Free Technical SEO Audit Tool
Crawl your sitemap and get a ranked list of technical SEO issues: redirect chains, duplicate titles, noindex pages, broken links and orphan pages. Each one comes with the fix and the likely cause, plus ready-to-paste redirect rules, a clean sitemap and an internal link plan.
What is a technical SEO audit tool?
A technical SEO audit tool crawls a website and reports the problems that stop search engines from finding, reading and indexing its pages: redirect chains, noindex tags, duplicate titles, broken internal links and orphan pages. This one reads your sitemap, checks up to 1,000 pages and groups the problems by cause, so a fault repeated on 200 pages shows up as one fix instead of 200.
Use it before a migration, after a redesign, after a plugin or theme change, or when traffic drops and you need to rule out the basics. It needs no signup, and it works on any public site that has a sitemap, including a competitor's.
Checks on every page and across the whole site
| Check | What it flags | How to fix it |
|---|---|---|
| Redirect chains | Pages that redirect, and chains longer than two hops or loops | Point links and sitemap entries straight at the final URL. |
| Noindex | Pages blocked by a meta tag or X-Robots-Tag header | Remove noindex from pages that should rank. |
| Duplicates | Titles, meta descriptions and H1s shared by more than one page | Write a unique one per page. |
| Broken links | Internal links that lead to a 404, 410 or server error | Update the link or restore the page. |
| Orphan pages | Sitemap pages that no other crawled page links to | Link to them from a relevant page. |
| Likely causes | Detects WordPress, the theme, SEO plugin and page builder, then names the setting behind site-wide problems | Change the one setting or template instead of fixing pages one by one. |
| Fix files | Redirect chains and a cleaned sitemap | Copy redirect rules for Apache, nginx, Cloudflare or WordPress, and upload the clean sitemap. |
| Internal links | Click depth, weakly linked pages and orphan pages | Add the suggested links from related pages. |
| AI search readiness | AI crawler access in robots.txt, content in the raw HTML and structured data | Allow the crawlers you want and render content on the server. |
| On-page basics | Title, description, H1, image alt, word count, canonical, viewport | Fix the template that repeats the problem. |
Redirect chains: how to find and fix them
A redirect chain happens when one URL redirects to a second URL that redirects again before the final page loads. The usual cause is stacked rules: http to https, then non-www to www, then a trailing slash, then a page that was renamed later.
This tool flags every sitemap URL that redirects at all, plus any URL that takes more than two hops or loops. For chains of two or more hops, the Fix files tab writes a rule that sends the first URL straight to the last one, in Apache, nginx, Cloudflare or WordPress Redirection format.
Why it matters
Each hop is an extra request, so the page loads a little slower and crawlers spend more requests to reach it. Google's documentation says its crawlers follow up to 10 redirect hops by default, so a short chain will not stop a page being crawled. Google's Gary Illyes also said in 2016 that 30x redirects don't lose PageRank, so the case for fixing chains is speed and crawl efficiency, not a ranking penalty for every hop. The same Google page treats a 301 as a strong signal and a 302 as a weak signal that the redirect target should be used, so use a 301 for a permanent move.
How to fix a chain
Say /old-guide redirects to /guide, and /guide later moved to /guides/technical-seo. The chain looks like this:
Redirect 301 /old-guide /guide Redirect 301 /guide /guides/technical-seo
Point both at the final URL:
Redirect 301 /old-guide /guides/technical-seo Redirect 301 /guide /guides/technical-seo
Then update internal links and the sitemap so they use the final URL. Keep the old redirects in place, because external links and bookmarks still use them.
This tool checks the URLs in your sitemap. It is not a tracer for a single URL you type in.
Noindex pages: find pages hiding from Google
A noindex directive tells Google not to show a page in results. It can sit in a robots meta tag or in an X-Robots-Tag HTTP header, and this tool checks both. Noindex is the right setting for thank-you pages and internal search results. It is the wrong setting for any page that should rank.
If most pages on a site show noindex, the cause is usually one setting. On WordPress, check Settings, then Reading, for "Discourage search engines from indexing this site", which is often left ticked after launch. Then check your SEO plugin's settings for each content type.
Do not block a noindex page in robots.txt. Google has to crawl the page to see the tag. Its documentation says that if robots.txt blocks the page, the crawler never sees the noindex rule and the page can still appear in search results.
