SEO is no longer just about ranking in Google. In 2026, it also means being visible in AI-driven search surfaces like Google’s AI Overviews and ChatGPT.
This SEO checklist covers tasks that can help you gain visibility no matter where your audience is searching.
Getting yourself into a good place from a search perspective now also sets the stage for a future where AI agents can effectively find what they need and take actions on your website.
How to use this SEO checklist
We’ve divided these SEO best practices into six sections:
- Basic SEO practices checklist
- Keyword research checklist
- Technical SEO checklist
- Content & on-page SEO checklist
- Link building & off-page SEO checklist
- Agentic search checklist
Address all six sections for a holistic SEO strategy. If you have limited time or resources, focus on the most relevant tasks. Then, return to this guide whenever you’re ready to move on.
Download a copy of the checklist here.
Basic SEO practices checklist
These first steps create a foundation for your SEO and make you more likely to gain search visibility.
1. Set up Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools
Set up Google Search Console (GSC) and Bing Webmaster Tools to monitor your SEO performance and submit your pages to search engines.
These tools allow you to:
- Monitor your Google- and Bing-specific search performance
- Submit sitemaps and URLs
- Identify crawl errors
Bing Webmaster Tools now includes an “AI Performance” report, which gives insight into performance across Bing Copilot, AI summaries within Bing, and some partner AI integrations.
GSC includes performance information for AI Overviews and AI Mode — it just doesn't provide a separate view since those are rolled up into the standard performance report.
2. Set up Google Analytics
Set up a free Google Analytics 4 (GA4) account to track site traffic and user behavior.
With GA4, you can see:
- Which pages get the most traffic
- Traffic sources (sites, search engines, or AI tools)
- Bounce rates and visits
Keep in mind that AI-driven search is changing traffic patterns — users may get answers directly from AI without clicking through. So, it may be more important to focus on what users do once they land on your site than sheer traffic volume.
3. Install and configure an SEO plugin (for WordPress sites)
A WordPress SEO plugin can help you:
- Generate sitemaps automatically
- Edit robots.txt files
- Manage on-page optimizations
Here are some popular SEO plugins, along with their key features:
| SEO plugin | Key features |
| AI-assisted content optimization: Get suggestions for improving structure, clarity, and keyword use Automated technical SEO: Generates sitemaps, handles canonical URLs, and adds schema markup Internal linking suggestions: Recommends relevant pages to strengthen site structure | |
| AI content features: Uses AI to conduct keyword research, generate ideas, create an outline, and write a first draft Schema capabilities: Imports, generates, and validates structured data Performance monitoring: Surfaces key SEO insights at the page level and allows for trend analysis | |
| AI-powered features: Generates, simplifies, and rephrases text with a few clicks Tone analysis: Ensures content consistently aligns with your brand voice Originality checks: Flags duplication risks to ensure your content is truly unique |
4. Create and submit an XML sitemap
Create and submit an XML sitemap to help search engines understand your site’s structure and index your pages.
If you use WordPress, a sitemap is created automatically. Other popular platforms do this as well. If your content management system (CMS) or website platform doesn’t automatically make a sitemap, create one with a sitemap generator tool.
Next steps:
- Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools
- Add your sitemap URL to your robots.txt file
Here’s what our blog’s sitemap looks like:
Use Semrush’s free SEO checker, Site Audit, to find and fix sitemap issues.
5. Create a robots.txt file
A robots.txt file (pictured below) tells search systems which pages they should and shouldn’t crawl.
To see your current file, add “/robots.txt” to your homepage URL. For example: https://semrush.com/robots.txt.
Check your robots.txt file for errors using Semrush’s Site Audit tool.
Robots.txt also provides guidance to AI crawlers. Blocking these crawlers can limit how your content is discovered and used in AI-generated answers. So if AI visibility matters to you, make sure important pages remain accessible.
Further reading: Robots.txt explained: Syntax, best practices, & SEO
6. Check Search Console for manual actions
Google can issue penalties called manual actions if it detects spam, hidden text, unnatural links, etc.
Make sure to regularly check for any manual actions against your site in Google Search Console.
Scroll down the tool’s sidebar navigation and select “Security & Manual Actions” > “Manual actions” to see a report with detected issues — if there are any.
Google will notify you in a GSC report if your site receives a manual action.
7. Make sure Google can index your website
Indexability ensures search engines can discover and surface your content.
Being indexed in Google is also important for AI visibility — many AI tools use Google to find content, so pages that are indexed by Google are more likely to appear in AI-generated answers.
