A slow website is often caused by large or unoptimized images, excessive use of plugins, lack of caching, and inefficient code. To speed up your site, you can optimize images, reduce HTTP requests by combining files, leverage caching, use a content delivery network (CDN), and upgrade your hosting if necessary.
Common causes
Unoptimized media:
Large image and video files can significantly increase load times.
Excessive plugins/extensions:
Too many plugins, especially if they are poorly coded, can slow down your site by adding overhead.
Lack of caching:
If caching isn't enabled, the server has to rebuild the page for every visitor, which is slower than serving a pre-built cached version.
Inefficient code:
Poorly written JavaScript, CSS, or backend code can consume excessive server resources and delay loading.
Too many HTTP requests:
Every image, script, and stylesheet requires a separate request. Too many can overwhelm the server.
Outdated CMS:
Using an outdated version of your content management system (CMS) can lead to performance and security issues.
Unnecessary redirects:
Each redirect adds extra time for the browser to find the final destination.
How to improve performance
Optimize images:
Compress images and use modern formats like WebP to reduce their file size without sacrificing quality.
Enable website compression:
Go to your cPanel control panel and under Software > Optimize Website select Compress All Content and click on Update Settings.
Enable caching:
Implement both server-side and browser caching to serve static files from memory or the user's browser.
Reduce the number of HTTP requests:
You can do that by combining your CSS files into one file. You can do the same with your JavaScripts. Adding Expire Headers also help to reduce the number of request by telling browsers to download and store files in their cache.
Update your CMS and the plugins/themes:
Use the latest version of your CMS and keep your themes and plugins up to date.
Use the latest version of PHP:
Newer versions of PHP will run up to 30% faster than older versions, in addition to being more secure. Some plugins/themes or older code might not be compatible with newer PHP versions so you might need to revert to an older version.
Reduce plugins:
Deactivate and delete any plugins you don't need. Be selective about new ones and choose lightweight, well-coded options.
Optimize code:
Minify CSS and JavaScript files by removing unnecessary characters, and ensure your backend code is efficient.
Use a CDN:
A Content Delivery Network (CDN) serves your website's content from servers located closer to your visitors, reducing latency.
Check your hosting:
If your hosting is the bottleneck, consider upgrading your plan especially if your site gets a lot of traffic.