is fast and dependable.

By following these steps, you can improve the performance of your website and provide a better user experience.

What is the New Google Page Experience Algorithm Addition?

Core Web Vitals is now a part of Google's algorithm, joining the ranks of page experience signals such as mobile friendliness, HTTPS, and intrusive interstitials.

The search engine giant confirmed that the page experience update will be fully implemented in September 2021.

In 2022, the Page Experience Ranking Signal was added to Desktop Search.

Google rolled out the page experience ranking update to desktop search results in February 2022. According to Google, the rollout will be completed by the end of March 2022.

Aside from the page needing to be mobile-friendly, this update will include all of the current signals of the page experience update for the mobile version.

Statistics on Website Loading Time

Here are some general website load time statistics that you might find useful:

  • According to research, a slow page load time can result in a high bounce rate, which can harm a website's ranking in search engine results and reduce the number of page views and conversions.
  • A website's average page load time is around 8 seconds.
  • The ideal page load time is generally thought to be less than 2 seconds.
  • Users are more likely to abandon a page if it takes too long to load on their smaller screens, so mobile page load time is especially important. Aiming for a page load time of less than one second is a good target for mobile websites.
  • A number of factors can influence page load time, including the size and complexity of the page, the speed of the server hosting the website, and the user's internet connection speed.

To keep up with the Google Update cycle for its search engine, Hocalwire CMS features a carefully curated collection of settings that are automatically updated. We provide mobile SEO implementation as part of our standard packages as a service to our clients. To learn how Hocalwire may assist in transforming your current codebase into a beautiful mobile experience, Schedule a Demo right away.