To make sure your site can be indexed, use our Site Audit tool to set up a crawl for your website. On the “Overview” tab, click “View details” under “Crawlability.”
Double-check that your site’s main pages are indexed to save yourself from a lot of troubleshooting later on.
Keyword research checklist
Keyword research finds search queries and AI prompts that align with your products or services.
Use these steps to prioritize search queries and shape your keyword strategy.
8. Identify competitor keywords
Competitor keywords your rivals are targeting to drive results are likely relevant search queries that could similarly improve your visibility.
Use Semrush’s Keyword Gap tool to identify search queries your competitors target by entering your domain and up to four of your competitors’ domains.
Scroll down to the “Top Opportunities” table. Look for relevant keywords labeled “Missing” (competitors rank but you don’t) and “Weak” (competitors rank higher than you). Focus on these gaps.
Further reading: How to do an SEO competitor analysis
9. Find core topics and keywords
Identifying the core topics your audience is searching for, so you can appear in relevant answers.
Use Semrush’s Keyword Magic Tool to explore keyword ideas related to your niche. Enter a broad term related to your business and add your domain for more personalized results.
Click the “Questions” tab to see question-based keywords people are entering into search engines. Those terms are often highly specific, which means they often reflect users who are highly motivated.
In the list you get from the Keyword Magic Tool, look for:
- Topics with meaningful search demand: Prioritize keywords with consistent search volume, but don’t ignore lower-volume terms if they’re highly relevant and likely to drive conversions
- Achievable opportunities: Use Personal Keyword Difficulty to find terms you can realistically rank for based on your site’s authority
- Clear intent alignment: Focus on keywords where the intent (learn, compare, buy) matches the goal of your existing or future page
These keywords and topics will serve as your road map for what kind of content and pages to create on your site.
10. Identify prompts your audience uses in AI tools
Knowing what your audience enters into AI tools enables you to write content in a way that improves its likelihood of appearing in AI-generated answers.
Get an idea of what your audience is asking by surveying existing customers and analyzing conversations on platforms like Reddit. Make note of the actual language people use when researching topics related to your business.
Speed things up with the Prompt Research report. You’ll see the estimated search volume for each topic under "Related topics.” Click on the arrow next to a topic that interests you to see the actual prompts users are searching and the corresponding AI responses.
Next, use the Competitor Research report to see the prompts competitors show for versus what you show for. Use prompts your rivals appear for to create pages that address your audience’s questions.
11. Create a keyword map
Organize your keywords and prompts into groups based on topic and intent (this is called “keyword mapping”) to make it possible for your pages to show for multiple queries.
Start by adding all the queries you’ve gathered — both traditional keywords and AI-style prompts — into a spreadsheet, then group similar queries together based on meaning and intent.
Each group should represent a topic that can be covered with a single, comprehensive page. Like this:
If you prefer a more automated approach, you can use Semrush’s Keyword Strategy Builder to cluster related terms.
12. Analyze the search intent of highly visible pages
Google prioritizes content that matches search intent, which means it’s a good idea to look at what’s already ranking.
Search your target query in Google and review the top results. Pay attention to the types of pages you see (e.g., guides, product pages, comparisons) and how they’re structured.
You can also enter the same query into AI tools like ChatGPT or Perplexity to see how the question is interpreted and what kind of answers are generated.
Look for patterns related to:
- What topics are covered
- How in-depth the content is
- Whether users are looking to learn, compare, or take action
Use these insights you gain from analyzing search results to shape your content, so it matches what users are trying to accomplish.
13. Identify additional questions people ask
To expand your content’s reach, look for the questions your audience is already asking.
Start with Google’s People Also Ask boxes to find common follow-up questions related to your topic.
Then, explore community platforms like Reddit and Quora to see how people naturally phrase their questions. Look for:
- Recurring questions across multiple sources
- Variations of the same question
- Follow-up questions that go deeper into a topic
Incorporate the questions your audience asks into your content as headings, FAQs, or subsections.
Technical SEO checklist
Follow these technical SEO best practices to ensure your site is crawlable, indexable, and easy to use.
14. Make sure you’re using HTTPS
Whether your website uses HTTPS (a secure protocol) is a ranking signal — even if it’s only a small one.
Confirm your site uses HTTPS by checking for a padlock icon in your browser’s address bar.
For a more detailed report on possible issues, set up a project in the Site Audit tool and crawl your website. Once in the dashboard, go to the HTTPS section and click “View details.”
You’ll see a dashboard with information about your site’s HTTPS status, such as security certificates, server protocols, and website architecture. Address all issues in this section.
