How to Perform an SEO Audit in 18 Steps

Introduction

IIf your website isn’t ranking the way it should, it’s probably time for an SEO audit. Think of it like a health check-up for your site—it helps you uncover what’s working, what’s broken, and what’s holding you back in the search results. Whether you’re trying to boost organic traffic, fix indexing issues, or just get a clearer picture of your site’s performance, a thorough SEO audit can uncover powerful opportunities for growth. In this guide, I’ll walk you through 18 essential steps to perform a complete SEO audit—tools included—so you can take action right away.

The tool you need

• Audit tool like Semrush Site Audit
• Google Analytics
• Google Search Console
• Google PageSpeed Insights
• Google Schema Markup Testing Tool

Basics — The Things You 100% Must Check

• Benchmark your rankings and understand your competitors
• Check for duplicate versions of your site in Google’s Index
• Check your site’s indexed URLs
• Check for manual actions
• Analyze your site’s speed
• Confirm that your site uses HTTPS
• Check for mobile-friendliness issues
• Analyze and resolve further indexation issues
• Understand your site’s page experience
• Audit your on-page SEO

SEO Audit Quick Wins

• Fix broken internal links
• Clean up your sitemap
• Check your redirects

Auditing Content

• Find and fix duplicate content issues
• Identify thin content pages
• Fix issues with orphan pages
• Compare your content to top ranking pages & analyze searcher intent
• Run a Backlink Audit

Conclusion

Doing an SEO audit doesn’t have to feel overwhelming. Once you break it into steps—like we’ve done here—it’s really just about getting a clear picture of how your site’s performing and spotting areas where you can improve. Some fixes might be quick wins, others might take more time, but all of them move you in the right direction.

The key is consistency. Don’t just audit once and forget about it—make it part of your regular website maintenance. Over time, you’ll catch issues early, stay ahead of algorithm changes, and keep your content in line with what your audience (and Google) actually wants.

If you’ve got any questions or tips from your own audits, feel free to share—always happy to swap notes.