FFirst Contentful Paint (FCP)

First Contentful Paint (FCP) measures the moment when a user's browser first displays any visual content from your page. This might be text, an image, or a background colour—essentially, the first sign that the page is loading. It's measured in seconds from when the user initiates the page load.

For business owners, FCP matters because it directly affects user perception. If visitors see nothing for several seconds, they assume your site is broken or slow, leading to higher bounce rates and lost conversions. Research consistently shows that faster-loading pages retain more visitors and generate better engagement. Since Google uses page speed as a ranking factor, poor FCP can also damage your search visibility.

FCP works by measuring the time between navigation start and when the browser renders the first DOM content. This includes text nodes, images, canvas elements, and SVGs. It's different from Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), which measures when the main content area finishes loading. Together with other Core Web Vitals, FCP gives you a complete picture of page performance.

Several factors affect FCP: server response time, the size and complexity of your HTML and CSS, render-blocking resources, and JavaScript execution. A slow server, unoptimised assets, or third-party scripts can all delay that crucial first paint. Modern optimisation techniques—like using a Content Delivery Network, minimising CSS, and deferring non-critical JavaScript—help improve FCP significantly.