15. Check for duplicate versions of your site in Google’s index
Check for duplicate versions of your site to ensure you don’t experience crawling, indexing, and security issues.
Domains can appear as:
- https://www.domain.com
- https://domain.com
- http://www.domain.com
- http://domain.com/
All versions except one should 301 redirect to your primary domain. Enter each variant in your browser to confirm redirects are set up correctly.
16. Find and fix crawl errors
Crawl errors occur when search systems fail to access certain pages or encounter improper canonical tags.
You can quickly identify any crawl errors through Google Search Console’s “Page indexing” report.
Once in GSC’s “Page indexing” report, you’ll see two categories: “Indexed” and “Not indexed.” Crawl errors will be under the “Not indexed” category.
Take the time to resolve any errors you find and explore the cause of excluded URLs in more detail.
17. Improve your site speed
Improving your site speed boosts the user experience and ensures that search systems can easily process your pages.
Google uses the Core Web Vitals metrics to measure speed and usability:
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Measures the time needed for the main content on a page to load
- Interaction to Next Paint (INP): Tracks the time from when a user interacts with the page to when the visual response is observed. In Semrush tools, we approximate this with a metric called Total Blocking Time (TBT).
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Assesses the extent of unexpected layout shifts during page loading
You can use Google’s PageSpeed Insights tool to gauge Core Web Vitals information for individual pages. You’ll see the page’s performance score and a list of recommendations to improve speed like optimizing image sizes and minimizing JavaScript.
Reducing JavaScript is good for more than just improving speed, too. Keeping JavaScript to a minimum makes it easier for AI systems to understand your content, which can increase your chances of appearing in AI-generated responses.
For a more detailed report that lets you review performance for numerous pages across your site, head to Site Audit and click “View details” under “Core Web Vitals.”
You’ll see a snapshot of your Core Web Vitals for 10 pages on your site and recommendations for improvement. Scroll down to the table and click “Edit list” to change the 10 URLs to any that were included in the crawl.
18. Fix broken internal and outbound links
Broken links (404 errors) disrupt the user experience.
To quickly find (and fix) broken links, head to Semrush's SEO checker and go to the “Internal Linking” report.
Fix the broken internal and external links you find with Site Audit by updating the target URL, setting up a redirect, or removing the link altogether.
19. Find and fix HTTP links on HTTPS pages
Using HTTPS but linking internally to HTTP pages triggers unnecessary redirects that can slow down your website.
Head to the “HTTPS Implementation” report in Site Audit to reveal any HTTP link issues and discover how to fix them.
20. Make sure your website is mobile-friendly
Google moved from mobile-first indexing to mobile-only indexing, which means Google will no longer index websites that aren’t accessible via mobile devices.
Keep in mind that appearing in Google’s index is also an important precursor to appearing in AI tools that rely on Google for search results.
You can use Google Chrome to test your site’s mobile-friendliness. Simply open a website in Chrome, right-click any page you want to test, and select “Inspect.”
Once in Chrome’s Developer Tools, you can test how your site looks on different devices. Select the device icon on the right-hand side to switch between desktop and mobile.
You can even use Developer Tools to view how the page looks across specific device types.
Check to make sure everything looks right and is easy to use on mobile devices. And make sure key elements like text and buttons are big enough to read and tap.
Further reading: The complete guide to mobile SEO
21. Use a search-friendly URL structure
A search-friendly URL structure should be short, descriptive, and use hyphens to separate words.
Here’s an example of a well-structured URL: https://www.domain.com/red-shoes/
Here’s an example of a URL structure that needs work: https://www.domain.com/category.pjp?id=32
Use hyphens in your URLs to separate words rather than underscores. And keep URLs as short as possible without losing meaning, so they’re easy to read.
22. Add structured data
Schema markup (a type of structured data) highlights key information for search systems.
Structured data makes you eligible for rich snippets in traditional results. And may make it easier for AI systems to interpret and surface your information in generated answers.
Here’s what a rich snippet for a page with review structure data can look like in Google:
23. Check your site’s crawl depth
Check that important pages are within three clicks of your homepage using Site Audit’s “Internal Linking” report.
If your site has a lot of pages that are more than three clicks away from the homepage, consider simplifying your main navigation and working to incorporate more internal links. This type of linking structure makes it easier for search systems to find your content and understand how pages are related.
24. Check temporary 302 redirects
Make sure you’re not mistakenly using 302 redirects (temporary redirects) in place of 301 redirects (permanent redirects).
Google has confirmed that 302 redirects can pass ranking authority, but a 302 should be updated to a 301 when you know the move will stay in place permanently.
