Queensland University of Technology

The Index

Insights

Google Lighthouse Performance

The Google Lighthouse performance score is a metric that measures the speed and performance of a website. It’s an overall score that ranges from 0 to 100 and is generated based on a number of different performance metrics, such as the time it takes for a website to load, the time it takes for a website to become interactive, the size of the resources used by the website, and other factors that impact the user experience.

A high performance score in Google Lighthouse indicates that a website is fast and responsive, which can lead to a better user experience and improved search engine rankings. On the other hand, a low performance score can indicate that a website is slow and unresponsive, and can negatively impact the user experience.

Mobile Performance
29%
Desktop Performance
71%

Core Web Vitals

Core Web Vitals are a set of specific factors that Google considers important in a webpage’s overall user experience. Core Web Vitals are made up of three specific page speed and user interaction measurements: Largest Contentful PaintFirst Input Delay, and Cumulative Layout Shift.

Pass or fail?

MobileFail
DesktopFail

CWV Breakdown

VitalMobileDesktopTarget
Largest Contentful Paint11.8 s2.7 s< 2.5 s
First Input Delay430 ms140 ms< 100ms
Cumulative Layout Shift00 0.1

Tracking scripts

All the tracking scripts on the site generated ~592 KB of data

A tracking script is a code snippet designed to track the flow of visitors who visit a website. Media, advertising, and analytics organisations will provide a script to add to your website that sends data directly to their servers. This data can then be used to measure goals and conversions, analyse user behaviour, and influence advertising campaigns.

Consider how much of this data you actually need and use? How often do you review the analytics data, and does this inform genuine change? Are you actively running social media campaigns? Consider pausing or removing tracking scripts that aren’t being actively used.

View details
googletagmanager.com 2 217 KB
bat.bing.com 3 15 KB
googleadservices.com 1 2 KB
snap.licdn.com 2 17 KB
googleads.g.doubleclick.net 4 8 KB
redditstatic.com 2 10 KB
clarity.ms 2 22 KB
analytics.tiktok.com 9 148 KB
sc-static.net 2 36 KB
js.adsrvr.org 2 4 KB
google.com 4 3 KB
alb.reddit.com 1 846 B
analytics.google.com 1 0 B
stats.g.doubleclick.net 1 0 B
google.com.au 1 620 B
tr.snapchat.com 6 3 KB
px.ads.linkedin.com 10 10 KB
m.clarity.ms 4 1 KB
linkedin.com 3 3 KB
pixel.tapad.com 2 2 KB
c.clarity.ms 2 2 KB
connect.facebook.net 3 79 KB
insight.adsrvr.org 1 419 B
match.adsrvr.org 4 3 KB
c.bing.com 1 1 KB
hb.yahoo.net 1 989 B
cm.g.doubleclick.net 1 779 B
pixel.rubiconproject.com 1 959 B
facebook.com 2 656 B

Opportunities

Optimise images1 MB0.369g

By optimising the following images, roughly 1 MB could be removed from the transfer size, about 37%. This would reduce the CO2 generated per page load from 1g grams to 0.63 grams.

Images should be optimised for the web for several reasons:

  1. Reduced file size: Optimizing images can result in a smaller file size, which can help to reduce the amount of data that needs to be downloaded. This can lead to faster page load times and improved performance.
  2. Improved user experience: Optimising images can help to improve the overall user experience, as pages with optimised images load faster and are more responsive.
  3. Lower emissions: Optimising images can help to reduce the emissions associated with data transfer, as less data needs to be transmitted over the network.
  4. Better accessibility: Optimising images can make them more accessible to users with slower connections or limited data plans.
View details
uav-antarctica.jpg 439 KB 11% 305 KB
cornea-consortium.jpg 424 KB 11% 305 KB
combined-degrees.jpg 267 KB 7% 135 KB
qut-country.jpg 218 KB 6% 143 KB
Executive-MBA-panel.jpg 128 KB 3% 61 KB
master-of-engineering.jpg 122 KB 3% 38 KB
facilities-merf-2.jpg 122 KB 3% 78 KB
research-image.jpg 122 KB 3% 110 KB
gardens-point-campus-open-day.jpg 110 KB 3% 41 KB
senior-subject-selection.jpg 104 KB 3% 58 KB
news-image 103 KB 3% 25 KB
news-image 87 KB 2% 19 KB
news-image 71 KB 2% 20 KB
news-image 68 KB 2% 19 KB
news-image 48 KB 1% 14 KB
news-image 43 KB 1% 17 KB
sports-van.jpg 37 KB 1% 15 KB
mushroom-research.jpg 34 KB 1% 15 KB
mms-study-mega.jpg 31 KB 1% 14 KB
Subset large font files48 KB0.012g

