Look, I'm just a WordPress nerd with an unhealthy obsession for speed. I've been breaking and fixing WordPress sites longer than I care to admit. These tests? They're the result of countless hours of trial and error, fueled by way too much coffee and a burning desire to find the fastest WordPress setup possible.
I'm not here to sell you anything. No hosting company, no plugin or theme developer is lining my pockets other than affiliate links. What you see is what I got - unbiased, unfiltered results.
So, whether you're a casual blogger or a WordPress pro, you can trust that these numbers come from a place of geeky passion and a genuine desire to help you find the best hosting for your needs.
Got questions about my process? Think you've got a better way to test? Drop a comment below. I'm always up for a good WordPress performance debate!
What Does That All Mean?
First Contentful Paint is like your website's first impression handshake. It measures how quickly your site goes from a blank screen to showing something meaningful. Imagine clicking a link and staring at a white page – that's not fun, right? FCP is when your site says, "Hey, I'm here!" by displaying text, an image, or any visible content.
A speedy FCP (under 1.8 seconds) isn't just about bragging rights, it's about keeping visitors around. In our impatient digital world, a fast FCP can be the difference between a user exploring your site or hitting the back button. It's especially crucial for mobile users, who might be on slower connections. Plus, search engines like Google take notice, potentially boosting your site's rankings if you nail this metric. Remember, in the web world, first impressions happen in milliseconds!
Think of Speed Index as your website's sprint time. It's not just about when your site starts loading (that's FCP's job), but how quickly it gets to the finish line of being fully loaded. SI measures the average time it takes for visible parts of your page to display. It's like watching a video buffer – you want that progress bar zipping along, not crawling. A good SI (under 3.4 seconds) means your site isn't just fast to start, it's fast to finish. This matters because users don't hang around for slow-loading content. They want to see your beautiful images, read your snappy headlines, and interact with your site ASAP.
A low SI keeps visitors engaged and reduces the chance they'll bounce off to a competitor. It's not just about speed; it's about perceived speed. Your site might be doing complex things behind the scenes, but as long as it looks fast to the user, you're golden.
Largest Contentful Paint is like the main act of your website's performance show. It measures how long it takes for the largest content element on your page – usually a hero image, banner, or headline – to load. Think of it as your site's "money shot." You know how in movies, there's often that one iconic scene that everyone remembers? That's what LCP is measuring – how quickly your site's star player shows up. Google loves a fast LCP (under 2.5 seconds) because it means users are getting to the good stuff quickly. A slow LCP is like having your lead actor show up late to the premiere – it doesn't matter how great the rest of the show is if people are twiddling their thumbs waiting for the main event.
In the SEO world, LCP is a big deal. It's one of Google's Core Web Vitals, which means it directly impacts your search rankings. Nail your LCP, and you're not just making users happy; you're giving your site a fighting chance in the SEO arena.
Time to Interactive is like your website's "ready for action" moment. Imagine you're at an amusement park, and you see an awesome roller coaster. The queue's moving, you can see the ride, but you're not quite there yet. TTI is that magical moment when you finally sit down, buckle up, and the ride can actually start. In web terms, it's when your page looks ready and can consistently respond to user input quickly. A good TTI (under 3.8 seconds) means your visitors aren't left hanging, clicking buttons that don't work yet. It's especially crucial for interactive sites – think web apps, online stores, or any site where users need to do more than just read.
A slow TTI can be super frustrating; it's like a waiter bringing your food but telling you that you can't eat it yet. In today's world of instant gratification, a fast TTI can be the difference between a user engaging with your site or bouncing off to find a more responsive alternative.
Total Blocking Time is like traffic jams for your website's brain. Imagine you're driving, and suddenly you hit a stretch of road where construction work keeps stopping traffic. That's what TBT measures – the total time your page spends in these "traffic jams," unable to respond to user input. It's counting all those tiny moments when your site is too busy processing something to react to clicks or typing. A good TBT (under 200 milliseconds) means your site stays nimble and responsive.
High TBT is the digital equivalent of lag in video games – frustrating and immersion-breaking. It's especially noticeable on mobile devices, where every millisecond counts. While users might not know what TBT is, they feel its effects keenly. Ever rage-quit a website because it felt sluggish? That's probably high TBT in action. By keeping TBT low, you're ensuring your site feels smooth and responsive, like a well-oiled machine rather than a clunky robot.
Cumulative Layout Shift is like playing whack-a-mole with your website's content. You know that annoying moment when you're about to click a button, but suddenly the page jumps and you end up clicking an ad instead? That's a layout shift, and CLS measures how often and how severely this happens. It's all about visual stability. A good CLS score (under 0.1) means your page elements stay put where they're supposed to be, like well-behaved kids in a class photo.
