Website Audit Checklist: How to Audit a Business Website Properly

The business should know which registrar controls the domain, who owns the account and how renewal is handled.

A website is difficult to maintain or recover when critical access depends on a former vendor or individual account.

Make sure the correct property is accessible and that important indexing or security messages are not going to an unavailable account.

Test whether forms, calls, purchases, booking actions or other business goals are actually recorded.

Use Search Console and URL Inspection for important pages rather than assuming every published URL is visible to Google.

Make sure important pages are not unintentionally blocked while private, duplicate or low-value pages are handled deliberately.

Important pages should normally reference the intended canonical version rather than a duplicate, filtered, tracking or staging URL.

Include public, canonical URLs you actually want discovered. Remove obsolete, redirected, duplicate or non-indexable entries.

Old important URLs should reach the closest relevant replacement without unnecessary chains or loops.

Multiple URLs targeting the same intent can dilute internal signals and make content maintenance harder.

Review LCP, INP and CLS where field data is available, especially for high-traffic templates and landing pages.

Large hero images, uncompressed media and unnecessary formats often create avoidable loading costs.

Chat widgets, advertising tags, trackers and embeds can affect loading and responsiveness even when the core site is optimized.

CSS and JavaScript should support the experience rather than force every page to load code it does not need.

Check navigation, hero content, buttons, forms, tables, popups and sticky elements for overlap or clipping.

Visitors should not need precision tapping or zooming just to use ordinary navigation and calls to action.

Clear structure improves scanning for users and makes page organisation easier for assistive technology.

Decorative images do not need keyword-heavy descriptions; meaningful images should have useful alternative text.

Important forms and controls should remain understandable and operable without relying on a mouse.

A page should answer a distinct user need rather than exist because a keyword variation was available.

Prioritise pages that already earn impressions but receive fewer clicks than their position would suggest.

The main topic should be obvious, with supporting sections organised around real questions and decisions.

Improve, merge, redirect or retire pages based on usefulness, traffic, links and business relevance.

High-value services and useful resources should be connected contextually, not buried several clicks deep.

Use schema that matches visible content and real entities. Markup should describe the page accurately rather than try to manufacture a search feature.

Submit real test enquiries and verify successful delivery, confirmation messages, CRM capture and follow-up notifications.

Check that the intended action opens correctly on mobile and uses the right number, destination and context.

A visitor reading a guide may need a softer next step than someone on a service or pricing page.

Relevant case studies, reviews, credentials, policies, contact details and process explanations should support the decision being asked of the visitor.

A good front-end form is not enough if enquiries disappear into an unmonitored inbox or receive no timely follow-up.

Pages that matter commercially should receive relevant internal links from navigation, service clusters and supporting resources.

If external sites link to old URLs that now return errors, restore the page or redirect to the closest useful destination where appropriate.

Relevant editorial links, industry mentions and genuine business citations are more useful than arbitrary link volume.

Original tools, guides, research, templates, case studies and useful resources can earn references more sustainably than repetitive outreach alone.

Important pages should load securely without mixed-content warnings or certificate errors.

Unsupported themes, abandoned plugins and unnecessary components create avoidable technical risk.

Know where backups are stored, how long they are retained and who can restore the site if something fails.

Remove access that is no longer required and make sure important accounts are controlled by the business.

A technically healthy website deteriorates when nobody is responsible for updates, testing and monitoring.