Optimizing site speed and performance – Selling on Shopify

Optimizing site speed and performance is crucial for providing a smooth and seamless shopping experience for your customers and improving your Shopify store’s search engine rankings.

1. Choose a Fast and Reliable Theme:
   • Select a lightweight and optimized theme from the Shopify Theme Store.
   • Look for themes that prioritize performance and have good ratings and reviews.
   • Avoid themes with excessive animations, complex design elements, or bloated code that can slow down your site.
2. Compress and Optimize Images:
   • Use optimized and compressed images to reduce file sizes without compromising visual quality.
   • Resize images to the dimensions required by your theme to avoid unnecessary resizing during page rendering.
   • Utilize image optimization tools or Shopify apps to automate the image compression process.
3. Minify CSS, JavaScript, and HTML:
   • Minify your CSS, JavaScript, and HTML files by removing unnecessary characters, whitespace, and comments.
   • Minification reduces file sizes and improves load times.
   • Use Shopify apps or online tools to automatically minify your code.
4. Enable Browser Caching:
   • Leverage browser caching to store static resources, such as images, JavaScript, and CSS files, on visitors’ browsers.
   • Set appropriate cache headers to specify how long the resources should be cached.
   • Shopify automatically handles browser caching for static assets.
5. Use Content Delivery Networks (CDNs):
   • Utilize CDNs to deliver your store’s static assets, such as images, CSS, and JavaScript files, from servers located closer to your customers.
   • CDNs help reduce latency and improve load times for visitors in different geographic locations.
   • Shopify has built-in CDN support, so your assets are automatically served from edge servers.
6. Remove Unnecessary Apps and Code:
   • Regularly review and remove any unused or unnecessary apps, scripts, or code snippets from your Shopify store.
   • Unoptimized or conflicting apps and code can slow down your site’s performance.
   • Before removing any code, ensure it’s not required for essential functionality and test your store’s functionality after removal.
7. Limit the Number of Apps:
   • Be mindful of the number of apps you install on your Shopify store.
   • Each app may introduce additional code and external requests that can impact performance.
   • Evaluate the necessity and performance impact of each app before installing it.
8. Optimize Mobile Responsiveness:
   • Ensure your store is fully optimized for mobile devices and responsive across different screen sizes.
   • Mobile optimization improves user experience and is a ranking factor for search engines.
   • Test your store’s responsiveness using Shopify’s built-in preview or third-party testing tools.
9. Monitor and Optimize Third-Party Scripts:
   • Keep track of third-party scripts used on your store, such as tracking codes, chat widgets, or social media integrations.
   • Limit the number of external scripts and ensure they are optimized for performance.
   • Consider asynchronous loading or lazy loading techniques to prevent scripts from blocking page rendering.
10. Prioritize Above-the-Fold Content:
    • Optimize the loading of above-the-fold content, which is the portion of the page visible without scrolling.
    • Load critical content, such as headlines, product images, and call-to-action buttons, first to provide a faster perceived loading time.
    • Defer non-critical elements, such as social media widgets or secondary images, to load after the above-the-fold content.
11. Monitor and Analyze Performance:
    • Regularly monitor and analyze your store’s performance using Shopify’s built-in analytics or third-party tools.
    • Identify performance bottlenecks, slow-loading pages, or scripts causing delays.
    • Use the insights to make data-driven optimizations and improvements.
12. Test and Optimize Checkout Process:
    • Streamline and optimize your checkout process to reduce friction and improve conversion rates.
    • Minimize the number of steps required and simplify form fields.
    • Test your checkout process regularly to identify and address any performance issues.
13. Monitor App Performance:
    • If you use third-party apps, regularly assess their impact on your store’s performance.
    • Monitor the app’s load times, requests, and potential conflicts with other apps or themes.
    • Remove or replace any apps that significantly slow down your store or cause performance issues.
14. Regularly Update Shopify and Apps:
    • Keep your Shopify platform and installed apps up to date.
    • Updates often include performance enhancements, bug fixes, and security patches.
    • Shopify automatically updates the platform, but manually check for app updates in the Shopify admin.
15. Enable Lazy Loading:

• Implement lazy loading for images and videos to defer their loading until they enter the user’s viewport.
• This technique improves initial page load times by only loading the content that is visible to the user, while delaying the loading of off-screen elements.
• You can use Shopify apps or JavaScript libraries to enable lazy loading functionality.

16. Optimize Fonts:

• Minimize the number of custom fonts used on your store.
• Each font requires additional HTTP requests and increases the load time.
• Consider using system fonts or limiting the number of font variations to reduce the impact on site performance.

17. Reduce Redirects:

• Minimize the use of redirects as much as possible.
• Redirects add additional round trips and increase the time it takes for the browser to reach the final destination.
• Review your store’s redirects and eliminate any unnecessary ones.

18. Implement Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP):

• Consider implementing Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) for your Shopify store.
• AMP is a framework that optimizes web pages for fast loading on mobile devices.
• It focuses on delivering lightweight, stripped-down versions of web pages to improve speed and performance on mobile devices.

19. Optimize Product Images:

• Optimize product images for faster loading.
• Use appropriate image formats (such as JPEG or WebP) and compress them without sacrificing too much quality.
• Shopify has built-in image optimization features, but you can also use third-party apps to automate the process.

20. Monitor and Optimize Server Response Time:

• Keep an eye on your server response time, also known as Time to First Byte (TTFB).
• Slow response times can significantly impact site performance.
• Monitor your server’s performance using tools like Shopify’s built-in analytics or third-party monitoring services.
• If you notice high response times, consider upgrading your hosting plan or consulting with your hosting provider.

21. Implement a Content Delivery Network (CDN):

• Consider using a Content Delivery Network (CDN) to distribute your store’s static assets across multiple servers worldwide.
• CDNs cache your content in various locations, allowing faster delivery to users based on their geographic proximity.
• Shopify automatically serves static assets through its integrated CDN, but you can also consider using external CDNs for additional performance improvements.

22. Optimize Custom Code:

• If you have custom code snippets or scripts in your store, review and optimize them for better performance.
• Remove any unnecessary code or scripts that are not actively used.
• Optimize the remaining code by minimizing file sizes, reducing unnecessary requests, and following best practices.

23. Enable GZIP Compression:

• Enable GZIP compression for your store’s assets to reduce file sizes during transmission.
• GZIP compresses files before they are sent to the browser, reducing the amount of data that needs to be transferred.
• Shopify automatically enables GZIP compression for your store’s assets.

24. Monitor and Optimize Database Queries:

• If you have a large inventory or complex product data, optimize your database queries to reduce the load on your server.
• Use efficient database queries, caching techniques, and indexing strategies to improve performance.
• Regularly monitor and analyze your database performance to identify and optimize slow queries.

25. Implement AMP for Email:

• If you use email marketing campaigns, consider implementing AMP for Email.
• AMP for Email allows you to create dynamic and interactive emails that can improve engagement and conversion rates.
• With faster-loading and interactive emails, you can provide a seamless experience for your customers.

Remember, optimizing site speed and performance is an ongoing process. Regularly review and implement these strategies to ensure your Shopify store loads quickly and provides a seamless shopping experience for your customers.