What is FCP?
TL;DR
FCP (First Contentful Paint) is a performance metric that measures how long it takes for the first piece of content (text, image, or SVG) to appear on screen.
Last updated: 2026-03-09
Definition#
First Contentful Paint (FCP) measures the time from when a page starts loading to when the first piece of content is rendered on screen. Content can be text, an image, an SVG, or a non-white canvas element.
FCP is a perceived performance metric. It answers the question: "When does the user first see something?" A fast FCP (under 1.8 seconds) reassures users that the page is loading. A slow FCP (over 3 seconds) makes users think the page is broken.
FCP is not a Core Web Vital, but it is a useful diagnostic metric that often correlates with LCP. If your FCP is slow, your LCP will almost certainly be slow too.
Why It Matters for AI Readiness#
FCP indicates how quickly your page starts delivering content. For AI crawlers, a slow FCP can mean the crawler times out before seeing any content. The Speed & Performance factor considers page load metrics including FCP.
For optimization tips, see How to Improve Page Speed.
Related Concepts#
FCP precedes LCP in the loading timeline. Both are affected by TTFB. FCP is measured alongside Core Web Vitals but is not one of the three core metrics.
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