Technical SEO Checklist: 50+ Items Every Site Needs

Technical SEO is the foundation upon which all other SEO efforts are built. No amount of brilliant content or high-quality backlinks will help you rank if search engines cannot properly crawl, understand, and index your website.

Yet technical SEO is also where many teams struggle. The sheer number of factors to consider - from robots.txt configuration to Core Web Vitals optimization - can feel overwhelming. And with Google constantly evolving its technical requirements, staying current requires ongoing attention.

This comprehensive checklist covers 50+ technical SEO items organized into five critical categories. Use it as your reference for auditing existing sites, launching new ones, or maintaining technical health over time. Each item includes what to check, why it matters, and how to fix common issues.

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What This Checklist Covers

Reading Time: 20 minutes | Difficulty: Intermediate

Crawlability and Indexation (12 items)
Site Speed and Core Web Vitals (10 items)
Mobile Optimization (8 items)
Site Architecture and Internal Linking (12 items)
Structured Data and Rich Results (10 items)

Section 1: Crawlability and Indexation

Before search engines can rank your content, they must be able to find, crawl, and index it. Issues in this area can prevent your pages from appearing in search results entirely - making this the most critical category to address.

Critical Priority

Crawlability issues can completely prevent your site from ranking. Address these items first before moving to other technical optimizations.

Crawlability Checklist

#	Check Item	What to Look For	How to Fix	Priority
1	Robots.txt exists and is accessible	Visit /robots.txt - should return 200 status	Create file in root directory	Critical
2	Robots.txt not blocking important pages	Check Disallow directives are correct	Remove incorrect Disallow rules	Critical
3	XML sitemap exists	Check /sitemap.xml or /sitemap_index.xml	Generate with CMS plugin or tool	Critical
4	Sitemap submitted to Google Search Console	Check GSC Sitemaps report	Submit via GSC interface	Critical
5	Sitemap contains only indexable URLs	No 404s, redirects, or noindex pages	Clean up sitemap regularly	High
6	No crawl errors in GSC	Check Coverage report for errors	Fix 404s, redirects, server errors	High

Indexation Checklist

#	Check Item	What to Look For	How to Fix	Priority
7	Important pages are indexed	site:domain.com search shows key pages	Request indexing in GSC	Critical
8	Canonical tags present on all pages	Check <link rel="canonical"> in source	Add self-referencing canonicals	High
9	No duplicate content issues	Same content at multiple URLs	Implement canonical or 301 redirect	High
10	No accidental noindex tags	Check meta robots for noindex	Remove noindex from important pages	Critical
11	URL parameters handled correctly	?sort=, ?page= creating duplicates	Canonical to base URL or noindex	Medium
12	Thin content pages noindexed	Low-value pages bloating index	Add noindex or consolidate content	Medium

Pro Tip: The Index Coverage Report

Google Search Console's Index Coverage report is your best friend for crawlability and indexation issues. Check it weekly and address any increases in errors or excluded pages promptly.

Section 2: Site Speed and Core Web Vitals

Site speed has been a ranking factor for years, but Google's Core Web Vitals have made it more important and more measurable than ever. These metrics directly impact both rankings and user experience.

Core Web Vitals Overview

LCP - Largest Contentful Paint

Measures loading performance. Time until the largest content element is visible.

Target: < 2.5s

FID - First Input Delay

Measures interactivity. Time until the page responds to first user interaction.

Target: < 100ms

CLS - Cumulative Layout Shift

Measures visual stability. How much the page layout shifts during loading.

