SEO QA Checklist

SiteAuditLint checklist library

What this checklist covers

An SEO QA checklist gives developers and QA teams a pre and post deployment test plan for status codes, redirects, canonicals, robots directives, metadata, headings, internal links, structured data, sitemaps, and rendered content.

It is organized into 15 sections: Before Deployment, HTTP Status, Redirects, Canonicals, Robots Directives, Titles and Meta, Headings, Internal Links, Structured Data, XML Sitemap, JavaScript Content, Tracking, AI Crawler Access, Regression Checks and Sign-off. Each check lists exactly what to verify and a priority, so you can work through the highest impact items first.

For background on the concepts behind these checks, see SEO testing course, SEO testing guide, Linear SEO tickets.

Who it is for:

Download the seo qa checklist

Use the interactive version below, or download it to share with your team, attach to tickets, or work through offline.

SEO QA Checklist

Detailed explanations

Each section below explains what to check, why it matters, the problems you will usually find, how to fix them, and how to confirm the fix.

Before Deployment

What to check:

• Crawl staging build. No new critical errors against baseline.

Why it matters: Launches often ship staging settings to production. A single forgotten noindex or Disallow can keep a new site out of search for weeks.

Common problems:

• Staging noindex left on production
• Robots.txt still disallowing everything
• Canonicals pointing to the staging domain
• Analytics not installed

How to fix it: Use a launch runbook that removes staging protections, swaps domains in canonicals and sitemaps, and verifies tracking.

How to verify: Crawl production immediately after launch and compare against the final staging crawl.

Learn more: Pre-launch website checklist, Run your first audit, Noindex issues.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks before deployment across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

HTTP Status

What to check:

• Check status codes. Key URLs return 200 after deploy.

Why it matters: HTTP status codes tell crawlers whether a URL is live, moved, missing, or broken. A 200 response is required for indexing. Unexpected 4xx and 5xx responses remove pages from search results and waste crawl budget, while soft 404s confuse search engines about which pages hold real content.

Common problems:

• Internal links pointing to 404 pages after content is deleted
• Soft 404s, where empty or error pages return 200
• Intermittent 5xx errors on heavy templates or under load
• Single page apps returning 200 for routes that do not exist

How to fix it: Restore or redirect removed URLs that still receive links, return a true 404 or 410 for content that is gone, and investigate server logs for the cause of any 5xx responses.

How to verify: Crawl the site and filter by status code. Every URL in the sitemap and main navigation should return 200. Recheck flagged URLs individually with a header checker.

Learn more: Status codes lesson, HTTP status codes and SEO, HTTP 4xx issue, HTTP 5xx issue.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks http status across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

Redirects

What to check:

• Check redirects. Existing redirects still resolve correctly.

Why it matters: Redirects pass users and ranking signals from an old URL to a new one. Each extra hop adds latency and increases the chance that signals are lost or crawlers give up. Temporary redirects used for permanent moves can keep the old URL indexed.

Common problems:

• Redirect chains of three or more hops left behind by repeated migrations
• Redirect loops that make a URL unreachable
• 302 redirects used for permanent URL changes
• Internal links still pointing at redirecting URLs

How to fix it: Point every redirect directly at its final destination with a 301 or 308, break any loops, and update internal links so they reference the final URL rather than relying on the redirect.

How to verify: Crawl with redirect following enabled and export the redirect chains report. Each redirecting URL should resolve in one hop to a URL returning 200.

Learn more: Redirects lesson, Testing redirects, How to find and fix redirect problems, Redirect chain issue.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks redirects across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

Canonicals

What to check:

• Check canonicals. Canonical output unchanged unless intended.

Why it matters: The canonical tag tells search engines which version of a page is the preferred one when duplicates or variants exist. It consolidates ranking signals onto one URL. A broken canonical can quietly deindex the page you care about most.

Common problems:

• Canonicals pointing to staging or development domains
• Relative canonical URLs that resolve incorrectly
• Canonicals pointing to redirected, 404, or noindexed URLs
• Every paginated or variant page canonicalized to page one

How to fix it: Use absolute canonical URLs on the production domain, make indexable pages self canonical, and point duplicates at a live, indexable 200 URL.

How to verify: Crawl the site and compare the canonical URL with the page URL. Flag any canonical that is non self referencing, redirects, returns an error, or is noindexed.

Learn more: Canonicals lesson, Canonical tag issues and fixes, Missing canonical issue, Canonicalised URL issue.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks canonicals across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

Robots Directives

What to check:

• Check meta robots. No noindex leaked to production.
• Check robots.txt. File unchanged unless intended.

Why it matters: Robots.txt controls which paths crawlers may request. It is the fastest way to block an entire site by accident. It also governs access for AI crawlers, so it is now part of your AI search visibility strategy as well as your traditional SEO.

