A technical SEO audit checks whether search engines can find, access, render and index the pages you want customers to discover. It also examines signals such as canonical URLs, internal links and page metadata, alongside performance and mobile usability. The useful output is a prioritised plan of evidenced problems and fixes, rather than a score with no explanation.
For a small business, the practical question is simple: is something in the website's setup preventing an important service or product page from being found? A good-looking site can still have a launch setting that excludes it from search, an old address that leads nowhere, or a mobile template that leaves out the service description.
An audit can identify those barriers. It cannot promise first-page rankings. Google's technical requirements establish eligibility for indexing; meeting them does not guarantee inclusion or visibility for a particular search.
When does your business need a technical SEO audit?
It is particularly useful before or after a website launch, redesign, platform change or domain move. It also helps when enquiries or search clicks fall unexpectedly, key pages are missing from Google, or you are about to invest in more content and want to check the foundations first.
If the immediate problem is that your website is not showing on Google, start with our ten diagnostic checks. They help distinguish a page that is not indexed from one that is indexed but does not rank for the search you tried.
Start with the pages that matter commercially: your main services, product categories, relevant location pages and enquiry journey. A twenty-page consultancy website needs a different scope from a shop with thousands of products and filter combinations. Agree which pages and templates will be checked before commissioning the work.
What does a technical SEO audit check?
1. Crawlability: can search engines reach your pages?
Crawling is the process of fetching a page. An audit checks that important public URLs respond successfully and are not hidden behind a login, a crawler restriction or a blocking security rule. It compares the pages discovered by a crawl with the pages the business expects to be found.
A browser loading the homepage successfully does not prove that every service page is accessible to Googlebot. Findings should identify the affected URLs and the actual response or restriction, rather than assuming that a site's security software is at fault.
2. Indexation: which pages are actually in Google's index?
Indexing is separate from crawling. With authorised access to Google Search Console, an auditor can inspect important URLs, review reported exclusions and compare the indexed version with a live test. Without that access, a public audit should label actual Google indexation status as unverified.
An accidental noindex instruction on a service page is a different problem from a duplicate URL correctly being excluded. And a page that is indexed but does not appear for your target phrase may have a relevance or competition problem, rather than a technical fault. Each finding needs that context.
3. Canonical URLs: is the preferred version clear?
The same content can appear at several addresses, including tracking URLs and alternative hostname versions. A canonical annotation indicates the preferred version. The audit checks for conflicting signals, references to old domains, and important pages incorrectly pointing to another page as canonical.
For example, a service page that declares the homepage as its canonical deserves investigation. Canonicals are signals, not commands: Google may choose a different URL. Its canonicalisation guidance also recommends consistent internal links and sitemap URLs.
4. Sitemaps and robots instructions: are they helping discovery?
An XML sitemap should reflect the canonical pages you want indexed, rather than removed pages, redirects or private account screens. The audit checks that the sitemap can be fetched and that its URLs agree with the rest of the site's indexing signals. A sitemap helps discovery; submitting one does not guarantee crawling or indexing.
The robots.txt file controls crawler access. It is not a reliable way to remove a URL from search: a blocked URL can still appear without its content. If a page carries a noindex instruction, the crawler needs access to read it. An audit checks those instructions together, including any rules accidentally carried over from a staging site.
5. Redirects and 404s: what happens to old addresses?
When a service page moves, its old address should lead to the relevant replacement through an appropriate redirect. An audit follows those journeys, checking for loops, unnecessary chains and links that still point to a missing page. Permanent moves normally use a permanent redirect, such as a 301 or 308.
A genuine 404 response for content that no longer exists is not automatically an SEO problem. What matters is whether customers or internal links are being sent there, and whether a relevant replacement exists. Redirecting every missing page to the homepage can confuse visitors. Google's redirect documentation explains the distinction between permanent and temporary moves.
6. Titles, descriptions and headings: is each page identifiable?
Page titles and headings should describe the specific service or subject. An audit looks for missing titles, repeated template text and descriptions that misrepresent the page. Five different services all titled "Home" make those pages harder to distinguish.
This overlaps with on-page SEO. The technical check identifies template and coverage problems; editorial work makes the wording useful. Google can generate a different search-result title or snippet, so the text entered in your CMS is a preference, not a guaranteed display.
7. Structured data: does the markup match the business?
Structured data gives explicit labels to information such as an organisation, article or product. An audit checks that the markup is valid, uses the right URLs and describes facts visible on the page. An old business name, invented review or wrong product availability is not fixed simply by passing a syntax test.
Google's structured data guidelines require relevant, accurate markup. Even correctly implemented eligible markup does not guarantee a rich result. The objective is a truthful representation of the page, rather than adding every available schema type.
8. Internal links: can people find the important pages?
Navigation and contextual links should connect useful articles, services and supporting evidence. An audit looks for important pages with no internal links, broken destinations, and vague link text that gives no indication of what comes next.
A guide to a particular problem can naturally link to the service that helps resolve it. Those connections should be useful to a reader and implemented as crawlable links, rather than relying only on a scripted click action. Adding unrelated links to every paragraph does not make the site structure better.
9. Core Web Vitals: how does the site behave for visitors?
Core Web Vitals cover loading, responsiveness and visual stability. An audit should distinguish real-user measurements, where available, from a controlled lab test used for diagnosis. A small site may not have enough field data; missing data is not a pass or a fail.
Google uses Core Web Vitals in its ranking systems, but good scores do not guarantee top rankings. Test representative pages and their actual bottlenecks before buying faster hosting or removing features. Our Core Web Vitals guide explains the metrics, and Performance Optimisation covers implementation when speed is the main issue.
10. Mobile rendering: is the important content still there?
A narrow-screen screenshot is only one part of this check. The audit also examines rendered content, links and indexing instructions on mobile. Google uses the mobile version's content for indexing, so a desktop-only service description can leave a gap.
Google's mobile-first guidance warns against loading primary content only after a click or swipe. Content already available inside an accordion is different from content that is fetched only when someone opens it. The audit should inspect what is actually rendered, alongside whether the page and enquiry form work on a phone.
What should you receive at the end?
A useful audit makes the next decision easier. Ask for:
- Scope and evidence: the URLs and templates checked, the tools and access used, and any areas that could not be verified.
- Specific findings: affected pages, a reproducible example and an explanation of the consequence.
- Priorities: blockers separated from smaller improvements, with attention to the pages that support your business.
- A practical handover: recommended changes, who needs to make them and how to verify each fix.
For example, suppose a redesigned accountant's website leaves its tax-advice page marked noindex. The finding should name that URL, show the instruction and explain why it conflicts with the intention to appear in search. The fix needs to address the setting or template responsible, then be checked on the live response. Requesting recrawling is a follow-up step; an immediate ranking increase is not a valid promise.
Does an audit include the fixes?
Only if the agreed scope says so. An audit diagnoses problems; implementation changes the site. Broader SEO work can also include keyword research, content planning and other activities outside the technical checks above.
At OkamiSec, the SEO Audit starts from £250 and covers technical findings, keyword and content gaps, and a prioritised roadmap. Implementation is quoted separately. Technical SEO starts from £600 for scope-defined fixes on an existing site. These are different services, not two prices for the same audit; the final scope and price are agreed in writing.
If you are not sure whether SEO is the priority, the free Website Intelligence Assessment is the starting point. It reviews AI readiness, technical SEO, performance, accessibility and security, helping you decide which area deserves attention before commissioning detailed work.