Among the most debated and researched topic in the WordPress community, as well as the entire website development sphere is WordPress site speed. All website visitors want a fast website, where they are capable of browsing pages on a site as quickly as possible.

Over the past few years, we have realized that our clients get disappointed by the scores their websites get after examining the speed using Google PageSpeed Insights tool. In this article, we will discuss why Google PageSpeed Insights tool is not effective for examining speed.

Here is an explanation of this tool according to Google. Please note the last sentence.

PageSpeed Insight tool examines how a page works on both mobile and desktop devices. This tool detects the URL twice; from a mobile user and a desktop user.

Also, this tool tests if a page is using the usual functioning best practices and offers a score within the range of 0-100 points. The score is in either of these three categories:

• Good: Your page uses most functioning best practices, and it should offer good user-encounter.
• Requires Work: Some usual performance optimizations are not available in your page, leading to a slow user encounter.
• Poor:Your page is not optimized and there are higher chances for it to cause slow user-encounter.  You should use the suggestions below.

Note: There are continuous improvements for PageSpeed Insights, to provide modern performance best practices. So, as times go, the scores will also change. A higher score corresponds to a swift user encounter, although it is not guaranteed.

From above, Google has indicated that the site is among the indicators applied by its algorithm in the ranking of pages. Besides this, the study shows that Google may be particularly time to initial byte while considering page speed.

Also, a slow page speed signifies that search engines are only capable of crawling a few pages with their assigned crawl budget. In turn, this might have a negative impact on your site’s index. This indicates load time is crucial for better rankings and user encounter.

Facts about Google PageSpeed Insights tool

1. This tool tests do not apply to actual devices. Instead, it gets a site that has a blink renderer which imitates both desktop and mobile devices.
2. It provides performance recommendations on areas which require enhancement. Since PageSpeed is a performance optimization tool, it provides suggestions that are biased to favor speed. You should analyze the exchanges for your application. Reason being, some of its suggestions requires a lot of effort to establish. Therefore, you should assess the cost of implementing changes against the advantages your page will have.
3. PageSpeed Insights examines a page is using normal performance best practices. Most of its rules originated from suggestions offered by developers in the web community through published blog posts and articles. Google developers provided additional rules as per study and internal utilization by Google apps.

Myths about Google PageSpeed Insights tool

1. You will rank higher in Google if your score is higher. Unfortunately, this is not guaranteed, and it does not happen always. As stated earlier, page load is the exact thing that Google uses for ranking factors. Thus, addressing the suggestions offered by PageSpeed Insights might earn you some speed, resulting in increased rankings.
2. An ideal score makes your site faster. This does not apply always; although PageSpeed Insights examines the normal speed best practices, getting an ideal score on all the factors does not equate to a faster site.
3. PageSpeed Insights tool examines real speed. False; the report has nothing indicating the duration a page took to load. As per Google, load time is whatever it will be looking for as a ranking factor.

Here are 3 best alternatives tools For page speed Test

These alternatives are perfect for testing the speed of your site, as well as providing real page load time that is essential for Google ranking, and your site’s visitors.

1. WEBPAGE TEST

This tool enables you to perform a free site speed test from many locations all over the world using actual browsers like Chrome and Internet Explorer, as well as actual consumer connection speeds.

Besides this, you can perform either easier tests, or complex tests that comprises of many-step transactions, content blocking, and video capture among others. WEBPAGETEST tool provides outcomes with rich diagnostic information; comprised of recommendations for enhancements, Page speed optimization tests, and resource loading charts.

2. PINGDOM

Undoubtedly, everyone hates a slow website. Luckily, PINGDOM website speed test tool was made to assist you in analyzing your website’s load speed, as well as helping you study the means you can use to make your sites faster.

This tool allows you to know the exact cause of a page being slow, fast, or big, as well as some of the best practices that you are not applying among. Also, it is user-friendly to both professionals and beginners. Basically, the tool is user-friendly to enable web developers, and webmasters optimize websites with ease.

A Summary of Features

• Allows you to undertake a test and share the outcomes with whoever you want.
• Makes test from many locations all over the world. Thus, you see how your site loads in the US, UK, Africa, etc.
• Enables you to track your performance history. This tool saves every test you make, allowing you to do reviews whenever you want, and have a view of the changes occurring with time using beautiful charts.
• Provides performance grade and tips. Thus, you can see how your site applies Google Page Speed performance best practices. Also, it offers amazing tips on how to increase the speed of your website.
• Performance summary; this tool automatically offers many performance-connected stats as per the outcome.
• Test all sections of a web page. You can see the load times, size of files, and all other particulars on each element of your web page, such as images, CSS files, JavaScript, and HTML and others. Also, you can determine performance barriers by sorting and filtering this list using various methods.

3. GT METRIX

This tool provides a clear overview of your page performance as per main signs of page load speed. Here is what it does:

• It analysis your page using Google PageSpeed and Yahoo.
• Provides the load time of your pages, total requests, and the entire page size.
• Allows you to see the performance of your site compared to all other sites analyzed using it.
• Allows you to trace the performance of your page with scheduled monitoring, and have its overview with interactive graphs. Also, you can enable you to receive notifications whenever the performance of your page is poor.
• You can set notifications with many conditions depending on all Page size, Page load time, YSlow scores, and PageSpeed scores.
• Mark areas of interest on your graph, and provide your data context.
• Have a performance overview using these available three graphs: Page Size & Request Counts, PageSpeed & YSlow scores, and Page Load Time.
• For maximum performance, track pages and perform a test daily, weekly, or monthly.
• You can zoom or set date duration to get a particular performance history.

Playback Your Page Loads Using Videos

This tool allows you to record your page loads, and determine the exact point of stoppages or issues.

• You have a view of your page load in the filmstrip, and receive a frame-by-frame appearance of your page load in real time.
• If you are GTMetrix PRO user, you can add monitored alerts to your saved page load video alert cause.
• You can decide on loading problems by slowing your playback to a total of 4 times the initial seed.
• You can go directly to main page load goals like DOM loaded, first byte and DNS solved.

Conclusion

Although Google PageSpeed Insight tool is popular for measuring page speed, its outcomes are biased to favor speed. Therefore, you can a real overview of your site’s performance by using the above alternative tools, which offer appropriate recommendations.

If you have other speed test tools to suggest or have any other questions, use our comment section.

If you are facing any WordPress related issues, you can consult WordPress experts.