SEO Audit
Production-grade SEO audit framework with an 85-point checklist across 8 dimensions, severity-weighted scoring, automated diagnostic workflows, and prioritized remediation plans. Covers technical SEO, on-page optimization, content quality, competitive positioning, and migration readiness.
Table of Contents
- [Operating Modes](#operating-modes)
- [Initial Assessment](#initial-assessment)
- [The 85-Point Audit Checklist](#the-85-point-audit-checklist)
- [Severity-Weighted Scoring](#severity-weighted-scoring)
- [Core Web Vitals Deep Dive](#core-web-vitals-deep-dive)
- [Crawl and Indexation Analysis](#crawl-and-indexation-analysis)
- [On-Page SEO Analysis](#on-page-seo-analysis)
- [Content Quality Assessment](#content-quality-assessment)
- [Competitive Gap Analysis](#competitive-gap-analysis)
- [Migration Audit Checklist](#migration-audit-checklist)
- [Prioritized Remediation Plan](#prioritized-remediation-plan)
- [Output Artifacts](#output-artifacts)
- [Related Skills](#related-skills)
Operating Modes
Mode 1: Full Site Audit
Comprehensive audit across all 8 dimensions. Use for initial assessment or annual reviews.
Mode 2: Focused Audit
Single-dimension deep dive. Use when the problem area is already identified (e.g., "our Core Web Vitals are failing" or "we have indexation issues").
Mode 3: Pre-Migration Audit
Checklist for planned URL changes, platform switches, or redesigns. Establishes baseline and creates the redirect mapping framework.
Mode 4: Traffic Drop Diagnosis
Emergency diagnostic when organic traffic drops. Follows the traffic drop decision tree to isolate the cause.
Initial Assessment
Required Context
| Question | Why It Matters | |----------|---------------| | What type of site? (SaaS, e-commerce, blog, local business) | Determines which audit dimensions to weight | | What is the primary SEO goal? | Focuses the audit on business-relevant outcomes | | What is the current organic traffic baseline? | Establishes the benchmark for measuring improvement | | Any recent changes? (migration, redesign, content update, algorithm update) | Identifies potential cause of current issues | | Do you have Google Search Console access? | Essential for indexation and performance data | | Who are 3 organic competitors? | For competitive gap analysis |
Scope Definition
| Scope | Pages to Audit | Recommended When | |-------|---------------|-----------------| | Full site | All indexed pages + sample of non-indexed | Annual audit, new client onboarding | | Section audit | One directory or content type | Known problem area | | Top pages | Top 50 by traffic + top 50 by impressions | Quick wins identification | | New pages | Pages published in last 90 days | Content quality check |
The 85-Point Audit Checklist
Dimension 1: Crawlability (12 points)
| # | Check | Severity | Pass Criteria | |---|-------|----------|---------------| | 1.1 | robots.txt accessible and valid | Critical | 200 response, no syntax errors | | 1.2 | Important pages not blocked by robots.txt | Critical | No disallow rules for key pages | | 1.3 | XML sitemap exists and is valid | High | Submitted in GSC, < 50K URLs per file | | 1.4 | Sitemap reflects actual site structure | High | No 404s, no redirects, no noindex pages in sitemap | | 1.5 | Crawl depth < 4 clicks from homepage | Medium | 95%+ of pages within 3 clicks | | 1.6 | No infinite crawl traps | Critical | No parameter-based infinite loops | | 1.7 | Internal links use crawlable HTML | High | No JavaScript-only navigation | | 1.8 | Pagination uses rel=next/prev or load-more | Medium | Paginated content is crawlable | | 1.9 | No orphan pages (indexed but no internal links) | High | 0 orphan pages in indexed set | | 1.10 | Crawl budget not wasted on low-value pages | Medium | < 10% crawl budget on utility pages | | 1.11 | Server response time < 500ms | High | TTFB < 500ms for 95% of pages | | 1.12 | No 5xx errors in crawl | Critical | 0% server errors |
