What is TTFB and How to Reduce It [Quick Tips]

Time To First Byte (TTFB) is the amount of time it takes for your browser to receive the first piece of data from a website’s server after you request a page. It may sound like a small detail, but this first response directly affects how fast a page feels to load. A lower TTFB means your website responds quickly, and a high TTFB often signals server or configuration issues that frustrate visitors.

As a WordPress development company, at Pure Website Design we see many clients come to us struggling with high TTFB. They are frustrated because their sites load slowly, even when they have optimized images or a mobile friendly web design. 

In this guide, we will explain how TTFB works, the most common causes of slowness, and the measures we use to fix these issues for our clients. These are the same techniques you can apply to your own site.

How Time To First Byte Works

When you open a webpage, your browser follows several steps before anything appears. First, it performs a DNS lookup to find the server’s IP address. Then it sets up a TCP handshake to establish a stable connection. If the site uses HTTPS, an extra TLS negotiation secures the connection.

Only after these steps does the browser send the HTTP request. The server receives it, processes the logic, runs database queries if needed, and generates the response. The very first piece of that response is called the first byte.

TTFB measures the time from when the browser sends the request to when that first byte arrives. It reflects two things: network latency and server processing speed. If the network path is slow, TTFB rises. If the server code or database queries are inefficient, TTFB also increases.

To understand TTFB, think of it as three layers working together:

1. Network layer: DNS, TCP, and TLS.
2. Server layer: CPU, memory, and hosting setup.
3. Application layer: code execution and database speed.

If any one of these layers is slow, the user waits longer before the page can even begin rendering. That’s why businesses often ask experts to step in. At Pure Website Design, we work across all three layers. 

From optimizing WordPress databases to configuring servers and reducing latency. This way, our clients don’t just see better TTFB numbers, they see websites that load faster and feel smoother for every visitor.

How to Accurately Check Your Site’s TTFB

The fastest way to spot TTFB issues is by using trusted tools. Here are four that developers rely on every day.

GTmetrix

GTmetrix is one of the most popular tools for testing website speed. It not only shows your TTFB (Time To First Byte) but also gives you a full breakdown. It tells loading times, Core Web Vitals, and waterfall charts. The big advantage of GTmetrix is that it’s simple enough for beginners, but still detailed enough for developers who want in-depth reports.

Steps to Check TTFB with GTmetrix

1. Go to GTmetrix.com.
2. Enter your website URL in the search bar.
3. Choose a test location (closer to your users is best).
4. Click “Test your site.”
5. Wait for the report to generate.
6. Open the Waterfall tab and look at the very first request.
   • Under the Timing section, you’ll see TTFB.

Example from a GTmetrix report:

Request Start: 0 ms

Waiting (TTFB): 540 ms

Content Download: 25 ms

Here, the 540 ms shows how long it took for the first byte to arrive. Anything under 200 ms is excellent. Above 600 ms usually means the server or application needs optimization.

Pro Tip: At Pure Website Design, when we audit client sites with GTmetrix, we often find hidden problems like unnecessary redirects or heavy WordPress plugins slowing down TTFB. Fixing those usually brings the score from a “D” or “C” up to an “A.”

WebPageTest

WebPageTest is a powerful tool that goes deeper than most speed tests. It’s designed for developers who want to see exactly how a site loads under different conditions. 

One of its biggest advantages is geographic testing. You can test your site from servers all over the world, which shows you how TTFB changes for users in different locations. This is very useful if your website has a global audience.

Steps to Check TTFB with WebPageTest

1. Go to WebPageTest.org.
2. Enter your website URL in the search field.
3. Select a test location near your target audience.
4. Choose a browser (Chrome is the most common).
5. Click Start Test.
6. Once the results load, open the Waterfall view.
   • Look at the very first request to your server.
   • The TTFB value will be shown in milliseconds.

Example from a WebPageTest report:

DNS Lookup: 45 ms

Initial Connection (TCP): 85 ms

SSL Negotiation: 110 ms

Time to First Byte (TTFB): 720 ms

Here the TTFB is 720 ms, which is slower than ideal. It means the server took too long to respond after all the setup steps (DNS, TCP, TLS).

Pingdom

Pingdom is one of the most user-friendly tools for testing website speed. Unlike some advanced tools, it focuses on clarity. That makes it a good option for site owners who want quick answers without digging through complex charts. 

With Pingdom, you can check your site’s TTFB, overall loading time, and common problems like 404 error pages or long redirect chains.

Steps to Check TTFB with Pingdom

1. Go to tools.pingdom.com.
2. Enter your website URL in the test box.
3. Select a test server location.
4. Click Start Test.
5. Wait for the analysis to complete.
6. Scroll down to the Waterfall chart.
   • Look at the very first request line.
   • The Wait time (TTFB) is displayed there.

