Page Load Timing (your connection)
Where the time went loading this page — DNS, connection, TLS, server and transfer.
How this test works
The Navigation Timing entry for this page load is broken into its phases. Two of them need care rather than subtraction. When the browser reuses a connection it already had open, DNS and connection setup legitimately read zero — and presenting that as a nought-millisecond DNS lookup invites the reading that DNS was instant rather than that it did not happen, so it is reported as reuse instead. When the response comes from cache, every network phase collapses and the total measures how fast your disk is, which the tool says outright rather than reporting an impressively small number.
What the results mean
- DNS lookup
- Resolving the name. Reads as reused when the connection was already open.
- TLS handshake
- Separated from the TCP connection using the secure connection start, rather than lumped together.
- Time to first byte
- Network out, server thinking, first byte back. A slow figure is as often the server as the distance.
- Served from cache
- No request left the machine. The total describes your disk, not your connection.
Common problems and fixes
- Everything reads zero
- The page came from cache or reused a connection. Reload bypassing the cache with Ctrl+Shift+R, or Cmd+Shift+R, for a figure about the network.
- My TTFB is high — is that the network or the server?
- Not separable from here. It contains both. Comparing against a static asset on the same host is the usual way to tell them apart.
- The numbers differ every reload
- Expected. Connection reuse, cache state and server load all vary. A single measurement is a sample rather than a characteristic.
Frequently asked questions
Why do DNS and connect show zero?
Because the browser reused a connection it already had open, so neither step happened. It is not that they were instant — the distinction matters, and reporting zero milliseconds without it is misleading.
What does time to first byte include?
The request crossing the network, the server working out what to send, and the first byte coming back. A slow figure is as often the application being slow as the server being far away.
Does this measure my internet speed?
No. It measures one page load to one server on one occasion. Speed tests measure throughput to a nearby endpoint, which is a different question again.