Server performance starts with boring fundamentals: predictable CPU headroom, enough memory for your runtime, and a web server configuration that avoids unnecessary work on every request.
Enable compression for text assets, cache static files aggressively, and keep application responses lean. These changes reduce bytes transferred and give browsers less work to do before rendering the page.
Monitor slow endpoints and external dependencies separately. A fast server can still feel slow if database calls, DNS lookups, or third-party APIs add hidden latency.
After each change, test from more than one region. A site that feels fast near the origin server may still be slow for users in another market.