SEO Checklist for Blog Posts
Run through this checklist before hitting publish on any blog post to maximise its chances of ranking in search results.
Before Writing
- Done keyword research — know your primary and secondary keywords
- Checked search intent — searched the keyword to see what Google ranks
- Analysed competitors — used SEO Compare or heading extractor on top results
Content
- At least 300 words (1,000+ for competitive topics)
- Primary keyword in the first paragraph
- Keyword density between 1-3%
- Readability score appropriate for audience (60+ Flesch for general)
- Uses synonyms and related terms, not just the exact keyword
- Provides genuine value — answers the searcher's question thoroughly
- Original insights, not just rehashed competitor content
Structure
- One H1 tag with primary keyword
- H2 and H3 subheadings for scannable sections
- Short paragraphs (2-3 sentences)
- Bullet points and numbered lists where appropriate
- Table of contents for long posts
Meta Tags
- Title tag — 30-60 characters with keyword near the start
- Meta description — 120-160 characters with call to action
- Open Graph tags for social sharing
Images
- At least one relevant image
- Alt text on every image
- Width and height attributes set
- Images compressed and in WebP format
- Lazy loading on below-fold images
Links
- 2-5 internal links to related posts
- Link to authoritative external sources
- Descriptive anchor text on all links
Technical
- Clean URL slug with keyword
- Canonical URL set
- Article schema markup
- No noindex tag
After Publishing
- Run a free RankNibbler audit on the published URL
- Share on social media
- Add internal links from existing posts to the new one
- Check indexing after a few days
Check your site: Run a free audit on the RankNibbler homepage — 30+ SEO checks with no signup required.
Last updated: March 2026
The Complete Pre-Publish Blog Post SEO Checklist
Run this checklist before every blog post goes live. Skipping steps consistently is how good content ends up on page 3.
Research & Planning
- Target keyword identified and researched for volume, competition, and intent
- Top 3 ranking pages analysed for length, structure, and topics covered
- Outline drafted matching or exceeding competitor topical coverage
- Unique angle or differentiator identified
- Target word count established based on SERP analysis
Title Tag & URL
- Title 50–60 characters (test with SERP snippet generator)
- Primary keyword appears in title, ideally near the front
- Title promises a specific benefit or number
- URL slug short, descriptive, lowercase, hyphen-separated
- URL includes the primary keyword naturally
- No dates in URL unless content is time-sensitive
Meta Description
- Meta description 150–160 characters
- Primary keyword appears naturally
- Includes a clear benefit or promise
- Contains a subtle call to action (Learn, Get, Discover, See)
- Written as ad copy, not summary
Content Structure
- Single H1 matching the title intent
- Logical H2/H3 hierarchy below
- Short opening paragraph that answers the core question directly
- Paragraphs 3–5 sentences maximum
- Bullet lists used for enumerable content
- Tables for comparisons
- At least one image breaking up text every 400–600 words
- Word count matches or exceeds top-ranking competitor average
Keywords & On-Page
- Primary keyword in first 100 words
- Primary keyword in at least one H2
- Primary keyword density 1–3% (check with keyword density checker)
- 2–4 secondary/related keywords used naturally throughout
- No keyword stuffing
Links
- 3–6 internal links to related pages on your site
- 1–3 external links to authoritative sources
- All links use descriptive anchor text (no "click here")
- External links checked for being live (not 404)
- Affiliate links properly marked with
rel="sponsored"
Images
- Featured image set (1200x630 for social sharing)
- Every image has descriptive alt text
- Images compressed (WebP preferred, under 200KB each)
- Width and height attributes set to prevent layout shift
- Below-the-fold images have
loading="lazy" - Image filenames descriptive (running-shoes-review.jpg, not IMG_1234.jpg)
Readability
- Flesch Reading Ease 60+ (check with readability checker)
- Average sentence length under 20 words
- No walls of text — paragraphs broken up with visual elements
- Active voice predominates
- Jargon explained or avoided where possible
Schema Markup
- Article or BlogPosting schema present (use schema generator)
- FAQ schema if post has FAQ section
- HowTo schema if post is step-by-step
- Author schema with name and role
- datePublished and dateModified set correctly
Social & Open Graph
- Open Graph title, description, image, URL, type set
- Twitter Card markup (summary_large_image)
- Social preview tested on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter/X
- Featured image displays correctly in previews
Technical
- Canonical URL self-referencing
- No
noindextag (unless deliberate) - Mobile rendering verified
- Page speed acceptable (Lighthouse >85)
- No broken internal links
- No Lorem Ipsum or placeholder text
Final QA
- Proofread for typos and grammar
- Read aloud to catch awkward phrasing
- Verified all facts and statistics
- Checked on mobile device (not just mobile emulator)
- Tested all interactive elements
- Run a full RankNibbler audit
Post-Publish Actions
- Submit URL in Google Search Console for indexing
- Share on social channels
- Email newsletter if relevant
- Link from related older posts (boost internal linking)
- Share in relevant communities where promotion is welcome
Week 1 Monitoring
- Check Google Analytics for initial traffic
- Monitor Search Console for crawl status
- Review comments and feedback
- Note any early indexing issues
Month 1 Optimisation
- Check Search Console for ranking keywords
- Identify queries bringing impressions but no clicks — snippet needs work
- Look for related keywords you could expand coverage on
- Consider follow-up posts to build topic cluster
- Update content if facts/data need refresh