Find your site’s 302 redirects using our SEO checker. Go to the “Issues” tab and search “temporary redirects.”
25. Find and fix redirect chains and loops
A redirect chain sends users through multiple redirects, which slows page loading.
A redirect loop sends a page back to itself, which results in an endless loop that never lands on a page.
The “Issues” tab in Site Audit will highlight any redirect chain or loop issues. Just search “redirect chain.” Resolve the issues by updating all redirects in a chain to point to the end target or by updating the redirect causing the loop.
Content & on-page SEO checklist
Great content and on-page optimizations engage users and improve search visibility.
Use these tips to keep your content strong and relevant.
26. Find and fix duplicate, missing, and truncated title tags
Title tags communicate a page’s topic to search systems and users.
You can see a page’s title tag in its source code:
For the best title tags, avoid:
- Duplicate title tags on different pages
- Missing tags
- Overly long tags (Google truncates after ~60 characters)
You can quickly audit your title tags in our SEO checker under the “Issues'' tab. There, search for “title tags.”
Click “How to fix” to read more about each issue and get tips on how to address it.
27. Find and fix duplicate and missing meta descriptions
Meta descriptions can show in search results and influence whether users click, so they should be unique, concise, and relevant.
Audit your meta descriptions in Site Audit under the “Issues” tab by searching “meta descriptions.”
28. Find and fix multiple H1 tags
Each page needs a single, unique H1 tag that describes the page’s main topic for users and search systems.
Site Audit’s “Issues” tab flags pages with H1 tag errors. Just search “h1” and resolve any issues you uncover.
29. Optimize title tags, meta tags, and page content
To find pages that likely need optimized title tags, meta tags, and content, head to Google Search Console, go to “Performance,” and check the boxes next to “Average CTR” and “Average position.”
Scroll down and look for keywords with a significant number of impressions but few clicks and a low average position.This usually means your page is showing in Google for relevant queries, but that you haven’t optimized it by including keyword/prompt variations in your content or meta tags.
Instead of simply stuffing in the terms you find, treat those queries as topics for new subsections. And rework your page accordingly to improve your search visibility and possibly your traffic.
Descriptive headings on related topics also help AI systems identify and extract specific sections of your content within AI-generated responses.
30. Audit your site’s existing content
A content audit checks for underperforming pages that you can improve for better results.
You can audit your content by using tools like Google Analytics and Semrush’s On Page SEO Checker to get optimization ideas.
Start by regularly tracking traffic and engagement metrics on your pages. Then, compare underperforming pages to high-performing pages to determine what could be improved.
When auditing your content, consider whether your pages are easy to scan and understand. Content with clear headings and direct answers is more likely to be used in AI-generated responses.
Just keep in mind that many brands are seeing less traffic as a result of AI-generated answers. That’s why it’s important to consider numerous metrics and compare similar time periods.
31. Ensure images use alt text
Alt text describes images to search engines and visually impaired users to ensure accessibility and to drive visibility through image-based search.
And consider that more people are using multimodal search (image or video + text) to find what they’re looking for. Using alt text helps AI systems understand and categorize your images.
You can quickly find images that are missing alt text using Site Audit. Go to the “Issues” tab and search “alt attributes” to see how many images don’t have alt text.
Periodically checking the alt text of older images to ensure that the information is still relevant and accurate is also a good idea.
For example, if your website features an old image of running shoes with the alt text "latest model of running shoes for marathon training," you’ll want to update it to reflect the precise model.
32. Improve internal linking
Incorporating internal links helps search systems and users navigate your site and can improve search visibility.
Use Site Audit’s “Internal Linking” report to find pages with only one internal link in the “Notices” section.
Add more internal links to your pages with few internal links if at all possible, especially if you have related content.
Learn more about identifying which pages need internal links with our internal linking guide.
33. Find and fix keyword cannibalization issues
Keyword cannibalization occurs when multiple pages compete for the same queries.
One way to find out if your site has keyword cannibalization issues is to use the Position Tracking tool. After you set up your campaign and add the terms you want to monitor, go to the “Cannibalization” tab to see which queries and pages are affected.
Resolve keyword cannibalization by redirecting or merging content. Or by targeting different terms on each page.
34. Find and fix orphaned pages
Fixing orphaned pages (pages with no internal links pointing to them) can improve visibility for those pages and help both users and search engines navigate your site.
Search engines can only discover pages from the sitemap file or links (from your website or from other websites).
If search engines can’t discover your pages, they can’t index them in search results. And if your pages aren’t indexed, users probably won’t be able to find them.
