Audit Standard / 2026.2

Rule explorer: Audit Standard 2026.2

Every check that defines technical readiness in MaxiMarket Audit Standard 2026.2, exactly as the audit applies it. Open a rule to see what it checks, why it matters, how to fix it, where its authority comes from and how much it counts.

Superseded. This is an earlier Audit Standard version, kept unchanged so audits saved under it keep their meaning. New audits use the current Audit Standard 2026.4.

Guides by topic: technical SEO audit rules, AI readiness, structured data and ecommerce product data.

Version: 2026.2
Status: Superseded
Published: 2026-09-26
Rules: 86
Scored: 67
Observations: 33

Authority levels

Official search-engine requirement: A search engine documents it as required for a specific outcome, such as Google eligibility.; Strongest external authority
Open standard / Schema.org: Defined by an open standard or vocabulary: HTML, WCAG, IETF RFCs, Schema.org, Sitemaps, Open Graph.
Official platform recommendation: Recommended in official platform documentation, such as Google Search Central or an AI platform.
Accepted best practice: Widely accepted practice with a cited source, but no official requirement.
MaxiMarket recommendation: MaxiMarket’s own advice. Never presented as a search engine or platform requirement.; MaxiMarket methodology

Filter

Showing 18 rules and 0 observations.

Rules

Rules pass or fail. A failed rule becomes a finding in your report; scored rules also count toward the Technical Score.

Links and discoverability

LINK-IMAGE-ALT-001Official platform recommendation · RecommendedImage links have alt textDocumentWarning when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryMachine Readability

What this checks: Links whose only content is one or more images.
Why it matters: Google uses the alt text of a linked image as the link's anchor text, and WCAG requires that link purpose can be determined.
How to fix: Give the image inside the link an alt attribute that describes the link destination.

Expected: At least one image in such a link has non-empty alt text.
Applies to: Pages with at least one link whose only content is one or more images.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle link recommendation (WCAG 2.4.4).
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Image links without alt text lose their anchor text. Excluded from the score when MEDIA-IMG-ALT-001 fails, because the same missing alt attribute would otherwise be penalized twice.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when an a element with href contains no text and only img elements (optionally inside picture or plain wrappers), none of which has non-empty alt. Links with other content, such as SVG, are not applicable.
Sources: Link best practices for Google — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

WCAG 2.2 Understanding SC 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) — W3C, verified 2026-09-26

Entity and site identity

STRUCTURED-ORG-001Official platform recommendation · RecommendedHome page describes the organizationStructured dataInfo when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryMachine Readability

What this checks: Organization structured data (or a subtype, such as OnlineStore) on the home page.
Why it matters: Google recommends Organization structured data on the home page (or an about page) to understand the organization behind the site.
How to fix: Add an Organization (or the most specific subtype) with name, url and logo to the home page.

Expected: At least one top-level Organization entity.
Applies to: Home pages (final URL path "/"); other pages are not applicable.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle Organization structured data recommendation.
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Recommended on the home page to identify the organization.
How MaxiMarket detects it: The home page is the page whose final URL path is "/". Reports when its inspected JSON-LD has no top-level entity typed Organization or one of its Schema.org subtypes. Not evaluated when JSON-LD inspection hit its limits.
Sources: Organization structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-ORG-002Official platform recommendation · RecommendedOrganization declares name, url and logoStructured dataInfo when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryMachine Readability

What this checks: name, url and logo on each top-level Organization entity.
Why it matters: Google recommends these core identity properties for Organization structured data (none are required).
How to fix: Add name, url and logo to the Organization.

Expected: All three present.
Applies to: Pages with at least one top-level Organization entity (Organization or a subtype).
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle Organization structured data recommendation.
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Recommended core identity properties; none is required.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when a top-level entity typed Organization or a subtype lacks a non-empty name, url or logo. Organizations nested in other entities (for example a seller or publisher) are not checked.
Sources: Organization structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-ORG-003Official platform recommendation · RecommendedOrganization links its official profilesStructured dataInfo when failedNot scoredAI DiscoveryMachine Readability

What this checks: sameAs on each top-level Organization entity.
Why it matters: sameAs connects the organization to its other official profiles, which helps disambiguate it.
How to fix: Add sameAs with the URLs of the organization's official profiles.

Expected: At least one sameAs URL.
Applies to: Pages with at least one top-level Organization entity (Organization or a subtype).
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle Organization structured data recommendation.
Technical Score: Not scoredsameAs is optional disambiguation; its absence is not a technical defect.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when a top-level Organization (or subtype) has no non-empty sameAs value.
Sources: Organization structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-ORG-004Official platform recommendation · RecommendedOrganization logo meets minimum sizeStructured dataInfo when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryMachine Readability

What this checks: The pixel dimensions of the logo of the first top-level Organization.
Why it matters: Google's Organization logo guideline sets a minimum of 112x112 pixels.
How to fix: Use a logo image of at least 112x112 pixels.

