How to Do a Full SEO Site Audit Without Hiring an Expert – A Step by Step Guide

Is your website not getting enough visitors or losing search engine rankings? It is time to check what is going wrong. It is time to do an SEO site audit. But do you not know how to do a full SEO site audit by yourself without hiring an expert or spending on expensive tools?

At Rank On The Top, we bring useful content to help you with simple but effective strategies, solutions and tips to optimise your website and get more visibility and traffic.

Today, in this blog post, we bring you a step-by-step guide that shows you the full process of a site audit using free tools and simple tips. Whether you are an individual with a small blog, a local business owner or a beginner who wants to start a career in digital marketing, this post will help you clean up your site, improve visibility and rank on the top in search results.

So, let’s get started.

What Is an SEO Site Audit?

An SEO site audit is a full review of your website to check how well it is performing in search engines like Google and Bing. It helps you find what is working and what needs fixing. Think of it like a health check for your website.

During a site audit, you look at things like broken links, slow pages, missing tags and mobile issues. You also check your content, keywords and site structure. This process covers both technical SEO audit and on-page SEO audit.

A proper audit also includes checking your sitemap, robots.txt file and using tools like Google Search Console and Screaming Frog to find deeper issues.

If you want to improve website SEO and bring more traffic without spending money on paid tools or experts, a DIY SEO audit is the best way to get started. You can use many free SEO audit tools and follow a simple website audit checklist to guide your steps.

Why You Should Do a DIY SEO Site Audit

You do not always need an expert or a paid agency to run a complete SEO site audit. With so many free SEO audit tools and simple guides available, anyone can take control and do it on their own. In fact, a DIY SEO audit has many real benefits.

It saves money and gives you full control over your website. You can run checks more often without waiting for someone else. This helps you catch problems early and fix them fast.

You also learn how your site works, what needs to improve and which steps help you rank on the top. From broken links and slow loading pages to outdated content and mobile issues, you can fix most things yourself.

Just follow a proper website audit checklist and use tools like Google Search Console or Screaming Frog. With the right steps, your site will be ready to grow.

Step 1: Start with a Website Audit Checklist

Before you begin your SEO site audit, it is important to get organised. A proper website audit checklist helps you stay focused and makes sure you do not miss anything.

Instead of jumping from one task to another, follow a clear path. You can even create your own list in Google Sheets or download a free version from trusted SEO blogs like RankOnTheTop.com.

Your checklist should include the following:

• Technical SEO audit to check crawl errors, site structure and speed
• On-page SEO audit for headings, keywords and tags
• Content audit SEO to review outdated or weak content
• Mobile speed test to check how your site performs on phones
• Backlink analysis to review your domain authority and link quality
• Keyword and competitor review to find new opportunities

This checklist is your starting point. It will guide your steps and help your site get ready to rank on the top.

Step 2: Use Free SEO Analysis Tools

You do not need to spend money to run a proper SEO site audit. Many free tools are available that can help you understand what is working on your site and what needs to be fixed.

Start with these trusted tools:

• Google Search Console – Helps you track your search traffic and fix crawl issues
• Google PageSpeed Insights – Tests your site speed and shows how to improve it
• Screaming Frog (free version) – Finds broken links, missing tags and other page-level issues
• Ahrefs Webmaster Tools – Gives you a free overview of your site’s SEO health
• SEO Site Checkup – Offers a simple report on multiple SEO factors

These tools act like your personal SEO analysis toolbox. Use them one by one to find errors, test your performance and start making changes that help your site rank on the top. A good DIY SEO audit always starts with the right tools.

Step 3: Do a Technical SEO Audit

Before you move forward, take a moment to check if your website is technically sound. You do not need to be a developer. Just go through a few basic checks.

Ask yourself:

• Does your site open with HTTPS? If not, you need to get that fixed.
• Are your pages taking forever to load? Slow sites push visitors away.
• Are there links that lead to error pages? You might have some old ones still live.
• Is your robots.txt file stopping Google from seeing the pages you want to rank?
• Have you submitted a working XML sitemap?

If any of these are missing or not set up right, it could be hurting your traffic. These technical checks may feel boring, but they are the foundation of every successful SEO site audit.

Want help with each step? Go through our full Technical SEO Checklist for 2025. It walks you through everything, one step at a time.

Step 4: Check Your On-Page SEO

Once the technical stuff is sorted, it is time to look at what people actually see – your content. A solid on-page SEO audit can help your pages show up higher in search results.

Start by checking a few basics:

• Is there just one H1 tag on each page, and does it make sense?
• Are you using your main keywords in a natural way? Nothing forced.
• Do you have proper meta titles and short descriptions that match the content?
• Are your images using ALT text so search engines know what they are about?
• Is your content easy to read and actually helpful for your visitors?

If something feels off, fix it right away. These small things can make a big difference. Want to learn more? Go back to your SEO site audit checklist or read our full guide on how to improve on-page SEO step by step.

