25 Easy Steps To Make Your Website Faster

Unlock faster website speed today. Essential guide with 25+ actionable tips to slash load times, boost SEO & keep visitors happy.

A fast website is essential in 2025. People want websites to load quickly. Search engines like Google rank fast sites higher. This guide gives easy tips to make your site faster. It helps users enjoy your site more and improves your site’s visibility in search results.

Why Website Speed Matters

• Slow sites lose visitors. A 1-second delay can mean 7% fewer sales.
• Fast sites make users happier.
• Google uses speed to decide which sites show first.

Start with Good Hosting

Your website lives on a server. Shared servers can slow down as your site grows. Pick a better hosting service.

Cloudways is an excellent choice because:

• It uses powerful cloud servers.
• It gives your site its own space and fast storage.
• It helps your site load quickly.

Simple Ways to Make Your Site Faster

1. Make Pictures Smaller

• Pictures make pages slow.
• Use these picture types:
  • WebP for small file size.
  • AVIF for tiny file size.
  • PNG for see-through pictures.
  • SVG for simple shapes and logos.
• Make pictures smaller before adding them. Use tools like TinyPNG.
• WordPress users: Try Smush or ShortPixel plugins.

2. Save Pages for Faster Loading (Caching)

• Caching helps pages load fast for returning visitors.
• Browser Caching: Tell browsers to save things like pictures and styles. (Code example kept but simplified explanation).
• WordPress Caching Plugins:
  • WP Rocket (paid)
  • W3 Total Cache (free)
  • WP Super Cache (free)
• Server Caching: Cloudways has its tool (Breeze) for super-fast loading.

• Your site’s database stores Information. Cleaning it helps speed.
• Clean often:
  • Remove spam comments.
  • Delete old saved changes.
  • Get rid of unused plugins.
• Use WordPress plugins: WP-Optimize or WP-Sweep.
• Cloudways keeps databases clean automatically.

4. Make CSS and JavaScript Files Smaller

• CSS styles your site. JavaScript makes it interactive. Smaller files load faster.
• For CSS:
  • Combine files.
  • Remove extra spaces.
  • Use the Autoptimize plugin.
• For JavaScript:
  • Combine files.
  • Load less important code later.
  • Use the Async JavaScript plugin.

5. Use a CDN (Content Delivery Network)

• A CDN stores your site’s files in many places worldwide. This helps people near those places load your site faster.
• Good CDN Services:
  • Cloudflare (free option)
  • StackPath
  • KeyCDN
  • Amazon CloudFront
• Cloudways works efficiently with CDNs.

Also Read: Scalable Hosting Solutions for Growing Businesses

6. Keep Your Code Clean

• Good code helps your site run fast.
• HTML Tips:
  • Remove extra spaces and comments.
  • Use simple, clear tags.
• CSS Tips:
  • Use simple selectors.
  • Avoid @import.
• JavaScript Tips:
  • Change the page less often.
  • Use newer, faster code.

7. Turn On GZIP Compression

• This makes files significantly smaller (70-90% smaller) for faster transmission.
• Most caching plugins do this for you. WP Rocket does it automatically. Cloudways turns it on by default.

8. Use Web Fonts Wisely

• Fancy fonts can slow things down.
• Tips:
  • Use font-display: swap in CSS.
  • Preload important fonts.
  • Use fewer font styles.
  • Pick WOFF2 format.
• WordPress users: Try Easy Google Fonts or OMGF plugins.

9. Load Things As Needed (Lazy Load)

• Only load pictures and videos when the user scrolls to the area where they are located.
• For pictures: Use loading=”lazy” in HTML or a plugin like Lazy Load by WP Rocket.
• For other content: Load comments or social media buttons later.

10. Pick a Fast WordPress Theme and Fewer Plugins

• Your theme and plugins affect speed.
• Theme Tips:
  • Choose light themes, such as GeneratePress or Astra.
  • Remove unused theme parts.
• Plugin Tips:
  • Delete unused plugins.
  • Find slow plugins with Plugin Performance Profiler.
• Other WordPress Tips:
  • Turn off features you don’t use (like pingbacks).
  • Control how often WordPress checks for updates (Heartbeat Control).
  • Use WP-Optimize.

11. Check Your Site’s Speed Often

• See how fast your site is.
• Free Tools:
  • Google PageSpeed Insights
  • GTmetrix
  • WebPageTest
• WordPress Plugins:
  • Query Monitor
  • WP Performance Score Booster

More Speed Tips

12. Use HTTP/2

• This new way websites talk is faster. Cloudways uses it automatically.

