✅ Essential WordPress SEO Checklist for 2025

🛠️ Technical SEO

• Use an SEO Plugin (e.g., Rank Math, Yoast, or SEOPress)
• Enable pretty permalinks (/post-name/ instead of query strings)
• Set preferred domain (www vs non-www) in Google Search Console
• Submit XML sitemap in Search Console
• Ensure robots.txt is clean and not blocking important URLs
• Remove or noindex thin/duplicate content (tags, archives, attachment pages)
• Check for proper indexing using Google Search Console → Pages report

🔍 On-Page SEO

• One H1 per page – Use headings hierarchically (H2, H3, etc.)
• Focus Keyword Placement:
  • Title tag
  • First 100 words
  • H1 tag
  • URL (if possible)
  • Meta description
• Use schema markup (FAQ, Product, Review, Article, etc.)
• Internal linking – Add contextual links to other relevant content
• Optimize image filenames and ALT text

⚡ Performance & UX

• Fast-loading theme – Lightweight & SEO-friendly (e.g., GeneratePress, Astra, Kadence)
• Optimize Core Web Vitals:
  • LCP < 2.5s
  • FID (now INP) < 200ms
  • CLS < 0.1
• Use caching plugin (e.g., FlyingPress, WP Rocket, LiteSpeed)
• Use a CDN (Cloudflare, Bunny.net, etc.)
• Lazy-load images and videos
• Responsive & mobile-friendly design

🔗 Content SEO

• Keyword research using tools like Ahrefs, Semrush, or Ubersuggest
• Write for users first, then optimize for search
• Avoid keyword stuffing
• Use FAQs for rich results
• Update old posts regularly to maintain rankings

🧠 Advanced Tips

• Add FAQ schema with plugin or manually
• Noindex tags & media pages if not useful
• Clean up sitemaps (remove templates, unused taxonomies, etc.)
• Enable breadcrumbs for better internal navigation
• Track SEO performance with tools like Google Search Console, GA4, and Rank Math Analytics

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