You have made countless settings adjustments in your WordPress. But still the loading speed of your website is not as good as you expected..?
The real offender could be your First Contentful Paint (FCP). It is the time it takes for the first visible element to show up on a user’s screen.
This seems to be a small moment. But have a big impact on SEO and how visitors view the speed of the website.
So, How to improve First Contentful Paint in WordPress?
In this blog, we will explore. So let’s get started..!
What affects First Contentful Paint in WordPress?
WordPress is a feature-rich Content Management System (CMS). It occasionally experiences slow loading times as a result of various factors.
These factors influence the speed at which the initial content is displayed. The content could be anything from a header, image or text element.
So, before diving into how to optimize first contentful paint in WordPress, first let us comprehend the factors affecting FCP in WordPress.
The key factors that affects FCP in WordPress are,
1.WordPress Plugins
The WordPress plugins add more functionality to the website. But, if they are not properly controlled, they can also cause performance to lag.Â
One common cause of WordPress’s slow FCP is an overabundance of plugins or poorly coded ones.
How does it affect FCP?
- Every plugin adds its own CSS, JavaScript and HTML. This increases the number of resources the browser needs to download and render. These plugins cause the browser to load extraneous elements if they are not optimized. This causes the FCP to lag.
- The plugins that load external scripts like Slider or Social sharing plugins will block the rendering until their scripts are fully loaded. This prolongs the FCP delay.
2.Render Blocking JavaScript and CSS
The render blocking resources like JavaScript and CSS causes the First Contentful Paint (FCP) to lag. This is one of the most common issues.
Before the browser shows the first piece of content on the page, these files need to be fully loaded.
How does it affect FCP?
- JavaScript files contain scripts that affect the behavior of the page. The FCP is delayed if the browser runs into a render-blocking script. This is because it has to stop rendering until the script loads completely.
- Just like JavaScript, the browser takes longer to apply styles to elements if the CSS is large or not optimized. This implies that until the entire CSS file loads, the first content will not be painted.
3.WordPress Themes
WordPress themes have a significant impact on how quickly the website loads. Some themes are created with performance in mind and some are feature rich.
But they load more slowly because they are overstuffed with unnecessary codes and elements.
How does it affect FCP?
Themes with animations, large background images and animations will increase the time it takes to render the first piece of the content.
These themes delay the FCP by loading additional resources like CSS and JavaScript.
4.Unoptimized Images
Images are the heaviest resources on a web page. So, if it is not properly optimized it will negatively impact FCP.
If the large images need to be loaded before the content is displayed, it will delay the FCP.
How does it affect FCP?
- Images that aren’t properly sized or compressed for different screen resolutions will take longer time to load. This will prolong the time it takes for the first piece of the content to show.
- When compared to optimized image formats like WebP or compressed JPEG/PNG, using outdated or inefficient image formats like BMP or TIFF will drastically slow down FCP.
5.Web Fonts
When it comes to FCP optimization, web fonts are often disregarded. The custom fonts improve the look of the website. But it also delays the rendering of the content.
How does it affect FCP?
- If the web fonts are not properly optimized, the browser will hold off on displaying text until the font file is completely loaded. This causes FCP to be delayed.
- The text content will not be displayed until the custom fonts loads for the following reasons,
- If you don’t use the correct font display settings and
- If you don’t specify a fallback font
This will cause a delayed FCP.
6.Hosting and Server Response Time
FCP is directly impacted by the performance of your hosting provider. Because the speed at which the browser begins downloading resources is determined by the server response time.
Therefore, if the server is operating slowly the browser has to wait longer before it starts rendering content.
How does it affect FCP?
- A request is made from the web page to the browser. Now the hosting provider takes too long to respond. This will result in a delay in the whole page load process including FCP.
- The hosting solutions which are low-cost and shared leads to slower response times. This is due to the fact that resources are shared among many websites. This will put a strain on the server performance. This delays the rendering of the content.
How to improve First Contentful Paint in WordPress?
Optimizing various aspects of the website needs to be performed to improve the First Contentful Paint (FCP) in WordPress.
By doing so, the first piece of the content will be rendered by the browser as soon as possible.
The actionable strategies to optimize FCP in WordPress are listed below:
1.Enhance Web Font Performance
As said before, the website appearance and feel can be improved with custom web fonts. But it delays the FCP.
Because the browser needs to download more files, before it renders the text content.
So, how can the performance of the web fonts be enhanced?
- Use the CSS property font-display:swap; for web fonts. By doing this, you can be sure that the browser will show a fallback font while the custom font loads. This shortens the FCP delay.
- Rather than depending on outside resources such as Google Fonts, host your fonts locally on your WordPress server. This will cut down on latency and boost FCP.
- Minimize the amount of font families and weights that are used on the website. This is because faster loading times and better FCP are achieved with fewer font files.
2.Set Critical Requests in order of Priority
For WordPress to render the first piece of content, some requests are more important than others.Â
These important requests should be prioritized. So, the browser will concentrate on loading the most important components first. This in turn enhances the FCP.
But, How are critical requests prioritized?
- Reduce the number of HTTP requests. This can be done by,
- Integrating JavaScript and CSS files,
- Eliminating unnecessary fonts and
- Lowering reliance on outside resources.
Thus, faster load times and better FCP are achieved with fewer requests.
- In your HTML, use the rel=preload attribute. This will instruct the browser to load important files like fonts ahead of time during the page load process. This makes it possible for crucial assets to be accessible when the content is ready to be rendered.