Expected: At least 112x112 pixels.
Applies to: Pages with a top-level Organization entity that declares a logo URL.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle Organization structured data recommendation.
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3A logo below Google's minimum size may not be used.
How MaxiMarket detects it: One bounded request for the logo URL (up to 256 KiB, same destination checks as the audit). Dimensions are read from PNG, GIF, JPEG, WebP and BMP headers. Reports when either dimension is below 112. SVG logos, unreadable formats and unavailable responses are not evaluated.
Sources: Organization structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

Articles, authorship and dates

STRUCTURED-ARTICLE-001Official platform recommendation · RecommendedArticle declares headline, image, dates and authorStructured dataInfo when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryMachine Readability

What this checks: headline, image, datePublished, dateModified and author on each top-level Article entity.
Why it matters: Google recommends these properties for Article structured data (none are required); they describe the article for search features.
How to fix: Add headline, image, datePublished, dateModified and author to the Article.

Expected: All five present.
Applies to: Pages with at least one top-level Article entity (Article or a subtype, such as BlogPosting or NewsArticle).
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle Article structured data recommendation.
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Recommended properties; Article has no required properties.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when a top-level entity typed Article or a Schema.org subtype (for example BlogPosting or NewsArticle) lacks a non-empty headline, image, datePublished, dateModified or author.
Sources: Article structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-AUTHOR-001Official platform recommendation · RecommendedAuthor entities have a nameStructured dataWarning when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryMachine Readability

What this checks: The name of each declared author.
Why it matters: Google documents the author name for articles and requires a valid author name for reviews.
How to fix: Give each author a name, for example {"@type": "Person", "name": "…"}.

Expected: Every author is a non-empty name or an entity with one.
Applies to: Pages whose structured data declares at least one author.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle Article and review snippet guidance.
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Author names are recommended for articles and required for reviews.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Checks author values in the inspected JSON-LD. A non-empty string, or an object with a non-empty name, passes; an @id reference is resolved within the page. Reports when an author object has no name. Unresolvable references are not evaluated.
Sources: Article structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

Review snippet structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-DATE-001Official platform recommendation · RecommendedStructured dates use ISO 8601 with time zoneStructured dataWarning when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryMachine Readability

What this checks: The format of datePublished and dateModified values.
Why it matters: Google asks for ISO 8601 dates and correct time zones; a time without a zone is ambiguous.
How to fix: Use values such as 2026-09-26 or 2026-09-26T08:00:00+02:00.

Expected: An ISO 8601 date, or a date and time with a time zone.
Applies to: Pages whose structured data declares datePublished or dateModified.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle Article and publication date guidance.
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Dates in another format or without a time zone may be misread.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when a datePublished or dateModified in the inspected JSON-LD is not an ISO 8601 calendar date (YYYY-MM-DD) or date-time with hours and minutes, or gives a time without Z or an offset.
Sources: Article structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

Influence the byline dates in Google Search — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-DATE-002Official platform recommendation · RecommendedDates are plausibleStructured dataWarning when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryMachine Readability

What this checks: Future datePublished or dateModified values, and dateModified earlier than datePublished.
Why it matters: Google asks not to specify future dates, and a modification before publication is contradictory.
How to fix: Correct the dates or their time zones.

Expected: No future dates, and dateModified not earlier than datePublished.
Applies to: Pages whose structured data declares a datePublished or dateModified in ISO 8601 form.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle publication date guidance.
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Implausible dates are recommended against; they do not break parsing.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Compares ISO 8601 values with the audit time and with each other. A date without a time spans that whole day in every time zone, and a time without a zone spans all offsets, so only dates that are in the future (by more than one hour) or out of order under every interpretation are reported.
Sources: Influence the byline dates in Google Search — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

Product and Offer data

STRUCTURED-PRODUCT-004Official platform recommendation · RecommendedProduct has a product identifierProductWarning when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryCommerceMachine Readability

What this checks: Whether each inspected Product entity has a recognized product identifier: GTIN, MPN, SKU or ISBN.
Why it matters: Google recommends GTIN, MPN or SKU identifiers for merchant listings to identify the product.
How to fix: Add the applicable identifier, such as "gtin13", "mpn" or "sku", to each Product entity.

Expected: Every Product entity has a GTIN, MPN, SKU or ISBN.
Applies to: Pages with at least one fully inspected Product entity; not applicable otherwise.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle recommendation for merchant listings.
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Identifiers are recommended, not required.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when at least one fully inspected Product entity has none of sku, gtin, gtin8, gtin12, gtin13, gtin14, isbn or mpn with a non-empty value. Identifier formats and check digits are not validated.
Sources: Merchant listing structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

Schema.org Product — Schema.org, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-PRODUCT-005Official platform recommendation · RecommendedProduct declares a brandProductInfo when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryCommerceMachine Readability

What this checks: Whether each inspected Product entity has a brand with a name.
Why it matters: Google recommends brand for merchant listings; it identifies the product's maker.
How to fix: Add brand, for example {"@type": "Brand", "name": "…"}.

