Technical SEO audit checklist

A structured pass for crawl, indexation, Core Web Vitals, structured data, and measurement. Use before a redesign, after a migration, or as a quarterly health check.

1. Crawl access & discovery

  • robots.txt allows money paths and does not block CSS/JS needed to render
  • XML sitemap lists only 200 indexable URLs; submitted in Google Search Console
  • One preferred host (https + www or non-www); others 301 to it
  • Staging / preview / parameter junk is noindex or blocked; production is indexable
  • Crawl of production shows no critical 4xx/5xx on linked money pages Screaming Frog, Sitebulb, or equivalent.

2. Indexation & duplicates

  • Self-referencing or correct canonicals on templates; no conflicting signals
  • Titles and H1s are unique on key templates (home, services, hubs, top product/category pages)
  • Facet, sort, and session parameters are canonicalized or noindexed as designed
  • Search Console Pages report reviewed; soft 404s and “crawled – not indexed” investigated
  • If multilingual, hreflang pairs are reciprocal and match live locales (or N/A marked)

3. Structure, links & content graph

  • Important pages are reachable within a few clicks from home (no orphans)
  • Hubs and spokes cross-link with descriptive anchors (not “click here”)
  • Nav/footer links match real destinations; dead or redirect chains removed
  • Thin tag/archive/doorway URLs are noindexed or consolidated

4. Performance & Core Web Vitals

  • Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) is in a healthy range on key templates (field data preferred)
  • Interaction to Next Paint (INP) is not degraded by heavy third-party scripts
  • Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) controlled: images/embeds sized; late banners reviewed
  • Time to First Byte (TTFB) is acceptable at the edge or origin for primary markets
  • Mobile usability checked; viewport and tap targets sane on money pages

5. Structured data & AI discoverability

  • JSON-LD matches visible content (Organization, WebSite, Article/BlogPosting, FAQ where used)
  • Sample URLs pass Rich Results / schema validation after template changes
  • Primary content is in the first HTML response (not blank SPA shell for bots)
  • FAQPage schema only mirrors FAQs actually shown on the page

6. Local & ecommerce extras (if applicable)

  • Google Business Profile categories, service areas, NAP, and hours match the site Skip if you have no local/service-area presence.
  • LocalBusiness / ProfessionalService schema aligns with contact details
  • Product + Offer schema is truthful on PDPs (price, availability, currency) Skip if you are not running a catalog.
  • Facet URL rules documented and enforced (index only curated landings)

7. Measurement close-out

  • Correct Search Console property verified; sitemap Success status confirmed
  • Analytics (or equivalent) tracks organic landings and key conversions
  • Issues logged with owner, severity, and due date (not a screenshot graveyard)
  • Re-crawl / re-check scheduled after fixes ship

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