On-page SEO is everything within your control on a single page. Get these 20 points right and you give every page its best chance of ranking — no backlinks required to start.
Title & metadata
1. Title tag includes the primary keyword Place the keyword near the beginning of the title tag. Keep it 50–60 characters. Make it compelling, not just accurate.
2. Meta description sells the click Write 140–155 characters. Address the searcher's intent, hint at what they will find, and include a reason to click. Google sometimes rewrites it — your job is to write the best version.
3. URL is short, descriptive, and keyword-rich
/on-page-seo-checklist beats /blog/post-1234?category=seo. Use hyphens, not underscores.
Headings
4. One H1 per page The H1 is your primary topic signal. Include the keyword naturally. It should match or closely relate to the title tag.
5. H2s cover subtopics logically Each H2 should represent a distinct section. Use question-format H2s where relevant — they match featured snippet and PAA (People Also Ask) patterns.
6. Keywords appear naturally in headings Secondary and LSI keywords in H2/H3 headings help Google understand the full topic scope of the page.
Content
7. Primary keyword in the first 100 words Google weighs early mentions more heavily. Introduce your topic clearly in the opening paragraph.
8. Content covers the topic thoroughly Check the top 5 ranking pages for your target keyword. Your page should cover at least as much — ideally more — without padding.
9. Short paragraphs and scannable formatting 2–3 sentences per paragraph maximum. Use bullet points, numbered lists, and tables to break up dense content.
10. Images have descriptive alt text Alt text serves accessibility and gives Google context for images. Use the keyword where it fits naturally — never stuff it.
11. No duplicate content Every page should have unique content. Avoid copying from other pages on your site or external sources. Duplicate content dilutes ranking signals.
Internal linking
12. Link to 2–5 related internal pages Internal links distribute PageRank and help Google understand your site structure. Link from relevant anchor text, not "click here".
13. Accept internal links from other pages High-value pages should receive internal links from multiple other pages. Check that your most important pages are well-linked internally.
14. Breadcrumbs are implemented Breadcrumbs improve navigation and add BreadcrumbList schema — which can appear directly in search results.
Technical basics
15. Page loads in under 3 seconds on mobile Check with PageSpeed Insights. Fix the highest-impact issues first: image compression, render-blocking resources, and server response time.
16. Page is mobile-friendly Test with Google's Mobile-Friendly Test. Confirm tap targets are large enough and text is readable without zooming.
17. Canonical tag is correct Every page should have a self-referencing canonical tag to prevent duplicate content from pagination or URL parameters.
18. Structured data is implemented Add the appropriate schema type: Article for blog posts, FAQPage for pages with Q&A, BreadcrumbList for navigation, LocalBusiness for location pages.
Content freshness
19. Publication and modification dates are accurate
Google uses datePublished and dateModified in Article schema. Update dateModified whenever you make significant content changes.
20. Content is reviewed annually Old content can lose rankings if it becomes outdated. Review key pages every 12 months and refresh statistics, examples, and conclusions.
Print this list and run every new page through it before publishing. Five minutes of on-page optimisation at publication time saves hours of remediation later.
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