Expected: Every Product has a brand name.
Applies to: Pages with at least one fully inspected Product entity; not applicable otherwise.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedFully inspected Product entities (at most 20 per page).
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Brand is a recommended property.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when a fully inspected Product entity has no brand that is a non-empty string or an object with a non-empty name.
Sources: Merchant listing structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

Schema.org Product — Schema.org, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-PRODUCT-006Official platform recommendation · RecommendedProduct has a descriptionProductInfo when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryCommerceMachine Readability

What this checks: Whether each inspected Product entity has a description.
Why it matters: Google recommends a description for merchant listings.
How to fix: Add a description to each Product.

Expected: Every Product has a non-empty description.
Applies to: Pages with at least one fully inspected Product entity; not applicable otherwise.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedFully inspected Product entities (at most 20 per page).
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Description is a recommended property.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when a fully inspected Product entity has no non-empty description string.
Sources: Merchant listing structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-OFFER-004Official platform recommendation · RecommendedOffer states its availabilityOfferWarning when failedWeight 1Technical SearchAI DiscoveryCommerceMachine Readability

What this checks: Whether each inspected Offer states a valid Schema.org availability value.
Why it matters: Google recommends availability on Offer for Product snippets and merchant listings.
How to fix: Add an "availability" property with a Schema.org ItemAvailability value to each Offer.

Expected: Every Offer has an availability that is a Schema.org ItemAvailability value, such as https://schema.org/InStock.
Applies to: Pages with at least one inspected Offer linked from a fully inspected Product.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle recommendation for Product snippets and merchant listings.
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Availability is recommended.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when at least one inspected Offer linked from a fully inspected Product has no availability naming an ItemAvailability member, either as a schema.org URL, a bare member name or an @id reference. AggregateOffer is not checked.
Sources: Merchant listing structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

Schema.org Offer — Schema.org, verified 2026-09-26

Schema.org ItemAvailability — Schema.org, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-OFFER-007Official platform recommendation · RecommendedOffer declares item conditionOfferInfo when failedWeight 1Technical SearchCommerceMachine Readability

What this checks: itemCondition on each inspected Offer.
Why it matters: Google recommends itemCondition for merchant listings.
How to fix: Add itemCondition, for example https://schema.org/NewCondition.

Expected: An OfferItemCondition value: NewCondition, UsedCondition, RefurbishedCondition or DamagedCondition.
Applies to: Pages with at least one inspected Offer linked from a fully inspected Product.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle merchant listing recommendation.
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3Item condition is recommended.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when an inspected Offer has no itemCondition naming an OfferItemCondition member (as a schema.org URL, a bare name or an @id reference). AggregateOffer is not checked.
Sources: Merchant listing structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

Schema.org Offer — Schema.org, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-OFFER-009Official platform recommendation · RecommendedOffer declares shipping detailsOfferInfo when failedNot scoredTechnical SearchCommerceMachine Readability

What this checks: shippingDetails on each inspected Offer, or a shipping policy (hasShippingService) on an Organization on the page.
Why it matters: Google recommends shipping details for merchant listings; they can also come from Merchant Center or an Organization-level policy.
How to fix: Add shippingDetails to the Offer, or an Organization-level shipping policy.

Expected: Shipping details are declared.
Applies to: Pages with at least one inspected Offer linked from a fully inspected Product.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle merchant listing recommendation.
Technical Score: Not scoredShipping can be configured in Merchant Center or on another page, so its absence here is not reliably a defect.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when an inspected Offer has no shippingDetails value and no entity on the page typed Organization (or subtype) declares hasShippingService. Settings configured only in Merchant Center or on another page are not visible.
Sources: Merchant listing structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

Organization structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-OFFER-010Official platform recommendation · RecommendedReturn policy is declaredOfferInfo when failedNot scoredTechnical SearchCommerceMachine Readability

What this checks: hasMerchantReturnPolicy on each inspected Offer, or on an Organization on the page.
Why it matters: Google recommends a return policy for merchant listings; it can also come from Merchant Center or an Organization-level policy.
How to fix: Add hasMerchantReturnPolicy to the Offer or the Organization.

Expected: A return policy is declared.
Applies to: Pages with at least one inspected Offer linked from a fully inspected Product.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle merchant listing recommendation.
Technical Score: Not scoredReturn policies can be configured in Merchant Center or on another page, so their absence here is not reliably a defect.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when an inspected Offer has no hasMerchantReturnPolicy value and no entity on the page typed Organization (or subtype) declares one. Policies configured only in Merchant Center or on another page are not visible.
Sources: Merchant listing structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

Organization structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26

STRUCTURED-OFFER-012Official platform recommendation · RecommendedAggregateOffer states its price rangeOfferInfo when failedWeight 1Technical SearchCommerceMachine Readability

What this checks: highPrice and offerCount on each inspected AggregateOffer.
Why it matters: Google recommends highPrice and offerCount for AggregateOffer in Product snippets.
How to fix: Add highPrice and offerCount to the AggregateOffer.

Expected: Both present.
Applies to: Pages with at least one inspected AggregateOffer linked from a fully inspected Product.
Authority: Official platform recommendation · RecommendedGoogle Product snippet recommendation.
Technical Score: Weight 1 of 3highPrice and offerCount are recommended.
How MaxiMarket detects it: Reports when an inspected AggregateOffer lacks a usable highPrice or offerCount.
Sources: Product snippet structured data — Google Search Central, verified 2026-09-26