The Relationship Between CLS and Other Core Web Vitals Metrics (LCP, FID, INP)

The relationship between CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift) and other Core Web Vitals metrics like LCP (Largest Contentful Paint) and INP (Interaction to Next Paint, replacing FID) lies in how they collectively measure different aspects of user experience on a webpage:

• LCP measures loading performance, specifically how quickly the largest visible content element loads, indicating when the main content is ready for user consumption.

• CLS measures visual stability, tracking unexpected layout shifts during page load that can disrupt user interaction and cause frustration.

• INP (which replaced FID in 2024) measures responsiveness, capturing the delay between user interaction and the next visual update, reflecting how quickly a page reacts to input.

Together, these metrics cover the critical dimensions of user experience: how fast content loads (LCP), how stable the page layout is during loading (CLS), and how responsive the page is to user interactions (INP).

While they measure distinct aspects, they are interrelated in that poor performance in one can affect overall user satisfaction. For example, a slow LCP might delay content visibility, while a high CLS can cause users to click the wrong elements, and a high INP means interactions feel sluggish. Optimizing all three is essential for a smooth, user-friendly web experience and better Google search rankings.

Notably, Google uses these Core Web Vitals as part of its page experience signals, requiring sites to meet "good" thresholds for all three metrics to pass evaluation. The shift from FID to INP reflects Google's focus on a more comprehensive measure of interactivity over the entire page lifecycle rather than just the first input delay.

In summary:

All three metrics together provide a holistic view of page performance impacting user satisfaction and SEO.