Why the hell is my site fast in Framer but garbage when live?

The preview runs on Framer's servers with perfect conditions. Your published site runs on users' devices with shitty internet, old phones, and 47 browser tabs open. The React overhead that's invisible in preview becomes a 6-second loading screen on a 2019 Android phone with 2GB RAM.

Can I fix the PageSpeed score without rebuilding everything?

Maybe, but it's like performing surgery with a butter knife. I spent 20+ hours getting one site from 23 to 67 on mobile PageSpeed - still failing Google's tests, but at least it doesn't make users want to throw their phones.

What's causing the "Hydration failed" errors on mobile?

React hydration breaks when the server-rendered HTML doesn't match client-side rendering. Usually happens because Framer's JavaScript calculates layout differently on mobile. The error means your users see broken layouts or white screens. Fix: disable server-side rendering in Framer settings, but this makes loading even slower.

Why do animations stutter on mobile but work fine on desktop?

Mobile GPUs are garbage compared to your MacBook. Every scroll-triggered animation forces the phone's CPU to recalculate positions 60 times per second. After 3-4 animations running simultaneously, mobile browsers give up and start dropping frames. Solution: reduce animations by 70% or accept that mobile users get a slideshow.

Is the 530KB JavaScript bundle normal for a 5-page site?

Fuck no, but it's standard for Framer. A well-optimized 5-page site should be ~200KB total including images. Framer loads the entire React ecosystem whether you need it or not. Plus Framer Motion, plus utilities, plus tracking. Your content is maybe 10% of the bundle size.

Can I remove Framer's automatic scripts to improve performance?

Not without breaking core functionality. The scripts handle routing, animations, image optimization, and form processing. Remove them and your site breaks. You can disable some tracking and analytics features, but the big performance killers are baked into the platform. This is why developers recommend rebuilding from scratch.

Why does my site crash mobile browsers after multiple page visits?

Memory leaks. Framer sites don't properly clean up JavaScript event listeners and React components. Each page visit uses more memory, and mobile browsers have strict limits. After 5-10 page visits, available memory runs out and the browser crashes or reloads. I've seen sites leak 50MB per page visit.

What's a realistic PageSpeed score for a Framer site?

**Desktop:** 70-90 if you're careful with animations **Mobile:** 30-60 is typical, 70+ requires major sacrifices **With lots of animations:** Expect 20-40 mobile, game over for Core Web Vitals If your business depends on SEO or mobile conversions, these scores will hurt. Google penalizes slow sites, and users bounce at 3+ second load times.

Can I host a Framer export on faster servers?

Technically yes, but the performance problems come from the JavaScript bundle size and complexity, not hosting speed. Moving from Framer's CDN to Vercel or Netlify might save 200-300ms, but you still have the 2MB React bundle to parse. The improvements are minimal unless you completely rewrite the code.

Is there any way to salvage a slow Framer site without starting over?

**Quick wins (might help 10-20%):** - Remove half the animations - Compress all images manually - Disable unnecessary Framer features - Use system fonts instead of web fonts **Nuclear option (50-80% improvement):** Hire a developer to extract your content and rebuild with clean HTML/CSS/JS. Costs $3,000-8,000 but actually solves the problem. Most clients end up here after months of fighting performance issues.

Should I warn clients about performance issues before using Framer?

Absolutely. Set expectations: Framer sites look amazing but perform poorly on mobile. If they need fast loading times, high mobile conversion rates, or top SEO scores, suggest custom development instead. I learned this the hard way after three client projects became performance disasters.

Why do all the Framer 'experts' have perfect PageSpeed scores in their portfolios?

Because they test on desktop and use iPhone 14 Pros. Try their sites on a 3-year-old Android with 2GB RAM and watch the magic disappear. Half these "experts" have never seen their sites perform on real user devices.

What's the fastest way to test real-world performance?

Use an old Android phone on 3G. If the site is usable, you're golden. If it takes 10+ seconds to load or animations stutter, your users are having a shit experience. PageSpeed Insights mobile scores correlate with real-world performance about 80% of the time.

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Framer Performance Optimization Guide - AI-Optimized Reference

Critical Performance Problems

The React Bundle Problem

Failure Point: Framer exports create 2MB JavaScript bundles for simple 5-page sites
Impact: 6-second load times vs 0.8 seconds for hand-coded equivalent
Root Cause: Every Framer site exports as React app with massive overhead
Real Example: Client business site exported as 1.8MB JavaScript, hand-coded equivalent: 200KB total

JavaScript Bundle Breakdown (530KB minimum)

React runtime: 45KB
Framer Motion: 85KB
Framer utilities: 120KB
Actual content: 30KB
Additional overhead: 250KB

Mobile Performance Failures

Breaking Point: Samsung Galaxy A13 (30% mobile market) - stuttering animations, 95% CPU usage
Memory Leak: Sites crash mobile browsers after 5-10 page visits
Hydration Errors: Server-rendered HTML doesn't match client-side rendering on mobile

