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How can I effectively optimize font loading to improve initial page render times?
Asked on Jan 23, 2026
Answer
Optimizing font loading is crucial for improving initial page render times, as it can reduce render-blocking resources and enhance the user experience. A common technique is to use the "font-display" property in CSS to control how fonts are rendered.
/* BEGIN COPY / PASTE */
@font-face {
font-family: 'MyFont';
src: url('/fonts/myfont.woff2') format('woff2');
font-display: swap;
}
/* END COPY / PASTE */Additional Comment:
- Use "font-display: swap" to ensure text is displayed using a fallback font until the custom font loads, reducing perceived load times.
- Consider preloading critical fonts using a tag to prioritize their loading.
- Minimize the number of font weights and styles to reduce the amount of data that needs to be downloaded.
- Host fonts locally to avoid additional DNS lookups and leverage browser caching.
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