The AI SEO Checklist: 40 Checks for AI Search Visibility

Short answer: an AI SEO checklist covers six areas – access, structure, content, entities, authority and measurement. Work through the forty checks below in order: access problems cap everything else, while structure and content changes deliver the fastest visible gains.

How to use this checklist

Run the checklist on your ten most important pages first – services, pricing, comparisons and key guides – rather than the whole site. Mark each check as pass, fail or not applicable, fix the failures in the order listed and re-check after changes are live. Repeat quarterly, because migrations, plugins and firewall updates quietly undo good work.

Section A: access (checks 1–8)

1. Robots.txt allows Googlebot and Bingbot to crawl important sections.
2. OAI-SearchBot is allowed if you want to appear in ChatGPT search.
3. PerplexityBot is allowed if you want to appear in Perplexity.
4. Your decision on training crawlers (GPTBot, Google-Extended) is deliberate and documented.
5. Firewall and CDN bot rules do not block or challenge verified search crawlers – confirmed in logs.
6. Priority pages are indexed (check URL Inspection in Search Console).
7. Main content is present in the rendered HTML, not only loaded after interaction.
8. No unintended noindex, nosnippet or max-snippet:0 directives remain.

Guides: Robots.txt for AI Crawlers: Search Bots vs Training Bots, AI Crawler List: User Agents Every Site Owner Should Know.

Section B: structure (checks 9–15)

9. Each page has one clear primary intent, and no other page competes for it.
10. The first paragraph states what the page offers or answers, in plain words.
11. Headings are phrased as the questions people ask.
12. Each section opens with a direct answer and makes sense when read alone.
13. Processes use numbered steps; comparisons use tables.
14. Internal links point up to the pillar, sideways to related topics and down to the service or conversion page.
15. Breadcrumbs and a logical URL structure reflect the site hierarchy.

Guides: Internal Linking for AI Search: Up, Sideways and Down, Site Architecture for Topical Authority.

Section C: content (checks 16–23)

16. The page answers the main question better than the pages currently cited for it.
17. It includes specific facts: numbers, timelines, prices or price factors, named methods.
18. It contains first-hand experience – examples, observations or data from your own work.
19. Claims that need support cite credible sources.
20. Definitions are given the first time a technical term appears.
21. Information is current, with a visible “updated” date when content changes.
22. Limitations and trade-offs are stated honestly.
23. FAQs address real objections rather than repeating the page.

Guides: How to Write for AI Search and Humans at the Same Time, Content Refresh Strategy for AI Visibility.

Section D: entities (checks 24–30)

24. Your organisation name is identical across the site, profiles and directories.
25. A consistent one-sentence description of the business is used everywhere.
26. Organization schema includes logo, contact details, address and sameAs links.
27. Founders and key experts have author pages and Person schema.
28. Service pages use Service schema that matches visible content.
29. Your Google Business Profile is complete and accurate (for local businesses).
30. Outdated information on third-party profiles has been corrected.

Guides: Organization Schema: The Complete Guide for Brands, Brand Entity Consistency Across the Web.

Section E: authority (checks 31–35)

31. Your site covers its core topics in depth, with pillar pages and supporting articles.
32. You earn links and mentions from relevant, respected sites.
33. You appear accurately on the review sites and directories AI answers cite in your field.
34. You publish at least one original asset – data, research or a tool – per year.
35. Authors show credentials, experience and links to their other work.

Section F: measurement (checks 36–40)

36. A prompt set of 30–100 real buyer questions exists, tagged by intent.
37. Prompts are run monthly on Google AI, ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity with consistent conditions.
38. Citations, mentions, accuracy and competitors are recorded for each prompt.
39. Search Console performance is reviewed for queries showing AI Overviews.
40. Leads are tagged by source, including “AI assistant” as a “how did you hear about us?” option.

Guide: How to Measure AI Search Visibility.

Scoring your results

Count the passes in each section. A score below 6 in Section A means access problems are likely suppressing visibility – fix those before anything else. Sections B and C usually offer the quickest wins. Low scores in D and E point to longer-term entity and authority work. Section F determines whether you can prove any of it worked.

Common findings

• A firewall silently blocking AI search crawlers.
• Service pages without a single direct answer.
• Three different company descriptions across the web.
• No measurement beyond rankings.

Frequently asked questions

How long does the checklist take?

About a day for ten pages if you have access to Search Console, server logs and your CMS.

Do I need tools?

Search Console, a crawler and a spreadsheet cover most checks. See AI SEO Tools: What to Use for Research, Content and Tracking.

Want us to run it for you?

Our AI SEO Audit covers all forty checks plus live competitor testing, with a prioritised action plan. Explore AI SEO or Technical AI SEO for ongoing help.