Configuration Settings for Emergency Fixes

Immediate Impact Changes (20-30% improvement)

Disable "Preload all pages" in Project Settings → Performance
Turn off "Prefetch links"
Disable "Smooth scrolling" (major mobile performance killer)
Remove animations that aren't critical to message

Animation Limits That Work

Maximum: 3 animations visible simultaneously
Mobile: No scroll-triggered animations (CSS transforms only)
Hover States: Disabled on touch devices
Parallax: Remove entirely below 768px width

Core Web Vitals Targets and Solutions

Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) - Target: Under 2.5s

Problem: Framer's image optimization adds 4.2s vs 0.6s for proper HTML
Solution: Move hero image above fold, remove overlay animations, use system fonts

Interaction to Next Paint (INP) - Target: Under 200ms

Problem: JavaScript blocks user input processing
Solution: Disable JavaScript on page load, remove hover effects on primary buttons

Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) - Target: Under 0.1

Problem: Dynamic content injection causes layout jumps
Solution: Set explicit image/video dimensions, reserve space for dynamic content

Resource Requirements and Costs

Optimization Approach Comparison

Method	Time	Skill Level	Performance Gain	Cost	Long-term Viability
Settings Tweaks	2-3 hours	Framer user	20-30%	Free	Temporary
Animation Reduction	1-2 days	Design knowledge	30-40%	Free	Good for simple sites
Image Optimization	3-5 hours	Basic tools	25-35%	$0-50	Essential maintenance
Professional Export Fix	2-4 weeks	Hire developer	60-80%	$3,000-8,000	Long-term solution
Complete Rebuild	4-8 weeks	Full dev team	70-90%	$8,000-25,000	Future-proof

Critical Warnings

Memory Leaks

Cause: Animation listeners don't clean up properly, React components stay in memory
Impact: Browser crashes after 8 page visits on iPhone 12
Detection: Memory climbs from 200-300MB to 950MB before crash

Real Performance Scores

Desktop: 70-90 achievable with careful animation use
Mobile: 30-60 typical, 70+ requires major sacrifices
With Heavy Animations: 20-40 mobile, fails Core Web Vitals entirely

Hidden Gotchas

Preview performance doesn't reflect published site reality
Exported code is unoptimizable without complete rewrite
CDN outages break image loading completely
Font loading system worse than WordPress 2015

Immediate Emergency Fixes

Image Crisis Response

Replace all images over 500KB with TinyPNG compressed versions
Hero images: 1200px max, under 200KB
Content images: 800px max, under 100KB
Use loading="lazy" below fold

JavaScript Reduction

Remove unused component variants
Delete imported but unused components
Eliminate third-party scripts (keep only Google Analytics)
Replace Google Fonts with manual asset uploads

Testing and Monitoring

Essential Tools

PageSpeed Insights: Mobile scores matter most, run 3-5 times for accuracy
WebPageTest: Use "Mobile - Chrome" with "3G Fast" for realistic testing
Chrome DevTools Performance: Memory usage must stabilize, not continuously climb
Real Device Testing: Samsung Galaxy A13 or budget Android for worst-case scenarios

Warning Thresholds

Mobile PageSpeed below 50: Emergency intervention needed
Average load time above 4 seconds: User experience failing
Bounce rate above 70%: Performance likely causing losses
Memory usage climbing continuously: Browser crash imminent

Professional Intervention Points

When to Hire Developer ($3,000-8,000)

Mobile PageSpeed consistently below 40
High bounce rates directly correlating with slow performance
Revenue tied to site performance and SEO rankings
Client complaints about "random crashes" or slow loading

Developer Tasks

Replace React components with vanilla JavaScript
Optimize CSS (remove unused classes, inline styles)
Implement proper lazy loading and caching
Rebuild animations with Web Animations API

Operational Intelligence

Client Communication

Before Project: Warn that Framer looks amazing but performs poorly on mobile
During Development: Test every change on mobile before publishing
After Launch: Plan for professional rebuild within 6-12 months if performance critical

Reality Check

Most Framer "success stories" tested on flagship phones with perfect networks
Framer makes beautiful sites that perform terribly by default
Quick fixes help but don't solve fundamental React overhead problem
Client who understands limitations upfront is happier than one discovering post-launch

Common Failure Patterns

Assuming desktop performance translates to mobile
Loading 47 scroll triggers and wondering why mobile crashes
Trusting Framer's auto-optimization over manual compression
Testing only on high-end devices during development