Fonts should be subsetted to reduce the file size, improve performance, and reduce emissions. Subsetting a font involves removing any characters that are not needed for a particular use case, resulting in a smaller file size and faster page load times. Some specific reasons why fonts should be subsetted include:

  1. Reduced file size: Subsetting a font removes any unused characters, which can result in a smaller file size. This can help to reduce the amount of data that needs to be downloaded, leading to faster page load times and lower emissions.
  2. Improved performance: Fonts that are subsetted are faster to load and render than fonts that are not subsetted. This can help to improve the overall performance of a website, leading to a better user experience.

Overall, subsetting fonts is a good practice for anyone looking to optimize the performance and reduce the emissions of a website of a website.

View details
Typekit: l ~34 KB ~17 KB
Typekit: l ~34 KB ~16 KB
Typekit: l ~33 KB ~15 KB
Remove third party font files

Font files should be loaded from the same hosting as the website because

  1. Increased loading time: Third-party sub-resources, such as scripts, fonts, or images, need to be downloaded from a separate server before they can be displayed on the website. This can increase the overall loading time of the page, leading to a slower user experience.
  2. Dependence on external servers: The loading of third-party subresources is dependent on the availability and performance of the external servers that host them. If these servers are slow or unavailable, it can result in slow page loading times or even errors.
  3. Increased risk of security threats: Third-party subresources can introduce security risks to a website, as they can contain malicious code or be used to track user activity.
View details
use.typekit.net l
use.typekit.net l
use.typekit.net l
First Contentful Paint

First Contentful Paint (FCP) is a performance metric that measures the time it takes for the first piece of content to be rendered on the screen when a user navigates to a web page. This content can be any visual element on the page, such as text, images, or a background color.

FCP is important because it directly affects the perceived speed of a website, and can impact user engagement and conversion rates. A faster FCP can lead to a better user experience and improved performance.

Here are a few ways you can optimise your FCP:

  1. Optimise images: Large, unoptimised images can slow down a page’s FCP. You can optimise images by compressing them, reducing their dimensions, and choosing the right format for each image.
  2. Minimise HTTP requests: Each resource requested by a web page, such as images, scripts, and stylesheets, requires a separate HTTP request. Minimising the number of HTTP requests can help to reduce the time it takes for a page to render.
  3. Prioritize critical content: Prioritizing critical content, such as above-the-fold content, can help to ensure that users see something on the screen quickly, even if the rest of the page is still loading.
  4. Reduce server response time: A slow server response time can significantly impact FCP. Optimizing server-side code and server settings can help to reduce response times and improve FCP.
  5. Use a performance monitoring tool: There are many tools available that can help you monitor your website’s performance, including FCP. These tools can help you identify performance issues and track your progress as you implement optimizations.
MobileDesktop
Score12%73%
Timing4.8 s1.2 s
Largest Contentful Paint

Largest Contentful Paint marks the time at which the largest text or image is painted. Learn more about the Largest Contentful Paint metric

MobileDesktop
Score0%41%
Timing11.8 s2.7 s
Total Blocking Time

Sum of all time periods between FCP and Time to Interactive, when task length exceeded 50ms, expressed in milliseconds. Learn more about the Total Blocking Time metric.

MobileDesktop
Score7%90%
Timing2,070 ms150 ms
Speed Index

Speed Index shows how quickly the contents of a page are visibly populated. Learn more about the Speed Index metric.

MobileDesktop
Score4%19%
Timing12.0 s3.4 s
Time to Interactive

Time to Interactive is the amount of time it takes for the page to become fully interactive. Learn more about the Time to Interactive metric.

MobileDesktop
Score6%56%
Timing16.0 s4.1 s
Max Potential First Input Delay

The maximum potential First Input Delay that your users could experience is the duration of the longest task. Learn more about the Maximum Potential First Input Delay metric.

MobileDesktop
Score14%86%
Timing430 ms140 ms
First Meaningful Paint

First Meaningful Paint measures when the primary content of a page is visible. Learn more about the First Meaningful Paint metric.

MobileDesktop
Score24%68%
Timing5.4 s1.3 s