Google Loves Performance: A Real-Life Experiment

Here’s a fun story for you. On December 5, 2024, I registered Edgora.net, our little corner of the web where performance and privacy take center stage. Just two days later, on December 7, the first draft of the website went live. Nothing fancy, just a clean, fast, privacy-first site to say “hello” to the world.

On December 8, I decided to take things up a notch and added Edgora.net to Google Search Console. And that’s when the magic happened.

A few hours later, Edgora.net was ranking #1 on Google.

Okay, okay—only for the search term “Edgora” (it’s not like we outranked Wikipedia or anything). But still, for a brand-new website with no backlinks, no social media buzz, and zero brand visibility, this was fast.

Even cooler? Later that same day, I noticed a typo, fixed it, and three hours later, Google had updated the indexed page.

How? Why? Is there a secret VIP lane for new websites? Not quite. The answer is simple: performance.

The Timeline: Blink and You Miss It

In less than 48 hours from launch, Edgora.net had been crawled, indexed, ranked, and updated. If that’s not impressive, I don’t know what is.

Hard Fact: Understanding Google's Crawl Budget

Google allocates a specific "crawl budget" to each website, determining how frequently and deeply its bots crawl your pages. This budget is influenced by two main factors:

  1. Crawl Capacity Limit: Googlebot aims to crawl your site without overwhelming your servers. If your site responds quickly and without errors, the crawl rate increases. Conversely, server errors or slow responses decrease the crawl rate. (Source: Google Developers)
  2. Crawl Demand: This is based on the popularity and relevance of your pages. Frequently updated or highly relevant pages have higher crawl demand. (Source: Google Developers)

A fast-loading website utilizes its crawl budget more efficiently, allowing Google to index content promptly. In contrast, slow websites consume more resources, leading Google to crawl them less frequently to conserve bandwidth and processing power. (Source: SEMRush)

Performance = Priority

Here’s where the magic happens. A fast site sends Google a strong signal: “I’m efficient and worth your time”. That’s why Edgora.net, with its lightning-fast loading times and clean structure, got priority treatment.

And this isn’t just my theory—there’s data to back it up:

Hard Fact: The Impact of Website Performance on SEO

Google allocates a specific "crawl budget" to each website, determining how frequently and deeply its bots crawl your pages. This budget is influenced by two main factors:

  1. Speed is essential. Studies show that 53% of mobile users abandon sites that take longer than three seconds to load. (Source: Think with Google)
  2. Page speed as a ranking factor. Google officially incorporated page speed as a ranking factor back in 2010. (Source: Search Engine Journal)
  3. Core Web Vitals matter. Metrics assessing loading performance, interactivity, and visual stability (a.k.a., Core Web Vitals) are critical for SEO. Optimizing these metrics not only enhances user satisfaction but also sends positive signals to Google. (Source: Google Developers)

What Happened When I Fixed the Typo?

Here’s the part that really blew my mind. After fixing the typo, Google re-crawled the page and updated its index in three hours. I didn’t even request a manual reindex, so it might have been updated even faster — I just didn’t check before the three-hour mark!

Why so fast? Because Edgora.net is easy to crawl. It’s like hosting a party where the snacks are prepped, the music is perfect, and the vibe is just right. Guests (or bots, in this case) enjoy themselves and can’t wait to come back.

Why This Matters

This experiment isn’t just a fun story—it’s proof that performance matters. A fast website isn’t just about user experience (though that’s huge). It’s about creating a site that works harmoniously with Google’s systems.

Key takeaways:

  1. Fast Sites Get Priority: Google loves websites that don’t waste its resources.
  2. Performance Drives Visibility: Even without backlinks or social proof, a fast site can climb the ranks.
  3. Core Web Vitals Are Essential: Metrics like loading speed, interactivity, and visual stability aren’t optional—they’re critical.