Website Redesign Checklist: What to Check Before You Launch
In short
A practical pre-launch checklist for website redesigns — content, SEO, speed, mobile, accessibility, forms, tracking and security — so nothing important breaks on launch day.
Launch day is where redesigns go wrong: a contact form that emails nobody, tracking that stops recording leads, a mobile menu that won't open. None of these are hard to prevent — they just need someone to check. This is the checklist I work through before any redesigned site goes live.
Content
Start with what visitors came for.
- Every important page from the old site exists on the new one (or redirects to its replacement)
- Phone numbers, addresses, prices and opening hours are correct everywhere
- No placeholder text or dummy images left behind
- Spelling and grammar checked, especially headings and buttons
- Legal pages (privacy policy, terms) are present and linked
SEO and indexing
Search visibility is the easiest thing to lose without noticing. Google's documentation on site moves, redirects and canonicalization covers the details; this is the short list.
- Redirect map implemented and every old URL tested
- Unique title and meta description on each page
- Canonical tags point to the correct URLs
- XML sitemap generated and ready to submit
- No leftover 'noindex' or robots.txt block from staging
- Structured data validated with the Rich Results Test
Speed and Core Web Vitals
Test key pages in PageSpeed Insights on mobile. Google's recommended thresholds are a Largest Contentful Paint within 2.5 seconds, Interaction to Next Paint under 200 milliseconds and Cumulative Layout Shift below 0.1.
- Images compressed, correctly sized and lazy-loaded below the fold
- The main hero image loads early (it's usually the LCP element)
- No layout jumps when fonts, images or banners load
- Third-party scripts limited to what you actually use
Mobile and accessibility
Most visitors will see the site on a phone first. Check real devices, not only a desktop browser window made narrow.
- Menus open and close; nothing overflows sideways
- Buttons and links are large enough to tap
- Text contrast is readable, including on images
- Images have meaningful alt text; forms have labels
- The site works with a keyboard alone
Forms, tracking and integrations
Submit every form yourself and confirm the enquiry reaches the right inbox, CRM or database. Then confirm your analytics and ad platforms record the conversion — a redesign that silently breaks conversion tracking can make ad campaigns optimise blindly for weeks.
- Each form submits, validates and sends a confirmation
- Enquiries arrive where the team actually looks
- Analytics (for example GA4) installed and recording key events
- Google Ads and Meta conversion tags firing on the right actions
- Payment gateway and WhatsApp/call links tested end to end
Before the redesign starts
The checklist starts well before launch. Most launch-day problems trace back to decisions made — or skipped — at the beginning.
- Record current traffic, rankings and conversions as a baseline
- Export all URLs and top pages from Search Console and analytics
- Agree the goals of the redesign in measurable terms (enquiries, bookings, sales)
- List every integration the current site uses (forms, CRM, payments, chat, tracking)
- Back up the entire current site, files and database
Launch day, in order
A launch-day sequence that avoids most surprises:
- Freeze content changes on the old site
- Take a final backup
- Switch DNS or deploy the new site
- Check HTTPS and the preferred host (www or non-www) redirects
- Run the redirect test against the full map
- Remove staging blocks: noindex tags, robots.txt disallows, passwords
- Submit the new sitemap in Search Console
- Submit test enquiries and purchases and confirm they arrive
- Confirm analytics and ad conversions are recording
The first 30 days after launch
Launch isn't the finish line. Watch Search Console for crawl errors and indexing changes, compare conversions with the baseline, and gather feedback from customers and staff. Small fixes in the first month — a confusing menu label, a slow page, a form field people skip — often matter more than anything in the original design.
- Weekly: 404 errors, indexing report, conversions vs baseline
- Check Core Web Vitals once real-user data accumulates
- Review search queries for top pages
- Collect staff and customer feedback and fix quick wins
Who should sign off what
Assign an owner to each area so nothing falls between people: content accuracy (the business owner or marketing lead), SEO and redirects (whoever runs search), forms and integrations (the developer, confirmed by the person who receives enquiries), and legal pages (whoever is responsible for compliance).
Content migration details people miss
Content is more than page text. Check that images kept their alt text, PDFs and downloadable files moved and are linked correctly, embedded videos and maps still load, and old blog posts kept their publication dates and authors. Tables often break during migration, and internal links inside old content may still point to old URLs — update them to the new addresses rather than relying on redirects.
- Images, alt text and captions
- PDFs and downloads (and their links)
- Embedded videos, maps and forms
- Tables and formatted content
- Internal links inside body text
- Blog dates, authors and categories
Browser and device testing
Test on the devices your visitors actually use, which analytics will tell you. For most Indian audiences that means Chrome on mid-range Android phones first, then iPhones, then desktop browsers. Check both portrait and landscape, a slow network profile, and the largest and smallest screen sizes you support. Many layout bugs only appear at in-between widths such as small tablets.
Keep a launch log
Record what was changed on launch day and when — DNS switch, redirects deployed, sitemap submitted, tracking verified. If traffic or leads change later, a simple dated log makes it far easier to connect the effect to its cause.
Printable summary
If you only remember five things: back up the old site, test every redirect, remove staging blocks, submit every form yourself, and confirm tracking records conversions.
Security and backups
- HTTPS everywhere; old http:// URLs redirect
- Admin accounts use strong, unique passwords (and 2FA where available)
- Staging and test accounts removed
- A full backup of the old site kept, and backups scheduled for the new one
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most common mistake when launching a redesigned website?
Missing redirects and leftover 'noindex' tags from staging are the most damaging. Broken contact forms and conversion tracking are the most common.
Should I launch a redesign on a Friday?
Better not. Launch early in the week so you have working days to spot and fix problems.
How do I test Core Web Vitals?
Use PageSpeed Insights for individual pages and the Core Web Vitals report in Search Console for real-user data across the site.
Do I need to reinstall analytics after a redesign?
Often yes — tags can be lost when templates change. Always verify analytics and ad conversion tracking on the live site after launch.
What should I measure before a redesign?
Traffic, top pages, rankings for key queries and conversions over a recent period, so you can compare after launch.
Which devices should a redesigned site be tested on?
The ones your analytics show visitors use — for most Indian audiences, Chrome on mid-range Android phones first, then iPhones and desktops.
Key Takeaways
- Check content accuracy and legal pages first.
- Test every redirect and remove staging 'noindex' tags.
- Measure Core Web Vitals on mobile against Google's thresholds.
- Submit every form and confirm conversions are tracked.
- Keep a full backup of the old site.
Sources & further reading
- Site moves and migrations — Google Search Central
- Web Vitals — web.dev
- PageSpeed Insights — Google
- Rich Results Test — Google
- About key events — Analytics Help
- Accessibility — MDN
Related work
Keep reading
Have a project that touches website redesign? See Website rebuild & redesign.
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