Step 5: Run a Content Audit

Your content might look fine on the surface, but not everything that is live on your site is helping you. Some pages could be dragging your rankings down without you even knowing it. That is where a content audit SEO comes in.

Take a close look and ask:

• Are there pages that say the same thing in different ways?
• Do some pages have only a few lines of text with no real value?
• Are your old blogs still getting any traffic?
• Can you update any of them with fresh examples or new info?

You can use Google Analytics or free tools like Ubersuggest to find low-performing pages. Removing or improving weak content will help your overall site quality. This is a big part of your SEO site audit and it shows search engines that your site is active, clean and worth ranking.

Step 6: Test for Mobile and Speed

Most of your visitors are likely using a mobile phone, so your site needs to look good and load fast on every screen. Speed is not just a nice thing to have anymore. It is now one of the most important website ranking factors.

To get started, test your site using:

• Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test
• PageSpeed Insights
• Core Web Vitals inside Google Search Console

Look for common problems like layout shifts, slow-loading pages or fonts that are hard to read on a small screen.

Fixing these issues can improve your SEO health, lower bounce rates and help your website rank on the top, not just on Google but also on AI platforms like ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity.

This step is easy to miss but it plays a big role in any solid SEO site audit.

Step 7: Review Your Keywords and Competitors

If you want to grow your traffic, you need to know what you are ranking for and what your competitors are doing better. This step in your SEO site audit is all about smart keyword research and simple comparison.

Here is how to begin:

• Open Google Search Console and check which search terms bring in the most clicks
• Use Ubersuggest or the free version of Ahrefs to see how your pages are performing
• Try a Semrush trial to find what your competitors rank for
• Make a list of gaps where you can add missing content or improve old pages

This is not about copying others. It is about finding missed chances and improving what you already have. A good competitor SEO analysis and solid keyword research for audit can help your site rank on the top in the long run.

Step 8: Fix What You Can Right Away

After you finish your SEO site audit, you will probably spot a few quick problems. Do not wait to fix them. These easy wins can make a big difference fast.

Here is where to begin:

• Find and fix broken links that lead to error pages
• Add missing meta titles and descriptions where they are blank
• Compress big image files to help pages load faster
• Redirect any old or deleted pages that still get clicks
• Remove duplicate content that confuses search engines

These steps are simple and do not take much time, but they help your website feel cleaner and more trustworthy. Most of all, they support everything else you did in your DIY SEO audit and get your site one step closer to ranking on the top.

Step 9: Schedule a Monthly Audit

Fixing your website once is not enough. Things change fast online. What works today might stop working next month. That is why it helps to check your site regularly.

Try doing a quick SEO site audit once every month. If that feels like too much, doing it once every three months is still better than nothing.

Here is what this habit will help you do:

• Spot issues before they turn into bigger problems
• Keep your pages up to date with fresh content
• Adjust based on new keywords or traffic trends
• Stay one step ahead of your competitors

You do not need new tools each time. Just reuse your existing website audit checklist and build on what you have already done. The more often you do it, the easier it gets.

Step 10: Track Your Progress

Once your SEO site audit is done and fixes are in place, it is time to keep an eye on the results. Do not guess what is working. Use free tools that show you real data:

• Google Search Console shows how your pages rank and how much traffic they get
• Google Analytics helps you understand bounce rates, time on page and user actions
• Ahrefs Webmaster Tools gives useful insights about backlinks and SEO issues

Checking these tools every week or two helps you stay on track. You will spot wins faster and learn what needs more work.

Little changes can make a big impact over time. Just keep checking, testing and improving.

Need help using these tools? Try our Google Search Console guide for simple tips that anyone can follow.

Final Thoughts: You Can Do It Without an Expert

You do not need to be a tech expert to do a full SEO site audit. You just need the right tools, a solid website audit checklist and a little time. This guide gives you everything you need to get started.

When you follow the steps and keep doing regular audits, you will see big improvements. Your site will load faster, show up higher in search results and start getting more clicks. You might even see your content appear in tools like ChatGPT, Gemini and Siri.

Start small and focus on one fix at a time. Over time, these changes will help you grow your traffic and stay ahead of your competitors.

FAQs: DIY SEO Site Audit

What is the first step in an SEO site audit?

Start with a solid website audit checklist. Then run a full crawl using Google Search Console or a free SEO analysis tool like Screaming Frog.

Do I need paid tools for an SEO audit?

No. You can use free SEO audit tools like PageSpeed Insights, Ahrefs Webmaster Tools and Google Search Console. These give you enough to fix most issues.

How often should I run a site audit?

A monthly check is ideal. If that is not possible, do a basic SEO health check every three months.

Can beginners handle an SEO site audit?

Yes. This guide is made for beginners. If you follow each step, you can do it without hiring an expert.

Will an audit help my site show up in AI tools?

Yes. A well-optimized website has a better chance to appear in AI search tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini.