Website Launch Checklist for AI-Built Sites: SEO, Speed, Tracking

Building a site with an AI tool is quick. Launching it well is where most problems show up: pages that cannot be indexed, missing titles, oversized images, broken forms, or tracking that never fires. This checklist covers what to verify before you go live, with free tools for each step.

Run through it in order. Every item is something you can check yourself, and none depend on which tool built the site.

1. Content and trust

[ ] Every fact is true. Check names, prices, hours, addresses, and claims. AI tools can fill gaps with plausible but wrong details.
[ ] No placeholder text such as “lorem ipsum,” “Your Company,” or sample testimonials.
[ ] Only real reviews and proof. Remove anything you cannot back up.
[ ] Contact details are correct and match your Google Business Profile if you have one.
[ ] Legal pages exist: privacy policy, and terms or cookie notices where they apply to you.

2. Indexing: let Google in (and keep staging out)

[ ] Remove any “noindex” setting used during development. Sites often launch still blocked.
[ ] Check robots.txt. Confirm it does not block important pages, and that it points to your sitemap. Our robots.txt generator builds a clean file. Remember that robots.txt controls crawling and is not a security tool.
[ ] Create and submit an XML sitemap in Google Search Console.
[ ] Set canonical URLs so each page has one preferred address.
[ ] Pick one version of the site: with or without “www,” and redirect the other to it.
[ ] Use HTTPS everywhere.
[ ] Redirect old URLs if you are replacing an existing site, using permanent (301) redirects.
[ ] Multiple languages or regions? Add hreflang tags. See our hreflang guide and generator.

3. On-page SEO

[ ] Unique title tag on every page, with the main keyword near the front.
[ ] Unique meta description that gives a reason to click. Generate both with our meta tag and Open Graph generator and preview them in the SERP preview tool. Our pixel width guide explains why length is measured in pixels.
[ ] One H1 per page, with headings in a logical order.
[ ] Descriptive URLs, short and readable.
[ ] Internal links between related pages.
[ ] Descriptive alt text on meaningful images.
[ ] Structured data where it fits (organization, local business, article, product). Use the schema markup generator and test the result. See our JSON-LD guide.
[ ] A helpful custom 404 page.

4. Speed and Core Web Vitals

[ ] Compress images before upload with our image compressor. Large images are a common cause of slow pages.
[ ] Use modern image sizes, not a huge image scaled down by CSS.
[ ] Remove scripts and fonts you do not use.
[ ] Run a speed test on mobile and desktop. See our overview of website speed test tools.
[ ] Check Core Web Vitals. Google’s “good” thresholds are an LCP of 2.5 seconds or less, an INP of 200 milliseconds or less, and a CLS of 0.1 or less. Our Core Web Vitals guide covers how to improve them.

5. Mobile and accessibility

[ ] Test on a real phone. Check text size, tap targets, and menus.
[ ] Text contrast meets accessibility guidance. WCAG’s AA level asks for a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 for normal text.
[ ] Everything works with a keyboard, and focus is visible.
[ ] Forms have labels and clear error messages.
[ ] Video and audio have captions or transcripts where needed.

See our mobile SEO strategy for more. Semantic markup helps both accessibility and SEO, which we cover in semantic HTML for SEO.

6. Tracking and measurement

[ ] Install analytics and confirm in a real-time report that your own visit appears.
[ ] Define your conversions (form submit, call click, purchase) and test each one.
[ ] Tag campaign links with our UTM builder, using one naming convention. Our UTM parameters guide explains the rules.
[ ] Set up Google Search Console and verify the site.
[ ] Do not tag internal links with UTMs.
[ ] Phone leads? Use call tracking so calls can be tied to a source, and consider uploading qualified leads back to Google Ads as offline conversions.
[ ] Consent: if your audience requires a cookie notice, make sure tracking respects the choice.

7. Forms and functionality

[ ] Submit every form and confirm the message reaches the right inbox, including spam folders.
[ ] Click every link and button.
[ ] Check email links and phone links on mobile.
[ ] Test checkout or booking end to end if you have one.
[ ] Add spam protection to forms.

8. Security basics

[ ] Remove test accounts, sample content, and unused plugins or packages.
[ ] Keep secrets out of public code, such as API keys and passwords.
[ ] Use strong, unique passwords and two-factor authentication on hosting and admin accounts.
[ ] Back up the site and know how to restore it.
[ ] Review AI-written code that handles forms, logins, or payments. Our guide to Claude Code security covers what to check.

9. Social sharing

[ ] Open Graph title, description, and image are set so shared links look right.
[ ] Share the link in a private chat to preview how it displays.
[ ] Capture screenshots of key pages with our screenshot tool to keep a launch record.
[ ] Add a QR code for print materials with our QR code generator, pointing to a tagged URL.

10. After launch: first two weeks

Request indexing for your most important pages in Search Console.
Watch for errors in the indexing and Core Web Vitals reports.
Check analytics daily at first to confirm conversions are recorded.
Fix what real visitors hit, not only what you guessed.
Review titles and descriptions for pages with impressions but few clicks.

Need a second set of eyes?

A launch review catches issues that are hard to see on your own site. Our SEO and organic growth service includes pre-launch audits, and our website and design service can build and launch the site for you. Contact us to talk it through. For examples of AI-built sites, see our Claude Code website examples gallery.

Frequently asked questions

What should I check first before launching a website?

Make sure the site is not blocked from indexing, every page has a unique title and description, forms work, and analytics records a test visit.

How do I know if my site is blocked from Google?

Check for a noindex tag, review your robots.txt file, and use the URL Inspection tool in Google Search Console on a key page.

How fast should a website load?

Google’s Core Web Vitals “good” thresholds are an LCP of 2.5 seconds or less, an INP of 200 milliseconds or less, and a CLS of 0.1 or less.

Is an AI-built site worse for SEO?

No. Search engines evaluate the page, not the tool that made it. Quality, accuracy, speed, and usefulness are what matter.