3.Put Browser Caching into Practice
Browser caching keeps static resources such as images, CSS and JavaScript in the user’s browser. So they don’t need to be re-downloaded on subsequent visits. This has the potential to greatly enhance FCP for repeat visitors.
But, how to put browser caching into practice?
- Use caching plugins to store static resources in the user’s browser such as W3 Total Cache or WP Super Cache. This assures quicker load times on subsequent visits. So instead of downloading the assets again, the browser retrieves those that are cached.
- Set suitable cache expiry times for static resources. So the browser retains these files for a longer amount of time. This increases the FCP and decreases load times for returning visitors.Â
4.Make Use of Efficient Hosting
FCP is directly impacted by the speed of your hosting provider. The first delivery of content to the browser is delayed by slow server response times. This negatively impacts FCP.
So, how to make use of efficient hosting?
- Upgrade to managed WordPress hosting. WordPress-optimized server environments are provided by managed WordPress hosting companies like Kinsta, SiteGround or WP Engine. FCP is increased by these hosts with quicker server response times, caching and other performance enhancements.
- To effectively handle traffic, make sure your hosting environment should have strong resources like faster CPUs and more memory as well as SSD (Solid State Drive) storage.
- Reduce the amount of external HTTP requests and use caching techniques like Varnish Cache to improve server response time.
5.Enhance WordPress Themes
FCP is significantly impacted by your WordPress theme. Lightweight themes are designed to load fewer resources. These themes significantly increase FCP by reducing the amount of CSS, JavaScript and image assets that must be loaded.
How can WordPress Themes be enhanced?
- Choose a lightweight theme. Consider themes like Generate Press, Astra or Neve that are designed with performance in mind. These themes are speed-optimized and reduce unnecessary features that slow down the FCP.
- Disable or eliminate extraneous components like sliders, animations and large background images if your theme is feature-rich as these cause FCP to lag.
- The JavaScript and CSS files for your theme are minified to reduce their size. This speeds up their loading and enhances FCP. WP Rocket and Autoptimize are two plugins that can assist with this process.
6.Reduce Time to First Byte (TTFB)
The Time to First Byte (TTFB) metric measures the time duration required by the browser to receive the initial byte of data from the server.
Slow TTFB causes FCP to slow down. This is because the browser needs to receive the server’s initial response before it can start rendering the page.
How to reduce Time to First Byte (TTFB)?
- Make use of WP-optimize or other database optimization plugins to remove the unnecessary data. This will enhance the database performance and reduce TTFB.
- To lower server load and accelerate TTFB, use plugins such as W3 Total Cache, WP Rocket or LiteSpeed Cache to implement full-page caching.
- If the TTFB doesn’t get better, think about switching to a faster provider or upgrading your hosting package.
7.Defer and Minify JavaScript and CSS
FCP delays are caused by render-blocking JavaScript and CSS files, which stop the browser from rendering the page until they are completely downloaded and processed.Â
So to accelerate FCP, the loading should be deferred and use of these resources should be minimized.
How to defer and minify JavaScript & CSS?
- Plugins such as WP Rocket and Perfmatters can be used to defer non-essential JavaScript files. These files are delayed to ensure that it loads after the important page content has been rendered. Thus decreases the FCP delay.
- Minification shrinks the size of CSS and JavaScript files by eliminating extraneous characters, comments and spaces. Combining files speeds up load times by lowering the quantity of HTTP requests. To automate this process, use plugins such as W3 Total Cache or Autoptimize.
- The bare minimum of CSS needed to render the visible portion of the page is known as critical CSS. You can speed up content rendering in the browser by including essential CSS directly into the HTML instead of waiting for an external CSS file. Either WP Rocket or hand coding it into the header of the website will work for this.
8.Switch on GZIP Compression
The HTML, CSS and JavaScript files on your website are compressed using GZIP before being sent from the server to the browser. Reduced file sizes result in improved FCP and quicker load times.
But, how to activate GZIP Compression?
- The majority of contemporary web hosting companies come with GZIP compression by default. However, you can also manually configure it in your server’s settings via .htaccess for Apache servers or use plugins like W3 Total Cache and WP Super Cache.
- Make sure users receive compressed files by checking the compression level of your website with resources like GTmetrix or Google PageSpeed Insights.
9.Improve the Delivery of Images
As discussed earlier, large and unoptimized images are the leading causes of FCP slow down.
Therefore, these images should be properly sized for web delivery. This will improve the load times and the first content is rendered faster.
So, how image delivery can be improved?
- Utilize plugins for image compression like smush, imagify and shortpixel. This will reduce the size of images without compromising the quality. The time it takes for the first piece of content to appear is shortened when images are compressed.
- Swap out traditional image formats like JPEG and PNG for more contemporary ones like WebP. It provides improved compression and quicker load times. WebP images can be automatically converted and served to compatible browsers by WordPress plugins such as WebP Express.
- Implement Lazy Loading in WordPress. It delays the loading of images, until they are scrolled into view. As a result, less elements will be loaded initially which increases the FCP. WordPress 5.5 brought native lazy loading. However, for additional control, users can also use plugins like WP Rocket’s Lazy Load.
Conclusion
Thus this blog reveals how to improve first contentful paint in WordPress. This is a must needed step to enhance the SEO and user experience of the website.
So take action right now by evaluating your present FCP using tools like,
- Google PageSpeed Insights
- Lighthouse
Then implement the strategies mentioned in this blog. You will drastically lower your FCP and deliver a fast and more responsive website.
