Boosting your website’s SEO can be tricky, especially with so many potential pitfalls. This checklist highlights 25 common SEO issues that could be holding your site back. From duplicate content to broken links and poor mobile optimization, addressing these problems can make a big difference. Use this guide to quickly spot and fix these SEO issues, ensuring your site ranks higher and delivers a better user experience.
Here’s a checklist including 25 common SEO issues:
| SEO Issue | Description |
|---|---|
| 1. Duplicate Content | Repeating content across pages can harm SEO. |
| 2. Broken Links | Links that direct users to non-existent pages negatively impact user experience and SEO. |
| 3. Slow Page Load Times | Slow loading pages frustrate users and lower search engine rankings. |
| 4. Old Publish Dates | Older dates on content can reduce click-through rates and harm rankings. |
| 5. Thin Content | Pages lacking valuable content receive lower rankings. |
| 6. Missing Alt Tags & Broken Images | Images without alt tags or broken images harm accessibility and SEO. |
| 7. Unoptimized Meta Descriptions & Titles | Non-optimized titles and descriptions lower click-through rates and rankings. |
| 8. Improper Use of Header Tags | Incorrect header tag usage complicates content structure for search engines. |
| 9. Lack of Quality Backlinks | Insufficient high-quality backlinks weaken authority and rankings. |
| 10. Poor User Experience (UX) | Difficult navigation and poor UX result in high bounce rates, harming SEO. |
| 11. Overuse of Keywords (Keyword Stuffing) | Excessive keyword usage can lead to penalties due to spammy behavior. |
| 12. Not Using Structured Data | Neglecting structured data lowers search visibility and click-through rates. |
| 13. Inconsistent NAP for Local SEO | Inconsistent name, address, and phone number details harm local SEO efforts. |
| 14. Ignoring Social Signals | Neglecting social signals like shares and likes can indirectly affect SEO visibility and traffic. |
| 15. Image Pages in WordPress | Each image page can have a separate indexable page on Google, affecting site structure negatively. |
| 16. HTTP Pages | Non-secure (HTTP) pages should be updated to HTTPS to avoid ranking penalties. |
| 17. Unintended Indexed Pages | Low-quality or unnecessary pages should be identified and removed from the index to avoid penalties. |
| 18. Missing or Poor XML Sitemaps | A well-structured XML sitemap is crucial for search engines to crawl and index your website effectively. |
| 19. Inadequate Mobile Optimization | Websites not optimized for mobile devices suffer in mobile search rankings. |
| 20. Incorrect Canonicalization | Incorrect canonical tags can lead to duplicate content issues and split ranking signals. |
| 21. Non-Optimized Anchor Text | Generic anchor text (e.g., “click here”) misses opportunities for keyword optimization. |
| 22. High Bounce Rate | High bounce rates can signal poor user experience, negatively impacting rankings. |
| 23. Poor URL Structure | Complex or non-descriptive URLs can confuse users and search engines. |
| 24. Outdated or Irrelevant Content | Content that is no longer relevant can lower the authority of your website. |
| 25. Lack of HTTPS Security | Websites that don’t use HTTPS are marked as “not secure,” affecting user trust and SEO. |
