Painfully Slow: New Report Ranks Charity Websites Among the Worst for Speed

A recent report from Warbox Creative has revealed something many of us in the sector already suspected: charity websites are, on the whole, painfully slow.

According to the research, which analysed over 1,000 websites across 11 industries, the charity sector ranked second-to-last for site speed, just ahead of fashion. Not exactly the leaderboard we were hoping for.

Now, let me be clear this is not about the charity websites I create for my clients (those are built with performance in mind). But I will confess something: my own Made by Katie website? Yep, guilty. I’ve been too lazy to compress all my own images, which I know slows my site down. We all have that one bad habit we can’t quite shake, and this one’s mine.

So, if your website’s a bit sluggish, you’re in good company. Maybe it’s time we both commit to sorting it out?

Why are charity websites so slow?

There are lots of reasons, but here are some usual suspects:

1. Massive Image Files

The number one offender, and something I'm totally guilty of on my website. Images that aren’t compressed properly (or are uploaded straight from a DSLR or Canva without resizing) can add MBs to your page load time. Even if you have a fast host, it’ll struggle under the weight of a 5MB hero banner.

✅ Fix it: Compress your images using tools like TinyPNG or Squoosh, and always resize them to the actual dimensions needed on your website.

2. Too Many Plugins (or Clunky Ones)

On platforms like WordPress, every plugin adds more code. Some are well-built, others… not so much. If your site’s got more add-ons than a burrito bowl, it’s probably slowing everything down.

✅ Fix it: Audit your plugins. Remove anything you’re not using, and look for lighter alternatives where possible.

3. Web Fonts Overload

Fancy fonts can look great, but loading five different weights of a font family from Google Fonts? That’ll hurt your speed. Especially if you’ve got them loading on every page.

✅ Fix it: Stick to one or two fonts, and only load the weights/styles you need.

4. Render-Blocking JavaScript and CSS

This one’s a bit nerdy, but in simple terms: if your site has lots of JavaScript or CSS files that need to load before the page appears, users will be staring at a blank screen.

✅ Fix it: Use a caching plugin or performance tool that can defer or minify scripts. Some platforms like Wix and Squarespace manage this for you but even they can struggle if you overload the site with extras.

5. Slow Hosting

Cheap hosting can mean you're sharing a server with loads of other websites, which drags down performance. If your charity’s website is hosted on a budget platform, that might be part of the problem.

✅ Fix it: Upgrade to a reputable host.

6. Unop timised Videos

Auto-playing video banners, embedded YouTube videos, or high-res clips can absolutely tank your load time, especially on mobile.

✅ Fix it: Host videos on third-party platforms (like Vimeo or YouTube), don’t auto-play unless necessary, and don’t set full video backgrounds unless your site is very fast.

8. Too Many External Scripts

Things like chat widgets, donation pop-ups, Instagram feeds, and cookie notices all add little bits of external code. Individually fine together, potentially sluggish.

✅ Fix it: Be picky. If a feature isn’t serving your users, ditch it.

Why does speed matter?

Well, for starters, slow websites are a pain. No one likes to wait around while a spinning wheel tries to load your content. But more importantly:

• 40% of people will abandon a site that takes more than 3 seconds to load (Source: Neil Patel)

• Google takes page speed into account when ranking your site in search results

• Slow sites can affect donations because a laggy donation form = fewer donations

• It can make your charity look outdated or unprofessional (especially to younger supporters)

Test Your Charity Website Speed (Brace Yourself)

Before you can fix a slow site, you need to know just how slow it is. A website speed test will show you what’s dragging your site down whether it's oversized images, a lazy host, or a cheeky font obsession.

Try one of these free tools:

• PageSpeed Insights (by Google) – A solid choice. Gives you both mobile and desktop scores, with a slightly judgemental list of what’s wrong.

• GTmetrix – Great for visual learners. It breaks down your page speed and gives you waterfall charts (don’t worry, they’re not as scary as they sound).

• Pingdom Tools – Fast and beginner-friendly. Just pop in your URL and go.

What to look for:

• Load time: Aim for under 3 seconds (faster is always better — think cheetah, not tortoise).

• Performance score: Don’t obsess over a perfect 100. If you're in the 80s or 90s, you’re doing fine.

• Opportunities to improve: These tools often highlight exactly what’s slowing you down (like uncompressed images or JavaScript delays), with suggested fixes.

But don’t panic if the results look terrifying

Even popular sites don’t score perfectly and most of your visitors aren’t running your homepage through diagnostic tools in their spare time. The point is to gradually improve your speed so your site feels snappy, especially on mobile.

And yes, before you ask I’ve run my own site through these tools and got a less-than-stellar score (thanks, uncompressed images!). So no judgement here. Just quiet mutual accountability.

It's not about perfection, it's about progress

Charities are busy. You're stretched. And sometimes tweaking site speed just isn't top of the to-do list. I get it. But even small changes can make a huge difference to your visitors and ultimately, to your impact.

So, if your site is a bit sluggish, don’t beat yourself up. I’m in the same boat (hi from the land of bloated image files). The important thing is to take a look, make a tweak or two, and keep moving forward.

Want help with your Charity website speed?

If you’re not sure where to start, or you’d like a fresh pair of eyes on your homepage, I offer one-off audits and ongoing support to help charity websites perform better. No jargon, no pressure just friendly, honest advice and fixes that make a real difference.

Let’s have a chat.

Right. I'd better start compressing some images...

Let's chat