Example from a Pingdom report:

Wait (TTFB): 610 ms

Content Download: 30 ms

Total Load Time: 2.1 s

In this example, the TTFB is 610 ms, which means the server took over half a second to respond. While the total load time is 2.1 seconds, the TTFB alone already shows there’s a server-side delay.

KeyCDN’s Web Performance Tool

KeyCDN’s Web Performance Tool is a lightweight and straightforward way to test TTFB. It focuses on speed diagnostics rather than a full-page performance report. 

What makes it useful is that it shows you how quickly your server responds across different global locations. This helps identify if slow TTFB is caused by distance, poor hosting, or server misconfiguration.

Steps to Check TTFB with KeyCDN

1. Go to tools.keycdn.com/performance.
2. Enter your website URL in the box.
3. Click Test.
4. Wait for the results to appear.
5. Review the TTFB column across different cities.
   • Compare regions close to your server with regions far away.

Example from a KeyCDN test result:

London: TTFB 180 ms

New York: TTFB 350 ms

Sydney: TTFB 890 ms

Tokyo: TTFB 920 ms

Here, the site responds quickly in London but slowly in Sydney and Tokyo. This usually means the server is located in Europe and users far away are waiting longer.

What Makes TTFB Slow

A high TTFB usually means something is blocking or delaying the server’s response. The causes can be network issues, server limitations, or inefficient code running in the background.

Long Redirect Chains

A redirect happens when one URL points to another. For example, if www.site/a.com redirects to www.site/b.com, that’s one step before your browser even gets a response. 

One redirect isn’t a big deal, but if a page has multiple redirects chained together, every extra step adds more waiting time. 

By the time the final server responds, the user has already lost precious milliseconds just chasing URLs.

Connection and Network Issues (DNS, TCP, TLS)

Before a server can send back the first byte, your browser has to do some background work. It looks up the domain name (DNS), sets up a stable connection (TCP), and if the site uses HTTPS. It also secures the data with encryption (TLS). 

If any of these steps take too long (because of a slow DNS provider or a weak network route) TTFB instantly rises. 

Insufficient Server Resources

Servers are like computers. If yours has limited CPU power, low memory, or is overloaded with too many websites (which happens with cheap shared hosting), it struggles to respond quickly. 

Imagine running 20 heavy apps on an old laptop, everything slows down. That’s exactly what happens with servers under strain: every request takes longer, and TTFB goes up.

Slow Database Queries and Application Logic

When a website depends on a database, like WordPress does, the server has to fetch information before sending anything back. 

If the database is unoptimized or the queries are written poorly, the server wastes time digging for data. Add too many plugins, or use heavy drag-and-drop page builders, and the code takes even longer to execute. The result? A server that stalls before it can even deliver the first byte.

Geographical Latency (Server Location vs User Location)

The distance between your server and your visitor really matters. If your site is hosted in the U.S. but your users are in Asia, data has to travel thousands of miles across different networks before reaching them. That long trip adds delay to TTFB. 

This is why global sites rely on Content Delivery Networks (CDNs). A CDN stores copies of your site in multiple locations around the world, so users always connect to the nearest server instead of waiting for data from the other side of the planet.

8 Ways to Optimize Time to First Byte (TTFB)

Lowering TTFB means fixing delays in the network, server, or code. Here are eight practical steps to make your site respond faster.

Platform-Specific Guidance (WordPress, Magento, Shopify, etc.)

Every platform handles websites differently, and that directly affects TTFB. Knowing the common issues with your platform helps you target fixes more effectively.

WordPress: WordPress is the most popular CMS, but it often suffers from slow TTFB because of plugins, themes, and database queries. Many drag-and-drop builders add extra layers of code, which delays the first byte. To fix this, it helps to:

• Limit unnecessary plugins.
• Use a caching plugin to store pre-built pages.
• Optimize the database with tools like WP-Optimize.
• Choose hosting that’s tailored for WordPress.

Magento: Magento is powerful for eCommerce, but it’s heavy by nature. Complex product catalogs and custom modules slow down the server response. Businesses using Magento should:

• Enable full-page caching.
• Use Varnish or Redis to cut down database lookups.
• Make sure the server has strong CPU and memory resources.
• Consider a CDN if selling to global customers.

Shopify: Shopify is hosted, so you don’t control the server directly. That means Shopify generally has good TTFB out of the box, but custom apps or heavy themes can slow things down. To optimize, you can:

• Remove unused apps.
• Use lightweight themes.
• Optimize images and media.
• Leverage Shopify’s built-in CDN for global speed.

Other Platforms:  Platforms like Joomla, Drupal, or custom PHP frameworks have their own challenges. The key idea is the same: cut down on heavy code, improve caching, and use the right hosting setup for your traffic and location.

