I run audits on a lot of websites — for clients, for prospects, for my own properties. Over the years I have used pretty much every free tool on the market. Here is the honest rundown of the ones worth your time and what each one is actually good at.
What "good" looks like in 2026
A modern free SEO audit tool should check at minimum:
- Classic on-page SEO — title, meta, H1, canonical, robots, sitemap.
- Technical SEO — schema, hreflang, security headers, mobile rendering.
- Performance — Core Web Vitals (LCP, INP, CLS) from real PageSpeed Insights, not synthetic.
- Content quality — targeted keyword detection, content depth, E-E-A-T signals.
- AEO/GEO readiness — FAQ schema, direct-answer paragraphs, entity signals.
- Action plan — prioritised, with concrete fix instructions.
The AEO/GEO check is the new differentiator. Most legacy tools still skip it entirely.
RankStreet
I work on this so take the bias for granted, but here is the honest pitch: RankStreet was built specifically to cover both classic SEO and AEO/GEO in one audit, with a free tier that does not require signup.
- What it checks: 60+ signals including FAQ schema, AEO friendliness, direct-answer structure, E-E-A-T trust, Core Web Vitals, Domain Authority (via Open PageRank).
- What is good: The only free tool I have found that grades AEO readiness alongside classic SEO. Transparent section-weighted scoring. PDF export. No signup required.
- What is missing: Backlink data is limited to Common Crawl (small domains may show empty). Keyword rank tracking requires a free account and works best with SerpAPI configured.
- Best for: Marketers and agencies who want one tool that grades both Google ranking signals and AI citation readiness.
Try it free here — no signup needed.
Google PageSpeed Insights
- What it checks: Core Web Vitals (LCP, INP, CLS), performance optimisations, accessibility, best practices.
- What is good: The gold standard for performance data. Direct from Google. Free, no limits.
- What is missing: Performance only. No content, schema, or AEO checks. Not an SEO audit — just one important slice of one.
- Best for: Verifying Core Web Vitals after performance changes. Use it as a complement, not a replacement.
Google Search Console
- What it checks: Index coverage, queries you actually rank for, click-through rates, Core Web Vitals, manual actions, mobile usability.
- What is good: The only tool that shows what Google actually thinks of your site. Free, official, indispensable.
- What is missing: Does not audit your pages for issues — it surfaces problems Google found. You need a separate auditor to fix the issues GSC flags.
- Best for: Every site. Set up GSC before anything else.
Lighthouse (Chrome DevTools)
- What it checks: Performance, accessibility, best practices, SEO basics (title, meta, viewport, hreflang).
- What is good: Built into Chrome. Free, fast, no signup. Great for one-off checks.
- What is missing: SEO check is shallow (title presence, not quality). No schema validation, no AEO, no Domain Authority.
- Best for: Developers verifying performance during local development.
SEO Meta in 1 Click (Chrome extension)
- What it checks: Title, meta, H1-H6 outline, image alt text, Open Graph, canonical, robots, structured data presence.
- What is good: Instant inspection of any page you are reading. Useful for competitor research.
- What is missing: No grading, no recommendations, no AEO. Just a viewer.
- Best for: Quick competitor spot-checks.
Ahrefs Free Webmaster Tools
- What it checks: Backlinks (limited), site audit (crawl), basic keyword data — for verified sites only.
- What is good: Backlink data is the best free option for verified sites.
- What is missing: Only works on sites you own (verified via DNS or GSC). No AEO/GEO. The audit is solid but does not cover AI signals.
- Best for: Owners who want backlink data without paying for the full Ahrefs plan.
Screaming Frog SEO Spider (Free up to 500 URLs)
- What it checks: Full site crawl — broken links, redirects, duplicate content, missing meta, indexability.
- What is good: Best free crawler. Excellent for site-wide technical audits.
- What is missing: Desktop app only (no SaaS). Free tier capped at 500 URLs. No content quality or AEO checks.
- Best for: One-off technical audits on small to medium sites.
Quick comparison
| Tool | On-page SEO | Core Web Vitals | Schema | AEO/GEO | Free signup-less |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RankStreet | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| PageSpeed Insights | — | ✓ | — | — | ✓ |
| Search Console | partial | ✓ | partial | — | — |
| Lighthouse | basic | ✓ | — | — | ✓ |
| Screaming Frog | ✓ | — | partial | — | ✓ |
How to combine them
The realistic workflow if you take SEO seriously:
- Set up Search Console — non-negotiable.
- Run a RankStreet audit — covers SEO + AEO + GEO in one shot. Free here.
- Use PageSpeed Insights after any performance change to verify Core Web Vitals.
- Use Screaming Frog quarterly for site-wide crawl issues.
- Use Ahrefs Free for backlinks if you have GSC verified.
If you would rather hand the loop to a senior team — running audits, prioritising fixes, executing them, and measuring the lift across SEO and AEO — Digistreet Media has been doing exactly this for 13+ years. Talk to us.
Try RankStreet
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About the publisher
Built by Digistreet Media
RankStreet is built and operated by Digistreet Media — a digital marketing and SEO agency with 13+ years of experience across Finance, FMCG, Real Estate, B2B, Automobiles, Fashion, SaaS, Healthcare, and Commerce. If you'd rather have a senior team execute the audit and the fixes for you, talk to Digistreet.