How to Speed Up a Divi Website? My Performance Optimization Strategies (2026)

Do you want to speed up Divi website? Getting the same advice repeatedly, like optimize images, install a cache plugin, and use a CDN? These recommendations can help, but you still need to do a lot to make your Divi-built site fast. 

I have been using popular WordPress themes to build, optimize and manage WordPress sites since 2010. From my decade of design experience, I found that Divi itself isn’t the problem. Inefficient hosting and outdated optimization techniques are responsible for slow-loading sites.

In this guide, I’ll tell you how to improve Divi performance, reduce page load times, and achieve better Core Web Vitals scores without sacrificing design flexibility. Before getting into the discussion, let me tell you why Divi sites are slow!

Disclosure: We get a commission when you buy a product via our affiliate link at no additional cost.

Why Are Divi Websites Slow?

Divi has evolved a lot! It prioritizes design flexibility over lightweight code output. The ability to create virtually any layout without coding comes at the cost of additional CSS, JavaScript, and HTML elements.

We should not blame Divi for poor performance when there are real causes like unreliable hosting service, excessive plugins, oversized media files, and poorly configured optimization settings.

Common Performance Bottlenecks

A Divi website can perform exceptionally well when you address these issues with the right sources. Simply, I can tell you that the entire performance ecosystem should be optimized rather than focusing on a single speed tactic.

Understanding Core Web Vitals Before Optimizing Divi

Before making changes, you should understand the core web vitals metrics that Google uses to evaluate website performance.

I came across many Divi websites that struggle with LCP and INP due to large CSS files, unused JavaScript, and poor server response times. Also, it has issues with:

• Large CSS files
• Multiple JavaScript libraries
• Heavy hero sections
• Unoptimized font loading
• Third-party integrations

If you fix these issues, you will get better rankings, lower bounce rates, and an improved user experience.

12 Essential Steps To Make Your Divi Built Site Faster

Step 1: Choose Performance-Focused Hosting

When you choose a reliable hosting, you never need to worry about server response time. The Time to First Byte (TTFB) will never exceed 1s, and other optimizations will also be applied.

Look for hosting that provides:

• NVMe SSD storage
• PHP 8.3+
• HTTP/3 support
• LiteSpeed or NGINX servers
• Object caching
• Redis support
• Built-in server caching

Step 2: Enable Divi Performance Settings

You should utilize Divi’s built-in performance features.

Go to: Divi → Theme Options → Performance

Enable:

• Dynamic CSS
• Dynamic Icons
• Dynamic JavaScript Libraries
• Critical CSS
• Defer jQuery and jQuery Migrate
• Dynamic Module Framework

• Functions like “Dynamic Module Framework and Dynamic Icons” ensure only the required functions and icons load on the page. Also, the “Dynamic CSS” function reduces the CSS file to increase the speed.
• With “Critical CSS” settings, you’ll allow Divi to load only the critical CSS files on the first interaction. The “Critical Threshold Height” parameter determines the “above-the-fold threshold” for deferring styles. By selecting the Threshold height, balance the load times. 
• The “Dynamic JavaScript” options control when JavaScript libraries need to be loaded. You can also enable the “Disable WordPress Emojis” option to remove native WordPress native emojis.
•  The “Defer Gutenberg Block CSS” option delays the Gutenberg Block CSS file, and the “Defer jQuery and jQuery Migrate” feature reposition the jQuery and jQuery Migrate scripts to improve website load.
• Enable the “Improve Google Fonts Loading” and “Limit Google Fonts Support For Legacy Browsers” functions to optimize the loading process of Google Fonts on a website and to optimize the size and load times of Google Fonts.

These settings significantly reduce the number of unnecessary assets loaded on each page.

Why Should You Care About Dynamic CSS?

Instead of loading a large stylesheet across every page, Divi generates only the CSS needed for the modules in use.

Benefits:

• Reduced CSS size
• Fast rendering
• Improved Core Web Vitals
• Better mobile performance

Step 3: Remove Unused CSS

Unused CSS is one of the biggest reasons Divi pages score poorly in PageSpeed Insights. Every unnecessary stylesheet increases Download size, render-blocking resources and Browser processing time. 

Even though visitors may only use a fraction of a page’s styling, browsers still need to download and process the entire stylesheet unless optimization tools remove unused rules.

