diff --git a/docs/ui-binding.md b/docs/ui-binding.md
index 5b170a5..d6b2370 100644
--- a/docs/ui-binding.md
+++ b/docs/ui-binding.md
@@ -127,3 +127,18 @@ naja.uiHandler.addEventListener('interaction', (event) => {
 	}
 });
 ```
+
+
+## Delegated binding
+
+Since version 3.3.0, you can also opt into event delegation for Naja's UI binding. That way, instead of binding directly to `.ajax` elements, Naja binds itself to `body`, listens to all clicks and form submissions, and only then decides whether to act upon them, or let the browser handle them.
+
+This might decrease time to interactive in situations where you have a huge number of `.ajax` elements on a page, because Naja doesn't have to iterate over so many interaction targets. On the other hand, this may introduce unnecessary function calls if you have a lot of non-AJAX interactivity within your application. You are advised to do your own benchmark and decide accordingly.
+
+You can switch to delegated binding this way:
+
+```js
+naja.uiHandler.binding = 'delegated';
+```
+
+This has to be configured before Naja is initialized and cannot be changed later.
diff --git a/src/core/UIHandler.ts b/src/core/UIHandler.ts
index 43ea1dd..4e469af 100644
--- a/src/core/UIHandler.ts
+++ b/src/core/UIHandler.ts
@@ -6,49 +6,35 @@ export class UIHandler extends EventTarget {
 	public allowedOrigins: (string | URL)[] = [window.location.origin];
 	private handler = this.handleUI.bind(this);
 
+	public binding: BindingStrategyType = 'direct';
+	private _bindingStrategy: BindingStrategy|undefined;
+	private readonly bindingStrategies: Record<BindingStrategyType, BindingStrategy>;
+
+	private get bindingStrategy() {
+		this._bindingStrategy ??= this.bindingStrategies[this.binding];
+		return this._bindingStrategy;
+	}
+
 	public constructor(private readonly naja: Naja) {
 		super();
+
+		this.bindingStrategies = {
+			direct: new DirectBindingStrategy(naja),
+			delegated: new DelegatedBindingStrategy(naja),
+		};
+
 		naja.addEventListener('init', this.initialize.bind(this));
 	}
 
 	private initialize(): void {
-		onDomReady(() => this.bindUI(window.document.body));
-		this.naja.snippetHandler.addEventListener('afterUpdate', (event) => {
-			const {snippet} = event.detail;
-			this.bindUI(snippet);
-		});
+		this.bindingStrategy.initialize(this.handler);
 	}
 
 	public bindUI(element: Element): void {
-		const selector = `a${this.selector}`;
-
-		const bindElement = (element: HTMLAnchorElement) => {
-			element.removeEventListener('click', this.handler);
-			element.addEventListener('click', this.handler);
-		};
-
-		if (element.matches(selector)) {
-			return bindElement(element as HTMLAnchorElement);
-		}
-
-		const elements = element.querySelectorAll(selector);
-		elements.forEach((element) => bindElement(element as HTMLAnchorElement));
-
-		const bindForm = (form: HTMLFormElement) => {
-			form.removeEventListener('submit', this.handler);
-			form.addEventListener('submit', this.handler);
-		};
-
-		if (element instanceof HTMLFormElement) {
-			return bindForm(element);
-		}
-
-		const forms = element.querySelectorAll('form');
-		forms.forEach((form) => bindForm(form));
+		this.bindingStrategy.bind(element);
 	}
 
-	private handleUI(event: MouseEvent | SubmitEvent): void {
-		const element = event.currentTarget as HTMLElement;
+	private handleUI(element: HTMLElement, event: MouseEvent | SubmitEvent): void {
 		const options = this.naja.prepareOptions();
 
 		const ignoreErrors = () => {
@@ -148,3 +134,101 @@ export type InteractionEvent = CustomEvent<{element: Element, originalEvent?: Ev
 interface UIHandlerEventMap {
 	interaction: InteractionEvent;
 }
+
+type BindingStrategyType = 'direct' | 'delegated';
+
+interface BindingStrategy {
+	readonly type: BindingStrategyType;
+	initialize(handler: (target: HTMLElement, event: MouseEvent | SubmitEvent) => unknown): void;
+	bind(element: Element): void;
+}
+
+class DirectBindingStrategy implements BindingStrategy {
+	public readonly type = 'direct';
+
+	private eventListener: (event: MouseEvent | SubmitEvent) => unknown = () => {
