9 Reasons Your Website Is Slow – One of the worst things that may happen to a website owner is a slow website.
It not only irritates visitors but can harm your search engine rankings and cost you money. Fortunately, there are a number of possible causes for your website’s slowness, and most of them are rather simple to address.
In this article, we’ll go over 10 typical causes of sluggish websites and show you how to resolve them.
Large Image Files
The majority of websites depend heavily on images, however they can also significantly increase page times. Particularly on weaker connections, loading time for large image files might be rather long.
You should optimise your photographs by reducing their size and compressing them to resolve this problem. Software for modifying images or online resources like TinyPNG or Optimizilla can be used for this.
If you’re using a CMS like WordPress then you can install a plugin like EWWW Image Optimiser to get it all done for you within minutes.
- Download EWWW Image Optimiser
- Install the plugin on your WordPress website
- Configure the plugin, and get started.
- Use the docs if you have any issues.
Unoptimised Code
Slow load times can also be caused by poorly optimised code. This may involve using HTML, CSS, or JavaScript too frequently.
You should reduce the size of your code and eliminate any extraneous components to optimise it in order to resolve this problem.
Additionally, you can use applications like Google PageSpeed Insights or GTmetrix to find and correct particular code-related problems.
You can also use a great WordPress plugin if you have a WordPress website called WP Super Cache.
Server Issues
Slow load times may result if your website is hosted on a slow or overburdened server. You might need to upgrade to a better hosting plan or change your hosting company in order to resolve this problem.
You can track the uptime and functionality of your website using programmes like Pingdom or UptimeRobot.
If you’re not happy with your current host, feel free to look into our hosting and maintenance services.
Too Many HTTP Requests
Every component of the page, including graphics, scripts, and stylesheets, are requested by the server every time a person accesses your website through their browser.
This can result in a lot of HTTP requests and sluggish load times. By consolidating and minifying files, employing a content delivery network (CDN), and reducing the amount of HTTP queries, you can resolve this problem.
Bloated Plugins or Themes
You can be employing bulky or poorly coded plugins or themes if you’re using a content management system (CMS) like WordPress.
Performance issues and lengthy load times may result from this. You should disable or remove any pointless plugins or themes, and replace them with speed-optimized, lightweight options to resolve this problem.
This is a more advanced issue that would require a specialist web agency to take a look at. Or you can use a website like UpWork to hire someone for a short amount of time.
Excessive Ads or Pop-Ups
While pop-ups and advertising can be a useful method to monetize your website, they can also cause it to load slowly and irritate users.
Reduce the quantity of pop-ups and adverts on your website and make sure they are speed and performance optimised to resolve this problem.
Lack of Caching
By saving frequently requested data on the user’s computer or device, caching can drastically reduce the amount of time it takes for your website to load. This can include things like pictures, scripts, and other things that won’t change too often.
You should use a caching plugin or tool to implement cache on your website to resolve this problem.
If you’re using the CMS WordPress, then you can use a caching tool like the 9 listed on this website.
Slow DNS Lookups
Slow load times can also be caused by DNS lookup times, particularly if your website uses external resources or third-party services.
Use a trustworthy DNS service and cut back on the quantity of external resources your website uses to fix this problem.
Lack of Content Delivery Network (CDN)
By spreading your website’s assets across numerous servers across the globe, a CDN can drastically reduce the amount of time it takes for users to load your website. This can shorten the distance that data must travel and speed up loading for users in various regions.
You want to think about utilising a CDN like Cloudflare or Amazon Cloud to resolve this problem.
How do I get or install a CDN? You can use this blog by Pingdom on a beginner’s guide to using CDNs.
There are 9 reasons your website is slow. If you have tried these, and your website is still slow, feel free to get in touch with a web design agency like us here at Kaizen Five who can completely optimise your website.
