Articles
Small Changes, Big Impact: 6 steps to a greener website

Small Changes, Big Impact: 6 steps to a greener website

The theme of Earth Day 2025, Our Power, Our Planet, calls for action on renewable energy and a more sustainable future. We recognise that digital sustainability is part of this mission. Every website visit requires energy, and the internet’s carbon footprint is growing. But by optimising your website, you can reduce waste, improve efficiency and promote a cleaner, more sustainable and lower-carbon web.

by Jenny Neville

Account Director

14th April 2025

A cleaner, faster web benefits both users and the planet. Here are six practical steps to make your website greener without compromising on performance.

1. Prioritise Speed

The faster your website loads, the less energy it consumes. Simplify page layouts, remove non-essential features and limit third-party integrations to reduce the work required to display content. Faster pages improve user experience and SEO scores whilst reducing energy use.

2. Declutter Your Site

Outdated content, unused features and redundant pages can add unnecessary load. Regularly audit and streamline your site to improve performance, reduce data processing and create a more efficient experience for visitors.

3. Optimise Images and Videos

Large images and videos cause websites to load slowly and increase energy consumption. Ensure media are appropriately sized, use optimised file formats and compression to reduce data usage. This maintains quality whilst improving load times.

4. Embrace Minimalist Design

A clean, simple website looks good and is energy efficient. Avoid excessive animations, autoplaying videos and complex elements that require additional processing power. A well-structured, streamlined design helps pages load faster and use fewer resources.

5. Offer a Low-Energy Viewing Option

A low-power mode with fewer animations, reduced brightness and efficient colour schemes can cut energy use. Giving users the option to browse in a more eco-friendly way helps lower the overall environmental impact of your site.

6. Choose Environmentally Conscious Hosting

Not all hosting providers are equal. Choose one powered by renewable energy to make sure that the energy keeping your website online is as green as possible, reducing its footprint at the source. Hosting options that can scale their processing power in line with demand will also help here by using only the energy required at any given moment.

To discuss how to improve the carbon footprint of your website or have our expert team handle this for you, please get in touch.

Learn more about Earth Day 2025 here.

Glossary

SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)

SEO combines content optimisation and technical enhancements to boost a website's visibility in search engine results. It involves refining content, utilising strategic keywords and optimising technical aspects like site speed and indexing to attract organic traffic and improve search engine rankings.

Website Design

The process of crafting an intuitive and interactive website experience that users will understand and enjoy. Website design involves creating a cohesive appearance supported by information architecture that effectively conveys the intended messages, driving users toward desired business goals.

Environmentally Conscious Hosting

Hosting services designed to minimise environmental impact. Providers adopt eco-friendly practices, such as using renewable energy sources and energy-efficient technologies, to reduce the carbon footprint associated with web hosting operations.

Carbon Footprint

The total amount of greenhouse gases, primarily carbon dioxide, produced directly or indirectly by an individual, organisation, activity, event, or product. Measuring and reducing carbon footprints contribute to environmental sustainability and awareness.

Hosting

The process of making a website or app accessible on the internet by storing its data on servers, ensuring reliable access, security, performance and interaction for users worldwide.