Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
Largest Contentful Paint measures the time from when a page starts loading until the largest visible content element, often a hero image, video poster, or heading block, is rendered in the viewport. It is one of the three Core Web Vitals and reflects perceived load speed.
Why It Matters
LCP is a Core Web Vitals metric and a ranking signal, but it also captures how fast users feel a page becomes useful. Slow LCP raises abandonment before content even appears, hurting both rankings and conversion.
Common Mistake
Focusing only on total page weight while ignoring the LCP element's own delivery. Render-blocking resources, lazy-loaded hero images, and missing preload hints delay the largest element even when the overall page is reasonably light.