![Does PageSpeed Actually Impact SEO? [New Experiment]](https://amcwebmarketing.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1899-does-pagespeed-actually-impact-seo-new-experiment.jpg)
Does page loading speed actually affect Google rankings? I decided to find out.
And the results will probably surprise you.
First, a little bit of background. Google has stated several times on the record that site loading speed impacts SEO. The slower your site is, in general, the worse it will rank in the search results.
But they’ve never said how important speed actually is. Is it a Google ranking factor that’s a key part of the algorithm? Or a minor thing that won’t make much of a difference in practice.
Well, I decided to find out. Specifically, I ran a little SEO experiment. This experiment took one page that loaded SUPER slowly according to Google PageSpeed Insights… and sped it up significantly.
Then, I tracked the rankings and organic traffic to that page.
That way, we could control speed as variable (as much as you can control any variable in an SEO experiment!).
The results were… interesting to say the least.
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Have you seen PageSpeed make a difference in your rankings? Let me know in the comments!
Briefly and to the point! Thanks!
page speed is importance and key score is google page speed insights score for website and gtmetrix and … is only a tool
I like your enthusiasm and appreciate the effort to make a precise analysis.
3:30 I dont know what made those pot scientists to carryout studies on it when it's a matter of common sense .
You should run this test after May 2021.
Hi Brian, great video!
Just shearing some thought.
4:36
When we compare does 2 pages, you've removed all the images, graphics, and links to other pages.
– why remove all images? Could leave the major ones.
Instead, 100% of pagespeed, could have 95%…
– more graphics, more images, more distractions, could make the readers to leave.
5:47
– more 6 views in two weeks (probably aren't enough)
– bounce rate was higher- all CTA links were removed, could be that cause?
– if before there were a less bounce rate, did you know to where did they go to? Why don't leave does links?
-page session and avg session are higher, less distraction, more focus on the content, more information, stayed longer.
Could be a beginning for the return of that readers, for other articles.
Does it make sense?
Thanks
1st: it's not the same page without images nor is it necessary to pull them out. Lazy loading is the solution here. 2nd: you DO NOT optimize for Google (but you do obviously) but you make a site or page faster to serve your audience better and to avoid wasting their life time. But finanlly to roll back to the damn slow version makes clear that you care more about Google than your visitors. AND: Those Google SERPS are not static. They constantly improve. So good luck with that approach.
Great video
I have concluded after 7 tests and here are the results
1) Nope Speed Doesn't Matter in SEO, so what matters?
2) What matters is User Experience, if users find your site slow they may back off and may spend low amount of time on your site, this may affect the result, but I have not got any significant changes.
Page speed does make difference but what makes a big difference is how long the person stays on the website the longer the better, so what matters the most is content and backlinks that actually leads people to the website.