Google’s emphasis on mobile page speed will hit CNN, WSJ and other top sites

Google has been using page speed to rank sites for desktop search results, and now it’s getting ready to do the same for mobile. In a blog post published Jan. 17, it said that starting in July, page speed will be a ranking factor for mobile searches. Google said the “Speed Update,” as it’s called, will affect pages that deliver the slowest experience to users and will only affect a small percentage of queries.
We decided to see how the top publishers’ sites perform on mobile, using Google’s own speed test. (This list is based on the comScore 200; in cases where the parent company is listed, we used the biggest or flagship site.) A few observations: The sites that ranked fast aren’t all digital natives, and some of the sites that get hyped as tech-forward don’t deliver, at least when it comes to speed. And size isn’t always an advantage: The slowest sites included CNN, MailOnline and The Wall Street Journal.
Publisher | Mobile speed |
---|---|
The Atlantic | fast |
Better Homes & Gardens | fast |
Business Insider | fast |
Bustle | fast |
Cosmopolitan | fast |
Diply | fast |
ESPN | fast |
Everyday Health | fast |
Gizmodo | fast |
The Hill | fast |
HuffPost | fast |
International Business Times | fast |
Los Angeles Times | fast |
National Geographic | fast |
New York magazine | fast |
NY Daily News | fast |
NPR | fast |
PBS | fast |
PopSugar | fast |
Refinery29 | fast |
SheKnows | fast |
Verywell | fast |
ABC News | average |
AOL | average |
BBC | average |
Bleacher Report | average |
CafeMom | average |
Complex | average |
Fox News | average |
Guardian | average |
LittleThings | average |
Mashable | average |
New York Post | average |
The New York Times | average |
Ozy | average |
People | average |
Purch | average |
Thrillist | average |
Upworthy | average |
U.S. News & World Report | average |
USA Today | average |
The Telegraph | average |
Vice | average |
Vox | average |
The Washington Post | average |
WebMD | average |
Wired | average |
Yahoo | average |
CNN | slow |
MailOnline | slow |
NBC News | slow |
Reuters | slow |
The Wall Street Journal | slow |
More in Media

Bleacher Report puts a fan-first spin on NFL coverage
Bleacher Report has 25 different show formats that will roll out throughout the NFL season and is forecasting a 50% revenue hike.

WTF is Model Context Protocol (MCP) and why should publishers care?
Model Context Protocol (MCP) is a buzzword gaining more traction, especially as publishers think about how to prepare for the agentic web. WTF is it, and why should they care?

Publishers and advertisers face new AI agent oversight hurdles
Who is really in control when agents are instructing other agents, and who is accountable if they make mistakes? That question is keeping some media and ad execs up at night.