Technical SEO checklist: 15 checks to run on any site

Work through these 15 checks on your home page, key landing pages and a sample from every page template. Compare a crawl with your sitemap and known URLs: a crawler cannot discover every orphan page on its own. Keep a record of the URL tested, evidence, fix and result.

1. Crawlability and robots.txt

• Open the robots.txt file on each host and review the rules that apply to Googlebot and Bingbot. Remove accidental blocks on pages intended for search.
• Check that required CSS, JavaScript and images can be fetched, and include an absolute sitemap location.
• Keep intentional restrictions. A robots.txt block controls crawling; it does not reliably prevent a URL appearing in Google. Use the robots.txt guide to review the rules.

Google explains the distinction between crawling and indexing in its robots.txt documentation.

2. XML sitemap coverage

• List the canonical URLs you want indexed. Fix or remove broken URLs, redirects and pages intentionally marked noindex from the current sitemap.
• Check that important new pages are included and that last-modified dates reflect meaningful changes.
• Submit the sitemap in Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools, then review processing errors. Follow the XML sitemap guide.

A sitemap helps discovery but does not guarantee crawling or indexing, as Google's sitemap overview explains.

3. Indexability: noindex and X-Robots-Tag

• Inspect both the rendered robots meta tag and HTTP response headers for accidental noindex directives on pages meant for search.
• Preserve noindex on pages that should stay out of search. Let crawlers access those URLs so they can read the directive.
• Review header-based rules with the X-Robots-Tag guide and test a URL with the indexability checker. Compare the result with Search Console URL Inspection and Bing's URL inspection report.

Google documents the crawl-access requirement in its noindex guidance. A passing tool check means no detected technical block, not confirmed inclusion in either search engine.

4. Canonical URL signals

• Give each preferred indexable page an absolute, self-referencing canonical URL. Check the rendered HTML as well as the source.
• Confirm the target is a live, indexable equivalent rather than a redirect, error page or unrelated page.
• Keep canonicals, sitemap URLs and internal links consistent. Use the canonical tags guide to investigate conflicting signals.

Canonical annotations are signals, and Google may select a different URL. See its canonicalization documentation.

5. HTTP status codes and broken pages

• Check that working pages return 200 and contain the expected content. An error message served with 200 can be a soft 404.
• Repair unexpected 4xx errors and investigate 5xx responses or timeouts. For a removed page without a relevant replacement, return 404 or 410.
• Inspect individual responses with the HTTP header checker and find broken destinations with the broken link checker.

Google's HTTP status code documentation describes how errors affect crawling. The broken links guide explains how to prioritize repairs.

6. Redirect types, chains and loops

• Use 301 or 308 for permanent moves and 302 or 307 for temporary changes.
• Point old URLs directly to the final relevant destination. Remove loops and unnecessary intermediate hops.
• Update internal links and the current sitemap to the final URLs. Use the redirect checker and 301 vs 302 guide to test your rules.

Google's redirect guidance distinguishes permanent and temporary canonical signals.

7. HTTPS and mixed content

• Open key pages over HTTPS and check certificate validity and browser security warnings.
• Test HTTP and alternate-host URLs with the redirect checker; send each to its preferred HTTPS equivalent.
• Use browser developer tools to find HTTP images, scripts, styles or embeds on HTTPS pages. Replace insecure resource URLs and verify canonicals and internal links use HTTPS.

Google's site migration guidance covers HTTP-to-HTTPS moves and checking resources after a move.

8. Duplicate content and URL variants

• Compare tracking parameters, print views, alternate hosts and trailing-slash variants. Decide which URL should represent each equivalent page.
• Redirect redundant URLs when they are no longer needed, or use a canonical when equivalent variants must remain accessible.
• Keep distinct pages that serve distinct needs. Follow the canonicalization guide; if a page is crawled but absent from Google, investigate with the crawled, currently not indexed guide.

Google's duplicate URL guidance explains how consistent signals help consolidate equivalent pages. Do not use noindex just to force a canonical choice.

9. Site structure, internal links and orphan pages

• Give important pages links from relevant hubs and related pages, using descriptive anchor text and ordinary links with href attributes.
• Compare CMS exports and sitemap URLs with the crawl to find pages with no internal links. Use the orphan pages guide.
• Repair broken links and update redirected links. Review breadcrumbs and navigation with the internal linking guide.

Google's link best practices explain crawlable links and meaningful anchor text.

10. Core Web Vitals: LCP, INP and CLS

• Check real-user data for mobile and desktop separately. Good thresholds are LCP at most 2.5 s, INP at most 200 ms and CLS at most 0.1, assessed at the 75th percentile of visits.
• Improve LCP by investigating the main content resource and server response; reduce long JavaScript tasks for INP; reserve image and embed space for CLS.
• Use Search Console's Core Web Vitals report and PageSpeed Insights. If field data is unavailable, record that limitation; a lab run alone does not establish real-user performance. Use the site audit tool for the wider technical review, then validate performance separately.

See Google Search Central's Core Web Vitals guidance and Google's measurement definitions. Passing these checks does not guarantee rankings.

11. Mobile-friendly layout and content parity

• Test representative templates on a narrow screen: readable text, usable menus and buttons, no unintended horizontal scrolling and accessible forms.
• Keep important content, internal links, image descriptions, robots directives and structured data equivalent on mobile and desktop.
• Check the rendered mobile page, including content loaded by JavaScript. Pair manual testing with the on-page SEO checker; it does not replace testing touch interactions.

Google uses the mobile version for indexing; its mobile-first indexing guidance explains content and metadata parity.

12. Structured data that matches the page

• Choose supported types that fit visible content, such as Article for an article or Product for an actual product.
• Validate JSON-LD syntax, required fields and page eligibility with Google's Rich Results Test. Fix template errors across all affected pages.
• Keep markup consistent with visible facts and remove stale values. Follow the schema markup guide.

Valid markup does not guarantee a rich result. Google's structured data policies require accurate, representative content.

13. Hreflang for language and regional versions

• If you have localized equivalents, check language and optional region codes, absolute URLs and reciprocal annotations, including each page itself.
• Confirm alternate URLs load successfully and their canonicals do not accidentally consolidate all translations into one language.
• Use the hreflang checker and hreflang guide. Skip this check if the site has no localized variants.

Google's localized versions documentation explains reciprocal links, self-inclusion and language codes.

14. Titles, descriptions and image accessibility

• Give each indexable page a descriptive title and one clear main heading that matches its purpose. Check shared templates for duplicate or missing values.
• Write a useful description that explains why someone should visit. Use the title and description guide for practical length checks; character targets are editorial guidelines, not fixed search engine limits.
• Describe informative images with appropriate alt text and use empty alt text for decorative images. Follow the image alt text guide and inspect templates with the on-page SEO checker.

Google's SEO Starter Guide covers descriptive titles, snippets and image alt text.

15. How often should you run the checklist?

• Run all checks before launch and after a migration, redesign or major template change. Retest affected URLs immediately after fixes.
• As a practical starting schedule, review indexing and crawl errors weekly, crawl key templates monthly, and repeat the full checklist quarterly. Increase frequency for large or frequently changing sites; this is a suggested workflow, not a search engine requirement.
• Track Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools alongside the free site audit tool. Record unresolved issues, owners and dates, and compare results with your previous run.

MrKeyword's checks help investigate technical issues. They cannot promise indexing, rankings or complete discovery of every URL; verify fixes in the search engines' own reports and with a fresh crawl.

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