On-page SEO is the foundation that everything else is built on. No amount of backlinks or content marketing compensates for a site that Google cannot properly crawl, understand, and index. This checklist covers every on-page factor that affects rankings — work through it before you launch any new page.

Title Tags

  • Include the primary keyword near the beginning of the title
  • Keep titles under 60 characters (Google truncates longer titles in results)
  • Every page has a unique title — no duplicates
  • Append your brand name at the end: Primary Keyword - Brand Name
  • Write for clicks, not just keywords — the title is ad copy in the search results

Meta Descriptions

  • 160 characters maximum — longer descriptions get truncated
  • Include the primary keyword naturally — Google bolds it in results when it matches the query
  • Include a clear value proposition and a call to action
  • Every page has a unique meta description
  • Note: meta descriptions are not a direct ranking factor, but they affect click-through rate — which is

Heading Structure

  • One H1 per page — it should contain or closely match your primary keyword
  • H2 tags for major sections, H3 for subsections — logical hierarchy
  • Headings should describe the content that follows — not keyword-stuffed labels
  • Screen readers and Google both use heading structure to understand page organisation

URL Structure

  • Short, descriptive URLs: /blog/local-seo-guide not /blog/post?id=1243
  • Use hyphens between words (not underscores — Google treats underscores as word joiners)
  • Include the primary keyword in the URL where it fits naturally
  • Avoid dynamic parameters in URLs for content pages
  • Consistent trailing slash policy — pick one and stick to it (Next.js: use trailingSlash: true)

Image Optimisation

  • Every image has a descriptive alt attribute — describe the image, include keyword where natural
  • Empty alt="" for purely decorative images (screen readers skip them)
  • File names are descriptive: colombo-office-interior.jpg not IMG_4312.jpg
  • Images are compressed — WebP format for web use
  • Images are sized appropriately — do not load a 2000px image in a 400px container

Internal Linking

  • Every page is reachable within 3 clicks from the homepage
  • Link to related content naturally within body copy
  • Use descriptive anchor text — not “click here” or “read more”
  • Ensure your most important pages receive the most internal links
  • Check for orphan pages — pages with no internal links pointing to them
Internal links pass “link equity” around your site. A well-linked internal structure tells Google which pages are most important and helps weaker pages rank by association with stronger ones.

Content Quality

  • The primary keyword appears in the first 100 words
  • Related keywords and synonyms used naturally throughout (avoid keyword stuffing)
  • Content fully answers the searcher's intent — what are they actually trying to accomplish?
  • Content is original — no copied or lightly reworded content from other sources
  • Content is longer than competing pages for competitive keywords (all else equal, longer content ranks better)
  • Correct spelling and grammar — quality signals matter

Canonical URLs

  • Every page has a rel="canonical" tag pointing to its own URL
  • Paginated content and filtered URLs canonicalise to the base page
  • HTTP and HTTPS versions do not both exist — HTTP redirects to HTTPS
  • www and non-www resolve to one version

Structured Data

  • LocalBusiness schema on homepage and contact page (for local businesses)
  • Article schema on blog posts
  • Product schema on e-commerce product pages
  • FAQ schema on FAQ sections — enables rich results in Google
  • BreadcrumbList schema on interior pages
  • Validate all schema at schema.org/validator or Google's Rich Results Test

Technical Basics

  • HTTPS enabled — Google penalises HTTP sites
  • Page loads in under 3 seconds on mobile (check with PageSpeed Insights)
  • No broken links (404 errors on internal links)
  • XML sitemap submitted to Google Search Console
  • robots.txt does not accidentally block important pages
  • No noindex tags on pages you want Google to index

Mobile

  • Passes Google's Mobile-Friendly Test
  • Text is readable without zooming
  • Touch targets are at least 44×44px
  • No horizontal scrolling
  • Viewport meta tag is present: width=device-width, initial-scale=1

On-page SEO is not glamorous work, but it is leverage. Getting these fundamentals right means every piece of content you publish, every backlink you earn, and every page you add starts from the highest possible baseline. Do it once, correctly, and it compounds indefinitely.