How can you speed up web fonts and icons?

For faster page load, try to avoid web fonts as much as possible. Also icons should be combined to single Sprite image SVG file which will reduce the server round trips to get individual icons. In case the Sprite image is getting heavy, I recommend breaking down the Sprite images page wise to make sure icons used in other pages are not added. Also lazy load the image to make the TTFB faster.

Icon fonts > SVG every time. When using icons, you will typically be using many icons, so this becomes the best route and once loaded the first time, will not be noticeable performance wise. On the other hand each SVG will need to be loaded on demand. If you only have a small number of icons, then SVG can work well enough.

Icon Fonts vs. SVG Icons: icon fonts were popular for a long time, but SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) icons have emerged as a more efficient alternative. SVG icons are resolution-independent and result in smaller file sizes. Consider using SVG icons for better performance.

To enhance the loading speed and performance of web fonts and icons, consider the following strategies: opt for modern formats like WOFF2 for better compression and faster loading times; include only necessary characters to reduce file size; use the preload attribute in CSS to initiate font loading early. Replace icon fonts with more compact and scalable SVG icons. Minimize the use of icon fonts to reduce HTTP requests and consolidate icons into sprite images for fewer server requests. Moreover, embed small icons directly into CSS or HTML using Data URIs.

To speed up web fonts and icons loading, follow these techniques: Font Subsetting: Use only essential characters to reduce font file size. Font Formats: Provide WOFF2, WOFF, TTF for wider browser support. SVG Icons: Choose lightweight, scalable SVG icons. Font Preloading: Employ preload attribute for early font loading. Icon Sprites: Merge icons to reduce HTTP requests. CDN Hosting: Use CDN for faster global font/icon delivery. Font Display: Set font-display to "swap" or "fallback" to prevent delays. Data URIs: Embed small fonts/icons as Data URIs in CSS. Gzip Compression: Enable Gzip on the server for smaller transfer. Cache Control Headers: Implement proper caching to store files in the browser.

When selecting web fonts, it is highly recommended to keep your total fonts used limited to reduce requests. Also consider using multiple weights from a single font family as is possible given your design constraints. This will leverage your existing request and has little additional performance hits.

Right. Reduce the number of requests from client to to get the resources from server. Use sprite image to combine the image icon, but lazy load the icon if possible. Use loading=‘lazy’ attribute for image lazy loading. All fonts should be preloaded in the head section. This will improve the overall lighthouse score as well.

Icon Sprites: Combine multiple icons into a single SVG sprite. This reduces the number of HTTP requests and improves loading times. Modern techniques like inline SVG or using CSS to display individual icons from the sprite can further speed up rendering.

Using at most 2 fonts is optimal for your application, also from a UX/UI point of view. Use 1 font family file and take advantage of the font-weight css property instead of loading same font of different font weights

Not all fonts and icons are critical to initial page rendering. Determine which ones are essential for content above the fold and load them first. Delay the loading of non-critical resources to reduce the initial number of requests, enhancing the perceived performance.

Every time you use a web font, you must always set a fallback native font as a default. This will ensure your text is rendered correctly even if the font has an issue loading.

You must use font-display: swap; for all CSS @font-face declarations to avoid box font issue while website loading in slow networks.

In the realm of web design, optimizing user experiences has become paramount, giving rise to techniques like "preload" and "font-display." Preloading critical resources such as fonts and images accelerates loading times, enhancing initial interactions. Meanwhile, font-display, a CSS attribute, refines typography rendering by allowing designers to control font loading behavior. This combination ensures websites are not only swift but also aesthetically pleasing, striking a perfect equilibrium between functionality and design.

In my experience, leveraging both preload and font-display can significantly enhance a website's font loading strategy. When you preload essential fonts, it's like giving the browser a nudge about which assets are crucial. At the same time, the font-display property deftly dictates how fonts are rendered as they're being loaded. This ensures that users are never left waiting with unappealing blank areas or struggling with hard-to-read fallback fonts.

Caching is a great technique to avoid unnecessary resources loading from the server but at times it can also cause issues like stale cache that might result in the end users having hiccups in their experience as the latest version of the changes might not reflect immediately. It's always a good practice to consider having a cache busting mechanism. Eg Append some unique string at the end of the resource URL

CDNs and Caching: Utilise content delivery networks (CDNs) to distribute fonts and icons across multiple servers worldwide. CDNs improve load times by delivering assets from servers closer to the user's location. Set appropriate caching headers to ensure resources are cached for subsequent visits. Minification and Compression: Just like with other web assets, minify and compress font and icon files to reduce their sizes. Use tools to remove unnecessary metadata and whitespace, resulting in smaller files that load faster.

In the realm of web design, caching and compression are vital. Caching stores data for quicker access, reducing load times and server load. Compression minimizes data for faster transmission, improving user experience on all devices. Mastering these techniques is essential for a seamless, efficient, and competitive website.

You can serve the resources like css, fonts and icons from your own server but considering a CDN will give you fairly better results. A short reason behind this is that the CDN network is designed to use the network based cache mechanism to serve the content faster. eg. For a site accessed globally the CDN network will serve the resources to a person in India from the Asia region where for a user in Finland from the European region.

In my experience, to become better at optimizing web fonts and icons, it's important to explore advanced techniques. These include techniques like reducing font size by removing unnecessary characters (subsetting fonts), using variable fonts for flexibility, and making content load faster with techniques like asynchronous loading (using `font-display: swap`). Also, remember to optimize your icon images by making them smaller and using modern formats. Learning about the Font Loading API, font metrics, and critical font loading is useful. And don't forget to consider font security, especially if you're using paid or licensed fonts. All of these strategies will help improve your website's performance.

Javascript bundling also reduces the number of requests to the server, which can also be used for non-Javascript resources such as icons and fonts. Webpack and esbuild can bundle resources to be delivered in fewer requests, but it does take some additional work to setup.

In the realm of web design, there's more to success than meets the eye. Beyond aesthetics, it's crucial to prioritize user needs with intuitive navigation and responsive layouts. Speed matters, too – optimize your site for swift loading, and ensure it's accessible to all users. Seamlessly weave in SEO practices, engaging content, and stringent security measures. Don't forget about browser compatibility and the power of analytics to refine your design. Plan for the future by building a scalable framework. By considering these factors, your web design becomes a holistic solution, offering not just visual appeal, but a seamless user experience and business growth.