Does every file count as one request?

Yes, every transfer the browser starts while loading the page, including files that a script loads afterwards. Counting runs until loading ends; files that only a click triggers are outside the measurement.

HTTP/2 and HTTP/3 transfer many files over one connection and shorten the waiting time. The work per file on the server and the device remains. That is why the check counts requests regardless of the protocol. If the page still runs over HTTP/1.1, the Performance audit area reports it.

Is the finding also raised on subpages?

Yes, every measured page is counted. If one has more than 90 requests, the finding is listed for that page.

This translation has not been editorially reviewed yet. The German version is authoritative. Deutsche Fassung

CO₂ & EmpCo

Why does the check count the requests per page view?

For every file a page needs, the browser sends a request to a server: for the document, every script, every style sheet, every image and every font. The check counts these requests while the page loads. If there are more than 90, the finding is raised.

What a request costs

Every request needs work on both ends of the line: the server finds the file and sends headers with it, the network transfers it, the browser processes it. With third-party servers, name resolution and connection setup come on top. Many small files therefore cause more effort than a few larger ones with the same content, and they slow the page down when they wait for each other.

How the number enters the score

Requests count for 25 % of the CO₂ score. Up to 90 requests give the full score; above that it falls evenly to zero at 250 requests. In October 2024 the median was 66 requests on phones and 71 on desktop (Web Almanac 2024). The finding hits pages that load considerably more.

Where many requests come from

Common causes are site builders and themes that load every module as a separate file, CMS extensions with their own scripts and style sheets, many small icon images, embedded maps, videos and social networks, and advertising and analytics scripts that load further files themselves.

Examples

Icons

Not met

<img src="/icons/telefon.png" alt="Telefon">
<img src="/icons/mail.png" alt="E-Mail">
<img src="/icons/karte.png" alt="Anfahrt">
<!-- je Symbol eine Anfrage -->

Passes

<svg role="img" aria-label="Telefon" width="20" height="20"><use href="#telefon"/></svg>
<!-- <symbol id="telefon"> steht einmal im Dokument; so spart jedes Symbol eine Anfrage -->

Map

Not met

<iframe src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=…"></iframe>
<!-- lädt beim Aufruf Dutzende Dateien eines fremden Servers -->

Passes

<a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/?mlat=48.2082&mlon=16.3738">Anfahrt auf der Karte öffnen</a>
<!-- lädt erst auf Klick -->

Open the page in the browser’s developer tools (Network tab) and sort the requests by type and domain. The report gives the total; the list in the browser shows where they come from.
Keep the extensions and embeds that serve a purpose on this page and deactivate the rest.
Bundle scripts and style sheets with your build tool or the option in your CMS.
Replace many small icon images with SVG in the document.
Load maps and videos only when someone opens them.

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