Technical Seo

Core Web Vitals

A set of three Google metrics that measure real-world user experience: loading performance (LCP), visual stability (CLS), and interactivity (INP). They're part of Google's page experience ranking signals.

Why Core Web Vitals Matters for SEO

Core Web Vitals are a confirmed ranking factor. They won't outweigh great content, but when two pages are competing neck-and-neck, better vitals can be the tiebreaker. More importantly, poor vitals directly hurt conversions and user engagement.

How Core Web Vitals Works

Google collects field data from real Chrome users (CrUX data) and evaluates each metric against thresholds: good, needs improvement, or poor. All three metrics need to pass the good threshold for a page to get the full page experience boost. You measure them via PageSpeed Insights, Search Console, or CrUX API.

Common Mistakes

  • Optimising only lab data (Lighthouse) while ignoring real-user field data
  • Focusing on homepage vitals while neglecting template-level issues across the site
  • Treating CWV as a high-priority ranking factor when content quality issues exist
About the Author

Lawrence Hitches is an AI SEO consultant based in Melbourne and General Manager of StudioHawk. He specialises in AI search visibility, technical SEO, and organic growth strategy. Book a free consultation →