The Ultimate Technical SEO Checklist for 2024

Technical SEO forms the foundation of your website’s search performance. Without a solid technical base, even the best content can struggle to rank. Use this comprehensive checklist to ensure your site is technically optimized.

1. Crawlability & Indexation

Robots.txt

• ☐ File exists at /robots.txt
• ☐ Not blocking important pages
• ☐ Pointing to XML sitemap
• ☐ Allowing Googlebot access

XML Sitemap

• ☐ Sitemap exists and is accessible
• ☐ Submitted to Google Search Console
• ☐ Includes all important URLs
• ☐ Excludes non-indexable pages
• ☐ Under 50,000 URLs per sitemap
• ☐ Updated when content changes

Indexation

• ☐ Check index status in Search Console
• ☐ Proper use of noindex tags
• ☐ No duplicate content issues
• ☐ Canonical tags implemented correctly

2. Site Speed & Core Web Vitals

Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)

Target: Under 2.5 seconds

• ☐ Optimize and compress images
• ☐ Use modern image formats (WebP, AVIF)
• ☐ Implement lazy loading
• ☐ Preload critical resources
• ☐ Use a CDN

First Input Delay (FID) / Interaction to Next Paint (INP)

Target: Under 100ms

• ☐ Minimize JavaScript execution
• ☐ Break up long tasks
• ☐ Remove unused JavaScript
• ☐ Defer non-critical scripts

Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)

Target: Under 0.1

• ☐ Set explicit image dimensions
• ☐ Reserve space for ads
• ☐ Avoid inserting content above existing content
• ☐ Use font-display: swap for web fonts

3. Mobile Optimization

• ☐ Responsive design implementation
• ☐ Mobile-friendly test passed
• ☐ Viewport meta tag configured
• ☐ Touch targets sized appropriately (48px minimum)
• ☐ No horizontal scrolling required
• ☐ Text readable without zooming
• ☐ No intrusive interstitials

4. Site Architecture

• ☐ Clear URL structure
• ☐ Logical site hierarchy
• ☐ Important pages within 3 clicks from homepage
• ☐ Breadcrumb navigation implemented
• ☐ Internal linking strategy
• ☐ No orphan pages

5. URL Structure

• ☐ URLs are clean and descriptive
• ☐ Using hyphens (not underscores)
• ☐ Lowercase letters only
• ☐ No special characters or spaces
• ☐ Include target keywords where relevant
• ☐ Keep URLs reasonably short

6. HTTPS & Security

• ☐ SSL certificate installed
• ☐ All pages served via HTTPS
• ☐ HTTP redirects to HTTPS
• ☐ No mixed content warnings
• ☐ Certificate not expired
• ☐ HSTS header implemented

7. Structured Data

• ☐ Organization/LocalBusiness schema
• ☐ Article/BlogPosting schema for content
• ☐ Product schema for e-commerce
• ☐ FAQ schema where appropriate
• ☐ Breadcrumb schema
• ☐ Validated with Schema Markup Validator

8. International SEO (If Applicable)

• ☐ Hreflang tags implemented correctly
• ☐ Language targeting in Search Console
• ☐ URL structure for international content
• ☐ No duplicate content across regions

9. Technical Health Checks

• ☐ No 404 errors on important pages
• ☐ 301 redirects for moved content
• ☐ No redirect chains or loops
• ☐ Server response time under 200ms
• ☐ GZIP or Brotli compression enabled
• ☐ Browser caching configured

Tools for Technical SEO Audits

• Google Search Console: Monitor indexation and errors
• Google PageSpeed Insights: Core Web Vitals analysis
• Screaming Frog: Comprehensive site crawling
• GTmetrix: Performance testing
• Ahrefs/SEMrush: Technical SEO audits
• Schema Markup Validator: Structured data testing

Need a professional technical SEO audit?
Contact me today for a comprehensive analysis of your website’s technical health.