Core Web Vitals are the three specific metrics Google uses to measure real-world user experience on your site: how fast it loads, how stable it looks while loading, and how responsive it feels when someone interacts with it.
They're part of Google's ranking signals — not the biggest factor, but poor scores can hold back an otherwise well-optimized page. Here's exactly what each metric measures and how to fix it.
Measures how long it takes for the largest visible element (usually a hero image or heading) to fully render. It's your site's answer to "does this feel fast to load?"
Measures visual stability — how much content unexpectedly shifts around as the page loads. Ever tried to click a button and had an ad load in above it, moving everything down? That's a layout shift.
Measures responsiveness — how long it takes for the page to visually respond after a user clicks, taps, or types. INP replaced the older First Input Delay (FID) metric in 2024.
| Metric | Good | Needs Improvement | Poor |
|---|---|---|---|
| LCP | ≤ 2.5s | 2.5s – 4s | > 4s |
| CLS | ≤ 0.1 | 0.1 – 0.25 | > 0.25 |
| INP | ≤ 200ms | 200ms – 500ms | > 500ms |
Use Google Search Console's Core Web Vitals report for real-world data collected from actual visitors (the most reliable source), or PageSpeed Insights for an instant lab test of any single page.
Yes, they're part of Google's page experience signals, though content relevance still matters more overall. Poor Core Web Vitals can hold back an otherwise strong page.
Under 2.5 seconds is considered good. Between 2.5 and 4 seconds needs improvement. Over 4 seconds is poor.
Use Google Search Console's Core Web Vitals report for real user data, or PageSpeed Insights for a single-page lab test.
Interaction to Next Paint (INP) replaced FID as Google's official responsiveness metric in 2024, measuring the full interaction rather than just initial input delay.
NOXEL SEO measures all three Core Web Vitals automatically in every scan.
Check your Core Web Vitals free →