Target: < 0.1

Speed Optimization Checklist

#	Check Item	What to Look For	How to Fix	Priority
13	LCP under 2.5 seconds	PageSpeed Insights or GSC	Optimize images, improve server response	Critical
14	FID under 100 milliseconds	PageSpeed Insights or GSC	Reduce JavaScript execution time	High
15	CLS under 0.1	PageSpeed Insights or GSC	Set dimensions on images/videos	High
16	Images optimized and compressed	File sizes, formats, dimensions	Compress, use WebP, lazy load	High
17	Browser caching enabled	Check cache headers	Configure server caching rules	Medium
18	GZIP or Brotli compression enabled	Check response headers	Enable on server	Medium
19	CSS and JavaScript minified	Check file sizes and content	Use build tools or plugins	Medium
20	CDN in use for static assets	Check asset domains	Implement CDN (Cloudflare, etc.)	Medium
21	Render-blocking resources minimized	Check PageSpeed recommendations	Defer non-critical JS/CSS	High
22	Server response time (TTFB) fast	Target under 200ms	Upgrade hosting, optimize backend	High

Section 3: Mobile Optimization

With mobile-first indexing, Google primarily uses the mobile version of your site for ranking and indexing. Mobile optimization is no longer optional - it is essential for SEO success.

Mobile-First Indexing

Google now primarily uses the mobile version of your site for indexing and ranking. If your mobile site has less content, fewer links, or technical issues, your rankings will suffer - even for desktop searches.

Mobile Optimization Checklist

#	Check Item	What to Look For	How to Fix	Priority
23	Responsive design implemented	Site adapts to all screen sizes	Use responsive CSS framework	Critical
24	Viewport meta tag present	Check for viewport in head	Add <meta name="viewport">	Critical
25	Text readable without zooming	Font size at least 16px base	Increase font sizes	High
26	Tap targets properly sized	Buttons/links at least 48x48px	Increase tap target sizes	High
27	No horizontal scrolling required	Content fits within viewport	Fix responsive breakpoints	High
28	No intrusive interstitials	Popups blocking content on mobile	Remove or make compliant	High
29	Mobile and desktop content match	Same content on both versions	Ensure parity between versions	Critical
30	Mobile page speed optimized	Test on actual mobile devices	Optimize specifically for mobile	High

Section 4: Site Architecture and Internal Linking

A well-structured site helps both users and search engines navigate your content. Internal linking distributes page authority and establishes topical relationships.

Architecture Checklist

#	Check Item	What to Look For	How to Fix	Priority
31	Logical URL structure	URLs reflect site hierarchy	Restructure URLs logically	High
32	Shallow click depth	Important pages within 3 clicks	Add navigation shortcuts	High
33	Breadcrumb navigation	Breadcrumbs on category pages	Implement breadcrumb nav	Medium
34	No orphan pages	Pages without internal links	Add internal links to orphans	High
35	HTTPS everywhere	No mixed content warnings	Fix all HTTP references	Critical
36	301 redirects for moved content	Old URLs properly redirected	Implement 301 redirects	High

Section 5: Structured Data

Structured data helps search engines understand your content and can enable rich results that increase click-through rates.

Schema Checklist

#	Check Item	What to Look For	How to Fix	Priority
37	Organization schema	Brand info marked up	Add Organization schema	Medium
38	Article schema on blog posts	Articles properly marked up	Add Article schema	Medium
39	FAQ schema where appropriate	FAQ content marked up	Add FAQPage schema	Medium
40	Schema validates without errors	Test in Rich Results Test	Fix validation errors	High

Technical SEO Done? Now Build Links

With your technical foundation solid, build authority through quality backlinks. Outreachist connects you with publishers for guest posts and content placements.

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Key Takeaways

Start with crawlability: If search engines cannot crawl your site, nothing else matters.
Core Web Vitals are essential: Site speed directly impacts rankings and user experience.
Mobile-first is non-negotiable: Google uses mobile versions for indexing.
Internal linking builds authority: Help search engines understand your site structure.
Structured data enables rich results: Schema markup increases click-through rates.

Conclusion

Technical SEO forms the foundation of your search strategy. Without a crawlable, fast, mobile-friendly site, even the best content will not rank. Use this checklist to audit systematically, starting with critical items first.

Schedule quarterly audits to catch new issues before they impact rankings. Technical SEO is not a one-time task - it requires ongoing attention as your site grows.

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Technical SEO Checklist: 50+ Items Every Site Needs to Fix