Common problems:

• A staging Disallow: / rule deployed to production
• CSS and JavaScript blocked, stopping Google from rendering pages
• Overly broad wildcard patterns blocking important directories
• Missing or outdated sitemap declaration

How to fix it: Keep robots.txt minimal, block only what you truly need to keep out of crawlers, allow rendering resources, and declare your XML sitemap with an absolute URL.

How to verify: Fetch /robots.txt on production, test a list of key URLs against the live rules for Googlebot and each AI user agent, and confirm the file returns 200.

Learn more: Robots.txt lesson, Robots.txt and AI crawlers guide, Blocked by robots.txt issue, Missing robots.txt issue.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks robots directives across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

Titles and Meta

What to check:

• Check titles and descriptions. Templates still output correct metadata.

Why it matters: Title tags and meta descriptions shape how your page appears in search results and influence click through rate. Titles remain a strong relevance signal.

Common problems:

• Missing or duplicate titles across templates
• Titles truncated because they are too long
• Boilerplate meta descriptions repeated site wide
• Titles that do not match the search intent of the page

How to fix it: Write unique, descriptive titles with the primary topic near the start and meta descriptions that summarize the page and give a reason to click.

How to verify: Crawl and filter for missing, duplicate, and over length titles and descriptions, then spot check how they render in search results.

Learn more: Titles lesson, Meta descriptions lesson, Duplicate title tags, Missing meta descriptions.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks titles and meta across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

Headings

What to check:

• Check H1s. H1s present on all templates.

Why it matters: Headings outline the page for users, search engines, and AI systems extracting passages. A clear H1 states the topic, and logical H2s make sections easy to cite.

Common problems:

• Missing H1 on templates
• Multiple H1s from shared components
• Headings used for styling rather than structure
• Skipped levels that break the outline

How to fix it: Use one H1 that states the topic, then H2 and H3 in a logical order. Fix shared components that output extra H1s.

How to verify: Crawl and filter for missing, duplicate, and multiple H1s, then review the heading outline on key templates.

Learn more: Headings lesson, H1s lesson, Multiple H1 tags, Why articles need H2 to H6.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks headings across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

Internal Links

What to check:

• Check internal links. No new broken links.

Why it matters: Internal links distribute authority, define site architecture, and help crawlers discover content. Broken links waste crawl budget and frustrate users, while orphan pages are almost invisible to search engines.

Common problems:

• Links to deleted pages returning 404
• Links pointing to redirected URLs instead of final destinations
• Orphan pages with no internal links
• Generic anchor text like click here on important links

How to fix it: Fix or remove broken links, update links to point at final URLs, link to orphan pages from relevant hubs, and use descriptive anchor text.

How to verify: Crawl the site and review the broken links, redirecting links, and inlinks reports. Compare sitemap URLs against crawled URLs to find orphans.

Learn more: Internal links lesson, Fix broken internal links, Orphan pages, Internal link analysis.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks internal links across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

Structured Data

What to check:

• Check schema. Schema still validates.

Why it matters: Structured data helps search engines and AI systems understand entities on the page and can unlock rich results. Invalid or misleading markup is ignored or can trigger manual actions.

Common problems:

• Syntax errors in JSON-LD
• Required properties missing for the chosen type
• Markup describing content not visible on the page
• Schema removed during a template change

How to fix it: Use JSON-LD, include required and recommended properties, and keep markup consistent with visible content.

How to verify: Validate key templates with the Rich Results Test and Schema Markup Validator, then monitor enhancement reports in Search Console.

Learn more: Schema markup for AI, Invalid schema issue, Missing schema issue.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks structured data across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

XML Sitemap

What to check:

• Check sitemap. Sitemap still generates with correct URLs.

Why it matters: An XML sitemap is a list of URLs you want search engines to find and index. It helps discovery of new and deep content and acts as a canonical signal. A sitemap full of redirects, errors, or noindexed URLs weakens trust in that signal.

Common problems:

• Sitemaps containing redirected, 404, or noindexed URLs
• Non canonical URL variants listed instead of the canonical version
• Sitemap not referenced in robots.txt or submitted in Search Console
• Stale sitemaps that are not regenerated on publish

How to fix it: Generate the sitemap automatically from indexable canonical URLs only, keep lastmod accurate, reference it in robots.txt, and submit it in Search Console.

How to verify: Crawl the sitemap URL list on its own. Every entry should return 200, be indexable, and be self canonical.

Learn more: XML sitemaps lesson, XML sitemap errors and fixes, Sitemap non-200 issue, Noindex URL in sitemap issue.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks xml sitemap across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

JavaScript Content

What to check:

• Check rendered content. Content and links still render.

