SEO Audit Checklist: 25 Checks to Run on Any Website

CheckOpen yoursite.com/robots.txt. Look for Disallow rules that cover your main pages, CSS, JavaScript or images.

Fix ifAn important section is blocked, or a Disallow: / left over from a staging site is still sitting there. One more thing people get wrong: robots.txt doesn't keep a page out of Google. A blocked URL can still get indexed if other sites link to it, just without a description. To keep a page out, use noindex or a password.

CheckFind your sitemap (often /sitemap.xml or /sitemap_index.xml), confirm it is submitted in Search Console's Sitemaps report, and that it lists only canonical, indexable URLs.

Fix ifIt lists redirected, noindexed, 404 or duplicate URLs. One sitemap can hold 50,000 URLs or 50MB uncompressed, so bigger sites need several files. Google ignores priority and changefreq, and only trusts lastmod if it's accurate every time, so don't touch it just to look fresh.

CheckIn Search Console, open the Pages report. Compare the number of indexed pages with the number you want indexed. Read the reasons listed under "Not indexed", such as "Crawled, currently not indexed", "Discovered, currently not indexed", "Duplicate" and "Excluded by noindex".

Fix ifKey pages are missing, or most of the index is low-value URLs like filters, tags and search results. Run the URL Inspection tool on a few important pages and it will tell you why.

CheckIn your crawl, filter for pages with a noindex meta robots tag or X-Robots-Tag header, then confirm each one is intentional.

Fix ifA service page, money page or blog post is set to noindex. On WordPress, look at the "Discourage search engines" setting and your SEO plugin's per-page settings. After a redesign or migration, that's where it usually hides.

CheckEvery indexable page should have a canonical tag, usually pointing to itself. Check that no canonical points to a redirected, 404 or noindexed URL.

Fix ifLots of pages point their canonical at the homepage, parameter URLs canonicalize to themselves, or your own signals contradict each other (the canonical says one URL, the sitemap and internal links say another). Google treats the canonical as a hint, not a command, so keep everything consistent.

CheckType all four variants into a browser: http:// and https://, with and without www. They should all end up on one HTTPS version through a 301 redirect. Check for mixed content (HTTP images or scripts on HTTPS pages) and an expired certificate.

Fix ifMore than one version loads without redirecting, or the browser shows a "Not secure" warning.

CheckIn your crawl, filter by response code. Look for 4xx pages that still get internal links, 5xx server errors, redirect chains (A to B to C), redirect loops and temporary (302) redirects that should be permanent (301).

Fix ifInternal links point at redirected or broken URLs. Update them to the final destination. If a deleted page has a real replacement, redirect it to the closest match, and let pages that are truly gone return 404 or 410. Also watch for soft 404s, which are pages that say "not found" but return a 200 code.

CheckAre URLs short, readable and lowercase, with hyphens between words? Do they avoid session IDs and long parameter strings?

Fix ifThe same page loads on several URLs, for example with and without a trailing slash, or in upper and lower case. Don't rewrite working URLs just to make them prettier: every change needs a redirect and carries some risk. Fix the pattern for new pages and only touch old ones when something is actually wrong.

CheckCompare your crawl with your sitemap to find orphan pages (listed in the sitemap but with no internal links). Check how many clicks it takes to reach your most important pages, and whether links use descriptive anchor text rather than "click here".

Fix ifYour priority pages are buried or can only be reached through search. Link to them from related posts and from the navigation. Pointing related posts at one central guide also helps build topical authority.

CheckLook for duplicate titles and near-identical pages in your crawl, such as filter and sort URLs, tag and author archives, printer-friendly pages and copied manufacturer descriptions. Look for pages with very little unique content.

Fix ifYou have lots of low-value pages that can be indexed. Merge them, canonicalize them, noindex them or make them better. Mass-produced pages with no real value can also run into Google's spam policies.

CheckIf you use hreflang, each version must link to itself and to every other version, and the links must be reciprocal. If page X points to page Y, page Y must point back, or Google ignores the annotations. Use x-default for the fallback page.

Fix ifAnnotations have no return links, use the wrong language codes, or point to redirected URLs. If your site has just one language, skip this check.

CheckUse the Core Web Vitals report in Search Console (real user data) and PageSpeed Insights. Google's targets: Largest Contentful Paint within 2.5 seconds, Interaction to Next Paint under 200 milliseconds, Cumulative Layout Shift under 0.1.

