Use Jetpack Boost to Improve Google Core Web Vitals on WordPress

It’s unlikely that you are using WordPress and haven’t heard about Jetpack. But have you heard about Jetpack Boost? Just as the name suggests, Jetpack Boost is another plugin developed by Automattic, the developer behind WordPress.com.

Let’s talk about Jetpack Boost, its features, how it works and improve Google Core Web Vitals.

What is Jetpack Boost?

We already know that Jetpack Boost is also developed by Automattic, the WordPress developer themselves. As per the description on WordPress repository, Jetpack Boost provides one-click optimizations that supercharge your WordPress site’s performance and improve web vitals scores for better SEO.

Basically the Jetpack Boost plugin lets you  optimize your site with the same techniques used on the world’s most successful websites. Each technique Jetpack Boost uses, is packaged up as a module that you can activate and try out.

Jetpack Boost Features

Currently Jetpack Boost offers three functionalities only. Those three performance modules increase important factors in search ranking so that your site or post rank higher and get more traffic.

All Jetpack Boost does is create a quick report. Then the plugin activates powerful performance improvements in a few clicks, that are obviously determined by you, the admin.

Currently Jetpack Boost only provides three essential performance boosts such as CSS loading optimization, non-essential JavaScript deferring and lazy loading images. Let’s talk about them.

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CSS loading optimization

The browser first downloads and parses CSS files before showing the page we’re looking for. This causes CSS a render-blocking source. Big CSS files can be problematic in poor network conditions. This is where Jetpack Boost comes in work.

Jetpack Boost generates critical CSS for a website’s homepage, posts and pages. This allows contents to show up on the screen much faster, regardless of both the screen size & internet speed. This is particularly very helpful for viewers of a website using mobile devices.

Non-essential JavaScript deferring

When a third-party script slows down page loading on a website, you either have to remove the script entirely depending on the value it provides to the site or optimize the loading process.

The Non-essential JavaScript Deferring feature of Jetpack Boost fixes problems by showing scripts late. It moves some tasks to after the page loads. This way, important visual information can be seen sooner. 

Lazy Loading Images

Lazy loading is proved to be one of the most promising optimization processes for any website. Jetpack Boost does just that, but easily.

When the Lazy Loading Images feature is enabled, only the images the user can see will be loaded. As the user scrolls, images are loaded just before they show up on the page. This optimization may sound simple, but it makes sites faster. Besides, it saves bandwidth for both your host and your customers.

How good is Jetpack Boost?

Web.dev demonstrated a before & after score of using Jetpack Boost. A noticeable boost on the Core Web Vitals measurement is seen.

How to set-up Jetpack Boost

Setting up Jetpack Boost as user friendly as possible. First, you have to install the plugin. Then, you have to activate the Jetpack connection. Then you can turn on performance modules one by one and observe how the performance score changes. You can choose whatever settings work best for you.

Who can benefit from Jetpack Boost

Google will be adding Page Experience to ranking signals from May 2021. Page Experience is determined by a site’s Core Web Vitals metrics. As tough as it sounds, improving these scores without technical knowledge and experience can be a huge process. Jetpack Boost comes in rescue in this complex process for every WordPress user.

For instance, it seems like everyone can benefit from this amazing teapot named Jetpack Boost. But especially, if you have a small team and bucks to spend on your site, then you may not be able to hire a developer to improve your website’s Core Web Vitals metrics. If your conditions are just like mentioned, then Jetpack Boost will help a lot.