Website Hygiene: A Free Checklist for Nonprofits and Churches
Your website is often the first place people go to learn about your organization. It’s where they find service times, read about your mission, make donations, or sign up to volunteer.
But websites aren’t “set it and forget it.” Like a building, they need regular care. When your site is clean, fast, and up-to-date, it builds trust. When it’s neglected—with broken links, old event pages, or slow loading—it can turn people away before they even give you a chance.
This guide is a free resource for busy nonprofit staff and church administrators. No tech jargon. Just a simple checklist on how often to check your website, plus a few free tools to help you out.
Why Bother with Regular Checkups?
Think about what people do on your site:
A family looking for Sunday service times.
A donor wanting to make a contribution.
Someone in crisis looking for help.
A volunteer checking upcoming opportunities.
If any of these people land on outdated information or a page that won’t load, they may leave and not come back. A little regular maintenance ensures your website is always ready to serve your community.
The "How Often" Checklist
You don't need to spend hours on this. Here is a realistic schedule that works for most organizations.
Weekly (5–10 minutes)
Check your homepage. Make sure your main message, service times, and key announcements are current.
Archive past events. If an event has passed, make sure it’s no longer displayed as "upcoming." (If you use Squarespace, good news—this happens automatically! Past events move to an archive without you lifting a finger.)
Monthly (30 minutes)
Test your donation or giving page. Make a small test donation (even just $1) to ensure the process works smoothly from start to finish. Check that the receipt email goes through.
Submit a test message through every contact form. Sometimes forms break without us knowing it. A quick test ensures you aren't missing real inquiries.
Check your top 3–5 most-visited pages. Look at your "About," "Programs," and "Get Involved" pages. Are the photos, dates, and staff names accurate?
Scan for broken links. Visitors get frustrated when they click and find a "404 Page Not Found" error.
Quarterly (1–2 hours)
Do a full content review. Go through your program descriptions, ministry details, staff bios, and calendar. Update anything that feels stale or out of season.
Check your site on your phone. Over 60% of church and nonprofit traffic comes from mobile devices. Make sure text isn't cut off and buttons are easy to tap.
Review your analytics. Take a peek at Google Analytics to see which pages are popular and which ones people are leaving quickly. If a page isn't getting traffic, ask yourself if it still serves a purpose.
Review your calls to action. Are your “Donate” and “Volunteer” buttons easy to find on every page? If not, move them up higher.
Annually (Half a day)
Full website audit. Go through every single page. Update your annual report, impact statements, or financial transparency documents.
Update your footer. Check the copyright year and make sure your address and phone number are still correct.
Review your passwords. Change the passwords for your website admin accounts. Use a password manager to keep them secure.
Spring clean your media library. Delete old, unused images and documents. This keeps your site’s storage tidy and helps it run faster.
Free Tools to Make It Easy
You don’t need expensive software to keep your website healthy. Here are some simple, free tools anyone can use.
Google PageSpeed Insights – Enter your URL and get a speed score. It also tells you exactly what to fix (like resizing large images).
Broken Link Checker (Chrome extension) – Installs in your browser with one click. Run it on any page to instantly highlight any dead links.
Google Analytics – The standard (and free) way to see how people find and use your website. Set it up once, then check it monthly.
UrlScan.io – A free online tool that scans your website for basic security issues. It’s a quick way to get peace of mind that your site is safe for your visitors.
A Few Shortcuts (If You Use Squarespace)
Many of my clients use Squarespace because it handles the technical stuff behind the scenes. If that’s you, here are a few built-in features that save you time on this checklist:
Built-in analytics: You don't have to set up Google Analytics right away if you don't want to. Squarespace shows you your visitor counts, top pages, and traffic sources right inside your site dashboard. It makes those quarterly reviews much quicker.
Event archiving: As mentioned above, past events roll off your calendar automatically. No manual cleanup required.
Built-in donation blocks: These integrate directly into your pages and automatically match your site's design. You don't need to mess with clunky third-party plugins.
Mobile responsiveness: Every Squarespace template adjusts to look good on phones automatically, so you don't have to build a separate mobile version.
(If you use another platform like WordPress, just double-check that your plugins are updated monthly to stay secure!)
Start Small
Month by month, these small habits add up to a website that actually serves your community well without taking over your calendar.
Remember: your website is one of your most valuable tools for sharing your mission. A little regular care goes a long way.
