Is Your Website Healthy? How to Give Your Site a Full Health Check

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Is your website quietly underperforming?
Pages loading slowly, visitors bouncing off, or broken links going unnoticed?

Whether you’re running a business site, blog, or e‑commerce store, a regular website health check is essential to keep things running smoothly – and ranking well in search results.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through exactly how to check your website’s health and fix what’s holding it back.

Why Your Website Needs a Health Check

Just like a car needs regular servicing, your website also needs routine check‑ups to stay secure, fast, and effective.

A full website health check can help you:

• Improve speed and performance
• Identify and fix broken pages or links
• Boost SEO rankings
• Detect security vulnerabilities
• Increase user engagement and conversions

Even small issues — like outdated plugins or large image files — can slowly drag your site down.

What to Check: A Complete Website Health Checklist

Here’s what to include in your next website checkup:

1. Page Speed and Performance

• Run your site through tools like Google PageSpeed Insights or GTmetrix
• Identify large images, unused scripts, or unminified files
• Consider enabling caching and a CDN

Why it matters: Sites that take longer than 3 seconds to load often lose visitors — and Google takes site speed into account when ranking pages.

2. Mobile Responsiveness

• Use your phone or a tool like Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test
• Check for overlapping text, broken buttons, or poor touch navigation

Why it matters: Over 50% of web traffic is mobile, and mobile usability is a core SEO factor.

3. Broken Links and 404 Errors

• Use tools like Broken Link Checker or an SEO audit tool
• Fix or redirect broken internal and external links

Why it matters: Broken links frustrate users and can signal to Google that your site is poorly maintained.

4. SEO and Metadata

• Check that each page has a unique meta title and description
• Use headings (H1, H2, H3) properly
• Scan for keyword optimisation and duplicate content

Why it matters: Well‑structured, keyword‑rich pages rank better in search and are easier for users to navigate.

5. Security (HTTPS and Plugins)

• Ensure your site has a valid SSL certificate (look for the padlock in your browser)
• Update your CMS, themes, and plugins regularly
• Remove any unused or abandoned plugins

Why it matters: A secure site protects user data, builds trust, and avoids browser warnings. For more on this subject, click here.

6. Forms, Buttons, and Interactive Features

• Test your contact forms, search bars, buttons, and popups
• Make sure forms are sending to the correct email and that confirmation messages display

Why it matters: If users can’t contact you or complete a purchase, you lose leads or sales.

7. Analytics and Tracking

• Confirm that Google Analytics (or your analytics tool of choice) is installed and tracking correctly
• Check that events and conversions are being recorded

Why it matters: Without accurate data, you can’t measure what’s working — or what needs fixing.

Bonus: Use a Website Audit Tool

If you’d rather automate parts of this process, try:

• Ahrefs Site Audit
• SEMrush Site Audit
• Screaming Frog SEO Spider

These tools can flag issues with speed, SEO, links, code, and more — and help you prioritise fixes.

How Often Should You Run a Website Health Check?

We recommend a full health check:

• Every 3–6 months for small to medium sites
• Monthly for active e‑commerce or content sites
• Before and after major updates (theme changes, plugin installs, migrations)

Final Thoughts: Healthy Websites Perform Better

Don’t wait until your traffic drops or customers complain.
Giving your website a regular health check can:

• Improve load times
• Reduce bounce rates
• Boost your search rankings
• Deliver a better user experience

Even a few simple fixes — like compressing images, cleaning up broken links, or updating outdated plugins — can make a measurable difference.

If you’re not sure where to start, we can run a professional website health check for you and give you a clear action plan. Just ask.