Benefits of Removing Unused CSS

• Smaller page size
• Faster rendering
• Improved LCP scores
• Better mobile performance

I’m suggesting you use a well-performing performance plugin like FlyingPress, Perfmatters or WP Rocket to get these things fixed. 

Step 4: Delay Non-Essential JavaScript

On Divi websites, JavaScript execution is the biggest cause of slow page loads. Even if your page content loads quickly, the browser may still be busy processing scripts in the background due to delayed interactivity.

Many third-party tools add JavaScript that isn’t required for visitors to view your content immediately. Some common examples like 

• Live chat widgets
• Analytics and tracking tools
• Facebook Pixel and marketing scripts
• Popup and lead generation software
• Social media feeds and embeds
• Heatmaps and visitor recording tools

By default, these scripts load as soon as the page opens, competing with essential resources for browser processing time. So, you should prioritize loading only the elements visitors need right away:

• Above-the-fold content
• Navigation menus
• Hero sections
• Critical styling and functionality

Non-essential scripts can be delayed until after the page finishes loading, after a short timeout, or until a user interacts with your page.

The WordPress performance plugins offer script-delay features that automatically defer non-essential JavaScript until user interaction. When configured correctly, this can produce some of the biggest speed improvements on Divi websites.

Step 5: Optimize Fonts Properly

To speed up your Divi website, you should focus on font optimization! Yes, A leaner font setup means fewer requests, faster rendering, and better Core Web Vitals scores.

Many websites load multiple font families, unnecessary font weights, and external font requests, which slow page rendering.

Host Fonts Locally – Avoid loading fonts from external sources whenever possible. Local hosting reduces external requests and can improve loading speed.

Preload Critical Fonts – Preload fonts used in headings, navigation, and above-the-fold content. This helps text appear faster and reduces layout shifts.

Limit Font Variations – Each font weight requires a separate file. Instead of loading weights like 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, and 800, only load the weights your design actually uses like 400 (Regular) and 700 (Bold).

Step 6: Reduce Divi DOM Size

One of Divi’s hidden performance issues is excessive nesting. Its flexible layout system can create an overly complex page structure. 

Every section, row, column, and module adds more elements to the page’s DOM (Document Object Model), which the browser must process and render.

A common Divi layout might look like:

Section → Row → Column → Module → Nested Module → Additional Containers

When this structure is repeated several times, the page becomes heavier and slower to render.

A large DOM can negatively impact:

• Interaction to Next Paint (INP)
• Page rendering speed
• Mobile performance
• Overall user experience

Make sure to review your pages regularly and remove unnecessary sections, rows, columns, and modules. If possible, combine elements and simplify layouts. A cleaner page structure reduces browser workload and often delivers better performance than heavily nested designs.

Step 7 – Optimize Divi for Mobile Performance

Common mobile performance issues on Divi sites include oversized images, excessive animations, heavy sliders, large font files, and complex hero sections that require significant processing power.

To improve mobile performance:

Disable unnecessary animations: Scroll effects, hover effects, and entrance animations can create extra work for mobile devices.

Minimize mobile-specific assets: Only load images, videos, and scripts that are essential for mobile users.

Simplify layouts: Reduce excessive sections, modules, and design elements to create a lighter page structure.

Reduce script execution: Delay or remove non-essential JavaScript so the browser can render and respond to user interactions more quickly.

A streamlined mobile experience leads to faster load times, better Core Web Vitals scores, and a smoother browsing experience for visitors on smartphones and tablets.

Other Simple Steps For Divi Speed Optimization

Step 8 – Optimize Your Images

Step 9 – Use Object Caching With Redis

Step 10 – Implement A CDN Correctly

Step 11 – Audit Third-Party Scripts

Step 12 – Regular Database Cleanup

My Recommended Divi Optimization Stack

I recommend the following speed sources for your Divi site!

Final Thoughts

After working with several WordPress themes for more than 10 years and optimizing sites built on major theme frameworks, I’ve found that Divi can perform well when you configured correctly.

The biggest mistake website owners make is focusing on a single optimization tactic and ignoring the broader performance ecosystem.

When hosting, caching, asset optimization, image delivery, and design decisions work together, Divi can compete with the most lightweight WordPress setups.

Treat performance as an ongoing process rather than a one-time task, and your Divi website will remain fast, user-friendly, and search engine-friendly for years to come.

Speed Up Divi Website – FAQs

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