In a LinkedIn post, SEO & GEO Strategist Zoe Ashbridge shared how she helped a client turn their orphaned pages into useful content like blog posts and guides that search systems can now find.
To find your orphaned pages, open Site Audit, go to the “Issues” tab, and search “orphaned pages.” Then, link to all orphaned pages from at least one other relevant page.
35. Ensure your site’s content is up to date
Regularly updating your content helps maintain trust and can improve visibility, especially considering AI systems often favor more recent content.
Start by reviewing your top pages and updating:
- Outdated statistics, examples, or screenshots
- Sections that no longer reflect current best practices
- Missing subtopics or questions users are now asking
You can also expand pages to better match current search intent by adding clearer definitions, step-by-step instructions, or FAQ sections.
Link building & off-page SEO checklist
Off-page SEO focuses on signals outside your site that contribute to better search visibility.
Check out our condensed off-page SEO checklist.
36. Analyze your competitors’ link profiles
Just as analyzing your competitors’ content is important, you should dig deep into their link profiles as well.
Enter any competitor’s URL into the Backlinks tool and go to the “Backlinks” tab.
Viewing a list of your competitors’ backlinks gives you a good look at the overall quality and authority of their backlinks. You’ll also get ideas for domains you can contact to ask for links.
37. Conduct a backlink gap audit
Conduct a backlink gap audit to find websites linking to your competitors but not to you — those domains could be good link prospects if they already link to similar content.
Add your domain and your competitors’ domains to the Backlink Gap tool and select the “Best” tab to find domains that link to all your competitors but not to you.
Make a list of the domains you want to obtain links from, then reach out. This works best when you’re able to share a relevant piece of content that their audience is likely to find interesting.
38. Turn unlinked mentions into links
When someone mentions you or your brand but doesn’t link, you can request a link.
To quickly find unlinked mentions, use the Brand Monitoring app.
For unlinked mentions you find, reach out to the page owner or author. Thank them for the mention and politely request a backlink.
Don’t worry too much about trying to get a link for every mention. Unlinked brand mentions can still improve search visibility.
AI systems analyze content across the web to understand entities and context, so mentions of your brand — even without a link — help reinforce that your brand is important and what your brand is associated with.
39. Find new link building opportunities
Building links from high-quality, relevant websites can improve your search visibility.
While SEOs initially questioned whether backlinks matter for appearing in AI-generated answers, our research shows that having a strong backlink profile is associated with better AI visibility.
The Link Building Tool shows a list of prospects you can reach out to for backlinks. You can even contact prospects and manage your campaign directly within the tool.
40. Set up and optimize your Google Business Profile
If you operate a local business, a Google Business Profile is key for appearing in Google Search and Maps results.
And Google Business Profiles are increasingly being referenced by AI tools when answering location-based queries.
Once you have your Google Business Profile set up, connect your profile to Semrush’s Listing Management tool for performance insights.
Agentic search checklist
This section covers the additional steps to take if you want to appear in AI systems like Gemini, Claude, ChatGPT, and AI Overviews.
41. Audit your AI visibility baseline
Open the Visibility Overview report in the AI Visibility Toolkit to see how your AI visibility compares to others in your niche.
Use Visibility Overview to identify:
- Your overall AI visibility score and how it trends over time
- Which competitors are cited more frequently in AI results
- Gaps in visibility where others are appearing but you’re not
This helps you understand where you stand today, so you know what steps to take to improve.
42. Structure content for AI
Structure your content in a way that makes it easy for AI systems to understand and extract your content.
AI tools tend to favor content that provides clear, complete answers to specific questions. So, cover topics comprehensively using clear headings, concise definitions, FAQ sections, and step-by-step formats.
Also, structure your writing so each section and paragraph can stand on its own. AI systems often extract content at the paragraph or sentence level, so each block of text should be clear and meaningful — even when removed from its original context.
To improve extractability:
- Use direct sentences that clearly answer a question
- Avoid vague pronouns like “this” or “it” without clear references
- Define key terms early in each section
- Keep paragraphs focused on a single idea
43. Consider using LLMs.txt
Consider creating an llms.txt file — a proposed standard intended to signal to AI systems which pages are most important on your site.
Here’s the official specification:
While adoption is limited and there’s no confirmation from major AI companies that they use this file, it may be worth monitoring as practices around AI crawling and content discovery evolve.
Execute this SEO checklist
SEO is always changing, but these tips offer a solid path to increased visibility and better business results.
Start with a free trial of Semrush One, so you can improve your chances of appearing wherever your audience searches.