CDN (Content Delivery Network) is a network of servers spread across multiple locations worldwide. Instead of loading everything from one server, visitors receive content from the nearest CDN server, reducing load times.
What is a CDN?
A CDN caches copies of your website's static files (images, , JavaScript, fonts) on servers in different geographic regions. When someone visits your store, they download files from the closest server instead of your origin server.
How it works:
- You upload files to your origin server
- CDN copies files to edge servers worldwide
- Visitor requests your page
- CDN routes request to nearest edge server
- Files load faster due to shorter distance
Why CDNs Matter for E-commerce
E-commerce sites are image-heavy. Product photos, lifestyle images, and thumbnails make up most of the page weight. Loading these from a distant server adds seconds to .
Speed impact:
- A server in New York adds 200-300ms latency for Australian visitors
- CDN edge server in Sydney reduces this to 20-30ms
- Multiply by dozens of files per page
Business benefits:
- Faster pages improve conversion rates
- Better scores (LCP especially)
- Reduced load on origin server
- Protection against traffic spikes
- DDoS mitigation on many CDN plans
What CDNs Cache
Static assets (always ):
- Images (product photos, banners)
- CSS
- JavaScript files
- Web fonts
- Videos
(sometimes cache):
- HTML pages (with careful cache rules)
- responses (short TTL)
- (edge computing)
Popular CDN Providers
General purpose: Cloudflare, Fastly, AWS CloudFront, Akamai
Image-specific: Cloudinary, imgix, ImageKit
E-commerce platforms: Shopify, BigCommerce, and WooCommerce hosting often include CDN.