Why it matters: Google renders JavaScript, but rendering is delayed, resource limited, and not guaranteed. Many AI crawlers do not render JavaScript at all. Content, links, and SEO tags that only appear after scripts run are at risk of being missed.

Common problems:

• Main content injected only on the client
• Links implemented as buttons or onClick handlers
• Titles, canonicals, or meta robots changed by JavaScript
• Single page app routes returning 200 for missing pages

How to fix it: Server render or statically generate critical content and tags, use real anchor links with URLs, and return proper status codes from the server.

How to verify: Compare raw HTML with rendered HTML for each template. Titles, H1s, main content, canonicals, and links should be present in the raw response.

Learn more: JavaScript SEO course, Rendering lesson, JavaScript links lesson, JavaScript SEO guide.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks javascript content across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

Tracking

What to check:

• Check analytics. Tracking fires after deploy.

Why it matters: Without tracking you cannot measure the impact of launches, migrations, or fixes. Missing tags after a deployment create gaps that cannot be backfilled.

Common problems:

• Analytics missing on new templates
• Duplicate tags inflating sessions
• Conversion events lost after a redesign
• Search Console not verified on the new domain

How to fix it: Deploy analytics through a tag manager across all templates, verify Search Console, and test conversion events before launch.

How to verify: Use tag assistant and real time reports to confirm tags fire on each template and that conversions record.

Learn more: Tracking and analytics audit, Tracking pixel audit, Tracking missing on page issue, SEO KPIs lesson.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks tracking across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

AI Crawler Access

What to check:

• Check AI crawler rules. No unintended robots.txt changes.

Why it matters: Search engines can only rank what they can discover. If crawlers cannot follow links to a URL, that page will rarely be indexed, no matter how good its content is. Crawl depth also signals importance: pages buried many clicks deep get crawled less often.

Common problems:

• Navigation built with JavaScript click handlers instead of anchor links
• Important pages only reachable through internal search or forms
• Pagination or filters creating near infinite URL spaces that waste crawl budget
• Key pages sitting five or more clicks from the homepage

How to fix it: Use standard <a href> links for all navigation, add contextual links from high authority pages to deep content, and constrain parameter and filter URLs so crawlers spend time on pages that matter.

How to verify: Run a full crawl, compare discovered URLs with your sitemap and analytics landing pages, and review the crawl depth report for any important URL deeper than three clicks.

Learn more: Crawling explained, What is a website crawler, Crawlability vs indexability, Deep page issue.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks ai crawler access across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

Regression Checks

What to check:

• Compare to previous crawl. Diff reviewed and unexpected changes investigated.

Why it matters: Comparing crawls before and after a change is the only reliable way to catch regressions. Many SEO problems are invisible on a single page but obvious in a diff across thousands of URLs.

Common problems:

• Changes to titles, canonicals, or noindex hidden in a release
• Removed internal links reducing link equity to key pages
• URL count changes nobody intended
• Schema dropped from a template

How to fix it: Keep a baseline crawl, compare every new crawl against it, and investigate every unexpected change before it reaches production or within hours of release.

How to verify: Run a crawl comparison report and review changes by field: status, indexability, canonical, title, H1, links, and schema.

Learn more: Audit comparison, SEO testing guide, Scheduled SEO audits.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks regression checks across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

Sign-off

What to check:

• Approve release. QA owner signs off.

Why it matters: A checklist is only useful if findings are prioritized, assigned, and verified. Process steps turn a list of issues into fixed issues.

Common problems:

• Findings without owners or deadlines
• Low impact issues fixed before critical ones
• Fixes never verified with a re-crawl
• No record of what changed and why

How to fix it: Score each issue by impact and affected URL count, assign an owner, and require a verification crawl before closing.

How to verify: Re-crawl after fixes and confirm the issue count for each item has dropped to zero or an accepted level.

Learn more: Audit process lesson, Prioritization lesson, SEO audit prioritization, How to report technical SEO issues.

How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks sign-off across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.

Common mistakes

When to run the checklist

• Before every production release
• After deployments that touch templates, routing, or headers
• After CMS or plugin updates
• During sprint review

How to verify fixes

1. Save a baselineCrawl the site before making changes so you have a record of every status code, canonical, directive and title.
2. Fix by priorityStart with High priority checks and issues that affect templates, since one fix there resolves many URLs. See how to prioritize audit findings.
3. Re-crawl the same scopeUse the same start URL, crawl limit and settings so the results are comparable.
4. Compare the crawlsConfirm the issue count dropped and that no new problems appeared elsewhere. Audit comparison does this field by field.
5. Confirm in Search ConsoleUse URL Inspection and the indexing reports to check that Google sees the change. Our indexing tests lesson covers the process.

SiteAuditLint workflow

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