Website Redesign SEO Checklist: URLs, 301s and Bilingual Pages + Free Website Migration SEO Checklist (Word)
The biggest redesign risk is not an unattractive layout; it is users and search engines losing valuable pages. Platform changes, new slugs, merged content, bilingual restructuring and deletions all need a URL map. Preserve the current state, test the staging build and switch with redirects, canonicals, hreflang, sitemaps and measurement in one controlled release.
Five migration stages
Phase | Main work | Evidence | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|
1 Inventory | URLs, traffic, indexing, backlinks, language pairs | Old-site URL register | SEO and content |
2 Mapping | Keep, merge, remove and redirect destination | One-to-one URL map | SEO and product |
3 Build | Canonical, hreflang, internal links and metadata | Staging crawl results | Development and SEO |
4 Launch | Redirects, robots, sitemap, tracking and forms | Launch acceptance record | Development and QA |
5 Monitor | Indexing, errors, queries and conversions | 4–8 week monitoring log | SEO and marketing |
Inventory the existing assets first
Export indexable URLs, sitemaps, leading Search Console pages, organic landing pages, backlink entrances, canonicals, hreflang, titles, descriptions and status codes. Traffic is not the only retention rule: key service, legal, sales and brand pages can matter even with low visits. Every old URL needs one clear destination.
Do not redirect everything to the home page
Google Search Central recommends mapping old to new URLs and using permanent server-side redirects. Use one-to-one 301s when an equivalent exists. Return 404 or 410 when content is genuinely removed without a replacement instead of sending everything home. Avoid chains and loops, and retain redirects long enough for search engines and users.
Pair Chinese and English pages individually
Google recommends separate URLs for language versions and hreflang to connect localized alternatives. Each set should include itself and its counterparts with reciprocal relationships. Do not point every unmatched Chinese page to the Chinese home page. Canonical usually points to the preferred URL in the same language, not from the whole Chinese site to English.
Pre-launch and post-launch are equally important
Staging should block indexing, but production must remove noindex, password walls and accidental crawler blocks. On launch day, verify redirects, canonicals, hreflang, robots, sitemaps, 404s, forms, analytics, ad pixels and priority pages. Watch critical errors daily for a week, then review indexing, clicks, query context and conversions weekly. Short-term movement does not prove permanent loss.
Hong Kong planning budget and timeline
For a 20–50 page site, SEO migration planning, URL mapping and acceptance testing may start around HK$12,000–30,000. A 100–500 page bilingual CMS migration, restructuring and measurement scope may start around HK$35,000–120,000+. Design, development, content migration, hosting and third-party tools are separate. Allow 1–2 weeks for inventory, 4–12 weeks for design and development depending on scope, and at least 4–8 weeks of launch monitoring. These are Allua planning ranges, not fixed quotes.
Free resource: Website Migration SEO Checklist
Track owners, before-and-after status and evidence for URLs, redirects and language versions. Get an editable Word version to adapt and reuse for your team.
Enter your email, choose how you’ll use the kit and confirm your consent to receive it by email.
For every check, record owner, expected evidence, pre-launch status and post-launch result. Example: old /services/google-ads maps to new /digital-marketing/google-ads; acceptance evidence includes the 301 status, final 200 page, canonical and language pair—not merely a visible browser jump.
01 | Export all indexable URLs
02 | Save old sitemap and robots.txt
03 | Export organic landing pages
04 | Record major backlink entrances
05 | Save titles and descriptions
06 | Save canonicals and hreflang
07 | Assign every old URL a destination
08 | Use one-to-one 301s for equivalents
09 | Use 404 or 410 when no replacement exists
10 | Avoid redirect chains and loops
11 | Update internal links to final URLs
12 | Point canonical to the right same-language page
13 | Make hreflang reciprocal and self-referencing
14 | Do not map unmatched pages to home
15 | Block indexing on staging
16 | Remove noindex and passwords in production
17 | Generate the new XML sitemap
18 | Ensure robots allows priority pages
19 | Test every redirect ends at 200
20 | Test 404s, forms and payment journeys
21 | Verify GA4, ad pixels and consent
22 | Submit and inspect in Search Console
23 | Check critical errors daily in week one
24 | Monitor indexing and conversions for 4–8 weeks
Frequently asked questions
Is keeping every old URL always best? If structure can stay and content remains appropriate, risk is often lower. Outdated content can still be merged or removed with a documented reason and destination.
Will 301 redirects preserve rankings immediately? Google treats permanent redirects as a canonical signal, but processing takes time and content plus internal links must agree. Zero fluctuation should not be promised.
Can we change domain, CMS, content and brand together? Yes, but more variables make diagnosis harder. Stage changes where business constraints allow.
Turn the redesign into an acceptance-ready migration
Share the current site, sitemap, Search Console, target CMS, language structure and planned launch date. Allua can produce the URL map, 301 register, test cases and launch monitoring plan. Contact Allua to plan an SEO migration.
Creator partnership invitation
Creators interested in future Allua features or brand partnerships may use the creator partnership form. Submission does not guarantee selection or collaboration.
Sources and disclaimer
Sources: Google Search Central on site moves, redirects, localized versions and canonical URLs. Search processing time and CMS behaviour can change; verify before implementation. Actual cost, rankings and timing depend on the site and quotation; corrections are welcome.
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