High CLS is the digital equivalent of trying to read a book while someone keeps moving it around – frustrating and potentially disorienting. It's not just about annoyance; poor CLS can lead to critical errors, like sending an email before it's ready or making an unintended purchase. Mobile users are particularly susceptible to this issue. By keeping your CLS low, you're creating a smooth, predictable experience that builds trust and keeps users engaged, rather than playing an unintentional game of 'catch the content'.
Page Size is like packing for a trip – the more stuff you cram in, the slower you move. It's the total weight of your webpage, measured in kilobytes or megabytes, including everything from images and videos to scripts and stylesheets. Think of it as your website's suitcase; a lightweight carry-on gets through the airport much faster than a massive trunk. While there's no universal "good" page size (it depends on your content), keeping it under 1-2 MB is a solid goal for most sites.
Large page sizes can be killers for mobile users on limited data plans or slow connections – it's like trying to download the entire Library of Congress when all they wanted was a pamphlet. Plus, search engines love speedy sites, and a trim page size helps with that. But don't go minimalist crazy; it's about finding that sweet spot where your page looks great and performs well. Remember, it's not just about dieting; it's about efficient packing, ensuring every byte counts.
Requests are like your website's shopping list. Each time your page needs something – an image, a font, a script, a stylesheet – it sends out a request to fetch it. It's as if your website is throwing a party and sending out individual invitations for every single guest and snack. The fewer requests, the faster your page typically loads. Think of it like ordering at a restaurant; asking for one large platter is usually quicker than ordering 20 small dishes one at a time. Each request comes with overhead – it's not just about the size of what you're fetching, but the time it takes to ask for it, wait for a response, and process it. Too many requests can overwhelm servers and browsers, especially on mobile devices. It's like trying to juggle too many balls at once – eventually, things start to slow down or fall apart.
Optimizing requests often means consolidating files, using CSS sprites for images, or leveraging browser caching. The goal isn't necessarily zero requests (that's nearly impossible), but rather making each request count, ensuring your site runs lean and mean without sacrificing functionality or aesthetics.
How I Test WordPress Page Builders
HBefore we jump into the nitty-gritty, let’s lay out how I ran these tests.
Clean Slate: Each page builder got its own fresh WordPress install on a separate domain. No favoritism, no bloat.
Equal Footing: All domains were hosted on the same server. No “but my hosting is better” excuses.
No Caching Shenanigans: I disabled all caching plugins. This is raw, out-of-the-box performance.
Apples to Apples: Every page builder got the same elements to work with – identical images, fonts, the works.
Theme Choices: I used each page builder’s own theme when available. If they didn’t have one, I went with their recommended option. For the stragglers, I defaulted to GeneratePress (because it’s a speed demon).
Multiple Perspectives: I didn’t just rely on one speed test. We’re talking Google Page Speed Insights, Pingdom Tools, and GT Metrix. No stone left unturned.
All values represent the average of 12 tests conducted over a 12-hour period 🕖
1. PageSpeed Insights
Google's PageSpeed Insights is all about that user experience, baby. It tells me how quickly your visitors are actually seeing and interacting with your site.
Key metrics I'm eyeballing:
Performance Score: Out of 100, for both mobile and desktop.
First Contentful Paint (FCP): Time taken to show the first content item.
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Time taken to show the largest content item.
Speed Index: How quickly content items appear to the user.
Time to Interactive: When the user can actually interact with page elements.
Total Blocking Time: Time spent waiting for downloads to start.
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Measures the page's visual stability.
2. GTmetrix
GTmetrix is like that friend who always tells you when you have spinach in your teeth. It's brutally honest about performance issues and lets me know if a page builder is carrying too much baggage.
Key metrics I'm eyeballing:
GTmetrix Grade: A weighted grade based on both Performance and Structure scores.
Performance Score: The Lighthouse Performance score captured during tests.
Structure Score: Based on Lighthouse audits and GTmetrix's custom audits.
Web Vitals: These include Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), Total Blocking Time (TBT), and Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS).
3. Pingdom
Pingdom is my backup singer. It harmonizes with GTmetrix, but sometimes it hits a different note, which helps me catch any sneaky discrepancies.
Key metrics I'm eyeballing:
Performance Grade: A cumulative grade out of 100.
Load Time: The time it takes to load the entire website with a page builder installed.
Page Size: The size of total site files. Lower is better!
Requests: The number of server requests to deliver the page builder and site content.
4. Uptrends
Last but not least, I use Byte Check to measure TTFB (Time to First Byte). It's like testing how quickly your page builder can say "Hello!" to your visitors.
Key metrics I'm eyeballing:
Time To First Byte (TTFB): How long it takes for the first byte of data to reach the user.
Total Time: Often the same as TTFB in my tests.
Request Size: The size of data sent through the HTTP request.
Total Header Size: The total file size of your website header.
Look, I know this might seem like overkill. But here's the deal: when it comes to WordPress performance, the devil's in the details. By putting these page builders through this gauntlet, I'm making sure you get the real scoop on which page builders are truly speed demons and which ones are just all talk.
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