Magento Performance Optimization: 10 Tips to Boost Store Efficiency

Inadequate Hosting

Magento ecommerce is a cloud-based platform that demands significant resources such as RAM, powerful CPU, and disk space to run smoothly. If your server is not powerful enough or if you’re using shared hosting where resources are distributed among many users, your Magento store may lack resources to operate optimally. 

This can result in slow processing times for Magento and increased load times for your website.

Poorly Configured Cache

As a store owner, you may prefer caching offloads resource-intensive tasks from the server because it enables a more efficient use of server resources. 

However, it is important to note that server response times are directly tied to both request volume and resources. In this context, an inappropriate cache can prolong load times, resulting in negative user experience. This time, you really should operate the Magento performance optimization.

Code-Stuffed Theme & Extension

Complex code or features from themes and extensions may provide more functionalities for Magento multi stores, but it can be a double-sword which can trigger compatibility issues and performance degradation. Therefore, careful selection of themes and extensions can mitigate the possibilities of performance bottlenecks.

To get deep insights of your online presence, you can use website speed testing tools such as Google Page Speed Insights or GT metrix to get detailed reports and actionable tips to improve Magento’s speed.

Selecting reputable hosting

The first and foremost element contributing to the success of an ecommerce website is having fast, reliable and secured hosting. If you choose mediocre hosting, your Magento store will somehow face up with performance and security issues.

While low prices can be tempting, they often result in significant time and effort spent on resolving server issues. It’s better if you opt for a managed hosting provider. This can help you concentrate only on growing your business.

Update the Magento Version

When it comes to Magento performance optimization, you cannot forget to update the latest version of it. It is also a strategy for maximizing website speed, because each new version of Magento incorporates performance enhancements alongside other significant improvements. 

Here are 3 recommendations for you to update the latest version of Magento:

Manually upload file

Step 1. Download the Latest Magento 2 Version

To install the latest version of Magento 2, download the installation package and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the setup process.

Step 2. Run SSH Commands

Once you have done the installation step, run the following commands in the SSH code:

• php bin/magento setup:upgrade
• php bin/magento setup:static-content:deploy
• php bin/magento cache:clean
• php bin/magento indexer:reindex

The above commands will help you refresh database schema and update all dependencies while ensuring compatibility with existing extensions. When complete, you can verify the final upgrade by reviewing both the Magento 2 admin panel and your store’s frontend.

Update via Composer

Composer acts as a preferred method for managing dependencies during the upgradation of Magento. This streamlines the process by automation package updates, saving your hassle compared to the manual method.

However, it is crucial to meticulously follow Magento official documentation and guidelines to ensure a smooth and successful upgrade process. One big challenge of this way is that composer-based upgrades can involve complexities such as dependency conflicts and compatibility problems. 

They could lead to system instability if not addressed properly. Therefore, this method is suitable for Magento stores with a strong technical foundation.

Use Web setup wizard

This method is used only for older Magento versions. It is no longer applicable for Magento 2.4.x since the Magento Web Setup Wizard has been disconnected.

Step 1: 

• Access the Magento 2 admin panel. 
• Navigate to the “System” section.
• Go to “Tool” and select the “Web Setup Wizard” option.

Step 2: 

• Within the Magento Setup Tool, navigate to the “System Configuration” section.
• Add “Authentication keys”.
• Click on “System Configuration”.
• Carefully enter the provided public and private keys in the fields.
• Save the configuration.

Step 3:

When the authentication credentials are finished, proceed by clicking the “System Upgrade” option.

At this stage, please note that you may be required to upgrade the PHP version to the latest compatible release.

Optimize Images

The size of the image can impact the speed of the website, thereby affecting Magento performance optimization. Therefore, it is important to optimize images to maintain a ratio between quality and size. 

In older techniques, the server downloads the content images as the page loads. To mitigate this, Magento uses lazy loading, which loads images only after the page has fully loaded, or while the user scrolls through the catalog.

You can also use AWS or a CDN to deliver your content more quickly. You should check your images to ensure they are properly optimized and have a good ratio between quality and size.

Here are some key points in image of Magento performance optimization:

• Compress image files to reduce file size.
• Use the Image Optimizer module.
• Use PNG or SVG format for the store’s logo.
• Use JPEG format for product image.

