What are Core Web Vitals and why do they matter for Indian websites?
Core Web Vitals are Google's three speed metrics: LCP (load <2.5s), INP (interactivity <200ms), CLS (visual stability <0.1). They're a Google ranking factor since 2021. Indian websites typically score worse than global peers due to 3G/4G fluctuation, so optimising CWV is one of the highest-ROI technical SEO investments for India-focused businesses.
LCP (Largest Contentful Paint) measures when the biggest above-the-fold element renders — usually a hero image or H1. Indian average: 3.8s on mobile vs Google's 2.5s target. Fix by compressing hero images (use WebP/AVIF, under 100KB), serving from a CDN with India edge nodes (Cloudflare, BunnyCDN), and preloading the hero asset.
INP (Interaction to Next Paint) replaced FID in 2024 — it measures how fast your site reacts to taps and clicks. Heavy JavaScript bundles from page builders, marketing tags, and chat widgets push INP over 200ms. Fix by removing unused plugins, deferring third-party scripts, and avoiding bloated themes.
CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift) measures unexpected visual jumps — images loading without dimensions, ads pushing content. Fix by setting explicit width/height on every image and reserving space for embeds. Most fixes are 1-line CSS or HTML changes.
Why this matters more in India: mobile-first index (95%+ of Indian traffic is mobile), variable 4G speeds, and Google specifically weighting CWV for Discover and AMP-free mobile SERPs. A site that hits all three thresholds typically sees 8–18% organic traffic lift within 60–90 days of fixing.