Website launch checklist: the technical SEO basics to check before you go live

A new website can look perfect and still launch with problems that stop search engines from finding it. The most common ones are simple — a leftover noindex tag from staging, missing redirects from old URLs, a blocked sitemap — and they're all preventable with a checklist.

Here's the one we work through before every launch. It doesn't guarantee rankings (nothing does), but it makes sure nothing technical is holding your content back.

1. Crawling and indexing

• robots.txt allows public pages and references your sitemap. Check it isn't still set to Disallow: / from staging.
• No stray noindex. Search the rendered HTML of key pages for noindex. Staging environments often add it site-wide.
• One canonical URL per page. Each page declares a self-referencing canonical, and variants (with/without trailing slash, http/https, www/non-www) redirect to it.
• XML sitemap lists only indexable, canonical URLs that return 200 — no redirects, no 404s, no noindexed pages.

2. Redirects from the old site

If you're replacing an existing site, every old URL that had traffic or backlinks should 301 redirect to its closest new equivalent. Export URLs from your old sitemap, analytics and Search Console, map them, and test the map after launch.

3. On-page essentials

• Each page has a unique title and meta description that describe that page specifically.
• Each page has one H1, and headings follow a logical H2/H3 structure.
• Images have descriptive alt text (or empty alt for purely decorative images).
• Pages link to related pages with descriptive anchor text — no page should be an orphan.
• Open Graph tags and a share image are set, so links look right on social platforms and messaging apps.

4. Performance and Core Web Vitals

Google's Core Web Vitals measure loading, responsiveness and visual stability. The thresholds for a “good” experience are:

• LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): 2.5 seconds or less.
• INP (Interaction to Next Paint): 200 milliseconds or less.
• CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift): 0.1 or less.

The usual fixes: serve responsive, modern-format images with explicit dimensions; load fonts efficiently; avoid huge hero videos; and keep JavaScript to what the page actually needs. Test on a mid-range phone over mobile data, not only on a fast laptop.

5. Structured data

Add JSON-LD that describes what's genuinely on the page: Organization and WebSite on the homepage, BreadcrumbList on inner pages, Article on blog posts, FAQPage where the page visibly shows FAQs. Never mark up reviews, ratings or prices that aren't shown on the page — that violates search engine guidelines.

6. Analytics and Search Console

• Analytics is installed, respects consent requirements, and records key events — form submissions, CTA clicks, outbound product links.
• The site is verified in Google Search Console and the sitemap is submitted.
• Forms are tested end-to-end, including the confirmation email or notification.

7. The week after launch

Check Search Console's page indexing report and crawl stats, watch for spikes in 404s, and compare traffic to the old site's baseline. Most launch issues show up within days if you look for them.

If you're planning a new site or a redesign, our web development and growth infrastructure services include this checklist by default. For quick checks — redirects, DNS records, word counts — the free tools on ToolsLeb are handy.