Magento Speed Optimization Extension or Magento Services: Which is the Best Fit?

Is your Magento 2 store not performing the way you want? 

Even after robust efforts, you are getting a higher bounce rate, lower website traffic, and nearly non-existent conversion rates?

All of these indicators point to your website's poor performance.

Before we go any further, let's have a look at the statistics related to the website's poor performance.

• 70% of the consumers switch to another website because of the website's sluggish page loading time. (Sources)

• 1 in 4 visitors would abandon a website that takes more than 4 seconds to load. (Sources)

• 46% of users don’t visit websites that take a longer time to load. (Sources)

• Bounce rates jump to 38 per cent for pages that load in five seconds. (Sources)

These figures, in my opinion, are sufficient to validate the importance of Magento website speed optimization. And I'm not only referring to the Magento website; this is true of all websites.

So here the question is: how can Magento be optimized for speed so that the bounce rate of your website decreases, traffic increases, and finally the conversions pick up the lost speed?

As you can see, there are two approaches to reclaim the website's lost allure. You can either invest in a decent Magento plugin or Magento extension for performance optimization, or you can invest in reliable Magento performance optimization services.

Let’s dive right into both of the options.

Magento Performance Optimization Using Magento Extensions and Plugins

Incorporating the best practices in Magento 2 performance optimization enhances the website’s efficiency.  

Every web page consists of a majority of elements, these elements include Images, videos, scripts, fonts, CSS, and HTML. All these elements increase the website load or we can say add weight to your website which in turn reduces the speed of your website. 

Here Magento extensions and Magento Plugins help to manage that load and automate the process to minimize it. These Magento extensions optimize the website speed by reducing the size of website elements. When the size of certain elements or things is reduced, they load more rapidly, enabling the website's speed to increase. 

Here you need not do anything manually, as the smart Magento extensions will take care of everything with their automation process.

But there are both advantages and disadvantages of using Magento 2 extensions. Let’s have a look.

Advantages

Built-in Diagnostics 

You can install a Magento 2 plugin called Google page speed plugin to improve the page speed of your website. This plugin has a built-in diagnostic tool that allows you to track the performance of your website.

Low Pricing

There is a significant price difference between the Magento 2 extensions available on the market for website optimization and services. 

But on the other hand, it comes with the comfort of usability. You can flexibly use such extensions even if you don't have any technical experience. If you face any issue, you will be given proper support as well as training on how to use it.

Customizable

The speed optimization Magento 2 extension is intended to address specific website issues such as JS and CSS load. It is open-source, so you can even customize it as per your website requirements

Disadvantages

The extension does not address all potential concerns

As I have already mentioned, these extensions only address the major factors that affect your website's speed. However, when it comes to server issues like server capacity, you have to look forward to technical support.

The module necessitates some technological expertise

The page speed module necessitates technical understanding. So, to use Magento 2 extension here you need to go through the how-to guides, or training to get a deep understanding of the speed optimization topic. 

Magento Performance Optimization Using Optimization Services 

There are some tasks in Magento speed optimization that cannot be automated like server, manual code optimization, and cache. To accomplish these tasks you have to work manually. So, for optimum performance, you have to hire an in-house expert or you can even outsource the performance optimization task to a capable team.

Magento performance optimization using optimization services also has some advantages and disadvantages. Let’s check them out.

Advantages

Magento Optimization services can resolve all the issues that impact website performance

When you opt for Magento Performance Optimization services, you are provided with Certified Specialists. These experts thoroughly examine your website and fix those problems by finding out why your website speed is slowing down. There are no restrictions; the service providers have complete control.

There's no requirement for extensive technical knowledge

While installing Magento extensions, you may run into complications such as code failure or errors during the installation process. When you choose services, however, you won't have to do anything because specialists will handle everything.

Disadvantages

Pricing

Custom Magento development services are costly as compared to Magento 2 extensions.

What to Choose, Magento Speed Optimization Extensions or Services?

Above we have discussed everything related to Magento speed optimization extensions or services together with their advantages and disadvantages.

We must not undervalue either of them; both are valid in their stances, and both have some advantages and disadvantages.

So, which of the two should you choose? 

By digging a bit deeper, I'll tell you when to choose the Magento 2 extensions, and when to opt for Magento services.

When to Opt for Magento 2 Extensions?

Magento 2 extensions help you to optimize your website’s performance by addressing the following parameters:

• Eliminate render-blocking resources
• Serve images in next-gen formats
• Correct Image size
• Image encoding
• Network payloads
• Defer offscreen images
• The high definition format of images
• Minimize JavaScript, CSS, and HTML

When to Opt for Magento Services?

If you have a bigger store you must go with Magento services. When your bigger store goes through lots of customizations, then you might face reduced speed. The following are some of the most common Google PageSpeed Insights warnings that can be resolved as part of the optimization service:

• Removing unused CSS
• Enable text compression
• Video formats for animated content
• Preload Key requests
• Avoid excessive DOM size
• Eliminate render-blocking resources

That’s all..!!

If you are facing performance-related issues with your Magento store, you can connect with us. We not only provide leading Magento 2 extensions but also provide the Magento development services. Send us an email right immediately, and we'll talk about the workload together to make your website load lightning fast.