Pro Tip: At Pure Website Design, we look at the platform first before recommending fixes. For example, a WordPress site may need database cleanup, while a Magento store might need advanced caching like Varnish. Platform-specific tuning often cuts TTFB by half or more.

Choose High-Performance Hosting

Your hosting is the base of your website speed. If the server is slow or overloaded, your site will always respond late. Shared hosting is often the problem because too many websites compete for the same CPU and memory.

Upgrading to high performance hosting gives your site stronger resources. More CPU, more RAM, and SSD storage allow the server to handle requests faster. SSD drives are especially useful because they fetch data much quicker than old hard drives.

If you have visitors from different parts of the world, choose a host with multiple data centers or built in CDN. This way users connect to the nearest server instead of waiting for data to travel long distances.

Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN)

A CDN makes your website faster by bringing your content closer to the user. Instead of loading everything from your main server, it stores copies of your site on many servers around the world. 

When someone visits, the CDN delivers the page from the nearest location. This reduces travel time and improves TTFB.

• Sends data from the closest server, so users see faster loading
• Takes pressure off your main hosting server, keeping it stable
• Helps prevent delays that cause 404 error pages when servers are overloaded
• Works very well for WordPress multisite users with visitors from different regions
• Improves speed for mobile friendly web design where quick response is critical

Enable and Optimize Caching (Server, Page, Object)

Caching makes your site faster by saving ready-made versions of pages. Instead of running heavy database queries every time, the server can send the cached copy immediately. 

This reduces work on the server and improves TTFB.

• Server caching keeps responses at the server level, so repeated requests load faster
• Page caching stores entire pages, which avoids regenerating the same content again and again
• Object caching saves database query results, so WordPress does not have to fetch the same data repeatedly
• Useful for sites using Gutenberg in WordPress or drag and drop WordPress builders where code is heavier
• Greatly reduces stress on the server, especially during high traffic

Optimize Server Configuration and Protocols (HTTP/2, HTTP/3, Keep-Alive, Compression)

Using modern protocols speeds up communication. For example, HTTP/2 allows multiple requests to be sent at once, reducing waiting time.

Optimize Server-Side Rendering (Efficient HTML Generation)

Server-side rendering means the server builds the HTML of a page before sending it to the browser. If this process is slow, the first byte is delayed. 

By cleaning up slow themes and heavy plugins in WordPress, the server can generate HTML much faster and reduce TTFB.

• Keep themes light and remove unnecessary code
• Avoid plugins that add too many database queries
• Use native grid in WordPress instead of bulky layout builders
• Optimize PHP code so pages render with less delay

Example of clean HTML output:

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html lang=”en”>

<head>

  <meta charset=”UTF-8″>

  <title>Fast Page</title>

</head>

<body>

  <h1>Welcome to My Site</h1>

  <p>This page is optimized for faster server-side rendering.</p>

</body>

</html>

Clean and minimal HTML like this reaches the browser faster than bloated code filled with unnecessary scripts.

Reduce Third-Party API Delays

Every time your site connects to an outside API, it must wait for that service to respond. If the API is slow, your page cannot send the first byte until the data comes back. Fewer external calls mean faster TTFB.

• Remove unnecessary API calls that are not critical for loading the page
• Use caching to store API results so you don’t request the same data again and again
• Run non-essential API requests after the page has loaded, not before

Example in PHP (slow vs. optimized): 

Slow (waiting for API before loading):

$response = file_get_contents(“https://api.example.com/data”);

echo $response; // Page waits until API responds

Optimized (cache or load later):

$cache = get_transient(‘api_data’);

if (!$cache) {

    $cache = file_get_contents(“https://api.example.com/data”);

    set_transient(‘api_data’, $cache, 3600); // Store for 1 hour

}

echo $cache; // Page loads faster using cached data

By caching API results or delaying them until after the first byte, you cut down waiting time and keep TTFB low.

Quick Ways to Improve TTFB

Sometimes small changes can make a big difference in server response time. Here are three quick actions you can take right away:

• Switch to a faster hosting provider with more CPU and memory
• Use a CDN with edge caching to serve content closer to your visitors
• Enable caching plugins or set up caching at the server level

If these steps feel overwhelming, you do not have to handle them alone. At Pure Website Design, we not only guide you but also apply the fixes directly. 

This is why Pure Website Design is the right choice for businesses that want faster, smoother websites without the technical hassle.

FAQs

Conclusion

TTFB is a critical part of website performance. A slow first response makes your site feel sluggish, no matter how beautiful your design is. By understanding how it works, measuring it with the right tools, and applying proven fixes, you can speed up your site for every visitor. 

Whether you run a simple blog or a WordPress multisite, the principles remain the same: better hosting, smarter caching, and optimized code. If you still struggle, Pure Website Design has the expertise to make your site fast, reliable, and ready for your audience.