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Website Launch Checklist

50 items across 8 categories to make sure nothing slips through the cracks before your website goes live. Check off each item, add notes, and track your readiness in real time. Your progress is saved automatically.

0/50 items completed0%

Critical: 0/25 passed

Content

0/7

All pages proofread for spelling and grammarCritical

Images optimized for web (correct format and dimensions)Critical

Alt text added to every imageImportant

Custom 404 error page createdImportant

Contact information correct across all pagesCritical

All CTAs working and linking to correct destinationsCritical

Content formatting consistent (fonts, spacing, lists)Important

SEO

0/7

Unique meta title set for every page (under 60 characters)Critical

Meta descriptions written for every page (150-160 characters)Critical

XML sitemap generated and accessibleCritical

Robots.txt configured and not blocking important pagesCritical

Canonical URLs set to prevent duplicate contentImportant

Heading hierarchy correct (single H1, logical H2-H6 order)Important

Structured data (schema markup) added for key page typesNice to Have

Performance

0/6

Page speed tested on mobile and desktop (target under 3 seconds)Critical

All images compressed without visible quality lossCritical

Lazy loading enabled for below-the-fold imagesImportant

CSS and JavaScript minified for productionImportant

CDN configured for static assetsNice to Have

Caching headers set for static resourcesImportant

Security

0/6

SSL certificate installed and validCritical

All HTTP requests redirect to HTTPSCritical

Form validation in place (client-side and server-side)Critical

Security headers configured (CSP, X-Frame-Options, HSTS)Important

Backup system configured and testedImportant

Login and admin pages secured with strong authenticationCritical

Design & UX

0/7

Mobile responsiveness tested on real devicesCritical

Cross-browser testing completed (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge)Critical

Print stylesheet added for key pagesNice to Have

Favicon and touch icons set for all platformsImportant

Loading states added for async contentImportant

Error states designed for forms and failed requestsImportant

Accessibility tested (keyboard navigation, screen reader, contrast)Critical

Analytics & Tracking

0/6

Google Analytics 4 installed and receiving dataCritical

Conversion tracking configured for key actionsCritical

Heatmap or session recording tool installedNice to Have

Google Search Console connected and sitemap submittedCritical

Social media tracking pixels added (Meta, LinkedIn, etc.)Important

UTM parameter conventions defined for campaign linksImportant

Legal

0/5

Privacy policy published and linked in footerCritical

Terms of service published and linked in footerCritical

Cookie consent banner implemented and functionalCritical

GDPR compliance verified (data collection, storage, deletion)Important

Copyright notices display the current yearNice to Have

Launch Day

0/6

DNS records configured and propagatedCritical

Redirects set for all old URLs to new equivalentsCritical

CDN cache flushed to serve fresh contentImportant

Monitoring and uptime alerts configuredImportant

Social media announcement prepared and scheduledNice to Have

All stakeholders notified of launch time and planImportant

Website Launch Best Practices

Start early, not the day before

Begin working through this checklist at least two weeks before your target launch date. Some items, like DNS propagation and search engine indexing, take time that cannot be compressed. Front-loading the content and SEO categories gives you a buffer for unexpected issues.

Focus on critical items first

Not every checklist item carries equal weight. Critical items are launch blockers: launching without SSL, broken forms, or missing analytics means you are flying blind or actively losing trust. Work through every Critical item before moving to Important and Nice to Have tasks.

Test on real devices, not just emulators

Browser developer tools simulate mobile layouts, but they cannot replicate touch behavior, real network conditions, or the experience of reading your site on a 5-inch screen. Test on at least one iOS device and one Android device before launch.

Set up monitoring before you announce

Configure uptime monitoring, error alerting, and analytics before you share the launch on social media or send the announcement email. If something breaks during a traffic spike, you need to know immediately rather than hearing about it from customers.

Keep a rollback plan ready

Even with thorough preparation, things can go wrong. Make sure you have a working backup of the previous site, know how to revert DNS changes, and have documented the steps to roll back. A 10-minute rollback is far better than hours of downtime while you debug a production issue.

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