Performance Scout: Catch Regressions Before Your Users Do
Automated performance monitoring that runs PageSpeed tests every 5 minutes, tracks Core Web Vitals, detects score drops, and triggers optimization agents when thresholds are breached. Your always-on performance watchdog.
The Problem: Performance Regressions Are Silent Killers
You Don't Know Your Site Is Slow Until It's Too Late
You shipped an update last Tuesday. Performance score dropped from 92 to 78. You found out three weeks later when bounce rate spiked 40%. By then, you'd lost $12K in conversions.
Manual Testing Is Too Slow & Inconsistent
You remember to run PageSpeed once a month. Different team members test different pages. No baseline. No trend data. No way to know if today's score is good or bad.
You Don't Know Which Agent to Deploy
LCP is 4.2 seconds. Is that an image problem? A server problem? A caching problem? You spend 3 hours debugging before you figure out which optimization agent to use.
How Performance Scout Works
Continuous monitoring → Regression detection → Automatic agent triggering
Continuous PageSpeed Testing
Scout runs PageSpeed Insights tests every 5 minutes on your critical pages. Mobile-first by default (70%+ of traffic). Desktop tests on request.
Core Web Vitals Tracking
Monitors LCP (Largest Contentful Paint), INP (Interaction to Next Paint), and CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift). Compares against Google thresholds: Good, Needs Improvement, Poor.
Regression Detection
Detects score drops ≥5 points, Core Web Vitals degradation, or failed audits. Alerts within 5 minutes of detection. Compares current score to baseline and previous readings.
Automatic Agent Recommendations
Analyzes which metrics failed and recommends the right optimization agent. Large images? Trigger Asset Surgeon. High CLS? Deploy DOM Therapist. Large bundles? Call Bundle Architect.
Trend Analysis & Baselines
Tracks performance over time. Establishes baselines. Shows you if today's 87/100 is normal or a regression from your usual 94/100. Stores 90 days of history.
Rate-Limit Safe Operation
Stays well under PageSpeed API limits (25,000/day, 400/100sec). Intelligent backoff on 429 errors. Never burns your quota. Haiku model for cost-effective monitoring.
What You Get With Performance Scout
PageSpeed API Integration
Direct integration with Google PageSpeed Insights API. Real Lighthouse tests, not synthetic monitoring. Same data Google uses for rankings.
Core Web Vitals Monitoring
Track LCP, INP, CLS in real-time. See exactly what Google sees. Alerts when you fall below "Good" thresholds.
Regression Detection
Detects score drops ≥5 points within 5 minutes. Identifies which audits failed. Compares to baseline and previous readings.
5-Minute Monitoring Intervals
Continuous testing every 5 minutes. Fast enough to catch problems early. Slow enough to stay under API limits.
Rate-Limit Safe
Intelligent API usage stays well under limits. Automatic backoff on 429 errors. Never burns your quota.
Pass/Fail Reporting
Clear pass/fail thresholds (Good/Needs Improvement/Poor). No ambiguity. You know if action is required.
Triggers Optimization Agents
Automatically recommends appropriate agents based on failure type. Asset Surgeon for bloat. Cache Strategist for caching. DOM Therapist for layout.
Used in Optymizer.com Optimization
We used Performance Scout to monitor our own site optimization. Maintained 90+ scores throughout the project.
90-Day Trend History
Track performance over time. See seasonal patterns. Identify slow degradation before it becomes critical.
Cost-Effective (Haiku Model)
Runs on Haiku for fast, cheap monitoring. ~$0.03/day per site. Far cheaper than manual testing or synthetic monitoring tools.
Concise, Actionable Reports
No walls of data. Clear reports with top issues, impact scores, and recommended actions. 30-second read.
Validates Optimization Success
Run before and after optimization to validate improvements. Proof that your optimization work actually worked.
When to Use Performance Scout
Check Current Performance Scores
"What's my performance score right now?" Get instant PageSpeed report with Core Web Vitals, top issues, and recommended actions.
