Usability Audit Checklist
Walk through your site with 24 practical checks grouped into six areas. Mark each one, add notes and export a summary that lists the problems you found and the checks you have not reviewed yet.
Short answer
Choose a status for each of the 24 checks: looks fine, problem found or not applicable. Add notes for each area if you like, then select Build the summary to get a plain text list of problems, unreviewed checks and notes, ready to download or copy.
On this page
Exporting needs JavaScript. The full checklist is below as a plain list you can print or copy.
Navigation and wayfinding
- Main navigation labels use the words visitors use, not internal team names.
- Visitors can tell which page and section they are on.
- Site search, if present, copes with typos and returns useful results for common queries.
- Every page offers a clear next step.
Content and clarity
- The home page says who the site is for and what it offers within the first screen.
- Headings describe the content that follows them.
- Prices, fees and conditions appear before the final step.
- Error and empty states explain what happened and what to do next.
Forms and checkout
- Forms ask only for information the task needs.
- Labels stay visible while people type; no placeholder-only labels.
- Errors appear next to the field and in a summary, in plain language.
- A low-commitment path such as guest checkout exists where it makes sense.
Mobile use
- Tap targets are at least 24 by 24 CSS pixels or have enough spacing around them.
- Content fits a 320 CSS pixel wide screen without sideways scrolling.
- Key actions work without precise gestures such as dragging.
- Inputs bring up the right on-screen keyboard for email, numbers and phone.
Accessibility basics
- Everything works with a keyboard alone, with a visible focus indicator.
- Images that carry meaning have useful text alternatives.
- Body text contrast is at least 4.5 to 1 against its background.
- Every form field has a programmatic label.
Trust and speed
- Contact details and policies are easy to find from any page.
- Main content appears within 2.5 seconds (Largest Contentful Paint) for at least three in four visits.
- The layout does not jump while the page loads.
- Analytics, pixels and session recording are described in the privacy notice.
How to run a checklist review
Pick one site or section and one or two key tasks before you start, such as finding a product and checking out, or reading about a service and requesting a quote. Then work through the site as a new visitor would, completing those tasks on both a desktop and a phone.
Go through the checklist area by area. For each check, choose Looks fine, Problem found or Not applicable. Use the notes box in each area to record where you saw a problem, which page, which step and what happened.
Where the checks come from
The checks draw on widely used usability principles, such as Jakob Nielsen's ten heuristics 1, and on published standards. The mobile target size check reflects WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.5.8, which sets a 24 by 24 CSS pixel minimum with exceptions 2. The contrast check uses the 4.5 to 1 ratio for body text from WCAG. For speed, the checklist borrows two of Google's Core Web Vitals marks: the main content should paint within 2.5 seconds, and layout shift should stay at 0.1 or below, with both judged at the 75th percentile, so at least three in four visits should meet them 3.
The privacy check asks whether analytics, pixels and session recording are described in your privacy notice. That is not a legal test, but a gap there is worth discussing with your attorney, as our privacy guide explains.
What a checklist can and cannot do
A checklist is a fast way to catch common problems, and it gives a team a shared vocabulary. It has two limits. First, it only covers what is on the list; problems specific to your audience or product will not appear. Second, the person running it already knows the site, which makes many problems hard to see.
Treat the checklist as a first pass. For the problems that matter most, confirm them by watching a few real visitors try the task, as described in our guide to usability test sample sizes. For a deeper expert review, see our usability audit service.
Privacy and accessibility
The checklist runs entirely in your browser and stores nothing. Each check is a labeled select menu that works with a keyboard and screen readers, and the count of reviewed checks is announced as you go.
Using the checklist
How long does a checklist review take?
For one or two tasks on desktop and phone, plan for one to two hours. Taking notes as you go adds time but makes the summary far more useful.
What should I do with the problems I find?
Add them to the improvement planner, rate each for impact and effort, and start with the high-impact, low-effort group.
Sources
- 10 Usability Heuristics for User Interface Design, Nielsen Norman Group (Jakob Nielsen), first published 1994.Secondary source, research firm article by the heuristics' author
- Understanding Success Criterion 2.5.8: Target Size (Minimum), W3C Web Accessibility Initiative, checked November 3, 2026.Primary, standards body
- Web Vitals, web.dev (Google), last updated October 31, 2024.Primary, platform documentation