+		throw new Error('UIHandler: binding strategy must be initialized first.');
+	};
+
+	// eslint-disable-next-line no-empty-function
+	public constructor(private readonly naja: Naja) {}
+
+	public initialize(
+		handler: (target: HTMLElement, event: MouseEvent | SubmitEvent) => unknown,
+	): void {
+		this.eventListener = (event: MouseEvent | SubmitEvent) => handler(event.currentTarget as HTMLElement, event);
+
+		onDomReady(() => this.bind(window.document.body));
+		this.naja.snippetHandler.addEventListener('afterUpdate', (event) => {
+			const {snippet} = event.detail;
+			this.bind(snippet);
+		});
+	}
+
+	public bind(element: Element): void {
+		const linkSelector = `a${this.naja.uiHandler.selector}`;
+		if (element.matches(linkSelector)) {
+			(element as HTMLAnchorElement).removeEventListener('click', this.eventListener);
+			(element as HTMLAnchorElement).addEventListener('click', this.eventListener);
+			return;
+		}
+
+		const links = element.querySelectorAll(linkSelector);
+		links.forEach((link) => {
+			(link as HTMLAnchorElement).removeEventListener('click', this.eventListener);
+			(link as HTMLAnchorElement).addEventListener('click', this.eventListener);
+		});
+
+		if (element instanceof HTMLFormElement) {
+			element.removeEventListener('submit', this.eventListener);
+			element.addEventListener('submit', this.eventListener);
+			return;
+		}
+
+		const forms = element.querySelectorAll('form');
+		forms.forEach((form) => {
+			form.removeEventListener('submit', this.eventListener);
+			form.addEventListener('submit', this.eventListener);
+		});
+	}
+}
+
+class DelegatedBindingStrategy implements BindingStrategy {
+	public readonly type = 'delegated';
+
+	private clickEventListener: (event: MouseEvent) => unknown = () => {
+		throw new Error('UIHandler: binding strategy must be initialized first.');
+	};
+
+	private submitEventListener: (event: SubmitEvent) => unknown = () => {
+		throw new Error('UIHandler: binding strategy must be initialized first.');
+	};
+
+	// eslint-disable-next-line no-empty-function
+	public constructor(private readonly naja: Naja) {}
+
+	public initialize(
+		handler: (target: HTMLElement, event: MouseEvent | SubmitEvent) => unknown,
+	): void {
+		this.clickEventListener = (event: MouseEvent) => {
+			const linkSelector = `a${this.naja.uiHandler.selector}`;
+			const target = (event.target as HTMLElement).closest(linkSelector);
+			if (target !== null) {
+				handler(target as HTMLAnchorElement, event);
+			}
+		};
+
+		this.submitEventListener = (event: SubmitEvent) => {
+			handler(event.target as HTMLFormElement, event);
+		};
+
+		onDomReady(() => {
+			window.document.body.addEventListener('click', this.clickEventListener);
+			window.document.body.addEventListener('submit', this.submitEventListener);
+		});
+	}
+
+	public bind(): void {
+		// no-op
+	}
+}
diff --git a/tests/Naja.UIHandler.js b/tests/Naja.UIHandler.js
index ad1ce36..266526b 100644
--- a/tests/Naja.UIHandler.js
+++ b/tests/Naja.UIHandler.js
@@ -85,98 +85,124 @@ describe('UIHandler', function () {
 		mock.verify();
 	});
 
-	describe('bindUI()', function () {
-		it('binds to .ajax elements by default', function () {
-			const naja = mockNaja({
-				snippetHandler: SnippetHandler,
-				uiHandler: UIHandler,
-			});
-			naja.uiHandler.handler = sinon.spy((evt) => evt.preventDefault());
-			naja.initialize();
-
-			this.a.dispatchEvent(new MouseEvent('click', {cancelable: true}));
-			this.form.dispatchEvent(new SubmitEvent('submit', {cancelable: true}));
-			this.form.requestSubmit();
+	['direct', 'delegated'].forEach((bindingStrategy) => {
+		describe(`UI binding – ${bindingStrategy}`, function () {
+			function cleanUp(naja) {
+				if (bindingStrategy === 'delegated') {
+					document.body.removeEventListener('click', naja.uiHandler.bindingStrategy.clickEventListener);
+					document.body.removeEventListener('submit', naja.uiHandler.bindingStrategy.submitEventListener);
+				}
+			}
+
+			it('binds to .ajax elements by default', function () {
+				const naja = mockNaja({
+					snippetHandler: SnippetHandler,
+					uiHandler: UIHandler,
+				});
