Blue Frog vs Google Lighthouse
Google Lighthouse is an excellent free tool, and we use it ourselves. But it only covers part of what makes a website successful. Here's an honest comparison of where each tool excels.
TL;DR
Use Lighthouse When:
- • You're a developer debugging performance
- • You need quick, free checks during development
- • You only care about performance metrics
- • You can interpret technical output yourself
Use Blue Frog When:
- • You need security, analytics, and SEO checks
- • You want plain English explanations
- • You need issues prioritized by business impact
- • You want to audit multiple pages at once
Feature Comparison
Side-by-side breakdown of what each tool covers:
| Category | Google Lighthouse | Blue Frog Analytics |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | ✓ Core focus | ✓ 12 checks, same metrics |
| Accessibility | ✓ Basic WCAG | ✓ 12 WCAG 2.2 checks via axe |
| SEO | ◐ Basic meta tags only | ✓ Schema, structure, indexability |
| Security | ✗ Not covered | ✓ 10 checks: headers, SSL, vulnerabilities |
| Analytics Tracking | ✗ Not covered | ✓ GA4, GTM, pixels, consent mode |
| Infrastructure | ✗ Not covered | ✓ Email auth, DNS, tech stack |
| Plain English Explanations | ✗ Technical jargon | ✓ Business-focused language |
| Prioritized Action Plan | ✗ Raw list of issues | ✓ Ranked by business impact |
| Multi-Page Crawl | ✗ Single page only | ✓ Full site analysis |
| Cost | Free Free forever | Free* Free scan, $1,000 full audit |
* Free instant scan covers all categories. Full audit with detailed analysis is $1,000.
What Lighthouse Does Well
Credit where it's due. Lighthouse is an excellent tool for what it does:
Performance Deep Dive
Lighthouse's performance audits are industry-standard. Core Web Vitals, render timing, and resource analysis are all thorough and accurate.
Free & Always Available
Built into Chrome DevTools. No signup, no cost, no limits. Run it as many times as you want during development.
Developer-Focused Output
Technical details developers need: waterfall charts, resource sizes, script evaluation time. Perfect for debugging.
Google-Backed Standard
Since Google makes it, Lighthouse metrics align with what Google cares about for search rankings.
What Lighthouse Doesn't Cover
Lighthouse is focused on performance and basic best practices. Here's what it misses:
Security Vulnerabilities
Lighthouse doesn't check security headers (CSP, HSTS, X-Frame-Options), exposed admin panels, insecure cookies, or SSL configuration issues. These are critical for protecting your business and users.
Analytics & Tracking
Is your GA4 actually collecting data? Is GTM configured correctly? Are your marketing pixels firing? Lighthouse has no idea. We validate all tracking implementations.
Email Deliverability
SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records determine if your emails reach customers. Lighthouse doesn't check infrastructure. We do.
SEO Beyond Basics
Lighthouse checks basic meta tags, but not schema markup validity, sitemap structure, canonical URL issues, or JavaScript rendering problems that affect indexing.
Multi-Page Analysis
Lighthouse tests one page at a time. It can't tell you if your contact form is broken, if your product pages are slow, or if your blog has different issues than your homepage.
Best Approach: Use Both
Lighthouse for quick performance checks during development. Blue Frog for comprehensive audits that cover security, analytics, SEO, and infrastructure, plus plain English explanations your whole team can understand.
Comparison FAQ
Common questions about Lighthouse and website audit tools
Use both. Lighthouse is free and great for quick performance checks you can run yourself. Blue Frog adds 6 categories Lighthouse doesn't cover (security, analytics, infrastructure) plus human-readable recommendations and prioritization by business impact. Start with our free audit to see what you're missing.
Lighthouse is accurate for what it measures (performance and accessibility). However, scores can vary 5-10 points between runs due to network conditions. More importantly, Lighthouse doesn't cover security, SEO depth, analytics tracking, or infrastructure, all of which are critical for business websites.
Lighthouse simulates network conditions and CPU throttling, which introduces variability. Run 3-5 tests and average them. Also, test from a wired connection for consistent results. Our audits account for this variability in our recommendations.
PageSpeed Insights uses Lighthouse under the hood but adds real-world data from Chrome users (CrUX data). It's more accurate for understanding actual user experience. Our audit incorporates similar real-world metrics plus additional categories.
Lighthouse focuses on performance and basic accessibility. We add: security headers and vulnerabilities, analytics/tracking validation (GA4, GTM, pixels), email authentication (SPF/DKIM/DMARC), SEO structure beyond basics, and infrastructure analysis. Plus we translate everything into plain English.
See What Lighthouse Misses
Our full 847-checkpoint audit runs Lighthouse on every page, plus WCAG accessibility, security headers, and competitive benchmarking.