If you’ve run your site through tools like Google PageSpeed Insights and the score didn’t jump the way you hoped, you’re not alone — and it doesn’t mean your site is doing badly.
Page speed scores can be confusing (and sometimes stressful), so let’s break down what’s going on and what actually matters.
First things first: page speed scores aren’t the whole story
Page speed tools measure lots of things, and not all of them are fully within your control.
Today, Google focuses on real-world user experience, measured through something called Core Web Vitals. These look at:
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) – how fast the main content loads
Interaction to Next Paint (INP) – how responsive the page feels
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) – whether things jump around as the page loads
A site can feel fast and work beautifully for visitors even if the overall score doesn’t look impressive — especially on mobile.
Why your Rocketspark site might not score higher
Here are the most common reasons page speed scores don’t increase as expected:
Heavy content on the page
Large image galleries, autoplay videos, sliders, and long pages all add extra files that need loading.
Third-party tools and widgets
Live chat, booking tools, embedded forms, maps, tracking scripts, or social feeds load from external services. They’re useful — but they do affect performance scores.
Speed tests simulate worst-case scenarios
Most testing tools use deliberately slow conditions. Real visitors on average connections often experience much better performance than the score suggests.
Mobile page speed: what actually makes a “good” score?
We’ve had a lot of customers come through recently after speaking with SEO or performance “experts” who are focused heavily on mobile page speed scores.
It’s important to take this advice very lightly.
Mobile speed scores are influenced by many things — some you can improve, and some you simply can’t change.
Things you can’t change
These factors are outside your control, but they strongly affect mobile scores:
Google testing tools assuming very slow mobile connections
Older or less powerful mobile devices
Differences between browsers and operating systems
How third-party tools load their own scripts
The way page speed tools calculate scores (not how real users browse)
Because of this, mobile scores can almost never reach the 90s, and it is nearly impossible to consistently achieve scores in the 60s or 70s for many real-world websites — especially content-rich ones.
This doesn’t mean your site is slow or poorly built.
Things you can change
These are the areas where you can make a positive difference:
Reducing very large images and galleries
Avoiding unnecessary videos on mobile pages
Limiting the number of chat tools, embeds, and widgets
Keeping animations and visual effects simple
Making sure important content appears early on the page
Even small improvements here can make the site feel faster for real visitors.
So what is a good mobile score?
In real terms:
Mobile scores are almost always lower than desktop
A score in the 40–60 range can still represent a good user experience
Green or improving Core Web Vitals matter more than the headline number
How the site feels on an actual phone matters most
A lower score does not automatically mean poor SEO or a bad website.
What you can do to improve performance
If page speed is important for your site goals, here are some practical ways to help:
Resize images before uploading (don’t rely on display size alone)
Avoid uploading very large image files where a smaller version will do
Be selective with widgets, embeds, and third-party tools
Keep pages focused rather than overloaded with content
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Spread large amounts of content across multiple pages where it makes sense
Quick page speed checklist
Use this as a simple once-over if you’re trying to improve performance or understand why a score hasn’t changed.
Content & Layout
⬜ Are image files resized before uploading?
⬜ Are galleries kept to a sensible size?
⬜ Are videos used only where they add real value?
⬜ Is the page focused rather than trying to do everything at once?
Images & Media
⬜ Avoid very large image files, especially full-resolution photos
⬜ Use fewer images on long pages where possible
⬜ Remove any unused galleries or media blocks
Widgets & third-party tools
⬜ Do you really need every chat, booking, or embed tool?
⬜ Are there any old or unused widgets that can be removed?
⬜ Are external tools only added to pages where they’re essential?
Mobile experience
⬜ Does the page feel quick and smooth on your own phone?
⬜ Is important content visible without waiting for everything to load?
⬜ Are animations and effects kept simple?
Expectations
⬜ Remember that mobile scores are usually lower than desktop
⬜ Don’t panic over advice focused only on numbers
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⬜ A “good” experience matters more than a perfect score
Before you test again
Before re-running a page speed test, it’s worth keeping a few things in mind:
Make sure you’re testing the same page each time
Allow time after making changes — results don’t update instantly
Run the test more than once, as scores can fluctuate
Test both mobile and desktop, but don’t expect them to match
Always sanity-check the result by using the site yourself
Small changes won’t always cause big score jumps, and that’s okay.
How Rocketspark helps
We take care of the technical foundations behind the scenes — things like hosting, caching, and optimisation — so you can focus on content and design.
If you are still concerned about page speed, please get in touch with our support team who will be happy to help: support@rocketspark.com