The typical LCP image ships 101.4 KB over the wire

1

At a glance the headline numbers for LCP image size

The LCP element: transfer size and natural / rendered pixel size.

101.4 KB

transfer size

on the typical page

0.2 MP

file pixels

on the typical page

0.1 MP

displayed pixels

on the typical page

107,873

sites measured

desktop field data

The typical LCP image ships 101.4 KB over the wire. It carries 0.2 MP for 0.1 MP actually shown.

The State of Web Vitals · Q2 2026 · 189,915 sites · desktop field datacorewebvitals.io/state-of-cwv

2

Distribution & median LCP site count and median LCP at each level of LCP image size — bytes

0ms 750ms 1500ms 2250ms 3000ms

2.5s

0 12556 25112

300–737 738–1810 1811–4448 4449–10926 10927–26840 26841–65934 65935–161973 161974–397901 397902–977476 977477–2401253 >p98

Good (≤2.5s) Needs improvement Poor (>4s) Site count

The State of Web Vitals · Q2 2026 · 189,915 sites · desktop field datacorewebvitals.io/state-of-cwv

3

Passing LCP by LCP image size — bytes which level passes the LCP most often

LCP image size — bytesSitesPassing LCPLCP

300–737 1,099 83% 1.6s

738–1810 657 85% 1.3s

1811–4448 1,439 83% 1.4s

4449–10926 3,947 86% 1.3s

10927–26840 11,569 88% 1.3s

26841–65934 22,158 88% 1.3s

65935–161973 25,112 87% 1.4s

161974–397901 21,309 85% 1.4s

397902–977476 13,473 85% 1.4s

977477–2401253 4,952 85% 1.5s

>p98 2,158 81% 1.6s

Good Needs Improvement Poor Faded rows: under 100 sites

LCP image size — bytes 101.4 KB. p75 290.5 KB. p99 3.4 MB. At the low end (300–737): LCP 1.6s. At the high end (>p98): LCP 1.6s. computed

The State of Web Vitals · Q2 2026 · 189,915 sites · desktop field datacorewebvitals.io/state-of-cwv

4

Distribution & median LCP site count and median LCP at each level of LCP image size — natural mp

0ms 750ms 1500ms 2250ms 3000ms

2.5s

0 9610 19220

0 0.001–0.002 0.002–0.005 0.005–0.012 0.012–0.029 0.029–0.066 0.066–0.153 0.153–0.355 0.355–0.822 0.822–1.9 1.9–4.4 >p98

Good (≤2.5s) Needs improvement Poor (>4s) Site count

The State of Web Vitals · Q2 2026 · 189,915 sites · desktop field datacorewebvitals.io/state-of-cwv

5

Passing LCP by LCP image size — natural mp which level passes the LCP most often

LCP image size — natural mpSitesPassing LCPLCP

0 150 100% 1.5s

0.001–0.002 34 82% 1.2s

0.002–0.005 168 78% 1.5s

0.005–0.012 425 80% 1.6s

0.012–0.029 1,865 82% 1.4s

0.029–0.066 5,454 87% 1.3s

0.066–0.153 19,220 89% 1.3s

0.153–0.355 18,862 89% 1.4s

0.355–0.822 12,346 88% 1.4s

0.822–1.9 9,252 87% 1.4s

1.9–4.4 5,000 87% 1.4s

>p98 1,483 87% 1.5s

Good Needs Improvement Poor Faded rows: under 100 sites

LCP image size — natural mp 0.2 MP. p75 0.7 MP. p99 7.8 MP. At the low end (0): LCP 1.5s. At the high end (>p98): LCP 1.5s. computed

The State of Web Vitals · Q2 2026 · 189,915 sites · desktop field datacorewebvitals.io/state-of-cwv

6

Distribution & median LCP site count and median LCP at each level of LCP image size — rendered mp

0ms 750ms 1500ms 2250ms 3000ms

2.5s

0 12929 25857

0 0.001–0.002 0.002–0.004 0.004–0.007 0.007–0.014 0.014–0.026 0.026–0.051 0.051–0.098 0.098–0.188 0.188–0.362 0.362–0.696 >p98

Good (≤2.5s) Needs improvement Poor (>4s) Site count

The State of Web Vitals · Q2 2026 · 189,915 sites · desktop field datacorewebvitals.io/state-of-cwv

7

Passing LCP by LCP image size — rendered mp which level passes the LCP most often

LCP image size — rendered mpSitesPassing LCPLCP

0 14 92% 1.5s

0.001–0.002 24 83% 1.6s

0.002–0.004 192 76% 1.7s

0.004–0.007 761 73% 1.6s

0.007–0.014 999 78% 1.6s

0.014–0.026 2,277 81% 1.4s

0.026–0.051 5,005 86% 1.3s

0.051–0.098 20,230 88% 1.3s

0.098–0.188 25,857 89% 1.4s

0.188–0.362 15,506 90% 1.4s

0.362–0.696 2,148 89% 1.3s

>p98 1,492 86% 1.5s

Good Needs Improvement Poor Faded rows: under 100 sites

LCP image size — rendered mp 0.1 MP. p75 0.2 MP. p99 1.0 MP. At the low end (0): LCP 1.5s. At the high end (>p98): LCP 1.5s. computed

The State of Web Vitals · Q2 2026 · 189,915 sites · desktop field datacorewebvitals.io/state-of-cwv

8

Why this matters for the Core Web Vitals, and where to start fixing it

Three numbers describe the LCP image: the bytes over the wire, the pixels in the file, and the pixels actually shown. The gap between the last two is pure waste. An image with far more natural pixels than rendered pixels shipped resolution nobody saw, and the extra bytes stretched the load time.

Right-size first, then compress, then pick the format. Resizing the image to what is displayed saves more than recompressing a wrong-sized original ever will.

How does the weight of the LCP image affect the LCP?

LCP image size correlates with the LCP. Displayed pixels separates passing sites from failing sites the most. Where the displayed pixels is low, 73% of sites pass the LCP. Where it is high, 86% do. The rise is gradual.

Go fix it Optimize the LCP image → LCP: resource load duration → Optimize images for Core Web Vitals →