Enable Production Mode

With the aim to prioritize speed and security, Magento production mode is designed for live deployment to enhance Magento performance optimization. By serving cached static files and hiding detailed errors, it optimizes store efficiency and ensures streamlined user experience. 

When using this method, please remember to flip the switch. As you may know, during the development, the developer mode is on, so don’t forget to change to the production mode to ensure a secure user experience by hiding detailed errors.

There are several code line you should keep in mind about Magento performance optimization:

• The current mode: php bin/magento deploy:mode:show.
• Switching to product mode: php bin/magento deploy:mode:set production.
• Switching to developer mode: php bin/magento deploy:mode:set developer.

Check Third-Party Extensions

Magento third-party extension is on the one hand allowing more convenience, but on the other side it can pose challenges within your online store if it is unable to handle too many add-on functions. For those which cause increased load time, you should consider keeping them up-to-date with the newest versions or replacing them with alternative extensions.

A pro tip for opting reliable third-party extensions is to download or purchase them from a trusted source such as Commerce Marketplace.

Use varnish cache

Varnish is an open-source HTTP accelerator which can reduce a large amount of time loading your page, a helpful tool for Magento performance optimization. By acting like a reverse proxy and caching static content like image, CSS files, it significantly surpasses the processing time required by the web server.

To ensure successful Varnish cache implementation, follow the detailed guidelines for step-by-step instructions for Magento performance optimization.

• Go to “Stores” and select “Settings”
• In the “Setting” dashboard, follow this guideline step-by-step: Configuration -> Advanced -> System -> Full page Cache
• With the Caching Application list, Click Varnish Caching
• Set value in Time to Live for the public content.
• Expand Varnish Configuration and configure the information.

Optimize the Magento Database

Overall, Magento database is well-organized, however, ongoing monitoring is essential for maintaining a smooth user experience. When it starts demanding more resources than PHP can handle efficiently, this database becomes a bottleneck.

Several solutions are available to help you manage your store database. Free tools like My SQLTuner can offer you insights with more than 300 metrics, which are crucial for Magento performance optimization. It even uses your analytics to suggest improvements. 

Minify CSS and JavaScript

Combining and minifying CSS and Javascript files can enhance Magento’s load time and overall performance. Instead of sending 50 or even 100 requests, the browser only needs to send just 2. In addition, minification benefits the process with a smaller size of individual files.

To enable JavaScript minification, follow the list of steps bellow:

• • Put the Magento store on production mode.

• Navigate to Stores → select Configuration → opt for Advanced → click Developer.

• Set Minify JavaScript Files option to Yes.
• On System, you choose Save Config and Flush Cache on System → Cache Management page.

To enable CSS minification, do similarly to the instruction of JavaScript above. However, instead of choosing Minify JavaScript Files, please go to Minify CSS.

Minimize Third-Party Extensions

Although Magento third-party integrations can be a good method for Magento performance optimization since it outperforms your store functionalities by leveraging their modular design, excessive reliance on them may cause negative impact on website performance.

We can handle this problem in several ways. You can optimize your HTML and JavaScript settings, merge CSS files and compress images to fasten loading time. But things seem to be not that easy as poorly coded extensions can undermine your effort.

Ideally, to mitigate this challenge, utilizing plugins sparingly and downloading them exclusively from the Magento marketplace can work. This is due to Adobe’s strict quality control ensures that these plugins maintain optimal website performance and security.

Integrate Content Delivery Network

You can boost your Magento store’s speed with a Content Delivery Network. A Content Delivery Network (CDN) leverages a geographically distributed network of servers to enhance Magento performance optimization. It stores static content like CSS, JavaScript, image, etc as a cache. 

By this way, when users access your store, the CDN delivers content from the nearest server location, which reduces response times for users, leading to a more efficient shopping experience.

To use CDN, these are steps for you to set up:

• Go to Store → Configuration → General.
• Under the General tab, click on Web.
• Expand the Base URLs  and do some steps:
• Base URL for Static View Files field: Input the exact URL of location on CDN which stores static view files. 
• Base URL for User Media Files field: Input  the URL of the JavaScript files on the CDN.
• When complete, click Save Config.