Technical SEO Audit Framework
Professional methodology for comprehensive technical SEO analysis aligned with 2025 best practices.
When to Use This Skill Full technical SEO audits Diagnosing crawling/indexation issues Core Web Vitals analysis Site architecture review Schema markup validation Mobile-first readiness assessment AI crawler configuration audit Audit Workflow
Execute in priority order—crawlability issues block all downstream optimizations.
Phase 1: Crawlability & Indexation (CRITICAL) 1. robots.txt Analysis □ Accessible at /robots.txt □ No global Disallow: / □ CSS/JS not blocked □ Sitemap reference present
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XML Sitemap Validation □ Only canonical, 200-status URLs □ No noindex pages included □ Submitted to GSC
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Indexation Status (GSC) □ Check indexed vs excluded pages □ Identify "Crawled - not indexed" □ Find soft 404s □ Verify canonical consistency
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Meta Robots □ Key pages: index,follow □ No accidental noindex □ Canonical self-references
Phase 2: Core Web Vitals (2025 Standards)
Passing Thresholds:
Metric Good Needs Improvement Poor LCP ≤2.5s 2.5-4.0s >4.0s INP ≤200ms 200-500ms >500ms CLS ≤0.10 0.10-0.25 >0.25
Data Sources (Priority Order):
Google Search Console (field data) CrUX Dashboard (field data) PageSpeed Insights (lab + field)
Common Fixes:
LCP: Optimize images, preload critical resources, reduce server response time INP: Break up long tasks, optimize JavaScript, use web workers CLS: Set dimensions on images/embeds, avoid inserting content above existing Phase 3: Site Architecture Optimal Structure: □ Max 3 clicks from homepage to any page □ Flat hierarchy (avoid deep nesting) □ Logical URL structure: /category/subcategory/page □ Breadcrumb navigation implemented □ Internal linking strategy documented
URL Best Practices: □ Descriptive, keyword-relevant □ Lowercase, hyphens (not underscores) □ Under 60 characters □ No parameters when possible
Phase 4: Mobile-First Readiness □ Mobile-friendly test passes □ Responsive design (no horizontal scroll) □ Touch targets ≥48px □ Font size ≥16px base □ No intrusive interstitials □ Same content on mobile and desktop
Phase 5: Security & HTTPS □ HTTPS with valid certificate □ HTTP → HTTPS redirects (301) □ No mixed content warnings □ HSTS header implemented □ Security headers present (CSP, X-Frame-Options)
Phase 6: Structured Data
Priority Schema Types:
Organization/LocalBusiness BreadcrumbList Article/BlogPosting (with author) Product (for e-commerce) FAQPage (for AI visibility) HowTo (for tutorials)
Validation:
Google Rich Results Test Schema.org validator Check for warnings, not just errors Phase 7: AI Crawler Configuration
2025 robots.txt for AI Search:
Allow AI search crawlers
User-agent: OAI-SearchBot Allow: /
User-agent: ChatGPT-User Allow: /
User-agent: PerplexityBot Allow: /
User-agent: ClaudeBot Allow: /
Optional: Block AI training (not search)
User-agent: GPTBot Disallow: /
User-agent: Google-Extended Disallow: /
Output Format
Generate reports using this structure:
Technical SEO Audit Report
Site: [URL] Date: [Date] Overall Score: X/100
Executive Summary
[2-3 sentence overview]
Scores by Category
| Category | Score | Status |
|----------|-------|--------|
| Crawlability & Indexation | X/20 | [Good/Needs Work/Critical] |
| Core Web Vitals | X/20 | [Good/Needs Work/Critical] |
| Site Architecture | X/15 | [Good/Needs Work/Critical] |
| Mobile Readiness | X/15 | [Good/Needs Work/Critical] |
| Security & HTTPS | X/10 | [Good/Needs Work/Critical] |
| Structured Data | X/10 | [Good/Needs Work/Critical] |
| AI Crawler Readiness | X/10 | [Good/Needs Work/Critical] |
Priority Issues (Fix First)
- [Issue] - [Impact] - [Fix]
- [Issue] - [Impact] - [Fix]
- [Issue] - [Impact] - [Fix]
Detailed Findings
[Category-by-category analysis]
Action Plan
Immediate (This Week): - [ ] Critical fix 1 - [ ] Critical fix 2
Short-term (This Month): - [ ] High priority 1 - [ ] High priority 2
Ongoing: - [ ] Monitoring task 1 - [ ] Regular audit 2
Scoring Guide 90-100: Excellent - Minor optimizations only 70-89: Good - Some improvements needed 50-69: Needs Work - Significant gaps Below 50: Critical - Major overhaul required Quick Audit (5-Point Check)
For rapid assessments:
Indexation - Are key pages indexed? (GSC) Speed - Core Web Vitals passing? (LCP <2.5s) Mobile - Mobile-friendly test pass? Security - HTTPS with valid cert? Crawlability - robots.txt not blocking content? Tools Reference
Check robots.txt
curl -s https://example.com/robots.txt
Check response headers
curl -I https://example.com
Fetch and validate sitemap
curl -s https://example.com/sitemap.xml | head -50
Check mobile-friendliness (requires API key)
Use Google's Mobile-Friendly Test: https://search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly
Additional Resources
For detailed checklists and schema patterns, ask for:
"Show me the full crawlability checklist" "Give me JSON-LD schema examples" "List all Core Web Vitals optimization techniques"