Fix ifPages fail any of the three. Google doesn't publish a ranking weight for this, but it does say good Core Web Vitals line up with what its ranking systems try to reward, and slow pages lose visitors anyway. My Core Web Vitals guide covers the fixes.

CheckGoogle primarily uses the mobile version of a page for indexing. Load key pages on a phone, or use the URL Inspection tool, and compare content, headings, links, structured data and images with desktop.

Fix ifContent or links are hidden or missing on mobile, the text is too small, buttons sit too close together, or you have to scroll sideways.

CheckLook for oversized files, old formats, missing width and height attributes (which cause layout shift), missing alt text and meaningless file names such as IMG_4021.jpg.

Fix ifBig images are slowing the page. Switch to WebP, compress them, give every image dimensions and a short alt text, and lazy-load the ones below the fold. Don't lazy-load the main image at the top, because that can hurt Largest Contentful Paint.

CheckIf your site relies on JavaScript, use the URL Inspection tool's rendered HTML view to confirm your main content, headings and links appear. A basic test is to view the page with JavaScript disabled.

Fix ifKey content or links only show up after a click or scroll. My JavaScript SEO checklist goes into the details.

CheckLook at the Crawl stats report in Search Console (under Settings) for server errors and slow average response times. Check that caching and a CDN are in place if your audience is spread across regions.

Fix ifGooglebot keeps hitting server errors or timeouts. On WordPress the usual causes are heavy plugins, no caching and cheap shared hosting.

CheckExport titles from your crawl. Look for missing, duplicate, vague ("Home") and keyword-stuffed titles.

Fix ifTitles don't describe the page. Google has no fixed character limit, but it cuts long titles to fit the screen width, so put the important words first. It also rewrites title links it thinks are poor, and a change can take days or weeks to show up after a recrawl.

CheckLook for missing and duplicate descriptions on your most important pages first.

Fix ifKey pages have none. Meta descriptions aren't a ranking factor and Google often swaps them for text from the page, so don't burn hours on every page. For the pages that matter most, write a clear, honest summary with a reason to click.

CheckPages should have a main heading (H1) that matches the topic, followed by H2s and H3s in a sensible order.

Fix ifThe H1 is missing or is just the site name, headings are used only for styling, or the order jumps around. Good headings help readers scan and help search engines understand the page.

CheckPick your top 10 target pages. Search for the main keyword, and compare your page with what ranks: is it the same kind of page (guide, product page, comparison), as complete, and as current? Look for pages with outdated facts, no clear purpose or no unique information.

Fix ifYou're offering a different type of page than searchers want, or yours just repeats what everyone else says. Add original information, real examples and clear answers. Update, merge or delete content that has stopped being useful.

CheckIn Search Console's Performance report, filter by a key query and look at the Pages tab. If two or more of your pages get impressions for the same query and trade positions, they are probably cannibalizing each other.

Fix ifTwo pages go after the same intent. Merge them and redirect the weaker one, or sharpen each so it targets a different intent.

CheckTest key pages with the Rich Results Test, and check the enhancement reports in Search Console for errors.

Fix ifThe markup has errors, describes content that isn't on the page, or was added for a result type Google no longer shows. FAQ rich results, for example, stopped appearing in Google Search on 7 May 2026. Valid markup still helps machines understand the page, but don't expect that rich result.

CheckUse the Links report in Search Console to see your top linked pages, top linking sites and top anchor text. Look for lost links to important pages, a profile made up almost entirely of one type of link, and obvious paid or spammy links.

Fix ifYour best pages have few quality links, or the pattern looks unnatural. Most sites don't need to disavow anything. Keep that for a real manual action or an obvious paid-link problem. If you want help building links, have a look at my link building services.

CheckSearch for your brand name. Check that your Google Business Profile exists (if you serve a local area), and that your business name, address or service area, phone number and website match across your site, social profiles and directories.

Fix ifDetails differ between listings, or you don't have a profile at all. My guides to local SEO and to ranking in Google Maps without a storefront cover this in detail. Online stores should also check their product pages, which is what my e-commerce SEO work is about.

CheckConfirm that Search Console is verified, GA4 is installed with the right data stream, key actions (leads, purchases, calls) are tracked as conversions, and internal or developer traffic is filtered out.

Fix ifYou can't tell which pages bring in leads. Also check whether you can see visits from AI tools. I've written up how to do that in tracking AI traffic in GA4.