Scout: "Running PageSpeed test... 92/100 PASS"
Continuous Monitoring (Every 5 Min)
Set up always-on monitoring for critical pages. Scout tests every 5 minutes and alerts on regressions. Sleep soundly knowing Scout is watching.
Scout: "Monitoring active. Alert if <85/100."
Detect Performance Regressions
Something broke. Scout detects score drops ≥5 points, analyzes which metrics failed, identifies likely cause, and recommends appropriate optimization agent.
LCP degraded. Deploy Asset-Surgeon."
Validate Optimization Success
Run before and after optimization work to prove improvements. "We optimized images" → Scout shows +8 points and LCP improved from 3.2s to 1.8s. Data-driven validation.
After: 86/100, LCP 1.8s [CHECK] (+8pts)
Real Example: Optymizer.com Optimization Project
How We Used Performance Scout on Our Own Site
The Situation
Rebuilding optymizer.com from WordPress to Astro. Need to maintain 90+ performance scores throughout development while adding features, images, and content.
How Performance Scout Helped
- Week 1: Baseline testing. Established 94/100 target. Set up continuous monitoring on 5 critical pages.
- Week 2: Scout detected score drop to 86/100 after adding hero images. Triggered Asset Surgeon → optimized images → back to 93/100.
- Week 3: Added Google Material Symbols font. Scout caught 8-point drop. Triggered Cache Strategist → implemented font preloading → recovered 7 points.
- Week 4: CLS spiked to 0.15 after layout changes. Scout recommended DOM Therapist → fixed layout shifts → CLS down to 0.003.
- Week 5: Final validation testing. Scout confirmed 92/100 mobile, 96/100 desktop. All Core Web Vitals in "Good" range.
Results
Bottom line: Performance Scout caught 4 regressions that would have gone unnoticed without continuous monitoring. Each was fixed within 1 hour of detection. Final site launched with 90+ scores on all critical pages.
Technical Details
Configuration
Alert Thresholds
- Score drop ≥10 points
- LCP >2.5s (Poor)
- INP >200ms (Poor)
- CLS >0.1 (Poor)
- Score drop 5-9 points
- LCP 2.5s-4.0s (Needs Improvement)
- INP 200ms-500ms (Needs Improvement)
- CLS 0.1-0.25 (Needs Improvement)
- Score drop <5 points
- Minor audit failures
- Opportunity recommendations
Triggers These Agents
Cost Breakdown
- • ~288 tests/day per site (every 5 min)
- • ~$0.03/day per site (~$0.90/month)
- • Far cheaper than synthetic monitoring tools
- • SpeedCurve: $20-$200/month
- • Calibre: $25-$500/month
- • Performance Scout: <$1/month
Example Performance Report
Who Performance Scout Is Best For
Perfect If You:
- Ship updates weekly/daily and need regression detection
- Care about Core Web Vitals and Google rankings
- Want data-driven optimization (not guesswork)
- Need to maintain performance scores during development
- Want early warning before users notice slowness
- Need to prove optimization work actually worked
- Want cost-effective monitoring (<$1/month per site)
Not Right If:
- You ship updates once a year (manual testing is fine)
- You don't care about performance or SEO
- You don't have API access to PageSpeed Insights
- You want uptime monitoring (Scout monitors performance, not uptime)
Performance Optimization Ecosystem
Asset Surgeon
Performance Scout detects image bloat. Asset Surgeon fixes it. Optimizes images, fonts, and assets automatically.
Learn MoreQA Sentinel
Performance Scout monitors performance. QA Sentinel validates fixes and ensures no new regressions introduced.
Learn MoreOptymizer.com Case Study
See how Performance Scout helped us maintain 90+ scores throughout our site rebuild. Real project, real results.
Read Case StudyStop Shipping Performance Regressions
Let's deploy Performance Scout and start monitoring your critical pages every 5 minutes.
Performance Optimization Success Stories
Fast sites across industries
Proven Results
Optymizer.com Optimization
Performance Scout used to monitor and maintain 90+ performance scores during site optimization.
View Case Study