+				naja.uiHandler.binding = bindingStrategy;
+				naja.uiHandler.handler = sinon.spy((_, evt) => evt.preventDefault());
+				naja.initialize();
 
-			assert.equal(naja.uiHandler.handler.callCount, 3);
-		});
+				this.a.dispatchEvent(new MouseEvent('click', {bubbles: true, cancelable: true}));
+				this.form.dispatchEvent(new SubmitEvent('submit', {bubbles: true, cancelable: true}));
+				this.form.requestSubmit();
 
-		it('binds to elements specified by custom selector', function () {
-			const customSelectorLink = document.createElement('a');
-			customSelectorLink.href = '/UIHandler/customSelector';
-			customSelectorLink.setAttribute('data-naja', true);
-			document.body.appendChild(customSelectorLink);
+				assert.equal(naja.uiHandler.handler.callCount, 3);
+				assert.isTrue(naja.uiHandler.handler.firstCall.calledWith(this.a));
+				assert.isTrue(naja.uiHandler.handler.secondCall.calledWith(this.form));
 
-			const naja = mockNaja({
-				snippetHandler: SnippetHandler,
-				uiHandler: UIHandler,
+				cleanUp(naja);
 			});
-			naja.uiHandler.selector = '[data-naja]';
-			naja.uiHandler.handler = sinon.spy((evt) => evt.preventDefault());
-			naja.initialize();
 
-			customSelectorLink.dispatchEvent(new MouseEvent('click', {cancelable: true}));
-			assert.isTrue(naja.uiHandler.handler.called);
-			document.body.removeChild(customSelectorLink);
-		});
-
-		it('binds to all elements when selector is empty', function () {
-			const emptySelectorLink = document.createElement('a');
-			emptySelectorLink.href = '/UIHandler/emptySelector';
-			document.body.appendChild(emptySelectorLink);
+			it('binds to elements specified by custom selector', function () {
+				const customSelectorLink = document.createElement('a');
+				customSelectorLink.href = '/UIHandler/customSelector';
+				customSelectorLink.setAttribute('data-naja', true);
+				document.body.appendChild(customSelectorLink);
 
-			const emptySelectorForm = document.createElement('form');
-			emptySelectorForm.action = '/UIHandler/emptySelector';
-			document.body.appendChild(emptySelectorForm);
-
-			const emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter = document.createElement('form');
-			emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter.action = '/UIHandler/emptySelector';
-			document.body.appendChild(emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter);
+				const naja = mockNaja({
+					snippetHandler: SnippetHandler,
+					uiHandler: UIHandler,
+				});
+				naja.uiHandler.selector = '[data-naja]';
+				naja.uiHandler.binding = bindingStrategy;
+				naja.uiHandler.handler = sinon.spy((_, evt) => evt.preventDefault());
+				naja.initialize();
 
-			const emptySelectorSubmitter = document.createElement('input');
-			emptySelectorSubmitter.type = 'submit';
-			emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter.appendChild(emptySelectorSubmitter);
+				customSelectorLink.dispatchEvent(new MouseEvent('click', {bubbles: true, cancelable: true}));
+				assert.isTrue(naja.uiHandler.handler.called);
+				assert.isTrue(naja.uiHandler.handler.calledWith(customSelectorLink));
 
-			const naja = mockNaja({
-				snippetHandler: SnippetHandler,
-				uiHandler: UIHandler,
+				document.body.removeChild(customSelectorLink);
+				cleanUp(naja);
 			});
-			naja.uiHandler.selector = '';
-			naja.uiHandler.handler = sinon.spy((evt) => evt.preventDefault());
-			naja.initialize();
 
-			emptySelectorLink.dispatchEvent(new MouseEvent('click', {cancelable: true}));
-			emptySelectorForm.dispatchEvent(new SubmitEvent('submit', {cancelable: true}));
-			emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter.dispatchEvent(new SubmitEvent('submit', {submitter: emptySelectorSubmitter, cancelable: true}));
+			it('binds to all elements when selector is empty', function () {
+				const emptySelectorLink = document.createElement('a');
+				emptySelectorLink.href = '/UIHandler/emptySelector';
+				document.body.appendChild(emptySelectorLink);
 
-			assert.equal(naja.uiHandler.handler.callCount, 3);
+				const emptySelectorForm = document.createElement('form');
+				emptySelectorForm.action = '/UIHandler/emptySelector';
