You Think Your Website Is Fast? These Myths Are Slowing You Down

Your website loads fast... for you. But what about your users?

In 2025, developers are still stuck optimizing for metrics that don't reflect real user experience. We chase Lighthouse 100s, lazy load everything, and rely on CDNs—yet our sites still underperform.

The truth? We're still believing lies about web performance that need to die.

Here are some of the most dangerous myths — and what to do instead.

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🚫 Myth 1: "My Lighthouse Score Is 100, So I'm Good"

Lighthouse is a lab tool. It doesn’t reflect real network speeds, devices, or locations.

✅ What To Do Instead:

Use PageSpeed Insights (field data), CrUX, and Search Console's Core Web Vitals to measure actual user experience.

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🚫 Myth 2: "It Loads Fast on My Device, So It’s Fine"

You're likely testing with:

• Cached assets
• High-speed internet
• A fast machine

Your users? Not so lucky.

✅ Solution:

Test under throttled 3G or mid-tier mobile simulation in Chrome DevTools. Better yet, get real user data with WebPageTest or CrUX.

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🚫 Myth 3: "Lazy Loading Solves Everything"

Overusing lazy loading, especially above-the-fold, delays your LCP and can cause layout shifts.

✅ Instead:

• Lazy load only below-the-fold content
• Use fetchpriority="high" for LCP images
• Always set image width and height

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🚫 Myth 4: "CDNs Make All Sites Faster"

CDNs help deliver static assets faster. But they can't fix:

• Slow HTML rendering
• Backend latency
• Render-blocking JS

✅ Solution:

Pair CDNs with server-side rendering (SSR), caching, and minimal JS. Don’t use them as a crutch.

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🚫 Myth 5: "Modern JS Frameworks Are Always Fast"

React, Vue, Angular — powerful, but heavy. Especially with client-side rendering.

✅ Better:

Use lighter frameworks (Astro, Qwik, SvelteKit) or partial hydration and SSR. Keep JS bundles lean and lazy-load what’s not critical.

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🚫 Myth 6: "Image Optimization Is Optional in 2025"

Unoptimized images still cause major LCP issues.

✅ Fix It:

• Compress using Squoosh
• Use WebP or AVIF
• Serve responsive images via srcset
• Preload or prioritize critical images

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🧠 TL;DR: What Actually Matters

• LCP, CLS, INP (formerly FID) are user-focused metrics
• Field data beats simulated tests
• Real speed = fast perception + fast interaction
• Optimize for humans, not scores

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📖 Read Full Blog Version

For a deeper dive, check out the full blog post here:

🔗 Web Performance Lies We Still Believe

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🔧 More Articles Coming Soon:

• Core Web Vitals vs SEO Rankings: Which Impacts More?
• How I Built a No-JS Static Site That Loads in <500ms
• Are Tools the New Blogs? Why Google Loves Interactive Content
• My Lighthouse Score Is 100 But Bounce Rate Is High: Here's Why
• Web Performance Plugins That Make Your Site Slower

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👋 Follow me here on Dev.to or at DevTechInsights.com where I share tools, insights, and experiments to help developers rank better, build smarter, and grow faster.

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