16 SEO Checks Every Website Needs Before Launch

March 2, 2026 · 8 min read

You've built something awesome. Your code is clean, the design is pixel-perfect, and you're ready to ship. But wait — have you checked your SEO?

Most developers forget these critical SEO elements before launch. I've built AuditMyPage to catch these issues automatically, but here's the full checklist so you know what to look for.

1. Title Tag

Your <title> is the single most important SEO element. Google displays it in search results, and it's the first thing users see when deciding whether to click.

• Keep it under 60 characters so it doesn't get truncated
• Put your most important keywords first — Google weights early words more
• Make it unique for every page to avoid competing with yourself
• Include your brand name at the end (e.g., "Page Title — Brand")

2. Meta Description

While not a direct ranking factor, your meta description shows up in search results and significantly affects click-through rate. Think of it as your free ad copy.

• Keep it between 120-160 characters — too short wastes space, too long gets cut off
• Write compelling copy — this is your elevator pitch to searchers
• Include a call-to-action (e.g., "Learn how", "Get started free")
• Make it unique per page so each result has a distinct message

3. Open Graph Tags

When someone shares your link on Facebook, LinkedIn, or Slack, Open Graph tags control what they see. Without them, platforms guess — and they usually guess wrong.

<meta property="og:title" content="Your Page Title" />
<meta property="og:description" content="..." />
<meta property="og:image" content="https://..." />
<meta property="og:url" content="https://..." />

4. Twitter Card Tags

Similar to Open Graph, but specifically for Twitter/X. Most sites need both — Twitter falls back to OG tags but has its own format for optimal display:

<meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image" />
<meta name="twitter:title" content="..." />
<meta name="twitter:description" content="..." />
<meta name="twitter:image" content="https://..." />

5. Favicon

That little icon in the browser tab? It matters more than you think. Missing favicons make your site look unfinished and unprofessional. Google also shows favicons in mobile search results.

• Include multiple sizes: 16x16, 32x32, 180x180
• Add an apple-touch-icon for iOS home screen bookmarks
• Don't forget favicon.ico in your root directory — some browsers still look for it

6. SSL Certificate (HTTPS)

Google has confirmed HTTPS as a ranking signal since 2014. Beyond rankings, browsers now show "Not Secure" warnings for HTTP sites, which destroys user trust. Get a free certificate from Let's Encrypt or Cloudflare — there's no excuse to skip this.

7. Canonical URL

Tell search engines which version of your page is the "real" one to avoid duplicate content penalties. This is especially important if your site is accessible via both www and non-www URLs, or if you have pages with query parameters:

<link rel="canonical" href="https://example.com/page" />

8. Structured Data (JSON-LD)

Help Google understand your content and potentially earn rich snippets in search results (star ratings, FAQ dropdowns, breadcrumbs). For a business site, start with Organization schema:

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "Your Company",
  "url": "https://example.com",
  "logo": "https://example.com/logo.png"
}
</script>

9. Robots.txt

Tell search engines what they can and can't crawl. A misconfigured robots.txt can accidentally block your entire site from being indexed. At minimum, include your sitemap URL:

User-agent: *
Allow: /
Sitemap: https://example.com/sitemap.xml

10. XML Sitemap

List all your important pages so Google can discover them quickly. This is especially valuable for new sites that don't have many external links yet. Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console to speed up indexing.

11. Responsive Design

Google uses mobile-first indexing — meaning it primarily uses the mobile version of your content for ranking. If your site doesn't work on mobile, you won't rank well regardless of how good your desktop version looks.

12. Page Speed

Core Web Vitals are a confirmed ranking factor. Slow sites rank lower and have higher bounce rates. Use PageSpeed Insights to check your performance. Aim for a score of 90+ on both mobile and desktop.

13. Alt Text on Images

Alt text serves two purposes: accessibility for screen readers and context for search engines. Write descriptive, natural alt text — not keyword-stuffed spam:

<img src="product.jpg" alt="Red running shoes on white background" />

14. Heading Structure

Use <h1> for your main title (only one per page), then <h2>, <h3> in logical hierarchical order. Search engines use heading structure to understand your content hierarchy — skipping levels (h1 to h4) or using multiple h1s confuses them.

15. Internal Links

Link between your own pages strategically. Internal links help users navigate, distribute SEO value (called "link equity") across your site, and help search engines discover new pages. Every important page should be reachable within 3 clicks from the homepage.

16. Privacy Policy

If you collect any user data — cookies, analytics, contact forms, newsletter signups — you're legally required to have a privacy policy. GDPR (Europe) and CCPA (California) both mandate it, with significant fines for non-compliance. Google also expects it for sites running Google Analytics or AdSense.

You can generate one with AuditMyPage's AI privacy policy generator — it's free during our launch.