Complete SEO Audit Checklist to Improve Site Health & Rankings

Crawl & Indexability

Check overall indexation trends in Google Search Console:
Check overall indexation trends in Google Search Console to spot sudden drops or spikes.

Compare indexed vs. submitted pages (identify anomalies):
During the SEO audit, compare indexed pages to those you’ve submitted; mismatches often reveal crawl problems.

Confirm presence of sitemap.xml and robots.txt:
Make sure sitemap.xml and robots.txt are both live, accurate, and submitted to Search Console.

Spot-check for canonical tag consistency and misuse:
Spot-check canonical tags so every page references the correct URL for the SEO audit summary.

Identify major crawl errors, server issues, and soft 404s:
Use Search Console reports to catch crawl errors, soft 404s, and server issues, then log fixes in your SEO audit action list.

Look for large-scale noindex, canonical, or disallow issues affecting key pages:
Look for noindex, canonical, or disallow rules that could be blocking important pages.

Site Structure & Content Architecture

Audit top-level site structure: categories, subcategories, and URL logic:
Audit top-level site structure, categories, subcategories, and URL logic, for a clear hierarchy.

Check for keyword cannibalization due to poor content segmentation:
Identify keyword cannibalization and merge pages that chase the same terms; document changes in the SEO audit.

Identify orphan pages or pages buried too deep in site hierarchy:
Locate orphan pages or those buried too deep, then add internal links so they’re easier to crawl.

Evaluate internal linking strategy from key pages (e.g., homepage, hubs):
From high-authority hubs, link out to product or guide pages to spread link equity.

Analyze crawl depth and flatness of architecture:
Keep most content within three clicks of the homepage, a common metric flagged during an SEO audit.

On-Page SEO Essentials

Spot-check title tags and meta descriptions for length, uniqueness, and relevance:
Check that each title tag and meta description is properly sized, distinct, and aligned with page content.

Confirm H1 usage is consistent and reflects page intent:
Make sure each page has one H1 that matches the main topic; note any gaps in the SEO audit checklist.

Ensure target keywords are properly incorporated across content:
Use target keywords naturally in headings, body copy, alt text, and internal links.

Review image optimization (alt tags, filenames) on high-traffic pages:
Add descriptive alt text and filenames to important images for better accessibility and search.

Scan for duplicate or near-duplicate content issues:
Consolidate duplicate or near-duplicate content so ranking signals aren’t split.

Evaluate use of structured data across content types (products, FAQs, articles):
Apply structured data, FAQ, product, article, wherever it adds rich-result info and list those pages in the SEO audit report.

Content Quality & Relevance

Identify thin, outdated, or underperforming content:
Flag thin, outdated, or low-traffic pages; decide whether to update, combine, or remove them.

Evaluate alignment with search intent (informational, commercial, etc.):
Check that content matches the user’s intent: informational, commercial, or transactional.

Assess content depth, topical coverage, and originality:
Review depth and originality; cover topics comprehensively, not just superficially.

Check E-E-A-T signals: author bios, external citations, transparency:
Show E-E-A-T signals with clear author bios, reputable citations, and contact details.

Audit use of media: images, videos, tables, or visuals for UX and SEO value:
Use images, videos, and tables to boost engagement and on-page experience.

Benchmark top content against competitors in SERPs:
Benchmark top pages against leading competitors to spot content gaps.

SERP Presence & Performance

Audit click-through rates (CTR) for high-impression queries:
Audit click-through rates on high-impression queries; low CTR often calls for fresher titles or descriptions.

Identify keyword opportunities where rankings exist but CTR is low:
Find keywords that rank well but get few clicks and adjust meta tags accordingly.

Track presence in SERP features (featured snippets, knowledge panels, etc.):
Track which pages earn featured snippets or other SERP features; add new targets to the SEO audit roadmap.

Spot-check brand appearance on SERPs: reviews, site links, star ratings:
Search your brand name to see how reviews, stars, and sitelinks appear to users.

