How to Improve Your Website’s Speed & Performance

And why it matters more than you think

In today’s fast-paced online world, speed is everything. A slow website can frustrate visitors, drive them away, and even lower your search engine ranking. On the other hand, a fast, well-performing site keeps people engaged, builds trust, and helps your business shine online. Improving your website’s speed isn’t just about technology—it’s about creating a smoother, more enjoyable experience that encourages visitors to stay, explore, and connect with you.

1. Optimise Your Images

Biggest culprit for slow sites? Giant images.

  • Use compressed formats (e.g. WebP, JPEG)

  • Resize images to the exact size they’re displayed

  • Use tools like TinyPNG or Squoosh to reduce file size before uploading

2. Use Fewer Fonts (and Keep Them Simple)

Too many fonts = more to load. Stick with 1–2 clean, readable fonts.

3. Avoid Heavy Animations or Auto-Playing Videos

They look fun, but they can slow things way down—especially on mobile.

4. Keep Plugins/Add-ons to a Minimum

Every plugin or embed adds weight to your page. Only use what’s necessary and make sure it's from a reputable source.

5. Enable Lazy Loading

Lazy loading means images load only when they come into view—not all at once. This keeps your initial load time speedy.

(Squarespace does some of this automatically—one of the reasons we love it!)

6. Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN)

Squarespace includes a built-in CDN which helps serve your content faster across the globe. Nice!

7. Make Sure Your Website Is Mobile-Friendly

A site that isn’t responsive or is overloaded with desktop-style features will suffer on mobile. Use clean, mobile-first layouts.

8. Minimise Redirects

Too many redirects (e.g. from www to non-www or http to https) can delay loading. We’ll always configure your domain properly to avoid that.

9. Update and Audit Regularly

Check for broken links, outdated content, and unused media. Keep your site lean and clean.

 Bonus Tip :

Want to test your site’s performance? Try these tools:

They’ll show you how your site is doing and offer ideas to speed it up even more.

One Last Thought from David & George:

Fast sites = happy visitors + better SEO + more conversions.
We build with speed in mind, but you can help keep your website purring like a kitten with a few good habits and regular check-ins.

Do you have a question? Let’s talk!

DISCLAIMER

This article is an original article written by David @ David&George - one of the UK’s leading Squarespace website designers. All opinions are the writers own and no liability will be taken for any errors or omissions. As Squarespace designers we will perhaps be a bit biased towards all things Squarespace - but Squarespace is such a game changer  that we are its biggest fans. As web professionals we  have seen how our clients love the control they have & the designs that are possible at reasonable cost. We would not work on any other platform!!

COPYRIGHT

The author retains full copyright over this article. Reproduction in whole or part is only permitted with prior written permission of the author with credit and backlink.

David & George