WEB DESIGN / FREE TOOL
The 75-Point Web Design Checklist
Don't launch without checking these. Our pre-launch checklist covers everything: performance, SEO, accessibility, responsive design, security, content quality, and conversion optimization. Used internally on every project we ship — now available free.
CHECKLIST
75 Points Across 7 Categories
Performance (12 points)
☐Lighthouse Performance score ≥90 on mobile
☐LCP (Largest Contentful Paint) under 2.5 seconds
☐CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift) under 0.1
☐FID/INP (Interaction to Next Paint) under 200ms
☐All images optimized: WebP/AVIF format, responsive srcset, lazy loading
☐CSS and JS minified and tree-shaken
☐Fonts subset and preloaded (font-display: swap)
☐CDN configured (Cloudflare, Vercel Edge, or similar)
☐Gzip/Brotli compression enabled
☐No render-blocking resources in critical path
☐Third-party scripts audited and deferred
☐Total page weight under 2MB (ideally under 1MB)
SEO (12 points)
☐Unique <title> tag per page (50-60 characters)
☐Unique <meta description> per page (150-160 characters)
☐Proper heading hierarchy (one H1 per page, logical H2-H6)
☐Canonical URLs set on all pages
☐XML sitemap generated and submitted to Google Search Console
☐robots.txt configured correctly
☐Structured data (Schema.org) on key pages
☐Open Graph tags for social sharing
☐All images have descriptive alt text
☐Internal linking strategy implemented (3-5 internal links per page)
☐301 redirects set for any changed URLs
☐No broken links (404s) — verified with crawler
Accessibility (12 points)
☐WCAG 2.2 AA compliance verified
☐Color contrast ratio 4.5:1 minimum for body text
☐All interactive elements keyboard-navigable
☐Focus indicators visible on all focusable elements
☐Skip-to-content link for keyboard users
☐ARIA labels on all non-text interactive elements
☐Form labels properly associated with inputs
☐Error messages descriptive and associated with the relevant field
☐prefers-reduced-motion media query respected
☐prefers-color-scheme support (dark mode) if applicable
☐Screen reader tested (VoiceOver, NVDA, or JAWS)
☐Touch targets 44x44px minimum on mobile
Responsive Design (10 points)
☐Tested at 375px, 390px, 768px, 1024px, 1280px, 1440px, 1920px
☐No horizontal scrollbar at any breakpoint
☐Typography readable without zooming on mobile (16px minimum)
☐Images responsive (srcset or CSS object-fit)
☐Tables scroll horizontally on mobile
☐Forms usable on mobile (proper inputmode, native pickers)
☐Navigation collapses to mobile drawer
☐Videos responsive and don't overflow containers
☐Modals/popups work correctly on mobile
☐Print stylesheet available for key pages
Security (8 points)
☐SSL certificate active (HTTPS on all pages)
☐Security headers configured: CSP, X-Frame-Options, X-Content-Type-Options
☐All form inputs validated server-side
☐CAPTCHA or honeypot on public forms
☐No sensitive data in URLs or client-side JavaScript
☐Cookie consent banner GDPR/CCPA compliant
☐Dependencies up to date (no known vulnerabilities)
☐Admin panels protected (not accessible via default URLs)
Content Quality (10 points)
☐No Lorem Ipsum or placeholder text remaining
☐All links point to correct destinations
☐Grammar and spelling checked
☐Legal pages present: Privacy Policy, Terms of Service, Cookie Policy
☐Copyright year is current (2026)
☐Contact information is accurate and functional
☐404 error page designed and helpful
☐Favicon and app icons set
☐Social sharing preview tested (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn)
☐All downloadable files verified
Conversion Optimization (11 points)
☐Primary CTA above the fold on every key page
☐CTA button text is action-specific ("Get My Free Quote" not "Submit")
☐Phone number clickable on mobile (tel: link)
☐Email address clickable (mailto: link)
☐Forms submit successfully and trigger confirmation
☐Analytics tracking installed (GA4, GTM) and verified
☐Goal tracking configured (form submissions, CTA clicks, phone calls)
☐Heatmap tool installed (Hotjar, Microsoft Clarity)
☐Social proof visible on key conversion pages
☐Page load speed under 3 seconds on 4G mobile
☐Exit-intent strategy defined
FAQ
Common Questions
Is this checklist free to use?+
Yes, completely free. Download the PDF, use it on every project, share it with your team. We use this same checklist internally on every website we build.
How often should I run this checklist?+
Before every launch, after every major update, and quarterly as a maintenance audit. Performance and security checks should be monthly.
What if I fail several items on the checklist?+
That's normal — most websites fail 20-30% of these checks. Prioritize by impact: Performance and Security fixes first, then SEO, then Accessibility. Or let us handle it — we offer checklist audit services starting at $500.
Want Us to Run This Checklist For You?
Our professional pre-launch audit covers all 75 points plus 25 additional technical checks. We deliver a detailed report with prioritized fixes and estimated impact.