--- title: "Master SEO audit checklist" slug: "audit-checklist" category: "seo" tags: ["seo", "audit", "checklist", "pre-launch", "quarterly-review", "qa"] status: "stable" last_updated: 2026-05-15 summary: "Ten-category SEO audit for pre-launch and quarterly review: quick 30-minute pass and full quarterly pass, each row stating the check, pass condition, and tool." related: ["[[seo/technical]]", "[[seo/discoverability-files]]", "[[seo/helpful-content-update]]", "[[seo/core-web-vitals]]", "[[seo/e-e-a-t]]", "[[seo/structured-data]]", "[[howto/audit-site-for-core-web-vitals]]", "[[howto/master-google-search-console]]", "[[seo/glossary]]", "[[howto/launch-a-new-site]]"] --- ## Overview An SEO audit is a structured pass over the site that surfaces every issue blocking ranking or click-through. Run the quick version before every launch and the full version every quarter. Treat each row as pass-fail; do not move to the next category until the current one is green. The deep-dive pages in this folder explain the why; this page is the operational checklist. ## Crawl and index Verify that Google can find, fetch, and index every page that should rank. | Check | Pass if | Tool | |---|---|---| | `robots.txt` at site root | Returns 200; no `Disallow: /` line | `curl -I` | | `sitemap.xml` at site root | Returns 200; lists every canonical URL with `` | Browser, GSC Sitemaps | | Sitemap submitted | GSC shows "Success" with discovered URLs > 0 | GSC Sitemaps | | Indexed count vs sitemap | Within 10% of sitemap URL count | GSC Pages report | | No orphan pages | Every URL has at least one internal inbound link | Screaming Frog | | No `noindex` on indexable pages | Production `` has no `` | View source | | Canonical present and self-referential | Every page declares its own URL as canonical | View source | See [[seo/technical]] for the canonical and `robots` rules in detail. ## Performance Field metrics from real users decide ranking eligibility; lab metrics do not. | Check | Pass if | Tool | |---|---|---| | LCP 75th percentile | Under 2.5 seconds | GSC Core Web Vitals, PageSpeed | | INP 75th percentile | Under 200 milliseconds | GSC Core Web Vitals | | CLS 75th percentile | Under 0.1 | GSC Core Web Vitals | | TTFB 75th percentile | Under 800 milliseconds | PageSpeed Insights | | Total JS shipped | Under 200 KB compressed for content pages | Chrome DevTools Coverage | | LCP image preloaded | `` set | View source | See [[seo/core-web-vitals]] and [[howto/audit-site-for-core-web-vitals]] for the fix loop. ## On-page The per-page elements that decide whether a page can rank for its target query. | Check | Pass if | Tool | |---|---|---| | One `

` per page | Exactly one; matches page intent | View source | | Heading order | H2 to H3 to H4 with no skips | axe DevTools | | Title tag length | 50-60 characters; primary keyword included | View source | | Meta description | 130-160 characters; unique per page | View source | | Image `alt` attributes | Every content image has descriptive `alt` text | axe DevTools | | Internal anchor text | Descriptive, not "click here" or "read more" | Screaming Frog | See [[seo/title-tags]] and [[seo/internal-linking]]. ## Structured data JSON-LD that powers rich results and clarifies the page entity to Google. | Check | Pass if | Tool | |---|---|---| | Valid JSON-LD on every page type | Passes Rich Results Test | Rich Results Test | | BreadcrumbList on every page below root | Present and labels match visible crumbs | Rich Results Test | | Schema matches body | No FAQPage schema for pages without an FAQ section | Manual review | | No structured data errors in GSC | Enhancements reports show Error: 0 | GSC Enhancements | See [[seo/structured-data]] and [[seo/schema-markup-deep]]. ## Discoverability files The root-served text files that crawlers and AI agents read first. | Check | Pass if | Tool | |---|---|---| | `/llms.txt` | Returns 200; lists primary pages with summaries | `curl` | | `/ai.txt` | Returns 200; states crawl preferences | `curl` | | `/humans.txt` | Optional; present if the site is editorial | `curl` | | `/favicon.ico` | Returns 200; not a redirect | `curl -I` | See [[seo/discoverability-files]] for the full list and format. ## Content quality The signals that drive the Helpful Content classifier and human raters. | Check | Pass if | Tool | |---|---|---| | Original information per editorial page | At least one number, screenshot, or command output | Manual review | | Intent match | H1 answers the target query verbatim | SERP comparison | | Site-wide topical focus | Each section has 5 or more pages on one topic | Folder count | | `last_updated` reflects real edits | Date matches the latest meaningful body change | Git log | | AI-assisted drafts edited | Every paragraph has been rewritten with specifics | Manual review | See [[seo/helpful-content-update]] and [[seo/e-e-a-t]]. ## Internal linking The link graph that distributes equity and tells Google what each page is about. | Check | Pass if | Tool | |---|---|---| | Every page reachable in 3 clicks from home | Crawler depth report shows max depth = 3 | Screaming Frog | | No orphan pages | Inbound internal links > 0 for every URL | Screaming Frog | | Anchor text descriptive and varied | No bulk identical anchors to one URL | Screaming Frog | | MOC pages link to every child | Each folder index lists every page in the folder | Manual review | See [[seo/internal-linking]] and [[seo/site-architecture]]. ## Mobile Google indexes the mobile version of every page. | Check | Pass if | Tool | |---|---|---| | Mobile-friendly | No horizontal scroll, tap targets >= 48 px | GSC, PageSpeed | | Viewport meta tag | `` | View source | | Mobile and desktop content parity | Same content, same structured data, same links | Mobile-Friendly Test | See [[seo/technical]] for the mobile-first rule set. ## Security HTTPS is a ranking signal and a trust signal. | Check | Pass if | Tool | |---|---|---| | HTTPS on every URL | Every `http://` 301 redirects to `https://` | `curl -I` | | Valid certificate | No browser warning; expiry > 30 days | `openssl s_client` | | No mixed content | Page and all subresources served over HTTPS | DevTools Console | | HSTS header | `Strict-Transport-Security: max-age=31536000` | `curl -I` | ## Analytics Confirm the measurement plane is intact before judging any other signal. | Check | Pass if | Tool | |---|---|---| | GSC Domain property verified | Property switcher shows the domain | GSC | | Bing Webmaster Tools verified | Sitemap submitted, no verification warnings | BWT | | Web analytics installed | Tag fires on every page; bounce rate plausible | Plausible, GA4, etc. | | Server logs retained 90+ days | Bot traffic by user-agent extractable | Hosting dashboard | ## 30-minute quick audit Use before every deploy. Skip rows that did not change in this release. 1. Crawl and index: confirm `sitemap.xml` and `robots.txt` return 200. 2. Performance: PageSpeed Insights on the home page and one content page; both Good. 3. On-page: spot-check one new page for one H1, valid title length, descriptive `alt` attributes. 4. Structured data: Rich Results Test on one new page; no errors. 5. Discoverability: `curl /llms.txt` and `curl /ai.txt` both return 200. 6. Analytics: GSC URL Inspection on one new page shows "URL is on Google" or "Submitted and indexed" on next crawl. ## Full quarterly audit Use every 90 days. Every row, every category. 1. Run a full-site crawl with Screaming Frog or Sitebulb. 2. Export the depth, orphan, and broken-link reports. 3. Pull 90 days of GSC Performance, Coverage, Core Web Vitals, and Enhancements data. 4. Walk every category table top to bottom; mark pass or fail in a shared sheet. 5. Open one ticket per fail. Assign by category. 6. Schedule the next audit before closing the current one. ## Related - [[seo/technical]] - [[seo/discoverability-files]] - [[seo/helpful-content-update]] - [[seo/core-web-vitals]] - [[seo/e-e-a-t]] - [[seo/structured-data]] - [[howto/audit-site-for-core-web-vitals]] - [[howto/master-google-search-console]] - [[seo/glossary]] - [[howto/launch-a-new-site]]: the launch twin of this audit checklist