Excellent Plugin! But Be Warned…

Great to know that there is now a plugin to async Google fonts instead of having to monkey around in code to get that done. Very convenient.

That said, this plugin may or may not raise one’s PageSpeed score, might actually make it worse, and may or may not remove the render blocking warning for the Google font being used. This, however, is not a problem with the plugin but one of many bugs with Google PageSpeed Insights. (As an aside, Google PageSpeed Insights is a Best Practices tool, not a Best Performance tool.)

Also, when using the JavaScript loader option, the duration of the FOUT (flash of unstyled text) from empty cache pageload to empty cache pageload will vary anywhere from non-existent to very noticeable. This, too, is not the plugin’s fault but Google’s, in that one is dependent on how quickly Google is able to deliver the font file once the HTTP request for it is made.

I should also note that the FOUT is seen only on the initial page load since the font is subsequently cached in one’s browser; point being that the initial FOUT is worth the benefits the plugin brings to UX.

One will ultimately have to decide the extent to which the first-pageload-FOUT bothers them, but what I can promise is that 99.9% of your website’s users couldn’t care less — they just see a (potentially) super-fast loading website. The ultimate upside to the plugin is that one’s start-render and first-paint times are greatly improved (i.e. content is delivered quicker), regardless of what PSI may or may not indicate. Download and give ‘er a go. ??

Best,
AJ