In choosing between online stores or streaming services, factors such as service quality, pricing, and website speed can significantly impact a person's decision. Website speed refers to the time it takes to load and respond to user input. Previous research has shown that even a slight delay of two seconds can make a significant difference.
This article will cover the key metrics to watch for and the tools needed to test and monitor website speed. We'll also provide a list of the top website speed testing tools, including free and paid options, with a clear distinction between the two.
1. Uptrends
Uptrends offers a simple speed test from one of 10 available locations, with the option to choose between a mobile or desktop test. For desktop tests, you can also select the screen resolution, one of four browser options (Chrome, Firefox, PhantomJS, and IE), and simulate different speed scenarios through bandwidth throttling.
Features:
- Automatically sends emails with dashboard reports in PDF or excel format to selected recipients
- Allows monitoring of API uptime and configuration of API calls for cross-checking response data
- Capable of monitoring multi-step transactions such as login, search, shopping carts, and forms
- Automatically detects web performance issues in popular browsers like IE, Chrome, and Firefox
- Supports multiple protocol technologies for website and server monitoring needs, including SMTP, POP3, IMAP, HTTP/HTTPS, FTP, SQL, and MySQL
Pricing:
- Starter – 10 monitors = $17.50 per month
- Premium – 50 monitors = $50.27 per month
- Professional – 250 monitors = $245.09 per month
- Business – unlimited monitor = $24.42 per month
- Enterprise – unlimited monitor = $58.36 per month
2. GTmetrix
GTmetrix offers extensive details on your page speed, timing, performance score, and more. Along with test results, it provides recommendations for fixing identified issues. This free website speed testing tool also generates performance scores for web pages and provides suggestions for improvement.
Features:
- Offer a concise overview of key performance metrics
- Permit testing of your website across different countries and browsers
- Enable checking of a web page on various simulated devices
- Provide the ability to view web page load playback through videos
- Facilitate tracking of website performance through monitoring and graphical representation
Pricing:
- Champion – 15 monitors = $63.75 per month
- Team – 30 monitors = $170.00 per month
- Enterprise – 60 monitors = $450.00 per month
- Custom – custom
3. Pingdom
Pingdom is a widely recognized website speed-testing tool that has been in use for a long time. Unlike Google PageSpeed Insights, it does not require any login to use, but its reports are less comprehensive. The website's performance is rated on a scale from 0 to 100 and includes a breakdown of response codes, content size, request types, requests by domain, and a waterfall chart that provides insight into file loading times.
Features:
- Evaluate all components of a web page
- Generate a performance summary
- Monitor your performance history
- Enable testing from multiple locations
Pricing:
Synthetic Monitoring – $10.00 per month
Real User Monitoring – $10.00 per month
4. Dotcom-Monitor
Dotcom-Monitor provides you with the ability to test your website from 25 different locations using 7 different browsers, including Blackberry. Although the inclusion of Blackberry may indicate a need for an update to their service or a focus on preserving history.
Upon finishing the test, you will receive a score based on your website's loading speed and a detailed analysis of server responses. Additionally, you can examine the cached resource experience for repeat visitors. The results also include a comprehensive page speed report generated by Lighthouse.
Features:
- Tests page load speed on various browsers globally
- Facilitates analysis of the functionality and performance of multiple internet services
- Helps identify the source of performance issues or downtime using detailed charts, graphs, historical data, and easily shareable dashboards
- Features a customizable alert system that enables sending notifications to others through voice messages, email, or SMS text
Pricing:
Schedule a demo to learn more about what they can offer for your monitoring needs.
5. WebPageTest
WebPageTest.org is a free, open-source website performance testing platform that provides you with the ability to assess your website's speed from 40 different locations and various devices. You can opt to simulate your tests over a slow mobile network or a high-speed 4G network. The results are rated from F to A and include data on compression, TTFB, caching waterfall charts for resource load times, and additional details.
The platform features a unique test that runs three times and displays all three sets of data, allowing you to identify potential delays caused by DNS or CDN and gauge the server's ability to respond to all requests.
Features:
- The tool can be run in both Chrome and IE browsers with real-world consumer connection speeds
- It conducts advanced testing, including video recording, content blocking, and multi-step transactions
- It provides diagnostic information, such as loading waterfall charts, page speed optimization analysis, and recommendations for improved user experience
Pricing:
- Starter Plan – starts at $15.00 per month
- Annual Plan – $180.00 per year
Bottom-line
There are numerous options available, each with its own distinct features, for testing the speed of your website. It is up to you to experiment and to try out different options and find the one that suits your needs the best. It is crucial to regularly test the speed of your website, even after its development is complete.
Website performance can change over time, especially if you are using third-party APIs, and it's essential to stay ahead of the curve. Utilizing a website speed testing service or monitoring tool is the best way to address and overcome challenges, enhance website performance, and provide the best user experience.
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