The CMS behind a huge share of the web. Endlessly flexible and SEO-capable — but its automatic archives, plugin sprawl, and self-hosted security are where sites go wrong.
Self-hosted WordPress (WordPress.org) gives you complete control of the server, permalinks, robots, and every plugin — and complete responsibility for them. Out of the box it auto-generates a lot of URLs: category, tag, author, date, and attachment archives, plus paginated lists, many of which are thin or duplicative. It emits no structured data on its own, leans on a caching layer for performance, and — like anything self-hosted — needs disciplined updates to stay secure. Most fixes run through an SEO plugin (Yoast or Rank Math), a caching/CDN setup, and server-level hardening.
Reference: WordPress SEO documentation →
Measured across the 7 WordPress storeswe've audited — this list re-ranks itself as we scan more.
Specific to how WordPress is built — not generic checklist advice.
WordPress spins up archive pages for every tag, category, author, and date — plus attachment pages for each uploaded image. Left unmanaged these are thin, near-duplicate, and dilute your crawl. Noindex the low-value archives (most date/author/tag archives) and disable attachment pages.
Full fix guide →Core WordPress doesn't output Article, FAQ, or breadcrumb schema. Unless your theme or SEO plugin adds it, your content has no structured data for rich results or AI answers. Confirm the schema is actually present in the rendered HTML, not just that a plugin is active.
The flexibility that makes WordPress powerful also makes it heavy and exposed. Too many plugins slow the site and widen the attack surface, and outdated plugins are the leading WordPress breach vector. Keep core/plugins/themes current, add security headers, and remove what you don't use.
Full fix guide →We catalog 45 WordPress fixes — exact steps for WordPress's admin and theme, each with a link to the official docs.
Reduce Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) to under 2.5 seconds by serving your hero image in a modern format, preloading it, and eliminating render-blocking resources.
Write a unique, page-specific meta description for every page on your store so Google can display a relevant snippet in search results.
Write a unique, descriptive title tag for every page on your store so no two pages share the same title.
Add a self-referencing canonical tag to every page so Google knows which URL is the "official" version of that content.
Based on 7 WordPress stores audited on SEOLZ
vs all-platform average
| Avg SEO | 90 | +9 above average | |
| Avg AEO | 53 | +11 above average | |
| Avg WCAG | 86 | -4 below average | |
| Avg Security | 70 | -6 below average | |
| Avg GEO | 53 | +5 above average | |
| Avg Composite | 73 | +9 above average |
WordPress stores score above average overall — but AEO is the common weak point.
Search engines need to crawl and understand your catalog. We check every page for indexability, metadata, canonical tags, Core Web Vitals, internal linking, and faceted navigation — the issues that silently kill organic traffic.
Learn how to fix SEO issues →AI tools like ChatGPT and Google's AI Overviews pull from structured data. We audit your product schema, FAQ markup, brand signals, and E-E-A-T indicators — so your products show up where shoppers are increasingly searching.
Learn how to fix Answer Engine (AEO) issues →Is your brand mentioned when someone asks an AI assistant for product recommendations? We track your presence across ChatGPT, Perplexity, and other AI engines — and tell you what's driving mentions up or down.
Learn how to fix AI Visibility (GEO) issues →1 in 4 adults has a disability. Inaccessible sites face ADA lawsuits — and lose customers. We run WCAG 2.1 AA checks across your catalog pages and tell you exactly what to fix.
Learn how to fix Accessibility (WCAG) issues →Security headers, SSL configuration, email authentication, and server misconfigs — issues that erode customer trust and tank your search rankings if Google flags you.
Learn how to fix Security (OWASP) issues →SSL expiry, outdated CMS versions, unverified GTM containers. The operational health checks that fall through the cracks — until they cause an outage or a ranking drop.
Learn how to fix Site Lifecycle issues →Yes — we crawl your live WordPress site. Because it's self-hosted, most fixes are fully in your control: permalinks, archives, an SEO plugin's settings, caching, and server hardening.
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