Key Website Page Load Time Statistics (2023 Updated Data)

There are some things you must prioritize when building your website. One of such is the page load speed. It is essential because research has shown that 40% of users will exit a website if it takes more than 4 seconds to load. Therefore, speed is critical to attracting prospects to your site and converting them to retained customers.
Another reason for this is that web page load speeds impact a website's ranking on search engines like Google, Bing, or even DuckDuckGo.

This article provides a detailed review of everything you must know about web load time statistics. From these statistics, you can make more informed decisions regarding how you develop your website in 2023. You will also see how web load time affects businesses, user behavior, and SEO. If you want to learn more about website load time, read the sections below. Let's go.

Major Statistics

• The average load time of Google's first-page search results is 1.65 seconds.
• Websites have an average load time of 3.21 seconds.
• Websites that load within two seconds have a bounce rate of 9%.
• For every 1-second delay, user satisfaction decreases by 16%.
• 70% of customers indicate that webpage speed affects their purchasing decisions from e-retailers.
• The average finance website takes 8.3 seconds to load.
• The average loading time for desktops is 2.5 seconds.

Key Website Load Time Statistics

Experienced online business owners and entrepreneurs will agree that the load speed of your website is one of the most important sections for customer experience. It is worth noting that slow websites are less attractive as everyone expects a website to load instantly.

Interestingly, while websites don't take time to load fully when they do, it gets infuriating. The site usually has a low bounce rate within two seconds but steadily increases until loading reaches five seconds. By then, bounce rates can grow up to 38%. The statistics below discuss some vital website load time statistics for 2023.

1. Mobile vs. Desktop Browsing Experience.

While a vast majority of websites offers both mobile and desktop versions for faster accessibility, both interfaces have two different load time. According to recent research, the desktop versions of webpages are much quicker. Web desktop versions take an average of 10.3 seconds to load pages, while smartphones take roughly 27.3 seconds to load a page. The table below reveals a comparison table for mobile and desktop computers focusing on a wide array of web traffic.

Web Traffic	Mobile	Desktop
Total Website Visits	58%	42%
Page Views Per Visit	42.3%	57.7%
Bounce Rate	67.4%	32.6%

(Source: Website Builder Expert)

2. The Most Impact Occurs within the First Five Seconds.

For every user that visits your website, the most essential time to affect them is during the first five seconds. It is imperative, as users usually think about many things while going through your site, which can affect their purchase decision. Therefore, immediately after a webpage loads, it has a minimal time to attract and sustain visitors. Research has also shown that the most optimal time to impact your page visitor is during the first five seconds. Anything above that will lessen your chances of a conversion.

(Source: Hubspot)

3. The Correlation of Load Times and Lead Generation.

Generally, companies use their websites as a lead-generating platform (or funnel), though the success of this lead generation strongly depends on your load time. A recent report revealed that websites with faster load time-roughly one second-experience a conversion rate of 39%. In contrast, sites that are delayed for up to six seconds have conversion rates of 18%. Therefore, we can see how much effect these minor adjustments can have on businesses, such that even a delay of one second can significantly decrease conversion rates.

(Source: Blogging Wizard)

4. The Sports Sector has the Most Sessions, Accounting for a Massive 200 Million Sessions Annually on Mobile.

The sports sector has the most significant sessions on the mobile version, accruing a staggering 200 million sessions annually. In contrast, the desktop version had 41.7 million sessions annually. The version with the most minor visits year-on-year was the tablet interface, which had 5.3 million sessions annually.Following the Sports industry is the Arts and entertainment sector, with more than 190.1 million sessions on mobile, 44.3 million on desktop interface, and 6.5 million on tablet interface.

(Source: Tool Tester)

5. Websites Developed Using GoDaddy Rank as the Best Performers on Desktops, With a Performance Score of 92.06%.

A report from a Tool Tester research conducted on 400 websites built on the most popular web builders revealed that GoDaddy ranked the best performing score. According to the report, websites built on GoDaddy CMS had a performance score of 92.06%. Following it were (Jimdo 88.62%), Webnode (84.19%), Wix (82.93%), Volusion (80.26%), BigCommerce (78.67%), and Webflow (79.64%). The research further showed that the top five website builders based on performance include GoDaddy (67.99%), Jimdo (60.15%), BigCommerce (49.89%), Volusion (49.03%), and Webnode (49%8.5).

(Source: Tool Tester)

6. Twitter Ranks as the Website With the Best Performer, With a Staggering 6.8 Billion Visits.

From a recent report, X (formerly known as Twitter) had a 100% performance score on load time for desktop devices, with a staggering 6.8 billion monthly users. Interestingly, its desktop site has no CLS, and its TTI is 0.23 seconds. On the mobile version, X also performs amazingly well, with an LCP, TTI, and FCP of 0.8 milliseconds. Following X was an electronics e-commerce site, Best Buy, with 109.9 million monthly users, with a performance score of 99%. Facebook, with 20.4 billion monthly users, ranked third.

