Not everyone can afford expensive SEO tools, but the good news is that you can still check how well your website performs in search engine optimisation (SEO) for free! Understanding your site’s SEO health can help improve your search rankings, identify any problems, and create a better experience for your visitors. This guide will help you evaluate your website step by step without any cost.

To start, try searching for "site:yourdomain.com" on Google. This will show you which of your pages are being indexed (or recognised) by Google. It will also let you know if any important pages are missing. Next, use Google Search Console, a free tool, to see details about how your website is functioning. It provides insights into indexing status, any errors that might prevent your site from being crawled, how users experience your site on mobile devices, and important data like how many clicks and impressions your site gets.

For checking your site’s performance and how user-friendly it is, you can use Google PageSpeed Insights. This tool evaluates how quickly your pages load and how well they work on mobile devices. You can also review some important elements of your pages, like titles, descriptions, heading structure, image descriptions, and how your pages link to each other. Furthermore, there are free tools like Ubersuggest (with limited features) that can help you look at keyword rankings and see how you compare to competitors.

SEO Presence Without Spending Money

By regularly keeping an eye on these factors, you can maintain a healthy SEO presence without spending any money on paid tools.

Step 1: Check If Your Pages Are Visible

First, ensure that your pages can be found by Google.

How to review:

  • Go to Google search.
  • Type in "site:yourdomain.com"
Your Pages Are Visible

Step 2: Review Page Titles and Descriptions

Each page of your website should have its own unique title (about 50-60 characters long), and a brief description (150-160 characters) that summarises the content. 

  • Use keywords naturally within these titles and descriptions.
  • You can use a free tool like SEO Review Tools’ Meta Tags Analyser to help with this.

Step 3: Assess Your Content

Make sure the content you provide is original, easy to read, and valuable to your visitors. 

  • Use headings (like H1, H2, H3) properly to break up text.
  • Avoid copying content from other sources or using very little content.
  • A free tool like Small SEO Tools’ Plagiarism Checker can help you confirm originality.

Step 4: Test Your Website Speed

Fast-loading websites are essential for a good user experience and tend to rank better. 

  • Use Google PageSpeed Insights (which is free) to check how quickly your pages load.
  • If necessary, optimize your images and trim down unnecessary scripts to improve speed.
  • Remember, mobile speed is also important!

Step 5: Ensure Your Site is Mobile-Friendly

Since most people browse on their phones or tablets, making sure your site works well on mobile devices is crucial.

  • You can use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test to check this.
  • Fix issues like tiny text or buttons that are too close together.

Step 6: Find and Fix Broken Links

Broken links can frustrate visitors and hurt your site’s reputation.

  • Use a free tool like Broken Link Checker to find these links.
  • Fix any 404 errors (pages that don’t work) and update your internal links.

Step 7: Check Your Backlinks

Backlinks (links from other websites to yours) help improve your site’s authority.

  • A free tool like Ahrefs Free Backlink Checker can show you which sites are linking to you and the text they are using.

Step 8: Use Google Search Console Reports

Take advantage of reports from Google Search Console to gain insights about your website.

  • The performance report helps you see clicks, impressions, and click-through rates.
  • The coverage report allows you to spot any indexing errors or page issues.
  • The enhancement report shows mobile usability and core web vitals.

Step 9: Monitor Your Progress Regularly

Keep an eye on your website’s SEO health every 2 to 4 weeks.

  • Track improvements after implementing changes.
  • Pay attention to which strategies have worked best for you.

Conclusion: You don’t need expensive Seo test tools to check and enhance your website's SEO health. By following these simple steps, beginners and small bloggers can create sites that are more appealing to Google, ultimately driving more organic traffic.