Is HTTPS slower than HTTP?

In general, HTTP is faster than HTTPS. This is because the HTTP protocol is simpler than HTTPS's SSL handshake. However, other factors like the session length, static vs. dynamic content ratio, and caching behavior of the client, hardware, and server software can affect page load speed.

The more dynamic a website is, the less likely it is to be disrupted by HTTPS, as it will not slow down your page load because SSL handshakes take less time than dynamic content generation. This is because the SSL handshake only impacts the beginning of each request—subsequent requests are faster. However, the overhead is higher in the case of much static content. Short sessions may also be affected by longer SSL handshake times because this process happens at the beginning of the session, and subsequent requests will be faster.

But, if you consider the security benefits of HTTPS, they significantly outweigh the slight performance delays.