This article gives instructions on how to set up and use the Performance module.
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Introduction
The Monsido Performance module helps users improve website load speed and performance. The module shows statistics on how the website performs for visitors in different locations, on different devices, and that connect with different network speeds. Monsido automatically identifies and provides feedback about elements that slow down the website.
Page scans are based on selections made by the user. Make adjustments based on a large number of settings that determine how the scan is performed, such as location, speed, and device type. When a scan is finished, the results are integrated and can be viewed and analyzed in the Page Details view.
Google Lighthouse
The Monsido Performance Module is based on Google's Lighthouse API v10. Google Lighthouse is an open-source API and a powerful tool to help users improve the quality, performance, and correctness of web pages. Users can input a URL and receive a score along with suggestions for how to make website performance improvements.
Google’s online service software assesses Performance, PWA (Progressive Web Apps), Best Practices, Accessibility, and SEO. In our first version, Monsido has only integrated the Performance part of Lighthouse.
With the Google service, users need to enter each URL every time they want to see a score. The Monsido Performance module improves upon this with the possibility to set up score result sequences, for example, Monsido can automatically scan the selected page up to 4 times per day.
For more information on how Google Lighthouse calculates performance, see the external sites:
How Monsido can help
Google’s current Core Web Vitals include Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) which is similar to FMP, First Input Delay (FID) which is often, but not always, correlated with TTI, and Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) which looks at how many times the layout shifts during the entire lifecycle of a page.
While there are some additional factors to consider with the upcoming Core Web Vitals algorithm, if you tackle the issues highlighted by the Monsido Performance module, you will still make improvements to the page that will improve the user experience and likely improve upon these core web vitals.
Google has made visibility into their evolving Web Vitals available through as many relevant tools as possible including their Chrome User Experience Report, PageSpeed Insights, and Search Console. These are all free tools. For more information on ways to make improvements, they also offer a number of guides for optimizing the following:
Note: Monsido uses Google Lighthouse service version 8.5.
Priority, Severity, and Difficulty
Monsido applies different prioritization methods in the various modules.
For more information, see the User Guide article:
Setup
Contact Monsido Support to activate the Performance module.
The IP addresses used for the Performance Module are:
EU: 35.205.195.161
US: 35.192.89.240
AU: 35.244.113.9
Asia: 34.126.69.123.
Instructions
This section gives information on how to set up and use the Monsido Performance module to improve performance issues on a website.
From the Monsido Domain Overview, click Select Domain. The Domain Overview page opens.
Click on the domain name. The Dashboard for the domain opens.
Click Performance (the gauge icon), on the toolbar.
The Performance dashboard page opens. If no pages are present, or if a page is missing, click Add New Page.
Note: If the graph on your results page has an orange line, this signifies a jump in statistics due to upgrades or changes to the module. Click the label on the orange line to view the reasons for the discrepancy.
Add a New Page
Click Add New Page.
Note: A new page can only be added if Monsido has previously scanned it, and the page must exist in the current scan inventory.
The New Performance Page pane opens.
Select Page to scan: Begin typing to locate a page to select. The list populates with matches.
Select a page row from the list to scan.
Click a page link on the list results to view the page as a visitor.
Visitor Profile
Click the drop-down arrow. The profiles list expands.
Select a visitor profile from the list. Choose as many as needed.
Alternatively, add a new visitor profile with the Add Profile button. See the Add a New Profile section below for instructions.
The Summary pane updates with details about the selections:
URL: The URL to the page.
Scan Frequency: The frequency of the scan.
Visitor Profile (if selected).
Click Save to save the new page.
Add a New Profile
This section gives instructions on how to add a new profile to the list during new page creation.
Click Admin Settings (gear icon) at the top of the Domain Overview page.
The Domain Settings page opens.
Click Performance, on the left menu.
Alternatively, to navigate to this page during the New Page Creation steps, click Add Profile.
The Profile Setup pane opens.
Fill in the details for the new user profile:
Name: Enter a name for the profile.
Description: Enter a description for the profile.
Device: Select the device from the selection (Desktop or Mobile).
Connection Profile: Click the drop-down arrow and select from the list:
Cable
3G Regular
4G Slow
DSL
LTE.
Measure from: Click the drop-down arrow and select a geographical location to measure the connection from.
Click Save. The profile saves and the pane closes. The New Performance Page pane is shown.
Review the Summary section.
Click Save to apply the profile to the website.
Add a New Profile to an Existing Page
This section gives instructions on how to add a new profile to the list from an existing page.
On the same row as an existing page, click Actions and select Edit from the expanded menu.
The New Performance Page opens.
Click Add Profile.
The Profile Setup pane opens.
