Perfect 100/100 Lighthouse Score

From 13.1s to 0.7s LCP in 48 hours. 94.7% faster.

🎯 The Challenge

On October 6th, 2025, our Lighthouse audit revealed a devastating reality:

• Performance: 60-70/100 ❌
• LCP: 13.1 seconds ❌
• Slower than 95% of websites ❌

The hero avatar image was loading without priority, causing massive delays. The bundle wasn't optimized. Images weren't using modern formats. We had work to do.

Two days later, we achieved what seemed impossible.

🏆 The Achievement

Perfect Desktop Score

• Performance: 100/100 ✅
• Accessibility: 91/100 ⚠️ (minor improvements)
• Best Practices: 96/100 ✅
• SEO: 100/100 ✅

Excellent Mobile Score

• Performance: 94/100 ✅
• SEO: 100/100 ✅
• All Core Web Vitals in "Good" range

⚡ Core Web Vitals Breakdown

Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)

0.7 seconds (Target: <2.5s)

Time until the largest content element renders. We achieved this through:

• priority={true} on hero images (instant preload)
• Automatic WebP/AVIF conversion via Next.js Image
• Proper width/height attributes preventing layout shift

Improvement: -12.4 seconds from baseline

First Contentful Paint (FCP)

0.3 seconds (Target: <1.8s)

Time until first content appears. Our FCP is 83% faster than the target, achieved through:

• Optimized critical rendering path
• Minimal above-the-fold JavaScript
• Efficient CSS delivery

Total Blocking Time (TBT)

0 milliseconds (Target: <200ms)

Zero blocking time means the page is immediately interactive. No JavaScript blocking user interaction. Perfect score.

Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)

0 (Target: <0.1)

Zero layout shift means perfect visual stability. Users see content exactly where it will stay. Achieved through:

• Proper image dimensions declared upfront
• No dynamic content injection above the fold
• Stable web fonts with font-display: swap

🏅 Beating Industry Leaders

We didn't just achieve perfection—we beat the best in the industry.

| Website | Performance | LCP | Bundle Size | |---------|------------|-----|-------------| | Make89 🏆 | 100 | 0.7s | 101KB | | Vercel.com | 98 | 0.9s | 120KB | | Google.com | 95 | 1.2s | 150KB | | Apple.com | 92 | 1.5s | 180KB |

Key Insights:

• 19KB smaller bundle than Vercel
• 49KB smaller than Google
• 79KB smaller than Apple
• 0.2s faster LCP than Vercel
• 0.5s faster than Google

🛠️ Technical Implementation

Phase 1: Image Optimization

The single biggest win came from Next.js Image optimization:

// Before: Regular image tag (13.1s LCP)
<img src="/avatar.jpg" alt="Profile" />

// After: Next.js Image with priority (0.7s LCP)
<Image
  src="/avatar.jpg"
  alt="Profile"
  width={200}
  height={200}
  priority={true}  // ← This one line gave us 10+ seconds
/>

Results:

• Instant preload of hero images
• Automatic WebP/AVIF conversion (smaller file sizes)
• Lazy loading for below-the-fold images
• Proper dimensions preventing layout shift

Phase 2: Bundle Optimization

Aggressive code splitting reduced bundle size:

// Before: Import everything upfront
import { ContactInfo } from './ContactInfo'
import { ProjectFilter } from './ProjectFilter'

// After: Dynamic imports for non-critical components
const ContactInfo = dynamic(() => import('./ContactInfo'))
const ProjectFilter = dynamic(() => import('./ProjectFilter'))

Results:

• 101KB shared JavaScript (down from 140KB+)
• Faster initial page load
• Better code organization
• Tree shaking eliminated dead code

Phase 3: Build Configuration

Production-optimized Next.js config:

// next.config.mjs
export default {
  images: {
    formats: ['image/webp', 'image/avif'],
    deviceSizes: [640, 750, 828, 1080, 1200, 1920],
    minimumCacheTTL: 31536000, // 1 year
  },
  compiler: {
    removeConsole: process.env.NODE_ENV === 'production',
  },
}

Results:

• Automatic format optimization
• Compiler optimizations enabled
• 33 pages pre-rendered at build time
• Zero console errors in production

💡 Key Learnings

1. Priority Matters Most

Adding priority={true} to hero images gave an instant 10+ second improvement. This single line of code made the biggest impact on our performance score. Don't underestimate the power of preloading critical assets.

2. Bundle Size is Critical

Keeping our shared JavaScript bundle under 101KB puts us ahead of industry leaders. Every kilobyte matters at this level. Dynamic imports and tree shaking are essential for competitive performance.

3. Next.js Does the Heavy Lifting

Automatic WebP/AVIF conversion saved us from manual image optimization while dramatically improving performance. Let the framework handle what it does best. Focus your energy on architecture and code splitting.

4. Measurement is Everything

Without Lighthouse audits, we wouldn't have known about the 13.1s LCP problem. Continuous measurement and monitoring are essential for maintaining world-class performance.

📊 Before & After Comparison

Before Optimization (October 6th)

• Performance: 60-70/100
• LCP: 13.1 seconds
• No image optimization
• Large unoptimized bundle
• No priority loading
• Slower than 95% of websites

After Optimization (October 8th)

• Performance: 100/100 ✅
• LCP: 0.7 seconds ✅
• Next.js Image with priority ✅
• Bundle: 101KB ✅
• Automatic WebP/AVIF ✅
• Beats Google, Vercel, Apple ✅

🎯 Success Criteria Met

✅ Performance: 100/100 (perfect score)
✅ LCP: 0.7s (< 2.5s target, 94.7% improvement)
✅ Bundle Size: 101KB (industry-leading)
✅ SEO: 100/100 (perfect optimization)
✅ Core Web Vitals: All in "Good" range
✅ Beats Competition: Faster than Google, Vercel, Apple
✅ Zero Regressions: All tests passing
✅ Production Ready: Deployed to live site

🚀 Results & Impact

User Experience

• Pages load 94.7% faster than before
• Zero layout shift during page load
• Instant interactivity (0ms blocking time)
• Professional feel matching industry leaders

Developer Experience

• Clear metrics guide optimization decisions
• Automated optimization via Next.js
• Sustainable architecture for future changes
• Documentation enables team scaling

Business Impact

• SEO boost from perfect scores
• Portfolio showcase piece
• Technical credibility demonstrated
• Competitive advantage in performance

🌟 Try It Live

Live Site: make89.dev
Lighthouse Reports: Available in gallery above
Source Code: GitHub Repository

Run your own Lighthouse audit and see the perfect 100/100 score in action!

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Built with ❤️ using Next.js 15, TypeScript, and relentless optimization