Website Checker: What a Free Check Should Tell You
You run a website checker because something feels off. Traffic is flat, a page you care about never shows up in search, or you just want to know whether your site has problems you can't see. A good check should answer two questions: what is broken, and what is worth doing next. Most free tools handle the first reasonably well and say very little about the second. This guide covers what a website checker should flag, where most of them stop short, and how to read the results so you end up with a plan instead of a long list of warnings.
What a website checker is and why people run one
A website checker (also called a site checker, website SEO checker, or website health check) is a tool that scans your site and reports on things that affect how search engines find, understand, and show your pages. Most work by crawling your site the way a search engine bot would: they request your pages, read the code, follow links, and note anything unusual.
People usually run one for a few reasons:
- A traffic drop or plateau. They want to rule out a technical cause.
- A new or redesigned site. They want to catch mistakes before they cost visibility.
- Curiosity before hiring help. They want to see the state of the site before paying an agency or buying software.
- A page that never appears in Google. They want to know whether Google can even see it.
If you're not sure how search engines discover and rank pages in the first place, how search engines work is useful background before you read any checker report.
The problems a good free website checker should flag
No single tool catches everything, but a solid free check should cover these areas in some form.
Indexing problems
If Google hasn't indexed a page, that page can't appear in search results, no matter how good it is. A checker should flag signals that block indexing, such as a `noindex` tag, a page blocked by robots.txt, or canonical tags pointing somewhere unexpected. Google's own Page indexing report in Search Console is the authoritative source for which pages are and aren't indexed, and why. For a plain-language walkthrough, see how to check if your site shows up on Google.
Page errors
These are pages that return errors instead of content: "not found" (404) pages, server errors (5xx), and redirect chains or loops. Some 404s are harmless, like an old page you deleted on purpose. The ones that matter are pages people or search engines still try to reach.
Missing or weak on-page elements
This covers title tags, meta descriptions, headings, and image alt text. A checker will typically flag pages with missing titles, duplicate titles across many pages, or titles that are cut off in results. These items are quick to fix, but on their own they rarely explain why a site isn't getting traffic. Google's SEO Starter Guide explains which of these elements actually matter.
Broken links
These are links on your site that point to pages that no longer exist, either on your own site or elsewhere. Broken internal links waste visitors' clicks and make it harder for search engines to move through your site.
Slow pages
Page speed and responsiveness affect how people experience your site. Google describes its measures of loading, interactivity, and visual stability as Core Web Vitals. A checker should at least point out pages that load slowly on mobile.
Why most free checkers stop at a list of errors
This is the gap most site owners run into. A typical free website audit tool gives you a score and a list: 37 warnings, 12 errors, 5 notices. What it usually doesn't tell you is:
- Which issues actually affect your traffic. A missing alt tag on a decorative image and a `noindex` tag on your main service page can sit in the same list with similar weight.
- What you're close to winning. A crawl can see your pages. It can't see which searches you already appear for, or how near the top you are.
- What to do next. Fixing errors is maintenance. Growing search traffic usually means publishing or improving content that matches what people search for.
That's why a site can pass a checker with a high score and still get very little traffic. A clean technical foundation is necessary, but it isn't a growth plan.
Checking against real Google data: why Search Console and Analytics matter
A crawl-only checker is working from the outside. It sees your site the way a visitor or bot would, then guesses at what matters. Real Google data replaces the guesswork.
Google Search Console shows what actually happens in Google search: which queries your pages appear for, how often they're shown, how often people click, and your average position. It also reports indexing status straight from Google. If a checker's crawl and Search Console disagree about indexing, trust Search Console. Our guide to Google Search Console tools for finding quick wins covers how to read this data yourself.
Google Analytics shows what happens after the click: how many visits arrive, where they come from, and whether visitors do what you want them to do, such as buying, booking, or filling in a form.
Together they answer the question a crawl can't: *where is the real opportunity on this site, and did the changes I made actually help?*
What goodSEO.tech's free site analysis shows
goodSEO.tech is an AI tool that does a website's SEO work, operated by Good Solutions. Its free site analysis takes the opportunity-focused approach described above.
To be clear about scope: the free analysis isn't a technical error scanner, so use a dedicated checker and Search Console for things like broken links and page errors. Here is what it does:
- It analyzes any website for free, with no credit card.
- It shows the opportunities it found and what each is worth. You see where the potential is, not just a list of warnings.
- It uses your Google data. goodSEO.tech connects to Google Search Console and Google Analytics in one click, with read-only access and nothing to install. Search Console powers the opportunity finding, especially searches your site is already close to winning. Analytics shows whether visits and conversions move afterwards.