Fill in the details for the new user profile:
Name: Enter a name for the profile.
Description: Enter a description for the profile.
Device: Select the device from the selection (Desktop or Mobile).
Connection Profile: Click the drop-down arrow and select from the list:
Cable
3G Regular
4G Slow
DSL
LTE.
Measure from: Click the drop-down arrow and select a geographical location to measure the connection from.
Click Save. The profile saves and the pane closes. The New Performance Page pane is shown.
Review the Summary section.
Click Save to apply the profile to the website.
Edit Visitor Profile
This section gives instructions on how to edit a profile.
On the same row as an existing page, click Actions and select Edit from the expanded menu.
The New Performance Page opens.
Click the drop-down arrow in the Visitor Profile section. The profiles list expands.
Select the visitor profile to edit.
In the Visitor Profile Details section, click the three dots menu. The options expand.
Select one of the following options:
Remove Profile: This option removes the profile from the page.
Set as Default: Set this profile as the default profile for the page.
Save the changes.
Edit an Existing Page
This section gives information on how to edit an existing Performance Page.
On the same row as an existing page, click Actions and select Edit from the expanded menu.
The Edit Performance Page opens.
Edit the scan frequency as needed.
The selections are:
Four times a day
Twice a day
Once a day
Once a week (recommended).
Edit the visitor profile as needed.
The actions you can take are:
Use the drop-down arrow to select an existing visitor profile.
Click Add Profile to add a new visitor profile.
In the Visitor Profile Details section, click the three dots menu. The options expand.
Select one of the following options:
Remove Profile: This option removes the profile from the page.
Set as Default: Set this profile as the default profile for the page.
Save the changes.
Performance Dashboard
This section describes the functions and information on the performance landing page. The pages that are available in the Performance module are displayed in a list.
Search: Click in the dialog box and type a search parameter.
URL list: Click a page URL. The Page Details pane slides open.
Open in: At the top of the pane just below the heading, select a method to open the page in (default is the Monsido tool view):
CMS (if used, the name of the CMS shows here): Click to view the page via the CMS.
Redirect to Page (magnifying glass icon): Click to navigate to the page URL and view the page as an external visitor.
Tip: If it is installed, use the Monsido Extension to identify the placement of the errors on the page, repair the errors, and more.
For more information, see the User Guide chapter:
Re-scan this page (refresh icon): Click to rescan the current page at any time.
The page is divided into sections:
The top section gives information on the selected profile:
Viewing as Profile: This shows the profile that is being used.
For more information, see the section of this document:
Device: The type of device used.
Measure from: Distance from the server location.
Network speed: The speed of the network.
Check frequency: The frequency of the check.
Important: The Dashboard always shows data with the default profile selected. To change this, select a new profile (click the drop-down arrow to see the available profiles). Please be aware that changing the profile causes the numbers on all 3 sections in the Performance module to update accordingly.
Performance Score: On the same row as a URL, this score is a quick visual of site performance.
Score donut: This chart shows the percentage of performance criteria that the page meets.
Timeline: Displays a graph of the last 8 scans.
Opportunities by Priority: Shows the number of checks done/remaining and the total number of checks, sorted from high to low priority. See also the difficulty level of the issues.
For more information, see the User Guide article:
User Loading Experience: This section contains:
Graph that shows user loading experience. The data is arranged per date and shows metrics for:
First contentful paint (FCP)
Largest contentful paint (LCP)
Speed Index (SI)
Total Blocking Time (TBT)
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS).
For more information about these metrics scores, see the external site:
Load times trend: A chart shows the user loading experience on a visual performance timeline that identifies when FCP, FMP, and TTI occur. Also provided is a breakdown of load time trends, detailing the average FMP, FCP, and TTI.
Note: If the graph on your results page has an orange line, this signifies a jump in statistics due to upgrades or changes to the module. Click the label on the orange line to view the reasons for the discrepancy.
Opportunities
From the menu on the left, select Opportunities: This section shows areas on the page that can be improved to boost the load speed and improve performance. The suggestions provided are highly targeted and include examples. See recommendations for improvement, as well as documentation from Google resources.
The top section gives information on the profile that is used:
Viewing as Profile: This shows the profile that is being used.
For more information, see the section of this document:
Device: The type of device used.
Measure from: Distance from the server location.
Network speed: The speed of the network.
Check frequency: The frequency of the check.
Important: The Dashboard always shows data with the default profile selected. To change this, select a new profile (click the drop-down arrow to see the available profiles). Please be aware that when you change the profile, the numbers on all three sections inside the Performance module update accordingly.
Sort between: Select the criteria for the list to show:
Errors: Sort the list to show only errors that can be remedied to improve performance.
