DIY SEO January 31, 2025

DIY SEO Audit Checklist for Small Businesses

A step-by-step checklist to audit your own website's SEO. Free tools, practical tips, and everything you need to get started.

You don't need to spend hundreds on an SEO audit to understand what's going on with your website. While a professional audit provides deeper insights and saves time, you can do a lot of the groundwork yourself.

This checklist covers the essential SEO checks any business owner can perform using free tools. Bookmark this page — you'll want to come back to it regularly.

🛠️ Free Tools You'll Need

⚙️ Technical SEO Checklist

These checks ensure Google can properly crawl and index your website.

  • Is your site indexed?

    Search site:yourdomain.com on Google. You should see your pages listed. If nothing appears, you have an indexing problem.

  • Does your site use HTTPS?

    Look for the padlock icon in your browser. If your URL starts with "http://" instead of "https://", your site isn't secure — a ranking factor and trust issue.

  • Check page speed

    Run your homepage through PageSpeed Insights. Aim for a score of 50+ on mobile (70+ is good, 90+ is excellent).

    Tool: PageSpeed Insights

  • Is your site mobile-friendly?

    Use Google's Mobile-Friendly Test. The result should say "Page is usable on mobile."

    Tool: Mobile-Friendly Test

  • Do you have a sitemap?

    Try visiting yourdomain.com/sitemap.xml. If you see an XML file with your pages listed, you're good. Submit it to Google Search Console if you haven't.

  • Check for crawl errors

    In Google Search Console, go to "Pages" and look for errors. Fix any pages marked as "Not indexed" that should be indexed.

    Tool: Google Search Console

  • Test for broken links

    Click through your main navigation and check that all links work. 404 errors frustrate users and waste "crawl budget."

📝 On-Page SEO Checklist

These elements help Google understand what your pages are about.

  • Check your title tags

    View your page source (right-click → View Page Source) and search for <title>. Each page should have a unique, descriptive title under 60 characters that includes your main keyword.

  • Review meta descriptions

    Search for meta name="description" in your page source. Each page should have a unique, compelling description under 160 characters.

  • One H1 per page?

    Each page should have exactly one H1 tag (main heading). Search for <h1> in your source. It should include your primary keyword naturally.

  • Proper heading hierarchy

    After H1, use H2s for main sections, H3s for subsections. Don't skip levels (e.g., don't jump from H1 to H4).

  • Images have alt text

    Check that images include descriptive alt="" attributes. These help Google understand images and assist visually impaired users.

  • Internal linking

    Do your pages link to each other? Your homepage should link to main service/product pages. Blog posts should link to relevant service pages.

  • Content quality

    Read your main pages as a potential customer. Is the content helpful? Does it answer questions? Is it better than competitor pages?

📍 Local SEO Checklist

Critical for businesses serving local customers.

  • Google Business Profile claimed and verified

    Go to Google Business and make sure you've claimed your listing and completed verification.

    Tool: Google Business Profile

  • Complete business information

    Check that your name, address, phone, hours, website, and category are all filled in and accurate.

  • Photos added

    Add at least 10 quality photos: storefront, interior, team, products/services. Businesses with photos get 42% more direction requests.

  • NAP consistency

    Search your business name on Google. Check that your Name, Address, and Phone number are identical everywhere: your website, GBP, Facebook, Yelp, etc.

  • Recent reviews

    Do you have reviews from the past 3 months? More recent reviews signal an active business. Respond to all reviews, positive and negative.

  • Location mentioned on website

    Does your website mention your service areas? Check title tags, headings, and content for local keywords.

Quick Wins You Can Fix Today

If you found issues during your audit, here are the highest-impact fixes you can often do yourself:

  1. Update your title tags — Add location and service to each page title
  2. Write meta descriptions — Even basic ones are better than none
  3. Compress images — Use a tool like TinyPNG to reduce file sizes
  4. Complete your Google Business Profile — Fill every field, add photos
  5. Fix broken links — Update or remove any links that lead to 404s
  6. Add alt text to images — Describe what's in each image

📌 What This Checklist Can't Tell You

This DIY audit covers the fundamentals, but there's a lot it doesn't include:

  • Competitor analysis — how you stack up against rivals
  • Keyword opportunities — what terms you could be ranking for
  • Backlink profile — who's linking to you vs competitors
  • Technical issues that require tools to detect
  • Prioritization — what to fix first for maximum impact

This is where a professional SEO audit adds value. We handle all of this and deliver prioritized, actionable recommendations.

Want a Deeper Analysis?

Get a free mini SEO audit and see what opportunities you're missing.

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