Test Website for SEO: Free Audit Checklist for 2026

If you want to test website for SEO, you need a checklist that covers technical health, content quality, and authority. This guide gives you a clear way to run an SEO rating for a website without getting lost in tools.

If you need traffic data alongside this audit, see how to check website traffic.

Sources:

• Google Search Essentials
• Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content

10-minute SEO test

Use this quick test when you need a fast SEO rating before launching:

1. Index check: Search Google for site:yourdomain.com as a rough spot check. If a critical page is missing, use URL Inspection in Search Console to confirm index status.
2. Title scan: Open your top 5 pages and verify each title clearly matches the page topic.
3. Speed check: Load your homepage on mobile and check for long delays.
4. Intent check: Compare your page to the top 3 results for the keyword — is yours better?

If any step fails, fix it before spending time on new content.

Sources:

• Google Search operators (site: query)
• URL Inspection tool in Search Console
• Title link best practices
• Core Web Vitals (LCP, INP, CLS)

Technical SEO audit

Technical issues can block rankings even if your content is strong.

Crawl and index

• Robots.txt allows crawling for public pages
• Important pages are not marked noindex
• XML sitemap submitted in Search Console
• No duplicate indexable URLs for the same content

Performance

• Core Web Vitals meet the “good” thresholds
• No major layout shifts during load

Sources:

• Google Search Essentials technical requirements
• robots.txt intro and limitations
• Robots meta tag and noindex
• Sitemaps overview
• Canonical URL guidance
• Core Web Vitals (LCP, INP, CLS)

Content and intent

This is the most important part of any SEO test.

Questions to ask

• Does the page answer the query immediately?
• Is the content more complete than what ranks now?
• Does it include examples, visuals, or data?
• Is it written for humans, not bots?

If the answer to any of these is “no,” your SEO rating should be lowered until fixed.

Sources:

• Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content

On-page checklist

Run this on every priority page:

• Title tag: Includes the primary keyword
• Meta description: Clear, click-worthy summary
• H1: Matches the search intent
• Subheadings: Use H2s to break up sections
• Images: Descriptive alt text and compressed size

Sources:

• Title link best practices
• Snippets and meta descriptions
• Intro to structured data
• Link best practices for Google (anchor text and image links)

Link profile checks

For competitive keywords, links are required.

• Do you have any links from relevant sites?
• Are you earning links naturally (content, tools, research)?
• Are you avoiding low-quality link networks?

If you need a strategy, start with partnerships and directories. Our traffic guide includes a directory section.

For a focused playbook, see our backlink website guide. If you're early-stage, startup SEO lays out a 90-day plan.

Sources:

• Google Search ranking systems guide (link analysis)
• Link best practices for Google

SEO testing tools

You can test your SEO with a minimal stack:

• Search Console Performance report: Impressions, clicks, CTR, and position
• URL Inspection tool: Index status, canonical, and crawl details for a URL
• Core Web Vitals report: LCP, INP, and CLS status

Avoid tool overload. A simple setup beats a complex one you never check.

Sources:

• Search Console performance data deep dive
• URL Inspection tool in Search Console
• Core Web Vitals (LCP, INP, CLS)

Simple SEO rating

Use this quick scorecard to test your website for SEO:

Total score (0–6):

• 0–2: Fix fundamentals first
• 3–4: Competitive in low/medium keywords
• 5–6: Ready to target harder keywords

FAQs

How often should I test my SEO?

Monthly is enough for most sites. After big updates, run a fresh audit.

What is a good SEO rating for a website?

A useful SEO rating means your technical health is clean, your content wins intent, and you have at least a few trusted links.

Can I test my SEO for free?

Yes. Search Console + a basic crawler is enough to run a solid SEO test.