Duplicate titles, meta descriptions and H1s
The tool lists every title, meta description and H1 shared by more than one page, and every set of pages with identical body text. When the same duplicate appears across many pages, the Likely cause line usually points to a template, such as an SEO plugin title format that leaves out the page name.
About the length checks
The tool flags titles outside 30 to 60 characters and meta descriptions outside 70 to 160 characters. Treat those as rules of thumb. Google says there is no limit on title length, and it truncates the title link as needed to fit the device width. Google can also replace your title or description with text that better matches the query, so a flag means "check this", not "this is wrong". Read Google's guidance on title links and snippets.
How to fix duplicates
- Give each page a title and description that describe only that page.
- Add the page title variable to the title format in your SEO plugin.
- For near-identical pages such as parameter variants, point a canonical tag at the main version or merge the pages.
Broken internal links
The report lists internal link targets that return a 404, 410 or server error, and shows how many pages link to each one. Broken links send visitors and crawlers to dead ends, and they usually appear after a page is deleted, renamed or moved without a redirect.
For each target, pick one fix: update the links to the right URL, restore the page, or add a 301 redirect to the closest relevant page. To find every link to an old URL on WordPress, search the editor or run a database search for the old path.
Orphan pages: what they are and how to link them back in
An orphan page has no internal links pointing to it. Google says it discovers pages by following links from pages it already knows, and also through sitemaps. A sitemap can get an orphan page discovered, but a page with no links in is easy to miss, and internal links are also how you show how a page relates to the rest of the site.
How this tool decides
It lists sitemap URLs that no other crawled page links to, leaving out the homepage and URLs that redirect. It needs a sitemap and at least five pages, and it lists orphans only when the whole sitemap was checked, not when the audit was stopped early or cut at 1,000 pages, because a partial crawl would give false results. It does not read Search Console or Analytics, so a page linked only from outside the sitemap set can show up as an orphan.
How to fix them
- Open the Links tab. It suggests related pages that could link to each orphan, based on shared words in titles, headings and URLs. Check that each suggestion makes sense before you add the link.
- Add the link in the body text where it helps the reader, not only in a footer.
- Some orphans are on purpose, such as ad landing pages and thank-you pages. Leave those alone, or noindex them.
An orphan page has no links in. A dead-end page has no links out. The tool checks for the first. The Links tab also lists pages that have only one internal link and shows click depth, so you can see which pages sit four or more clicks from the homepage.
Thin content flags
The tool flags pages with fewer than 300 words. That number is a rule of thumb, and a short page can fully answer a query. Use the flag to review pages that are short and also have a weak purpose, such as empty tag pages, thin archives and auto-generated pages. Those are usually better merged, expanded or set to noindex.
Which tool to use for which technical SEO job
This audit tool is built for a fast first pass over a sitemap, with fixes you can paste. Other tools cover jobs it does not. Pick by the job.
| Job | Use |
|---|---|
| Fast first pass on a sitemap, with redirect rules and a clean sitemap file | This tool |
| Check one page in detail, including keyword use | On-Page SEO Checker |
| Check structured data for errors | Schema Markup Validator |
| Test AI crawler access in more depth | GEO Checker |
| Render JavaScript, extract custom data or analyze server logs | A crawler that renders JavaScript, or a log analyzer |
| See what Google has crawled and indexed, and measure Core Web Vitals | Google Search Console and PageSpeed Insights |
Technical SEO audit checklist: what this tool covers
A full technical SEO audit has more parts than any single tool covers. This table shows which parts the audit tool handles and where to check the rest.
| Audit item | Covered here? | Where to check the rest |
|---|---|---|
| Noindex and canonical tags | Yes | Confirm real index status in Google Search Console. |
| XML sitemap quality | Yes: redirecting, noindex and failing URLs, plus a clean sitemap file | Submit it in Search Console. |
| Redirects and chains | Yes | Test rules after you deploy them. |
| Broken internal links | Yes | External links need a separate check. |
| Duplicate titles, descriptions, H1s | Yes | Review the pages the report lists. |
| Internal links, orphans, click depth | Yes | Add the links yourself. |
| Title, description, H1, alt text, viewport | Yes | On-Page SEO Checker for one page at a time. |
| Structured data | Partly: it reports schema types found | Schema Markup Validator for errors. |
| AI crawler access | Yes, robots.txt rules for AI bots | GEO Checker for a deeper test. |
| robots.txt for Google and Bing | Partly | Search Console robots.txt report. |
| Core Web Vitals and page speed | No | PageSpeed Insights and the Search Console Core Web Vitals report. |
| JavaScript rendering | No, it warns when the HTML has little text | A rendering crawler or the Search Console URL Inspection tool. |
| Index coverage and crawl stats | No | Google Search Console. |
| Hreflang, server logs, security headers | No | A full audit. |
Want the whole list handled? See my technical SEO services.
