First Contentful Paint (FCP)
A performance metric measuring when the first content element is rendered on screen.
Quick Definition
A performance metric measuring when the first content element is rendered on screen.
Full Explanation
First Contentful Paint (FCP) measures the time from when the page starts loading to when any part of the page's content is rendered on screen. This could be text, images, SVGs, or non-white canvas elements. FCP is important for perceived performance because it tells users that something is happening. A good FCP score is under 1.8 seconds. Unlike LCP which measures the largest element, FCP measures any content. Common causes of slow FCP include render-blocking resources, slow server response times, and large CSS files. To improve FCP, inline critical CSS, defer non-critical resources, and optimize TTFB.
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Related Terms
Largest Contentful Paint
A Core Web Vital that measures how long it takes for the largest content element to become visible.
Time to First Byte
A metric measuring the time from request start until the first byte of the response is received.
Core Web Vitals
A set of three metrics (LCP, INP, CLS) that Google uses to measure user experience and as ranking factors.