Understanding Core Web Vitals and Improving Your LCP

Real user experience is measured, and Core Web Vitals are the metrics search engines and users both care about.

The three vital metrics

Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) measures load feel, Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) measures visual stability, and INP measures responsiveness.

Improving LCP

Prioritise the hero, preload critical resources, and avoid oversized images. A fast first paint flows from cutting the critical path.

Stability and responsiveness

Reserve space for late-arriving content to prevent layout shift, and keep the main thread responsive so interactions feel instant.

Wrapping up

Measure first, then optimise. The vitals give you a concrete target for making the site genuinely faster.