Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about VisRank, scoring, AEO, reports, and how to fix issues.
General
What is VisRank?
VisRank is a free website audit tool that checks 49 signals across four categories: SEO, AEO (AI search readiness), Security, and Local, plus separate Trust & Entity and AI Citation scores on new scans. It gives every website a scored report with a prioritised list of fixes. Daily scan limits apply: 5 scans for anonymous visitors, 10 for logged-in users, 20 for paid report users, and 30 for Monitoring users. Paid plans add detailed reports, change history, fix progress, competitor tracking, alerts, weekly briefs, and PDF reports.
Is VisRank really free?
Yes. Scanning any public URL is free with no account required. Anonymous visitors can run 5 scans per day, logged-in users get 10 per day, paid report users get 20 per day, and Monitoring users get 30 per day. Paid features are the detailed PDF report ($5 one-time per scan) and the monitoring subscription ($20/mo per site), which adds change history, fix progress, score history, competitor tracking, on-demand rescans for unlocked reports, score-drop alerts, AI visibility alerts, and weekly briefs.
How long does a VisRank scan take?
Most scans complete in under 30 seconds. VisRank fetches the page, checks robots.txt and sitemap.xml, and analyses HTTP headers — all in parallel. Slow websites or pages behind CDN delays may take slightly longer.
Scoring
How is the overall score calculated?
The overall score is a weighted average of four category scores: SEO (35%), AEO (25%), Security (25%), and Local (15%). Each category score is based on the percentage of checks in that category that pass. Issues are weighted by severity within each category.
What is a good VisRank score?
Scores are rated on a simple scale: Excellent (80–100), Good (60–79), Average (40–59), Poor (0–39). Most established websites without deliberate SEO work score in the 40–60 range. A score above 80 indicates strong optimisation across all four categories.
Why is my AEO score so low?
AEO checks structured data, semantic headings, Q&A patterns, llms.txt, AI crawler access, author signals, freshness, content depth, and extractable answer formats. Most websites were built before AI search existed, so low AEO scores are common even on sites with good SEO. Common high-impact fixes include Organization schema, visible Q&A content, answer-first sections, llms.txt, and unblocked AI crawlers.
Why is my Security score low even though I have HTTPS?
HTTPS (SSL) is just one of 10 security checks. VisRank also tests for HSTS, CSP, X-Frame-Options, Referrer-Policy, Permissions-Policy, X-Content-Type-Options, mixed content, and server header leaks. Most hosting providers only provide HTTPS — the other 6 headers must be configured separately.
AEO & AI search
What is AEO and why does it matter?
AEO (Answer Engine Optimisation) is the practice of structuring website content so AI-powered search tools — like Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT Search, and Perplexity — can extract and cite it in their answers. AEO uses structured data (JSON-LD), semantic headings, and direct Q&A content to make your website AI-readable.
What is AI Citation Readiness?
AI Citation Readiness is a separate score that checks whether a page is easier for AI answer systems to extract, verify, and cite accurately. It looks at answer-first blocks, extractable tables or lists, buyer-intent prompt coverage, entity context, proof, machine-readable discovery, freshness, and prompt coverage. It does not guarantee inclusion in ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, or Perplexity.
What is Trust & Entity Visibility?
Trust & Entity Visibility is a separate score that checks whether Google and AI systems can verify the business behind a website. It reviews About, Contact, Privacy and Terms pages, business identity, email or support paths, service area, social profiles, sameAs schema, Organization schema completeness, author or founder signals, Google Business Profile consistency when relevant, and proof such as reviews or testimonials.
Reports & pricing
What is in the $5 detailed report?
The detailed report is a downloadable PDF covering all 49 core checks plus Trust & Entity and AI Citation evidence on new scans. For each issue: severity (high/medium/low), a plain-language explanation of what was found, and specific fix guidance including code examples where applicable. It also includes your score breakdown and top quick-win recommendations. A one-time paid report is a stable snapshot and is not overwritten by later homepage scans.
What does the $20/mo monitoring plan include?
The monitoring plan ($20/mo per site) includes: up to 10 full report unlocks per month, on-demand rescans of unlocked reports, change history, fix progress, full score history with charts, competitor score tracking (up to 3 competitors per site), score-drop alerts, AI visibility alerts, and weekly email briefs with the next best action.
Technical
Does VisRank work on any website platform?
Yes. VisRank audits the public HTML of any public URL - WordPress, Shopify, Squarespace, Webflow, custom Next.js, or anything else. No plugin, app install, or API key is needed. Paid and Monitoring reports can add rendered checks for JavaScript-heavy pages.
Will VisRank affect my website performance or traffic?
Free scans make a small number of crawler-style HTTP requests and do not load test your site. Paid and Monitoring enrichment may run background rendered checks or sitewide checks, capped to a small set of public pages.
How do I improve my score?
Start with the quick wins VisRank identifies on your scan result page — these are the highest-impact fixes. Common quick wins: add Organization JSON-LD schema, configure HSTS and CSP headers, remove any noindex meta tags from production, add a canonical tag, and write unique meta descriptions. The $5 report includes step-by-step fix instructions.
Still have questions?
Check the methodology page for a full breakdown of every check, or get in touch via the contact page.