Launching a website isn’t just clicking “Publish” and hoping for the best. After building and launching dozens of WordPress sites, I’ve learned that most problems don’t come from bad design — they come from missed steps during launch. DNS mistakes. Analytics not tracking. SEO basics forgotten. Caching misconfigured. Email forms quietly failing.
This is the real checklist I use before and after every site goes live — whether it’s for a client or my own projects.
If you want the deeper, step-by-step version, Austin Web & Design has a more detailed guide here:
The Essential Website Launch Checklist (Before & After You Go Live)
Phase 1: Before You Go Live (Critical)
1. Lock down your DNS & SSL
Before touching anything else:
- Confirm the domain points to the correct server
- Make sure HTTPS is enabled
- Force HTTPS redirects
- Check for mixed-content warnings (http images or scripts)
DNS is one of the fastest ways to break a site if done incorrectly. If you’re not 100% confident, this is one of those “leave it to a pro” moments.
Related reading: Understanding DNS: Why You Should Leave It to a Pro
2. Confirm hosting & caching setup
At minimum:
- Server-level caching enabled (LiteSpeed, NGINX, etc.)
- PHP version set correctly
- Object cache enabled if available
- CDN configured if applicable (Cloudflare, host CDN)
Speed issues at launch almost always trace back to hosting misconfiguration — not themes or plugins.
3. Install analytics and verification early
Before launch day:
- Google Analytics (GA4)
- Google Search Console verification
- Bing Webmaster Tools
- Optional: Google Tag Manager
This ensures no data gaps from day one.
4. SEO basics (non-negotiable)
Every page should have:
- A unique title tag
- A real meta description
- Clean URLs (no “sample-page”)
- Proper heading structure (H1 → H2 → H3)
- Internal links between related pages
SEO doesn’t start after launch — it starts at launch.
Deeper guide: On-Site Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
5. Image & media optimization
Before launch:
- Resize images to actual display size
- Compress images (WebP / AVIF when possible)
- Compress videos or host externally
- Lazy-load media below the fold
Media is still the #1 performance killer I see on new sites.
How-to guides:
6. Forms, email, and notifications
Test every form:
- Contact forms send and receive emails
- SMTP configured (don’t rely on PHP mail)
- Spam protection working
- Thank-you messages redirect properly
A site that looks great but drops leads is worse than a broken one.
Phase 2: Launch Day Checks
7. Final content sweep
- Remove placeholder text
- Remove lorem ipsum
- Double-check phone numbers and emails
- Confirm footer copyright year
This sounds obvious — it’s also commonly missed.
8. Redirects (if replacing an old site)
- 301 redirect old URLs to new URLs
- Preserve top-performing pages
- Avoid blanket homepage redirects
Bad redirects can erase years of SEO overnight.
9. Clear caches (in the right order)
- Plugin cache
- Server cache
- CDN cache
- Browser hard refresh
Phase 3: After Launch (Often Forgotten)
10. Submit sitemap & request indexing
- Submit XML sitemap to Search Console
- Request indexing of key pages
- Monitor crawl errors
11. Performance & real-world testing
- Run PageSpeed Insights
- Test on mobile devices
- Click through as a user would
- Monitor Core Web Vitals
Helpful context: Server Cache vs. Local Cache
12. Ongoing maintenance plan
- Monthly updates
- Regular backups
- Security monitoring
- Performance checks
A website is not “done” once it’s live.
Related: How to Maintain a WordPress Site
Final Thoughts
Launching a website correctly is about risk reduction.
This checklist exists because fixing launch mistakes later is always more expensive than doing it right the first time.
For the expanded, step-by-step version with screenshots, see:
The Essential Website Launch Checklist (Before & After You Go Live)