People are impatient online. When a page takes too long to load, many visitors simply leave, often before they've seen a word you've written. Speed also plays a part in how search engines judge your site. The good news is that most improvements are straightforward.

Test your speed first

Run your key pages through Google's free PageSpeed Insights. Test on mobile as well as desktop, as phones on slower connections show problems more clearly.

The biggest quick wins

• Compress images: large photos are the most common cause of slow pages. Resize them to the size they're displayed and use modern formats.

• Remove what you don't use: old plugins, unused fonts, chat widgets and tracking scripts all add weight.

• Limit auto-playing video: use a thumbnail that loads the video only when clicked.

• Choose quality hosting: cheap shared hosting can be slow, especially at busy times.

Website builders can help

Modern builders handle a lot of performance work for you, including image optimisation and fast global hosting. If your current site is slow and hard to maintain, it may be worth comparing options. See Framer, Webflow or WordPress? for a starting point.

Keep an eye on it

Speed tends to drift as you add pages, images and tools. Re-test every few months, and after any major change.

Focus on what visitors feel

Scores are useful, but what matters is how quickly the important content appears and how soon visitors can interact. A page that shows its headline and main button quickly feels fast, even if some details load a moment later.

A simple rule: if a page feels slow to you on your phone, it feels slower to your customers.

The short version

Test on mobile, compress images, remove unused extras, choose good hosting and re-test regularly. See my website builder picks for platforms that make speed easy.