Passed: Sort the list for Passed opportunities.
Export: Click Export. The current page is downloaded locally in CSV format.
Search: Begin typing to search the list of opportunities.
The list results have the following columns:
Audit: The name of the opportunity and a short description of improvements.
Learn More: Click to redirect to the Google Lighthouse external page with advanced information and details about the opportunity, as well as instructions and methods that can help improve performance scores.
Difficulty: Level of difficulty to implement the improvement.
For more information, see the User Guide chapter:
For more information, see the User Guide article:
Priority: Priority level of the issue.
For more information, see the User Guide article:
Details: Each row has this button. Click to view the audit details for the opportunity. Provides a list of highly specific suggestions that can help improve site performance and speed. Click Learn More to navigate to external internet resources for advanced help.
URL: The URL where the issue is located.
Size: The size of the image/file.
Potential savings: The savings that can be achieved if the suggested fix is done.
Opportunities that can appear: Follow the external links below for the definition of each opportunity, as provided by Google Lighthouse. Information and links to each opportunity definition, as well as suggested fixes, are available in Monsido for each opportunity that is flagged.
Diagnostics
From the menu on the left, select Diagnostics. This feature flags particular issues that can potentially slow the loading times. View the exact problem, how it impacts the webpage, and why the fix is needed.
The top section gives information on the profile that is being used for the results shown:
Viewing as Profile: This shows the profile that is being used.
For more information, see the section in this document:
Device: The type of device used.
Measure from: Distance from the server location.
Network speed: The speed of the network.
Check frequency: The frequency of the check.
Important: The Dashboard always shows data with the default profile selected. To change this, select a new profile (click the drop-down arrow to see the available profiles). Please be aware that when you change the profile, the numbers on all three sections inside the Performance module update accordingly.
Sort for:
Errors
Passed.
Export: Click Export. The current page is downloaded locally in CSV format.
Search: Begin typing to search the list of opportunities.
The list results have the following columns:
Audit: The name of the audit check that needs improvement.
Difficulty: Level of difficulty to implement the improvement.
For more information, see the User Guide article:
Priority: Priority level of the issue.
For more information, see the User Guide article:
Details: Click to view the audit details for diagnostics.
Diagnostics that can appear: Follow the external links below for information from Google Lighthouse on the definition of each diagnostic. Information and links to each definition, as well as suggested fixes, are also available in Monsido for each diagnostics check that is flagged.
History
From the menu on the left, select History. This page shows the historical status of website performance. Scores from all past scans are available to help you analyze and view trends.
The topmost section gives information on the profile that is being used for the results shown.
Viewing as Profile: This shows the profile that is being used. See Add Profile for information on how to add a new profile.
Device: The type of device used.
Measure from: Distance from the server location.
Network speed: The speed of the network.
Check frequency: The frequency of the check.
Important: The Dashboard always shows data with the default profile selected. To change this, select a new profile (click the drop-down arrow to see the available profiles). Please be aware that when you change the profile, the numbers on all three sections inside the Performance module will update accordingly.
Graph with performance speed and date as well as a donut chart showing the average performance score.
Scan history results: This table shows valuable scan data from previous scans.
Scanned at: Date and time of scan.
Performance Pages: Number of pages scanned for performance issues.
Avg. Performance Score: The average of the overall performance score percentage. This is a weighted average of the metric scores, which means that some metrics have more impact on your overall Performance score. This figure is calculated in the background, it is not an average of the statistics in the shown categories.
Avg. First contentful paint (FCP): Milliseconds with diff since the last scan. First content paint marks the time at which the first text or image is painted by measuring how long it takes the browser to render the first piece of DOM content after a user navigates to your page.
Avg. Largest contentful paint (LCP): This metric represents the time duration between the user initiating the page load and the page rendering its primary content.
Avg. Speed Index (SI): This metric shows the speed at which the content on a page is visibly populated.
Avg. Total Blocking Time (TBT): This is the sum of all time periods between FCP and Time to Interactive when the task length exceeds 50ms, expressed in milliseconds.
Avg. Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): This is the measurement of the movement of visible elements within the viewport.
For more information, see the User Guide chapter:
Additional Information
The IP addresses used for the Performance Module are:
EU: 35.205.195.161
US: 35.192.89.240
AU: 35.244.113.9
Asia: 34.126.69.123.
For more information on how performance scores are calculated, visit these external links:
For more information, see the User Guide chapters:
Monsido Performance New Version (Marketing document).
Help Center FAQ article Why did my Performance score change suddenly?
For definitions and explanations of acronyms and abbreviations used in the Monsido User Guide, see:
For further assistance, contact the Monsido support team at support@monsido.com or use the Monsido chat and help features inside the application.