Why is my Shopify speed score low and how can I improve it?

Canvas_supply
Visitor
1 0 0

Hey guys I'm new to shopify and I'm trying to figure out why my speed score is so slow! Currently its at 34 and I was wondering if you had any tips i can use to improve it. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

Oh an my website name is www.canvas-supply.com

Replies 3 (3)

kprimdal
Excursionist
21 0 6

Here are just a few notes:

  • Try to look at your apps, a few of them is including som really big javascript files on your page
    • Privy
    • Judge.me
    • smile.io
    • Sales Pop up
    • Of cause I can't decide if you need them all, I can just see they are Javascript heavy, and maybe another theme that had more of this included would help. But also a lot of work.
  • Also, your site is loading Recaptcha which is not needed on the front page
  • On your front page, it seems like your Instagram images are loaded a bit too fast. If you have some options try to lazy load them. On top of that, it also seems like the images are too large.
Creator of the blazing fast Shopify theme Air Theme One
https://airthemeone.com

JoesIdeas
Shopify Expert
2195 201 588

With the Shopify speed score tool, 34 is a good store if you have a thriving site with store facing apps. I did an analysis of this tool + compared stores and scores, plus give some tips to improve the score here: https://speedboostr.com/shopify-speed-tool.

If you're looking to optimize your site, check the Shopify Analyzer tool. That will give you a quick view of what can / should be optimized + how to fix it. It's a tool my team built free for the Shopify community, so if you need any help with it or optimizing just contact us (or read the linked guides from the results, they're all free).

• Creator of Order Automator (automate tagging, fulfillment, Amazon, notifications + more)
• Shopify developer for 10+ years, store owner for 7 years
• I also make guides like Shopify Automation Tips and How to Deal with Fraud / Chargebacks

JimBurke
Tourist
6 0 3

My site currently runs at 45, Basic Shopify plan running the Empire Theme.  While this theme out of the box is good, I have spent a lot of time using GTmetrix and Google Page Insights to ensure it has been fully optimsed.

1. Images are the correct dimensions and have been run through tinyjpg.com to squash them to thier lowest size with decent quality.  I use paint3d on windows to set the image size.

2. Optimsed DNS-Prefetch and Preconnect settings.  The limit for both seems to be about 4, however when used together it appears you can preconnect to 4 destinations and DNS-Prefetch another 4 after.

3. Preloaded the required Fonts and CSS

3. tested what scripts can be async or defer

4. minified as many scripts as possible, there where several large files that made a considerable difference to the speed.  Be carefull doing this as some scripts can have liquid embedded and thus it is better to use other tools not just download the files that GTmetrix has minified.  Trust me I learnt the hard way on this!

5. Minified the CSS file

6. Removed a lot of bloat/whitespace from within the HTML using the {%- liquid markup.  I still have more to do as this can be very time consuming

7. Limited use of Shopify Apps, inparticular Apps that inject javascript as they do not seem to get the balance of defer/async settings correct for a fast website.

A word of warning, some of this stuff is not for the faint hearted, I used a development Store through a Shopify Partner account to ensure all changes worked before setting the updated theme live.  Also make sure to backup your theme before starting.  If you are unsure, seek help from a Shopify developer or read then read some more, the internet is an amazing source of information.

 

JimBurke_0-1605784742485.png