Wordpress: Lazy Load Images to Improve Page Speed
Speed up your WordPress site by implementing lazy loading for images with this simple snippet, improving both performance and SEO.
Improving page load times is crucial for SEO and user experience. This snippet implements lazy loading for images, loading them only as they come into the viewport, which can significantly improve page speeds.
The 'the_content' filter is used to modify HTML image tags by adding the 'loading="lazy"' attribute, which is supported by modern browsers and does not require additional JavaScript.
The snippet includes examples of how to handle images embedded in posts, pages, or widgets, ensuring that all images are lazy-loaded.
Best practices for using native HTML lazy loading are discussed, along with fallbacks for older browsers that might not support this attribute.
Considerations for SEO and ensuring that lazy loading does not negatively impact image indexing or user experience are also included.
Snippet Code
Version Compatibility
This code is effective with WordPress 5.5 and later, where support for native image lazy loading was introduced.
Required PHP Version
PHP 5.4 or higher
Wordpress Core Functions Used
Use Cases
- performance optimization
- SEO
- page speed