Useful Links for Further Investigation

Performance Testing & Debug Tools That Actually Work

Link	Description
PageSpeed Insights	The gold standard for mobile performance testing. Ignore the desktop score - mobile is what matters for Framer sites. Run tests 3-5 times and average the results, scores fluctuate ±5 points randomly.
WebPageTest	More detailed than PageSpeed. Use "Mobile - Chrome" and "3G Fast" connection for realistic testing. The waterfall chart shows exactly which scripts are killing your load times.
GTmetrix	Best for tracking performance over time. Free tier gives you monthly monitoring alerts when your scores drop. Set alerts for PageSpeed scores below 50.
Chrome DevTools Performance Tab	Essential for finding memory leaks and JavaScript bottlenecks. Record 30 seconds of site navigation - memory usage should stabilize, not keep climbing.
Framer Performance Settings Guide	Official documentation that's actually useful. Shows which settings impact performance most. The "Preload pages" setting alone can save 2-3 seconds on mobile.
Motion Performance Guide	Critical reading if your site uses animations. Explains why `transform` properties perform better than `left/top` positioning. Most Framer users ignore this and wonder why animations stutter.
React Profiler Extension	Shows which React components are re-rendering unnecessarily. Essential for debugging exported Framer sites with custom code. Install before you need it.
TinyPNG	Compress images before uploading to Framer. Their auto-optimization often makes files larger, not smaller. Batch compression saves hours on multi-page sites.
Squoosh	Google's web-based image compressor. Better control over quality vs file size tradeoffs. Use WebP format when possible - 30-50% smaller than JPEG with same quality.
ImageOptim	Mac app for batch image compression. Drag 50 images, get optimized versions in seconds. Essential workflow tool for agency work.
BrowserStack	Test your site on real mobile devices remotely. Free tier includes 30 minutes monthly. Essential for testing performance on budget Android phones where Framer sites struggle most.
LambdaTest	Similar to BrowserStack with better free tier. Use Samsung Galaxy A13 or equivalent budget Android for worst-case performance testing.
Pingdom	Monitors site uptime and basic performance. Alerts you when load times spike above your threshold. Free tier monitors 1 site with basic alerting.
UptimeRobot	Free uptime monitoring with email/SMS alerts. Catches Framer CDN outages before your clients complain. Monitor key pages, not just homepage.
Google Search Console	Core Web Vitals reports show real user performance data. More accurate than synthetic testing for understanding actual user experience.
Lighthouse CLI	Command-line performance testing. Automate daily performance checks and get alerts when scores drop. Useful for ongoing monitoring after optimization.
Webpack Bundle Analyzer	Shows exactly how much garbage Framer stuffed into your JavaScript bundle. Prepare to be horrified.
React DevTools Profiler	Identifies performance bottlenecks in React components. Critical for debugging memory leaks and unnecessary re-renders in exported Framer code.
XHTMLTEAM Framer Optimization	Specializes in converting Framer sites to clean HTML. Realistic pricing ($1,500-5,000), decent turnaround times. They understand Framer-specific performance issues.
Framer Experts	Official Framer partner directory. Quality varies wildly - some are just designers, others understand performance optimization. Ask for PageSpeed improvement examples before hiring.
Web.dev Performance	Google's performance optimization course. Comprehensive but practical. The Core Web Vitals section explains why your Framer site fails Google's tests.
MDN Performance	Technical but thorough. Better for understanding why performance problems happen, not just how to fix symptoms.
Motion Bundle Size Optimization	Essential reading for animation-heavy sites. Shows how to reduce Motion's bundle size through tree shaking and selective imports to improve loading times.
Framer Community	Mixed quality discussions. Search for "performance" or "slow" to find others with similar issues. Lots of basic questions, occasional useful optimization tips.
Stack Overflow - React Performance	Better technical discussions about React and mobile performance. Real developer Q&A about JavaScript framework performance with concrete optimization solutions.
Web Vitals Extension	Shows Core Web Vitals scores while browsing your site. Essential for real-time performance monitoring during optimization work.
Lighthouse Extension	Run PageSpeed tests directly from browser toolbar. Faster than web interface for frequent testing during optimization iterations.

Framer Performance Optimization Guide - AI-Optimized Reference

Critical Performance Problems

The React Bundle Problem

JavaScript Bundle Breakdown (530KB minimum)

Mobile Performance Failures

Configuration Settings for Emergency Fixes

Immediate Impact Changes (20-30% improvement)

Animation Limits That Work

Core Web Vitals Targets and Solutions

Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) - Target: Under 2.5s

Interaction to Next Paint (INP) - Target: Under 200ms

Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) - Target: Under 0.1

Resource Requirements and Costs

Optimization Approach Comparison

Critical Warnings

Memory Leaks

Real Performance Scores

Hidden Gotchas

Immediate Emergency Fixes

Image Crisis Response

JavaScript Reduction

Testing and Monitoring

Essential Tools

Warning Thresholds

Professional Intervention Points

When to Hire Developer ($3,000-8,000)

Developer Tasks

Operational Intelligence

Client Communication

Reality Check

Common Failure Patterns

Useful Links for Further Investigation

Performance Testing & Debug Tools That Actually Work

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