Dimension 2: Indexation (10 points)
| # | Check | Severity | Pass Criteria | |---|-------|----------|---------------| | 2.1 | Target pages are indexed | Critical | > 95% of target pages in Google index | | 2.2 | No duplicate content issues | High | No duplicate titles, no near-duplicate content | | 2.3 | Canonical tags implemented correctly | High | Self-referencing on unique pages, cross-domain where needed | | 2.4 | No conflicting signals (canonical vs noindex vs sitemap) | Critical | No page that is both noindex and in sitemap | | 2.5 | Hreflang tags correct (if multilingual) | High | Valid hreflang with return tags | | 2.6 | No index bloat (unnecessary pages indexed) | Medium | Utility pages not indexed | | 2.7 | Thin content pages identified | High | No pages with < 200 words of unique content | | 2.8 | Parameter handling configured | Medium | URL parameters handled in GSC or via canonical | | 2.9 | JavaScript-rendered content indexable | High | Key content visible in cached/rendered version | | 2.10 | New pages getting indexed within 7 days | Medium | Using IndexNow or manual submission |
Dimension 3: Core Web Vitals (10 points)
| # | Check | Severity | Pass Criteria | |---|-------|----------|---------------| | 3.1 | LCP < 2.5s | High | 75th percentile of page loads | | 3.2 | INP < 200ms | High | 75th percentile of interactions | | 3.3 | CLS < 0.1 | High | 75th percentile of page loads | | 3.4 | Mobile CWV passing | Critical | Mobile scores meeting thresholds | | 3.5 | Desktop CWV passing | Medium | Desktop scores meeting thresholds | | 3.6 | No render-blocking resources | Medium | CSS/JS delivery optimized | | 3.7 | Images optimized (WebP/AVIF, lazy loading) | Medium | All above-fold images preloaded | | 3.8 | Font loading optimized | Low | No FOUT/FOIT, font-display: swap | | 3.9 | Third-party script impact measured | Medium | No third-party scripts adding > 500ms | | 3.10 | HTTPS with no mixed content | Critical | All resources served over HTTPS |
Dimension 4: On-Page SEO (15 points)
| # | Check | Severity | Pass Criteria | |---|-------|----------|---------------| | 4.1 | Unique title tags on every page | Critical | No duplicates, < 60 chars | | 4.2 | Title includes primary keyword | High | Keyword in first 60 chars | | 4.3 | Unique meta descriptions | High | No duplicates, < 155 chars, includes keyword | | 4.4 | H1 tag present and unique per page | High | One H1 per page with primary keyword | | 4.5 | Heading hierarchy logical (H1 > H2 > H3) | Medium | No skipped levels | | 4.6 | Internal links with descriptive anchor text | High | No "click here" or naked URLs | | 4.7 | Images have alt text | Medium | Descriptive alt text on all meaningful images | | 4.8 | URL structure is clean and descriptive | Medium | No IDs, parameters, or excessive depth | | 4.9 | Primary keyword in first 100 words | Medium | Natural inclusion in opening | | 4.10 | Content matches search intent | Critical | Page type matches what Google ranks for query | | 4.11 | No keyword cannibalization | High | No two pages targeting the same primary keyword | | 4.12 | Open Graph and Twitter Card tags | Low | Social sharing metadata present | | 4.13 | Structured data implemented | Medium | Relevant schema types present | | 4.14 | Internal links to relevant pages | High | 3-5 contextual internal links per content page | | 4.15 | Breadcrumbs present | Medium | Functional breadcrumbs with schema |
Dimension 5: Content Quality (12 points)
| # | Check | Severity | Pass Criteria | |---|-------|----------|---------------| | 5.1 | Content provides unique value | Critical | Not available elsewhere in same form | | 5.2 | Content depth matches intent | High | Comprehensive coverage of the topic | | 5.3 | Content freshness appropriate | Medium | Updated within last 12 months for evergreen | | 5.4 | No AI-generated content markers | High | No generic filler, overused phrases, or em-dash patterns | | 5.5 | E-E-A-T signals pre