A SIMPLE GUIDE TO A HEALTHIER WEBSITE
How to Do a Website Audit
Find the issues.
Build a better website.
Learning how to do a website audit starts with a simple question: can people find your website and use it easily? Review search visibility, page content, loading speed and important user journeys. Then turn the findings into a realistic fix list.
- No account needed
- Downloadable PDF
- Any website platform
Your first findings, in one place.Run a scan, review the report and plan your next improvements.
FIRST, DEFINE THE GOAL
How to do a website audit: where to start
To audit a website, choose a goal, scan its pages, review search data, test the user experience and prioritise the fixes. Record each issue with its URL, owner and next step. Finally, retest the changed pages and monitor results.
Before you start, decide what success means. A service business may want more enquiries. An online store may want more completed orders. Compare recent traffic and conversions with a previous period, allowing for seasonality and tracking changes.
If you are wondering how to do a website audit without expensive software, start with the PhpYouth free website SEO audit. Combine the scan findings with manual checks and your own website data.
A CHECKLIST YOU CAN ACT ON
Six areas to check during your website audit
Knowing how to do a website audit means looking beyond one score. These checks cover how visitors discover your pages and what happens after they arrive.
01 / VISIBILITY
Search access and indexing
Check whether valuable pages appear in Google Search Console’s Page Indexing report. Inspect unexpected exclusions and test selected URLs. Review noindex directives, robots.txt and your XML sitemap. A live URL test checks accessibility; it does not guarantee that Google will index the page.
02 / CONTENT
Page titles and useful content
Read your main pages as a potential customer. Do the titles explain the offer? Does the content answer common questions? Give each page a clear purpose. Refresh outdated details and review similar pages before deciding whether to merge, rewrite or redirect them.
03 / SPEED
Loading speed and mobile use
Test important pages with PageSpeed Insights and on a real phone. Look for oversized images, delayed content and unstable layouts. Check Core Web Vitals alongside actual user behaviour. A fast homepage does not prove that every product page or landing page works well.
04 / LINKS
Navigation and broken links
Follow the routes visitors take from the homepage to important pages. Repair broken internal links and review unnecessary redirect chains. Make useful pages easy to reach with descriptive links. Also test menu buttons, downloads and links to external resources.
05 / TRUST
Security and accessibility basics
Check HTTPS, working contact details and clear policies. Test keyboard navigation, visible focus indicators, form labels and image descriptions. Read text against its background on mobile. These checks support a usable website, but they do not replace a specialist security or accessibility review.
06 / RESULTS
Forms and conversion journeys
Submit a test enquiry and confirm that the right person receives it. For stores, test the basket, checkout and payment journey using an appropriate test method. Check confirmation messages and analytics events. Record anything that stops users from completing the intended action.
GATHER THE RIGHT INFORMATION
What you need before the first scan
You do not need to learn every technical term to understand how to do a website audit. Start with your website URL and a short list of pages that matter most to your business.
Keep search and analytics access ready for deeper checks. Note recent redesigns, migrations or plugin changes so you can compare findings with the timing of website problems.
↗Your main service, category or product page URLs.
↗Google Search Console access for indexing and search data.
↗Analytics data for visits, enquiries and completed purchases.
↗A simple spreadsheet to record issues and priorities.
REPLACE GUESSWORK WITH YOUR FIRST FINDINGS
Ready to see what needs attention?
Run your free website scan and download an automated SEO report.
FOUR PRACTICAL STEPS
How to do a website audit and prioritise the fixes
Use this process to keep the review manageable. Save a baseline before making changes, so you can compare the next scan with your starting point.
Scan and save your baseline
Open the free website audit tool and enter your URL. It scans up to 500 sitemap pages and respects robots.txt. Keep the tab open until the report appears. Download your automated SEO report and note the scan date.
Check the findings yourself
Open the affected URLs and confirm the problem. Cross-check indexing issues in Search Console and performance concerns with speed tests. Learning how to do a website audit includes knowing when an automated finding needs manual investigation.
Create a realistic fix list
Prioritise issues affecting valuable pages or key user journeys. Fix a broken enquiry form or blocked service page before a minor description change. Assign an owner, expected outcome and deadline. Back up the website before significant changes.
Retest and monitor progress
Rerun the scan after fixes and repeat your manual tests. Compare similar periods in analytics and Search Console. Understanding how to do a website audit also means checking whether changes helped, rather than assuming a higher tool score will produce more leads.
EXTRA CHECKS FOR ONLINE STORES
What changes in an ecommerce SEO site audit?
An ecommerce SEO site audit needs to cover products, categories and the buying journey. Check that visitors can reach products through category links. Search engines should not have to use your internal search box to discover important inventory.
Review filtered URLs, product variants and pagination for unnecessary duplication. Check canonical signals before changing indexing rules. For out-of-stock products, consider expected availability and customer needs instead of deleting every page immediately.
Compare visible prices and availability with product structured data. Then test delivery information, returns pages and checkout on mobile. An ecommerce SEO site audit should balance search visibility with the practical needs of shoppers.
ANSWERS BEFORE YOU BEGIN
Website audit questions, answered
Can I audit my website for free?
Yes. Combine a free scan with Search Console and manual page checks. This is a practical way to learn how to do a website audit before deciding whether you need paid tools or specialist help.
What does an automated SEO report show?
An automated SEO report summarises the checks a tool runs and the issues it detects. Use it to find affected pages and plan further checks. It cannot explain every business, content or conversion problem on its own.
How often should I review my website?
Review it after a redesign, migration or unexpected performance change. Schedule routine checks based on how often you update content, products and features. Retest important journeys after major releases.
Will fixing audit issues guarantee rankings?
No. Fixes can improve access and usability, but search performance also depends on content, competition and other factors. Measure useful outcomes such as qualified enquiries and sales alongside search traffic.
YOUR NEXT STEP STARTS WITH ONE SCAN
Now you know how to do a website audit.
Put the checklist into practice.
Start with your first scan, review the affected pages and choose a few high-impact fixes. Keep a record of your changes and repeat the checks as your website grows.
No account needed · PDF report · Up to 500 sitemap pages
For more detail on access and indexing, explore Google’s technical SEO guidance and Google Search’s technical requirements.