13. Make Your Server Respond Fast (TTFB)

• TTFB is how long your server takes to start sending the page.
• Make TTFB better:
  • Use fast storage (SSD).
  • Clean your database.
  • Use server caching.
  • Pick a server close to your visitors.
• Cloudways helps with fast TTFB.

14. Keep Your Site Safe Without Slowing It Down

• Security matters, but it shouldn’t make things slow.
• Use:
  • Cloudflare for protection.
  • Wordfence or Sucuri Security plugins (set for speed).
• For SSL/TLS (the lock icon):
  • Use modern TLS (version 1.3 is recommended).
  • Cloudways gives free SSL certificates.

15. Make Your Site Fast on Phones

• Many people use phones. Your site must be fast for them.
• Tips:
  • Use AMP for simple pages.
  • Design for phones first.
  • Make buttons easy to tap.
• Test with:
  • Google Mobile-Friendly Test
  • Mobile PageSpeed Insights

16. Organize Your Content Well

• How you show content affects speed.
• Tips:
  • Split long articles into parts.
  • Show short summaries first.
  • Use “load more” buttons for long lists.
  • Make thumbnails small.

17. Pick Fast Hosting

• Good hosting is key.
• Look for:
  • SSD storage.
  • Enough memory (RAM).
  • Good computer power (CPU).
• Cloudways is good because:
  • Your site gets its own space.
  • It uses fast storage.
  • It has strong caching.
  • It uses the latest PHP for speed.
  • Easy testing area.
  • Works with Git.

18. Make Online Stores Faster

• Stores (like WooCommerce) require additional speed assistance.
• Tips:
  • Use image compression (Smush Pro).
  • Lazy load product pictures.
  • Use caching plugins made for stores.
  • Try Redis for faster cart actions.

19. Smart Caching for Changing Content

• Sites that frequently change require special caching.
• Types:
  • Object caching (Redis/Memcached).
  • Database query caching.
  • Caching parts of a page.
• Cloudways makes it easy to add Redis/Memcached.

20. Helpful WordPress Speed Plugins

• All-in-One Plugins:
  • WP Rocket (paid, does many things)
  • Perfmatters (paid, light)
  • Hummingbird (free/paid)
• Special Plugins:
  • ShortPixel (images)
  • Cloudflare plugin
  • AMP plugin

21. Make the Server Fast (For Techies)

• PHP:
  • Use PHP 8.x.
  • Turn on OPcache.
• Web Server: Nginx or Apache set for speed.
• Database: Keep it tuned and clean.
• (Note: Cloudways does this for you)

22. Keep Watching Your Speed

• Check often to stay fast.
• Important Numbers:
  • Page Load Time (total time).
  • TTFB (server speed).
  • FCP (when content first shows).
  • LCP (when main content loads).
  • CLS (does the page jump around?).
  • FID (how fast buttons work).
• Tools: Google Analytics, Search Console, Pingdom. Cloudways has built-in checks.

Also Read: Top 29 Great Benefits of Managed WordPress Hosting You Can’t Ignore

23. Keep Your Site Fast Over Time

• Speed needs regular care.
• Do Monthly:
  • Clean your database.
  • Update plugins and themes.
  • Make new pictures small.
  • Clear cache and test speed.
  • Check your backups.
• Do Every Few Months:
  • Full speed test.
  • Check plugin speed.
  • Remove old content.
  • See if you need more server power.
  • Check security.

24. Make Your Site Feel Like an App (PWA)

• PWAs load fast and work offline.
• Benefits:
  • Work without internet.
  • Load instantly.
  • Send alerts.
  • It can be added to the home screen of the phone.
• WordPress Plugins: “PWA for WordPress” or “Super Progressive Web Apps.”

25. Make Pictures Even Better

• Use New Picture Types:
  • WebP (smaller than JPEG).
  • AVIF (much smaller than JPEG).
• Plugins: Optimole, ShortPixel, Imagify.

Ending: Keep Your Site Fast

Making your site fast involves several key components: good hosting, clean code, small image sizes, and regular maintenance. Start with strong hosting like Cloudways. Remember:

1. Hosting: Pick a good service.
2. Caching: Use it at different levels.
3. Content: Make everything small (pictures, code, fonts).
4. Watch: Check speed often.
5. Care: Tune things up regularly.

Speed work is never truly done. As your site evolves, continue to optimize it for speed. A fast site makes users happy, gets more visitors from search engines, and helps you succeed online. Start using these tips today!