How to Run a Lighthouse Audit

Learn how to run Lighthouse audits using Chrome DevTools, CLI, and CI/CD pipelines. Understand scores, metrics, and actionable recommendations.

lighthouseperformanceauditing

What is Lighthouse?

Lighthouse is Google's open-source tool for auditing web page quality. It measures Performance, Accessibility, Best Practices, SEO, and PWA compliance.

Ways to Run Lighthouse

  • Chrome DevTools - Built into Chrome, access via F12 > Lighthouse tab
  • PageSpeed Insights - Web-based tool at pagespeed.web.dev
  • Lighthouse CLI - npm install -g lighthouse for command-line usage
  • CI/CD Integration - Use lighthouse-ci for automated testing

Understanding Lighthouse Scores

Lighthouse scores range from 0-100. Scores 90-100 are good (green), 50-89 need improvement (orange), and 0-49 are poor (red). Focus on metrics weighted heavily in the Performance score.

Frequently Asked Questions

Scores vary due to network conditions, CPU load, and browser state. Run multiple times and use the median, or use consistent conditions with CI/CD.
A perfect 100 isn't always necessary or realistic. Focus on Core Web Vitals passing thresholds and fixing high-impact issues.

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