SiteAuditLint checklist library
What this checklist covers
An SEO regression checklist detects unintended changes between crawls, such as new noindex tags, changed canonicals, removed internal links, broken schema, or status code shifts, so you can fix them before rankings fall.
It is organized into 15 sections: When to Run, URL Changes, Status Codes, Redirects, Canonicals, Noindex, Robots.txt, Titles and Meta, H1s, Internal Links, Sitemaps, Structured Data, Content, AI Crawlers and Fix and Re-crawl. 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 Audit comparison, Scheduled SEO audits, Slack SEO alerts.
Who it is for:
Download the seo regression checklist
Use the interactive version below, or download it to share with your team, attach to tickets, or work through offline.
SEO Regression Checklist
Work through each check
0 of 16 checks complete
When to Run
URL Changes
Status Codes
Redirects
Canonicals
Noindex
Robots.txt
Titles and Meta
H1s
Internal Links
Sitemaps
Structured Data
Content
AI Crawlers
Fix and Re-crawl
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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.
When to Run
What to check:
- Trigger after deploys. Regression check runs after every release.
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 when to run across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.
URL Changes
What to check:
- Detect changed URLs. No URLs removed or renamed unexpectedly.
Why it matters: Clean URLs are easier to understand, share, and maintain. Changing URLs later creates redirect overhead and risks ranking loss.
Common problems:
- Uppercase letters and underscores
- Session IDs or unnecessary parameters
- Dates or IDs in URLs that will need to change
- URL changes after launch without redirects
How to fix it: Use lowercase, hyphenated, descriptive URLs and keep them stable.
How to verify: Export all crawled URLs and review patterns for parameters, case issues, and length.
Learn more: URLs lesson, SEO friendly URLs, Fixing incorrect URL formats, Uppercase URL issue.
How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks url changes across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.
Status Codes
What to check:
- Detect status changes. No 200 pages now return 3xx, 4xx or 5xx.
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 status codes across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.
Redirects
What to check:
- Detect redirect changes. No new chains or loops.
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:
- Detect canonical changes. Canonical targets 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.
Noindex
What to check:
- Detect noindex changes. No new noindex on indexable pages.
Why it matters: A page can be crawled but still excluded from search results. Indexability depends on several signals working together: status code, meta robots, the X-Robots-Tag header, canonical tags, and robots.txt. A single conflicting signal is enough to remove a page from Google.
Common problems:
- A noindex left in place after a staging build goes live
- X-Robots-Tag noindex sent by a server or CDN rule nobody remembers
- Canonical tags pointing to a different URL than intended
- Pages blocked in robots.txt, so Google never sees the noindex or canonical
How to fix it: Remove noindex directives from pages that should rank, align canonical tags with the URL you want indexed, and make sure robots.txt does not block indexable content.
How to verify: Check the page source and response headers for every key template, then use Search Console URL Inspection to confirm Google sees the page as indexable.
Learn more: Indexing explained, Indexing tests, Noindex issues and fixes, Noindex issue.
How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks noindex across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.
Robots.txt
What to check:
- Detect robots.txt changes. Rules 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.txt across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.
Titles and Meta
What to check:
- Detect title changes. No blank or duplicated titles introduced.
- Detect description changes. No missing descriptions introduced.
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.
H1s
What to check:
- Detect H1 changes. No missing or duplicated H1s.
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 h1s across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.
Internal Links
What to check:
- Detect link changes. No drop in internal links to key pages.
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.
Sitemaps
What to check:
- Detect sitemap changes. URL count stable unless intended.
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 sitemaps across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.
Structured Data
What to check:
- Detect schema changes. No schema removed or broken.
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.
Content
What to check:
- Detect content changes. Word count and key content stable on money pages.
Why it matters: Search engines reward content that fully satisfies intent and adds information not already available. Thin, duplicated, or generic content is filtered out or outranked.
Common problems:
- Thin pages with little unique value
- Manufacturer or templated copy repeated across pages
- Missing coverage of related subtopics and questions
- No original data, examples, or experience
How to fix it: Consolidate thin pages, rewrite duplicated copy, cover the entities and questions users expect, and add original information.
How to verify: Review word count and duplicate content reports, then compare coverage against top ranking pages for the target query.
Learn more: Thin content, Optimize content for answer engines, Keyword vs entity optimization, Thin content issue.
How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks content across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.
AI Crawlers
What to check:
- Detect AI crawler changes. AI crawler rules unchanged unless intended.
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 crawlers across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.
Fix and Re-crawl
What to check:
- Re-crawl after fix. Regression resolved and verified.
Why it matters: Search engines can only rank what they can discover. See the earlier section on this topic for common problems.
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.
How SiteAuditLint helps: it checks fix and re-crawl across every crawled URL instead of one page at a time and lists exactly which URLs are affected.
Common mistakes
No baseline crawl to compare against
Comparing crawls with different scopes or settings
Only looking at error counts instead of field level changes
Waiting for traffic to drop before checking
When to run the checklist
- After every deployment
- After CMS, theme, or plugin updates
- After infrastructure or CDN changes
- On a scheduled weekly crawl
How to verify fixes
- Save a baselineCrawl the site before making changes so you have a record of every status code, canonical, directive and title.
- 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.
- Re-crawl the same scopeUse the same start URL, crawl limit and settings so the results are comparable.
- Compare the crawlsConfirm the issue count dropped and that no new problems appeared elsewhere. Audit comparison does this field by field.
- 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
From manual checklist to automated checks
Most checks in this list run automatically in a SiteAuditLint crawl. Use audit comparison to diff crawls and scheduled audits to monitor for regressions.