The Lighthouse Scores Performance Checklist

/ Wordpress / By

When it comes to website performance, few things carry more weight than a Lighthouse score. Whether you’re optimizing for Core Web Vitals, SEO, or simply improving user experience, a fast-loading WordPress site is no longer optional—it’s essential.

Over the years, I’ve refined a reliable performance checklist that consistently gets my WordPress builds into the 90+ range on Google Lighthouse. Whether you’re working on a blog, an eCommerce site, or a custom theme, these practices will help you streamline performance without breaking functionality.

✅ 1. Start with a Lightweight Theme (or Build Your Own)

Avoid bloated multipurpose themes. They may look pretty, but under the hood, they’re often packed with unnecessary scripts, styles, and plugins.

What I recommend:

  • Use custom themes built on Bedrock + Sage (or Underscores if going manual).
  • For prebuilt themes, choose minimal ones like GeneratePress, Blocksy, or Astra (with all unused modules disabled).

⚙️ 2. Use Server-Level Caching

Relying on plugin-based caching alone is not enough. Use server-level caching whenever possible:

  • Object Caching: Redis or Memcached
  • Page Caching: NGINX FastCGI Cache, Varnish, or LiteSpeed Cache
  • CDN Caching: Cloudflare (Free Tier works well)

🧹 3. Clean and Minimize Plugins

Plugins are both a blessing and a curse in WordPress. Each one can introduce scripts, styles, and DB calls.

Checklist:

  • Deactivate and delete unused plugins.
  • Replace heavy plugins (e.g., page builders) with lightweight code or native blocks.
  • Use tools like Query Monitor or New Relic to detect performance hogs.

✂️ 4. Dequeue Unused Styles & Scripts

Most themes and plugins enqueue assets globally, even on pages where they’re not needed. Clean that up.

phpCopyEditfunction remove_unused_assets() {
  if (!is_page('contact')) {
    wp_dequeue_script('contact-form-7');
    wp_dequeue_style('contact-form-7');
  }
}
add_action('wp_enqueue_scripts', 'remove_unused_assets', 100);

Or use plugins like Asset CleanUp or Perfmatters (premium).

📦 5. Enable Lazy Loading & Optimize Images

Images are often the biggest culprit in slow load times. Optimize them at build time.

  • Use WebP or AVIF formats.
  • Resize and compress before upload (TinyPNG or ImageOptim).
  • Enable native loading="lazy" or use JavaScript polyfills for older browsers.

Bonus: Use responsive srcset to serve appropriately sized images per device.

🚀 6. Defer and Async JavaScript

Blocking JavaScript delays First Contentful Paint. Minimize this with:

  • async or defer attributes on non-critical scripts
  • Inline critical scripts (like LCP fonts or above-the-fold logic)
  • Use plugins like Flying Scripts or manually filter script tags.

🛠️ 7. Implement a CDN

A Content Delivery Network (CDN) reduces latency by serving assets from locations closer to users.

Top picks:

  • Cloudflare (free & effective)
  • BunnyCDN (low-cost, high-speed)
  • KeyCDN or StackPath (good alternatives)

Pair with image/CDN plugins like Optimole, Cloudinary, or ShortPixel Adaptive Images.

🧠 8. Use a Modern PHP Version & Object-Oriented Practices

Outdated server configurations can throttle performance.

  • Use PHP 8.1+
  • Enable OPcache
  • Optimize database tables
  • For developers: Build modular code, use transient caching, and avoid unnecessary DB queries on the frontend.

📊 9. Measure with the Right Tools

Don’t rely on just one tool. Use a combination:

  • Google Lighthouse (Chrome DevTools)
  • PageSpeed Insights – great for Core Web Vitals
  • GTmetrix – waterfall and structure view
  • WebPageTest – granular loading data

Make decisions based on actual bottlenecks, not just scores.

🎯 10. Host Smart

The best performance tweaks fall flat if you’re on a poor host. Invest in hosting optimized for WordPress.

Recommended:

  • Kinsta
  • Cloudways (DigitalOcean, Vultr HF)
  • WP Engine
  • SiteGround (for budget-friendly projects)

⚡ Bonus: Sample Lighthouse Scores From Recent Projects

Project TypeScoreNotes
WooCommerce Store92Optimized images, lazy loading, removed Jetpack
Blog with Custom Theme96Sage + Blade, no page builder, critical CSS
Real Estate Portal91Used caching layers + CDN, minimal JS

🧩 Final Thoughts

Performance isn’t just about ticking boxes for Lighthouse. It’s about creating fast, delightful experiences for real users—and setting up a tech stack that’s scalable and sustainable.

By using this checklist, you’ll not only boost your Google Lighthouse score, but also improve SEO, UX, and conversion rates.