2021 On-Page SEO Checklist.
We’ve compiled an exhaustive list of on-page SEO factors updated for 2021. Please keep in mind this is only a checklist, and not a full guide to on-page SEO. If you are looking for an on-page SEO guide check ours out, or buy our book on Amazon.
Keep in mind that on-page SEO is really 2-sided: the on-page that is performed on a site-wide level such as the robots.txt file and the responsiveness of your site, and the page-level on-page such as title tags and an h1 tag, for example. We’ve combined both factors here, so be sure to recognize that as you are working.
This on-page SEO checklist is useful when working with a new website audit, or auditing a page or site that you haven’t worked on recently.
Want the printable version? You can make a opy or download a Google Sheets version of our on-page SEO checklist if you’d like!
No-Index Tag Presence
- Make sure your page isn’t no-indexed
- could ruin your day
Title Tags
- proper HTML
- no more than 512 pixels or about 70 characters
- does it make sense
- grammar / spelling check
- is it helpful to users?
- contains the keyword you wish to rank for
Meta Description
- proper HTML and no errors
- does it make sense?
- grammar / spelling check
- is it helpful to users?
- 512 pixels (x2) or about 140 characters
- contains keyword you wish to rank for
Social Sharing Buttons
- can increase engagement
- might bring in some links
H Tags
- h1 tag on every page containing target keyword
- proper HTML
- does it make sense?
- grammar / spelling check
- provides useful heading
LSI / Synonyms
- use synonyms for keyword
- use natural language, not robot speak
Rel=Canonical
- can combat duplicate content
- use only when necessary
Outbound Links
- link to helpful websites within your niche
- link to authoritative sites within your niche
Internal Links
- link to helpful pages within your website
- link to most popular pages on your website
Website Speed
- website should load in under 2 seconds
- sub-pages should load in under 2 seconds
XML Sitemap
- Helps Google Crawl
- Necessary part of any website
Schema Markup
- Use JSON-LD
- Use our friendly JSON-LD generator
- Use appropriate type of markup e.g. review, car dealership, book
- Depends on type of page
Images
- Make sure images are helpful
- do you own the images
- proper size in pixels
- proper size in file size
- alt tags should properly describe the images
URL / permalink
- does URL make sense
- proper spelling and grammar
- don’t use words like “a” or “and”
- pretty URL’s such as https://www.example.com/my-website not https://www.example.com/p=876
Responsive
- does page pass the mobile friendly test?
- does website and page look good on phone, tablet, etc?
- use Chrome dev tools to emulate devices like iPhone
Render Blocking Resources
- make sure JS and CSS not loading before DOM
- make sure allowed in robots.txt
- use Chrome / Firefox dev tools
SSL / HTTPS
- is it installed?
- is it installed correctly?
AMP
- is it installed?
- is it installed correctly?
- is it optimized?
Anchor Text
- beware of over optimization
- should be helpful cue
- contains keywords if possible
Site Structure
- plan site structure
- pages in hierarchy? e.g. /phones/cases/iphones vs iphone-cases/iphones
Panda Risk Assessment
- low quality content
- grammar / spelling
- outbound links
Advertisements
- placement of ads above fold?
- size of ads
- ad load time
Robots.txt
- block admin pages
- allow robots to crawl important pages
- dont block CSS or JavaScript
.htaccess
- pretty permalinks
- smart redirects if necessary
Modifiers in Title and Description
- use words like “top” “best” and “2017”
- score long tail keywords
Keyword Density
- use target keyword in first part of article
- not too dense
Word Count
- studies show longer content can sometimes rank better
- be aware of overall word count
Bounce Rate and Dwell Time
- keep visitors on site as long as possible
- use tricks like “similar posts”
Encourage Engagement
- blog comments may help with ranking
- signals like “like” “heart” and “upvote” might help
Content Freshness
- if you update content, consider updating the date
- don’t post content just to post it
- Google likes fresh websites
Privacy Policy
- a good idea to have one anyway
- adds legitimacy to site
Main Navigation
- Should link to most popular pages
- internal linking opportunity
- Only link to most important pages
Side and Bottom Navigation
- internal linking opportunity
- link to most popular pages
Server Optimization
- check for 404s and other errors
- make sure old websites not indexed / present
- check for malware
- security check / scanning
Evergreen Content
- Be sure to update for accuracy
- Link to internally from website
Hidden CSS or text?
- look for display:none
- white text on white background for e.g.
Blackhat On-Page SEO
- resist temptation for easy win
- avoid using duplicate content
- stuffing keywords in tags
- sneaky redirects
Get Social!