Technical SEO Checklist
A complete checklist to help you fix crawl errors, improve site speed, and ensure search engines can index your website properly.
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Crawlability & Indexing
Make Sure Google Can Access Your Website
Google’s crawlers (“bots” that scan the web) should be able to reach your site. Visit your homepage and important pages — they should open normally (status 200 OK) and shouldn’t be blocked by settings like noindex (which hides pages from search results).
Check Your robots.txt File
robots.txt is a small file that tells search engines which parts of your site they can or can’t visit. Make sure it exists, loads correctly, and doesn’t accidentally block important pages or files (like CSS or images).
Submit a Sitemap
A sitemap is a file that lists all the pages you want Google to know about. Create an XML sitemap and submit it in Google Search Console. Only include live, important pages (not test or duplicate ones).
Watch for Crawl Errors
Crawl errors happen when Google can’t access a page. Check Google Search Console regularly for 404 (not found) or 5xx (server) errors and fix them.
Avoid Duplicate Content
Duplicate content confuses search engines about which page to rank. Use canonical tags, avoid publishing the same text in multiple URLs, and make sure print or tag pages aren’t being indexed.
Make Sure Google Can See JavaScript Content
If your site uses JavaScript to load content, Google should be able to read it. Avoid hiding text or images behind clicks or scripts. Prefer server-side rendering when possible.
Site Architecture & Structure
Organize Your Website Clearly
Your site should be easy for both people and search engines to navigate. Important pages should be reachable within three clicks from your homepage.
Fix Orphan Pages
An orphan page is a page with no links pointing to it. Either add links to these pages from other parts of your site or remove them if they don’t add value.
Keep URLs Clean
Use short, readable URLs with hyphens (e.g., example.com/heart-surgery-cost). Avoid numbers or symbols unless needed.
Add Breadcrumbs
Breadcrumbs are small links showing where the user is (e.g., Home > Blog > SEO Basics).
Add them on your pages and use Breadcrumb schema to help Google display them in results.
Use Descriptive Internal Links
When linking from one page to another, use meaningful words (anchor text). Instead of “click here,” write “learn about heart surgery costs.”
Control Filter Pages (Faceted Navigation)
Filter and sorting pages (like “sort by price” or “color=red”) can create lots of duplicates. Tell Google which pages to ignore using noindex or canonical tags.
Canonicals, Tags & Metadata
Use Canonical Tags Correctly
A canonical tag tells Google which version of a page is the “main” one if there are duplicates (for example, with tracking parameters). Each page should have a self-canonical tag, and duplicates should point to the main version.
Add Language Tags (hreflang)
If your website has pages in different languages or for different countries, use hreflang tags. These tell Google which page to show users based on their language or location.
Add Open Graph & Twitter Tags
These tags control how your pages look when shared on Facebook or Twitter. Include clear titles, images, and short descriptions for better clicks.
Performance, Security & Mobile
Improve Page Speed (Core Web Vitals)
Google looks at three key speed and usability metrics: LCP (Largest Contentful Paint) – how fast the main content loads INP (Interaction to Next Paint) – how quickly users can interact CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift) – how stable the layout is while loading Use PageSpeed Insights to find and fix slow or unstable elements.
Make Sure It Works on Mobile
Your site must look good and work smoothly on phones. Use responsive design (auto-adjusts to screen size) and check readability and clickable areas.
Use HTTPS
HTTPS keeps your site secure and builds trust. Get an SSL certificate and redirect all HTTP pages to HTTPS.
Redirects & Error Handling
Manage Redirects Properly
A redirect sends visitors (and Google) from one page to another. Use 301 redirects for permanent moves, and avoid redirect loops (pages that bounce between each other endlessly).
Make a Helpful 404 Page
A 404 page appears when something isn’t found. Add navigation or a search box to help users find what they need, and make sure it actually returns a 404 error code.
Remove Broken Links
Broken links lead to missing pages (404 errors). Use tools like Screaming Frog or Ahrefs to find and fix them.
Structured Data & Schema
Add Structured Data
Structured data is code that helps Google understand your content better (e.g., product info, FAQs, reviews). Add schema markup like Article, Product, or FAQ where relevant, using Google’s Rich Results Test.
Media Optimization
Optimize Images
Use smaller image sizes (WebP or AVIF formats), name files clearly, and always add alt text (short descriptions for accessibility and SEO).
Tools & Tracking Setup
Connect Google Tools
Set up Google Analytics (GA4) to track visitors and Google Search Console to monitor indexing and keyword performance.