Ensure pages use appropriate markup for enhanced appearance (e.g., FAQs, Reviews):
Add or refine schema markup so FAQs, reviews, or products stand out in results.

Mobile & UX Signals

Review Google Search Console’s Mobile Usability report:
Review Mobile Usability reports in Search Console for overlapping text or unclickable elements.

Confirm responsive design behavior on major device types:
Test key pages on multiple devices to confirm responsive layouts work as intended and note issues in your SEO audit.

Check Core Web Vitals scores (LCP, CLS, INP) for high-value pages:
Check Core Web Vitals, LCP, CLS, INP, on high-value pages and fix slow or unstable elements.

Identify UX barriers to conversion or readability on mobile:
Identify mobile UX barriers such as small buttons or cluttered layouts that could hurt engagement.

Backlink Profile & Off-Page SEO

Analyze backlink quality, relevance, and domain diversity:
Analyze backlink quality, topical relevance, and domain diversity to gauge off-page strength in the SEO audit.

Identify toxic links and link velocity spikes:
During the SEO audit, watch for toxic link spikes that might signal negative SEO.

Review anchor text distribution across incoming links:
Check anchor-text distribution to keep a natural mix of branded, generic, and exact-match terms.

Benchmark linking root domains against competitors:
Compare linking root-domain counts with higher-ranking competitors to size up authority gaps.

Identify lost or broken backlinks to reclaim:
Find lost or broken backlinks and plan outreach to reclaim them.

Monitor unlinked brand mentions for outreach opportunities:
Monitor unlinked brand mentions and request links where relevant.

Local SEO

Audit Google Business Profile completeness and accuracy:
Audit your Google Business Profile to ensure every field is complete and accurate.

Check local pack visibility and ranking for branded + non-branded terms:
Track local-pack rankings for branded and non-branded keywords and log changes in your audit notes.

Review NAP consistency across major citation directories:
Check NAP consistency across top directories to avoid trust and ranking issues.

Monitor review volume, frequency, and sentiment trends:
Encourage and respond to reviews regularly, watching sentiment trends.

Ensure local landing pages are geo-optimized and unique:
Create unique, geo-optimized landing pages with local schema for each primary location.

Analytics & Tracking

Confirm GA4, Google Search Console, and tag manager setups are tracking properly:
Verify GA4, Search Console, and tag-manager setups are tracking cleanly.

Audit conversion events and goal tracking:
Audit conversion events so forms, calls, and purchases line up with business goals.

Ensure organic traffic is cleanly segmented from paid and referral sources:
Make sure organic traffic is segmented from paid and referral sources in reports.

Analyze bounce rate and time-on-page for key landing pages:
Review bounce rate and time-on-page on key landing pages and flag anything unusually low.

Set up dashboards or alerts for unusual traffic trends or indexing issues:
Set up dashboards or alerts for sudden traffic swings, crawl errors, or indexation drops.

Competitive Benchmarking

Identify primary SEO competitors by keyword footprint:
List primary SEO competitors by shared keyword footprint at the start of competitive benchmarking.

Compare top-ranking content for structure, depth, and freshness:
Compare their top-ranking pages for structure, freshness, and content depth.

Benchmark domain authority, backlink profiles, and keyword rankings:
‍Assess how your site stacks up in domain authority, link profile, and keyword presence.

Analyze use of SERP features and content formats:
See which SERP features competitors dominate, snippets, videos, FAQs, and plan to match or exceed them.

Identify content types and strategies missing from your site but present in theirs:
Highlight content types they use successfully (guides, tools, videos) but you don’t yet offer.

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Maria Harutyunyan

A well-structured approach is the cornerstone of successful SEO. That's why we’ve developed a series of in-depth checklists designed to streamline your SEO strategy. From building high-quality backlinks and optimizing your WordPress site to tackling on-page SEO and technical optimizations, our checklists offer precise, actionable steps to help you confidently navigate every aspect of SEO.

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