How to Run a Simple Website Health Check (And What to Fix First)

You take your car for an MOT. You go to the dentist for a check-up. You check your bank balance. But when was the last time you checked the health of your website?

For many businesses, the website is “set and forget”. You built it three years ago, and as long as it loads, you assume it is fine. But the web changes fast. A site that was “healthy” in 2022 might be “critical” in 2025 due to Google’s changing algorithms and new browser standards.

A “sick” website leaks traffic. If it is slow, broken, or invisible to Google, you are losing money every single day.

Here is a simple 5-minute health check you can run right now, for free.

1. The Speed Pulse (Google PageSpeed)

The Tool: PageSpeed Insights The Test: Enter your URL and hit Analyse.

What to look for:

• The Score: Anything under 50 is critical. 50-80 is okay. 90+ is excellent.
• LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): How long does it take for the main image/text to appear? Ideally, this should be under 2.5 seconds.
• CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift): Does the page jump around as it loads? (e.g., an ad pops in and pushes the text down). This frustrates users and kills your score.

The Fix: Compress images, remove unused plugins, and upgrade your hosting.

2. The Broken Link Scan (Dead Ends)

The Tool: Broken Link Checker The Test: Scan your domain.

What to look for:

• 404 Errors: These are links that point to pages that no longer exist.
• Internal vs. External: Are you linking to other people’s sites that have gone offline?

The Fix: Update the links or remove them. If you deleted a page on your own site, set up a “301 Redirect” to send traffic to a relevant new page.

3. The “Thumb Test” (Mobile Usability)

The Tool: Your own smartphone. The Test: Open your website on your phone, but turn off WiFi. Use 4G/5G.

What to look for:

1. Speed: Does it feel instant? Or are you staring at a white screen?
2. Navigation: Can you open the menu easily with one hand?
3. Buttons: Are the “Call Now” buttons easy to tap, or are they tiny text links?
4. Pop-ups: Do annoying pop-ups cover the whole screen and make it impossible to read?

The Fix: Increase button sizes (min 44x44 pixels), simplify menus, and disable invasive pop-ups on mobile.

4. The SEO Scan (Google Search Console)

The Tool: Google Search The Test: Type site:yourdomain.com into Google.

What to look for:

• The Count: How many results show up? If you have a 10-page site but only 2 results show up, Google isn’t indexing you.
• The Snippets: Read the blue titles and grey descriptions. Do they make you want to click? Or do they say “Home” or “Untitled”?

The Fix: Submit your Sitemap to Google Search Console and rewrite your Meta Titles.

5. Security Check (SSL)

The Tool: Your Browser Bar. The Test: Look at the URL bar.

What to look for:

• The Padlock: Do you see a padlock icon?
• HTTPS: Does the URL start with https://?

The Fix: If you see “Not Secure”, you are missing an SSL certificate. Visitors will be warned not to trust you. Most hosts provide this for free (Let’s Encrypt): turn it on immediately.

Summary

If you found red flags in this audit, don’t panic. Most of these issues are solvable with a few hours of work. But you cannot fix what you do not measure.

Set a reminder to run this check once a quarter. Your digital engine needs oil changes just like your car.

Want a professional to dive deeper? We offer a comprehensive technical audit that goes into code quality, accessibility, and conversion rate optimisation. Check your website health now.