Read the report from the top
Start in Fix first. Problems are grouped by cause and sorted by priority, and a problem on 200 pages usually comes from one template or plugin setting, which the Likely cause line points to. Open a group to see the affected URLs. Use Fix files for redirect rules and a clean sitemap, and Links for pages that need more internal links. Re-run after your fixes and export the CSV to share with a developer.
This tool reads the HTML your server sends. It does not run JavaScript, check Core Web Vitals or confirm what Google has indexed.
What this audit tool does not do
- It reads the HTML your server sends. It does not run JavaScript, so pages built in the browser can look empty.
- It finds pages from your sitemap. With no sitemap it starts from homepage links and cannot detect orphan pages.
- It checks up to 1,000 pages per audit, and a fair-use limit applies per connection.
- In the Apache and nginx formats, redirect rules for URLs with query strings are skipped and flagged so you can add them by hand.
- It does not measure Core Web Vitals or confirm what Google has indexed.
- Orphan results count only links found on the pages it crawled.
- Thresholds such as title length and 300 words are rules of thumb, not Google rules.
Technical SEO Auditor FAQ
Is this technical SEO auditor really free?
Yes. There is no signup, no email and nothing to install. A fair-use limit per connection stops abuse.
How many pages does it check?
Every page it finds in your sitemap, up to 1,000 per audit. Pages are checked in small batches so large sites finish instead of timing out. If you stop early, the report says how many pages were checked.
What does it check on each page?
The title, meta description, H1, image alt attributes, word count, canonical tag, noindex directives, mobile viewport tag, redirects and load errors. Across the site it also finds duplicate titles, descriptions and H1s, broken internal links and orphan pages.
Does it find redirect chains?
Yes. It follows each redirect by hand, counts the hops and flags chains longer than two hops, redirect loops and sitemap URLs that redirect.
Does it run JavaScript?
No. It reads the raw HTML your server returns. If a page has almost no text in that HTML, the report warns that it may be built with JavaScript and the results for it may be incomplete.
Does this replace a full technical SEO audit?
No. A full audit also covers Core Web Vitals, indexing status in Google Search Console, JavaScript rendering, internal link structure and server logs.
What is a technical SEO audit?
A technical SEO audit checks whether search engines can crawl, render and index your site, and whether its redirects, links, tags and structure help or block them. It differs from a content audit, which judges what the pages say.
How often should I run a technical SEO audit?
Run one after any redesign, migration, plugin or theme change, or bulk content update, and at least once a quarter on an active site. Sites that change weekly benefit from a monthly check.
How many redirects are too many?
One hop is normal, such as http to https. Aim for a single hop from any old URL to its final URL. This tool flags chains longer than two hops. Google's documentation allows up to 10, but every extra hop slows the page.
Do redirect chains hurt SEO?
They slow pages and use crawl requests. Google has said 301 and 302 redirects do not lose PageRank, so the harm is mostly speed and crawl efficiency. Very long chains and loops can stop Google reaching the final page.
What is an orphan page?
An orphan page is a page with no internal links pointing to it. Visitors and crawlers can only reach it through a sitemap, an outside link or a direct URL.
Does a sitemap fix orphan pages?
It helps Google discover them, but a page with no internal links gets none of the context or link signals that internal links pass on. Link to it from related pages.
Why does the report list an orphan page that I know is linked?
The tool only counts links found on the pages it crawled from your sitemap. Links from pages missing from the sitemap, and links added by JavaScript, are not counted.
Can I audit a competitor's website?
Yes, any public site with a sitemap. You see only what is visible from outside, such as redirects, tags and links. You do not see their traffic, rankings or Search Console data.
Is this the same as the Google Search Console Pages report?
No. Search Console shows what Google has crawled and indexed. This tool shows what is on your site and what is wrong with it. Use both: this tool to find problems, Search Console to confirm Google's view.
Want the full technical picture?
I run complete technical SEO audits covering crawlability, Core Web Vitals, indexation, structured data and internal linking.