(Source: Tool Tester)

The Impact of Web Speed on Businesses

Many individuals own websites as a hobby and for non-profit activities. However, a majority of websites are developed to support an upstart business. As mentioned earlier, a slow-loading site would negatively impact a business.

Statistics in this industry reveal how destructive poor load times can be in the overall turnout for businesses. On the contrary, companies with slow-loading sites don't even care to sort out these challenges. Here are a few statistics on the impact of web speed on businesses.

7. 79% of Customers Who Experience Dissatisfaction will Likely Not Return in the Future.

Load time directly affects the number of activities customers will perform on a website, as most customers can choose whether to return to your website. Interestingly, a report from Website Builder Report showed that 79% of end users who weren't satisfied with their experience on a site will most likely never return to that site. From that report, we saw that 64% of these individuals would immediately head to another online store to buy the same product or search for the same information. Furthermore, 18% of online shoppers will only abandon their cart if the website is completed on time. Also, 51% of American Internet shoppers say that poor load time is the main reason for their cart abandonment.

(Source: Website Builder Expert)

8. From 0-5 Seconds, the Conversion Rate Drops by 4.42% for Every Fleeting Second.

As expected, slow loading time directly impacts the conversion rate of businesses. Research from Hubspot found that from 0 to 5 seconds, the conversion rate dropped by 4.42% for each passing second. Notably, increasing sales only demands a little, though specific things must be in place.The report found that increasing the site speed by 0.1 seconds impacted various aspects. Below are some interesting statistics to support this claim.

• The average order value climbed by 9.2%.
• Luxury brand page views for each session grew by 8.6%.
• Retail conversions grew by 8.4%.

(Source: Hubspot)

9. 70% of Users Believe Website Speed Directly Impacts Their Willingness to Return and Purchase a Product or Service.

A study revealed that about 70% of online customers say that website page load speed directly influences their willingness to spend time on a website or even purchase a product. This is true because, even as individuals, we wouldn't love to waste our time or cash on websites with poor load time. Therefore, if you are running a website for your business, the last thing you want is to lose the trust of your visitors, as this will result in a loss in sales. Websites with quicker-loading web pages offer a much better user experience and motivate users to purchase.

(Source: Unbounce)

10. Roughly 86% of B2C Web Pages Load Within 5 Seconds.

As mentioned, the best time to influence your customers is within the first two seconds. Failing to meet this demand, the next possible duration to impact your website visitors is within the first five seconds. A Portent report conducted in 2020 showed that 86% of B2C companies' websites improve their page load speed to load within the first five seconds. This marks an impressive growth from the previous year's figure of 81%. Conversely, B2B website pages experienced no changes, as 82% of websites loaded within five seconds.

(Source: Portent)

11. E-commerce Brands Lose $18 Billion Annually Because of Abandoned Carts.

Online retail stores lose much money yearly as online shopping carts are abandoned before shoppers complete their checkouts. This happens for various reasons, though many shoppers admit that they leave their carts without checking them out due to the slow page loading speed of the online stores.It is worth noting that the last thing you want is a dissatisfied visitor going through your website and complaining. Thus, we recommend that your checkout process comprise fewer steps and that your website pages be shrunken to ensure faster browsing capacities.

(Source: Moneyzine)

The Impact of Web Page Load Time on SEO

12. Around 47% of Web Users Expect a Site to Load in Two Seconds or Less.

This is a crucial statistic you must prioritize when considering webpage load time. Notably, according to research, 47% of internet users, for both desktop and mobile devices, expect the site they enter to load in two seconds or less. So, you must ensure that your site loads within this time or something close to it.

(Source: HOBO)

13. Bounce Rates Climb by 32% When the Web Page's Loading Time Increases From 1 to 3 Seconds.

A Google Page Survey found that, as page load time increases from 1 second to 3 seconds, the possibility of bounces climbs by 32%. This statistic reveals very alarming information to note, and that is, site speed is exceedingly crucial for the success of your brand and for ensuring sales. Interestingly, as the time keeps increasing, the possibility of a bound further increases. So, whatever you do, optimize your site's page load time for your users' sake.

(Source: Google Page)

14. When Load Time Increases From 1 to 10 Seconds, the Possibility of a Visitor Abandoning the Website can Expand by 123%.

Page load time can affect many things, including your website's bounce rate. We previously pointed out that as the page load time increases from one second to three seconds, the chances of a bounce also grow by 32%. It is also worth noting that as the loading time grows from one second to five seconds, the possibility of bouncing increases by 90%. When the loading time of a webpage increases from one second to six seconds, the chances of bounce will increase by 106%. Also, when a website's page load time increases from one second to ten seconds, the possibility of bounce will grow by 123%. This bizarre statistic further emphasizes the need to adequately optimize your website to reduce the chances of a bounce and increase the possibility of retaining users.

