How do you run a local SEO audit?
A local SEO audit checks the handful of things that decide whether Google can show your business and whether people choose it. This page gives a 100-point scored checklist, a worked example for a fictional clinic, and the order we fix things in.
What is a local SEO audit?
It checks four areas: whether your Google Business Profile is eligible, accurate and complete; whether your website gives Google and people clear local information; whether your reviews show an active, trusted business; and whether other sites mention you consistently.
Each area maps to one of the three factors Google names for local results, explained in relevance, distance and prominence. The audit turns those factors into checkable lines.
When should you run a local SEO audit?
Run one before any new local SEO work starts, after a move, rebrand or new location, when calls drop for no obvious reason, and every quarter as a routine check. Run it before you hire an agency, too, so you can see what they change.
Gather four things before you start: owner or manager access to the Business Profile, access to the website and its analytics, the last three months of call or booking records, and a list of the directories you remember signing up for. Without records you can score the profile and site, but you cannot tell which gaps are costing work.
Score each line honestly. Half points are for work that exists but is wrong or stale, such as holiday hours from last year or a services list missing your main job.
What is on a local SEO audit checklist?
| Check | Points | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Verified and no policy warnings | 8 | Policy issues first: see below |
| Name matches signage, no added keywords | 6 | Name rules: name and spam |
| Primary and additional categories fit what you are | 6 | |
| Address or service areas set correctly | 5 | Storefront or service-area |
| Regular and holiday hours accurate | 5 | |
| Description written and specific | 3 | Up to 750 characters |
| Services or products listed | 4 | |
| Recent photos of premises, team and work | 3 | |
| Profile total | 40 |
| Check | Points | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Name, address and phone on every page match the profile | 6 | |
| A page for each core service | 8 | Service pages |
| Location page per real location | 5 | |
| LocalBusiness structured data valid | 4 | |
| Core Web Vitals pass on mobile | 4 | LCP, INP, CLS |
| Profile website link tagged with UTM | 3 | |
| Website total | 30 |
| Check | Points | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| New reviews in each of the last three months | 5 | |
| Owner replies to recent reviews | 5 | |
| No review gating or incentives | 5 | Getting reviews |
| Apple Maps and Bing listings claimed and matching | 5 | |
| Consistent details on main directories | 5 | |
| Local links or mentions in the last year | 5 | Press, associations, sponsors |
| Reviews and authority total | 30 |
Some lines need a source to check against. Google's edit your Business Profile help page sets the description limit at 750 characters and warns that changing the name after verification, or moving the address, requires verifying again. For speed, web.dev's Web Vitals sets good thresholds at LCP of 2.5 seconds or less, INP of 200 milliseconds or less and CLS of 0.1 or less, measured at the 75th percentile of page loads.
What does a completed audit look like?
A fictional two-practitioner chiropractic clinic in Saskatoon, audited before any work began.
| Area | Max | Before | After |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business Profile | 40 | 17 | 36 |
| Website | 30 | 12 | 21 |
| Reviews | 15 | 3 | 11 |
| Authority | 15 | 6 | 9 |
| Total | 100 | 38 | 77 |
The profile gained most because its fixes are quick. The website and authority scores move more slowly, which is normal; how long local SEO takes explains why.
A score is a to-do list, not a grade.
The total is useful for tracking. The zeros are what matter: each one is a specific fix with an owner and a date.
What should you fix first after an audit?
- Policy risks. Keyword-stuffed names, ineligible addresses and duplicate profiles. Google's policy overview lists restricting, suspending and disabling profiles among its actions, and names misrepresentation and a business not being at its claimed location among the reasons.
- Accuracy. Hours, phone, address, categories. Wrong details cost calls today.
- Completeness. Description, services, photos, attributes.
- Website basics. Matching business details, a page per core service, markup, speed.
- Reviews routine. A steady way to ask and reply.
- Authority. Directories, then local links and mentions.
What mistakes do businesses make with local SEO audits?
- Fixing easy points first. Photos feel productive; a policy risk can wipe out the profile.
- Changing the name and address in one go. Both trigger re-verification; plan the change and the timing.
- Auditing only the profile. A third of the score sits on the website.
- Never rescoring. Without a second score you cannot show the work changed anything.
How do you track results after an audit?
Illustrative example written by ShoutEx for this guide, not a benchmark. Track the score alongside the profile actions in Business Profile performance. A higher score with no change in calls means the remaining gaps are elsewhere, often prominence.
Frequently asked questions
What is a local SEO audit?
A structured check of your Business Profile, website, reviews and local mentions against what Google needs to show and rank a local business.
How often should I audit my local SEO?
Every quarter, and after any move, rebrand, new location or unexplained drop in calls.
What should I fix first?
Anything that risks a suspension, such as keywords in the business name or an ineligible address. Then accuracy, then completeness.
How long is a Business Profile description?
Up to 750 characters. Use it to say what you do, for whom and where, in plain words.
Will changing my business name affect verification?
Yes. Changing the name after verification, or moving the address, means verifying the profile again.
Do Core Web Vitals matter for local SEO?
They are part of page experience for your website. Good thresholds are LCP 2.5 seconds or less, INP 200 ms or less, CLS 0.1 or less.
Can I do a local SEO audit myself?
Yes. The checklist on this page takes about two hours for one location. An outside audit helps when results are flat after the obvious fixes.
Sources & further reading
Regulator rules, platform policies and local data change. These sources let you check the facts on this page, last checked October 7, 2026.