AI Visibility Checklist: Is Your Website AI-Ready?
Quick Answer
An AI-ready website needs comprehensive JSON-LD schema markup (8-14+ types), answer-formatted content with 40-60 word capsules, FAQ sections with structured data, an llms.txt file, strong E-E-A-T signals, content clusters for topical authority, and AI crawler access. This 25-point checklist covers everything.
Why You Need an AI Visibility Audit
AI search traffic grew 527% in 2025, yet 47% of brands still lack a deliberate GEO strategy. The gap between AI-ready websites and everyone else is growing wider every month.
This checklist gives you a systematic way to evaluate your website's AI visibility readiness. It covers the technical foundation (schema markup, crawler access), content optimization (answer formatting, topical depth), and authority signals (E-E-A-T, entity presence) that AI platforms use to decide which sources to cite.
Score your website honestly. Each ✅ is a point in your favor. Each ❌ is an optimization opportunity. A score of 20+ out of 25 means you're AI-ready. Below 15 means you're losing visibility to competitors who've already optimized.
Technical Foundation Checklist
Schema Markup:
- ●Organization schema on every page (name, URL, logo, description)
- ●Article schema on all content pages (author, dates, topic)
- ●FAQPage schema on pages with Q&A content
- ●Speakable schema marking your most quotable content
- ●BreadcrumbList schema showing page hierarchy
- ●8+ total JSON-LD schema types per page (14+ is ideal)
Crawler Access:
- ●robots.txt allows GPTBot, PerplexityBot, ClaudeBot, and Googlebot
- ●XML sitemap is updated and submitted to Google Search Console
- ●llms.txt file exists at your domain root
- ●All important pages return 200 status and load in under 3 seconds
Technical Health:
- ●HTTPS on all pages
- ●Mobile-responsive design
- ●Clean semantic HTML with proper heading hierarchy (H1 → H2 → H3)
- ●No duplicate content issues or canonical tag problems
Content Optimization Checklist
Answer Formatting:
- ●Each page has an answer capsule (40-60 word summary) near the top
- ●H2 headings match common search queries / questions
- ●Each section starts with a direct answer before expanding
- ●Content includes specific data points, statistics, and cited sources
Content Depth:
- ●Each page has 5-8 substantive content sections with H2/H3 headings
- ●Content is 800+ words of real, useful information (not fluff)
- ●3-5 FAQ items per page with direct, helpful answers
- ●Internal links connect related content (content cluster structure)
Content Quality:
- ●Publication dates and "last updated" timestamps visible
- ●Author attribution with credentials on all content
- ●2-3 external links to authoritative sources per page
- ●No thin, duplicative, or AI-generated filler content
Scoring Your AI Visibility
22-25 Points: AI-Optimized ✅ Your site is well-positioned for AI citations. Focus on content expansion and monitoring.
18-21 Points: Nearly There 🟡 Strong foundation with some gaps. Focus on implementing missing schema types and building content depth.
13-17 Points: Needs Work 🟠 Significant optimization needed. Prioritize schema markup, answer capsules, and content clusters.
Below 13 Points: At Risk 🔴 Your site is largely invisible to AI search. You need a comprehensive overhaul — or a faster path.
RankRocket can take you from any score to fully AI-optimized in 7 days. We build 50-100 pages with 14+ schema types, answer capsules, content clusters, and comprehensive E-E-A-T signals — hitting every item on this checklist automatically.
Starting at $69/month, that's less than the cost of a single SEO consultation — and you get a complete AI-ready page network in one week.
Frequently Asked Questions
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