(Source: Google Page)

15. Over 75% of Visitors Won't Return to a Website Page That Takes More Than Four Seconds to Load.

More than two-thirds of website visitors will leave a page and will likely not return to it if it takes about four seconds or more to load. That is a key reason businesses that run a website as part of their sales funnels must prioritize page load speed. Most users would never wait for a webpage to load for up to four seconds before losing interest. As a website owner, it is essential to speed up your website's load speed if you must have a share in making it in the future.

(Source: HOBO)

The Impact of Load Times on User Behavior

Once a user experiences poor performance from the load time of a website, some negative results can come from this encounter. Notably, statistics reveal how much this can impact businesses, as customer reviews are exceedingly crucial and hold a lot of power. Let's consider some statistics that outline the impact of load times on user behavior.

16. 44% of Online Visitors Will Share Their Bad Experiences on a Website With Friends, Whereas 40% Will Leave a Website That Loads for More Than Three Seconds.

As online shoppers interact with e-retail stores to make a purchase, they will most likely share their purchase experience with friends or family members. Interestingly, users do this the most when their online shopping experience is terrible. One factor that can affect the user experience of an online store is the page load time, as slow-loading websites leave a lasting impact on user experiences.According to a recent survey, 44% of online consumers will share their bad experiences with an e-store. Also, the study found that 40% will leave a site that takes more than three seconds to load.

(Source: Kiss Metrics)

17. Over 50% of Online Shoppers will Likely Purchase a Product or Service Because of Word-of-mouth Conversations With Previous Customers.

Word-of-mouth is one of the most effective means of advertising, especially when it's coming from your existing or past customers. The reason is that stats reveal that most shoppers make a purchase decision based on recommendations from friends, acquaintances, or friends who have already purchased from a seller.Statistics found that almost 50% of online shoppers will likely buy or patronize a product due to conversations with people enjoying it. If your website loads slowly, chances are your customers are giving a bad review, and you need to change.

(Source: Business News Daily)

18. 77% of Online Shoppers Who Use Smartphones Prefer e-Stores That Provide Faster Loading Time.

Recently, most online shoppers using the mobile version prefer to patronize e-retail stores that facilitate faster user experience and transitioning. Thus, mobile shoppers are not interested in wasting their time browsing on their smartphones. Research from Think With Google has shown that the top platforms and e-stores facilitate speed and ease of use across various verticals and jurisdictions. So, regularly run check-ups on your e-store to ensure faster page load time.

(Source: Think With Google)

19. 52% of Visitors Say Faster Page Load Time is Imperative for Their Site Loyalty.

More than half of online shoppers admit quicker website page load time directly influences their loyalty to the website. One thing to note is that, as an online seller, you are selling to the needs and wants of consumers, and as such, you must ensure to serve your consumers on-the-go as they visit your website. To obtain better sales, more considerable organic traffic, and more significant revenue, you must ensure to facilitate excellent page load time. Satisfied consumers will naturally promote the online store they purchase from to their friends and family.

(Source: Adquadrant)

Conclusion

In conclusion, the statistics for website load times in 2023 reveal a promising trend toward faster and more efficient online experiences. With advances in technology, optimized web design, and improved content delivery networks, the average page speed has continued to improve. This enhances user satisfaction and is crucial in search engine rankings and overall website performance. As we move forward, it will be essential for businesses and website owners to prioritize speed and performance to stay competitive in the ever-evolving digital landscape.

FAQsWhat is the average page load time in 2023?

The average page load time in 2023 is 2.5 seconds on desktops and 8.6 seconds on mobile devices. This update was obtained from a survey conducted on the 100 leading websites worldwide. Web browsers like Google facilitate a page load time of 0.5 or less.

What is a good average load time for a website?

A good page load time is two seconds or below, as more significant page load times affect the website in various ways. Some aspects include the user's interests, bounce rate, conversion rate, and sales.

What is a good average page load speed?

Most businesses admit a good average page load speed for desktops is within two seconds. Interestingly, 28% of companies agree that a good page load time is less than one second, while 39% believe an excellent average page load time is two seconds and below.

What is the load time of a website?

Webpage load time is when a webpage or site loads and displays on-screen completely. This includes every exact content on the webpage, such as images, videos, and text. Thus, it is defined as how fast every content on a website page loads.

What is the average time on the website page?

The average time users spend on a website ranges and is determined by the page loading time. For instance, blog posts range between two to five minutes, while e-store pages may range from 44 seconds to one minute and 22 seconds.