The analysis is useful on its own, because it shows where your effort is likely to pay off. Acting on it is where the paid plan comes in.
From check to action: turning findings into published content
Generating and publishing content requires the paid plan: $49 a month per website, or $490 a year. Each month includes $15 of AI usage, which covers about 30 complete articles. There's no setup fee, and you can cancel anytime.
Here's how the findings become content on your site:
- Content targets the opportunities found. goodSEO.tech uses Search Console data to find searches your site is close to winning, then writes and publishes content aimed at them.
- Every draft is checked for accuracy. Drafts are checked against a Knowledge Base built from your own website pages and anything you add. A draft that states something unverified about your business fails the check and is rewritten instead of published.
- You choose how publishing works. You can approve every piece before it goes live, or let brand-new posts publish automatically on autopilot. Changes to existing pages always need your approval, in either mode.
- It publishes where your site lives. goodSEO.tech publishes directly to WordPress, Wix, and Shopify, and to custom-built sites (Lovable, Bolt, v0, or hand-coded) through one small API endpoint. Sites on other platforms, such as Squarespace, receive finished, ready-to-paste content.
- You can see what happened afterwards. The service shows before-and-after search traffic for published pieces, taken from Google. As an example, the goodseo.tech blog is written and published by goodSEO.tech, and goodseo.tech/results shows the live Google Search Console numbers for those articles.
Beyond content, the plan also covers backlink outreach (finding sites that link to your competitors and drafting emails you send from your own mailbox) and testing whether AI assistants like ChatGPT recommend your business. If that second part interests you, read more about getting recommended by ChatGPT.
Want to see what your site is close to winning? Run the goodSEO.tech site analysis. It's free, no credit card required.
How to choose a website checker: questions to ask before trusting the results
Whichever tool you use, these questions help you judge whether its report is worth acting on:
- Where does the data come from? A crawl alone is an estimate. Tools that read Google Search Console data are working from what Google actually recorded.
- Does it rank issues by impact? A list of 50 equal-weight warnings is hard to act on. Look for tools that separate "blocks your traffic" from "nice to tidy up."
- Does it explain why each issue matters? If you can't tell why something is flagged, you can't decide whether to fix it.
- Does it show opportunities, or only problems? Errors tell you what to repair. Opportunities tell you where to grow.
- What access does it ask for? Read-only access to Google accounts is a reasonable request. Be wary of anything that wants to change your site without your approval.
- What happens after the check? Some tools stop at the report. Others help you act on it. Know which you're getting, and what it costs, before you rely on it.
If you're weighing whether to hand the follow-up work to software or a person, SEO company or SEO software walks through the trade-offs.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I do first after running a website checker?
Start with anything that stops pages from being indexed, such as a noindex tag on an important page or pages blocked by robots.txt, because those pages can't appear in Google at all. Then fix errors on pages people still visit, like broken links and 404s on key pages. Confirm indexing in Google Search Console rather than relying on the checker alone. Minor items like missing alt text can wait until the bigger problems are handled.
Can a website checker tell me which pages could get more traffic?
A crawl-only website checker usually can't, because it only sees your pages, not how they perform in Google. To find pages with traffic potential, you need Google Search Console data showing which searches your pages already appear for and how close they are to the top. Tools that read Search Console data can point to searches you are close to winning, which is often a better place to start than a list of technical warnings.
Is a free website checker enough for a small business website?
A free website checker is a good starting point for catching technical problems like broken links, page errors, and missing titles. On its own it usually won't tell you what to publish or improve to grow search traffic. Most small businesses get more from pairing a basic check with Google Search Console, which is free and shows how the site actually performs in Google search.
Do I need a credit card to try goodSEO.tech's free site analysis?
No. goodSEO.tech analyzes any website for free with no credit card required, and shows the opportunities it found and what each is worth. A paid plan is only needed if you want goodSEO.tech to generate and publish content based on those findings.
Do I have to pay to publish content after goodSEO.tech's free analysis?
Yes. Generating and publishing content with goodSEO.tech requires the paid plan, which costs $49 a month per website or $490 a year. Each month includes $15 of AI usage, which covers about 30 complete articles, with no setup fee, and the subscription can be cancelled anytime.
Why do some website checkers ask to connect Google Search Console?
Google Search Console holds data a crawler can't see from the outside, including which searches your pages appear for, how often they get clicked, their average position, and which pages Google has indexed. A checker that reads this data can base its findings on what actually happened in Google search rather than estimates. Look for tools that request read-only access, so they can view your data without changing anything.