+				document.body.appendChild(emptySelectorForm);
 
-			document.body.removeChild(emptySelectorLink);
-			document.body.removeChild(emptySelectorForm);
-			document.body.removeChild(emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter);
-		});
+				const emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter = document.createElement('form');
+				emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter.action = '/UIHandler/emptySelector';
+				document.body.appendChild(emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter);
 
-		it('binds after snippet update', async function () {
-			const snippetDiv = document.createElement('div');
-			snippetDiv.id = 'snippet-uiHandler-snippet-bind';
-			document.body.appendChild(snippetDiv);
+				const emptySelectorSubmitter = document.createElement('input');
+				emptySelectorSubmitter.type = 'submit';
+				emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter.appendChild(emptySelectorSubmitter);
 
-			const naja = mockNaja({
-				snippetHandler: SnippetHandler,
-				uiHandler: UIHandler,
+				const naja = mockNaja({
+					snippetHandler: SnippetHandler,
+					uiHandler: UIHandler,
+				});
+				naja.uiHandler.selector = '';
+				naja.uiHandler.binding = bindingStrategy;
+				naja.uiHandler.handler = sinon.spy((_, evt) => evt.preventDefault());
+				naja.initialize();
+
+				emptySelectorLink.dispatchEvent(new MouseEvent('click', {bubbles: true, cancelable: true}));
+				emptySelectorForm.dispatchEvent(new SubmitEvent('submit', {bubbles: true, cancelable: true}));
+				emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter.dispatchEvent(new SubmitEvent('submit', {submitter: emptySelectorSubmitter, bubbles: true, cancelable: true}));
+
+				assert.equal(naja.uiHandler.handler.callCount, 3);
+				assert.isTrue(naja.uiHandler.handler.firstCall.calledWith(emptySelectorLink));
+				assert.isTrue(naja.uiHandler.handler.secondCall.calledWith(emptySelectorForm));
+				assert.isTrue(naja.uiHandler.handler.thirdCall.calledWith(emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter));
+
+				document.body.removeChild(emptySelectorLink);
+				document.body.removeChild(emptySelectorForm);
+				document.body.removeChild(emptySelectorFormWithSubmitter);
+				cleanUp(naja);
 			});
-			naja.uiHandler.handler = sinon.spy((evt) => evt.preventDefault());
-			naja.initialize();
 
-			await naja.snippetHandler.updateSnippets({
-				'snippet-uiHandler-snippet-bind': '<a href="/UIHandler/snippetBind" class="ajax" id="uiHandler-snippet-bind">test</a>',
-			});
+			it('binds after snippet update', async function () {
+				const snippetDiv = document.createElement('div');
+				snippetDiv.id = 'snippet-uiHandler-snippet-bind';
+				document.body.appendChild(snippetDiv);
+
+				const naja = mockNaja({
+					snippetHandler: SnippetHandler,
+					uiHandler: UIHandler,
+				});
+				naja.uiHandler.binding = bindingStrategy;
+				naja.uiHandler.handler = sinon.spy((_, evt) => evt.preventDefault());
+				naja.initialize();
+
+				await naja.snippetHandler.updateSnippets({
+					'snippet-uiHandler-snippet-bind': '<a href="/UIHandler/snippetBind" class="ajax" id="uiHandler-snippet-bind">test</a>',
+				});
 
-			const a = document.getElementById('uiHandler-snippet-bind');
-			a.dispatchEvent(new MouseEvent('click', {cancelable: true}));
+				const a = document.getElementById('uiHandler-snippet-bind');
+				a.dispatchEvent(new MouseEvent('click', {bubbles: true, cancelable: true}));
 
-			assert.isTrue(naja.uiHandler.handler.called);
-			document.body.removeChild(snippetDiv);
+				assert.isTrue(naja.uiHandler.handler.called);
+				assert.isTrue(naja.uiHandler.handler.calledWith(a));
+				document.body.removeChild(snippetDiv);
+				cleanUp(naja);
+			});
 		});
 	});
 
@@ -184,7 +210,7 @@ describe('UIHandler', function () {
 		function simulateInteraction(handler, target, event) {
 			target.addEventListener(event.type, (event) => {
 				event.preventDefault();
-				handler.handleUI(event);
+				handler.handleUI(target, event);
 			}, {once: true});
 
 			target.dispatchEvent(event);