TechnicalFree

Mobile Friendly

Checks viewport meta tag, responsive CSS, and tap target sizes. Mobile-first indexing means AI engines see your mobile version first.

Why It Matters for AI Visibility

Google switched to mobile-first indexing, which means its crawlers evaluate the mobile version of your page as the primary version. Google AI Overviews inherit this behavior -- they pull content from the mobile-first index. If your page does not render properly on mobile, AI engines may see a broken or unusable layout and deprioritize it. ChatGPT and Perplexity process pages similarly. Their crawlers expect pages to declare mobile compatibility through the viewport meta tag. Without it, browsers render the page at a desktop width (typically 980px) and scale it down, resulting in unreadable text and broken layouts that signal a poorly maintained site. The viewport meta tag is the single most important mobile signal. It tells browsers and crawlers to render the page at the device's actual width rather than simulating a desktop screen. Pages missing this tag are treated as non-mobile-friendly by every major AI engine, reducing their chances of being cited in mobile-triggered queries -- which now represent the majority of all searches.

How We Score It

The score is based entirely on your viewport meta tag configuration, checked on a 0-10 scale. Missing the viewport meta tag entirely scores 0 -- this is a fail signal. Having a viewport tag but without `width=device-width` scores 4 (partial), since the tag exists but is misconfigured. Having `width=device-width` without `initial-scale=1` scores 8 -- this passes because the critical width setting is correct. Having both `width=device-width` and `initial-scale=1` scores a perfect 10. The key takeaway: `width=device-width` is the primary check, and `initial-scale=1` is a secondary refinement. A score of 7 or above passes, 4-6 is partial, and 0-3 fails.
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How to Improve

  • 1

    Add the viewport meta tag to every page

    Place `<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">` in your HTML `<head>` section. This single line is worth 10 points. If you use a CMS or template system, add it to the global layout so every page inherits it automatically.

  • 2

    Include both width and initial-scale properties

    Setting only `width=device-width` earns 8 points. Adding `initial-scale=1` gets you the full 10. Both properties should always be present together for proper mobile rendering across all devices and all AI crawlers.

  • 3

    Check your CMS or framework defaults

    Many modern frameworks (Next.js, Nuxt, WordPress themes) include the viewport tag automatically. Verify it is present and correctly configured rather than assuming. Inspect your page source and search for "viewport" to confirm.

  • 4

    Avoid fixed-width viewport values

    Never set viewport width to a fixed pixel value like `width=1024`. This forces a desktop layout on mobile devices and scores only 4 points. Always use `width=device-width` to let the browser adapt to the actual screen size.

Before & After

Before
<head>
  <title>Our Company Blog</title>
  <meta name="description" content="Latest articles and updates">
  <!-- no viewport meta tag -->
</head>
After
<head>
  <title>Our Company Blog</title>
  <meta name="description" content="Latest articles and updates">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
</head>

Code Examples

Correct viewport meta tag

<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">

Common incorrect configurations

<!-- Score 4: Missing width=device-width -->
<meta name="viewport" content="width=1024">

<!-- Score 8: Missing initial-scale=1 -->
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width">

<!-- Score 0: No viewport tag at all -->

Frequently Asked Questions

Is just having a viewport meta tag enough for a perfect score?

Not quite. You need both `width=device-width` and `initial-scale=1` for a perfect 10. Having just `width=device-width` earns 8 points. A viewport tag with a fixed width like `width=1024` only earns 4 points. Missing the tag entirely is a zero.

Does this check test actual responsive design or just the meta tag?

The analyzer checks only the viewport meta tag configuration. It does not test CSS media queries or responsive layout behavior. The viewport tag is the most critical mobile signal for AI crawlers because it determines how the page renders during crawling.

Why does a missing viewport tag score 0 instead of a partial score?

Without the viewport meta tag, mobile browsers render the page at desktop width and scale it down. AI crawlers interpret this as a non-mobile-friendly page, which is a fundamental compatibility issue. There is no partial credit because the absence of this tag represents a complete lack of mobile support declaration.

Related Factors

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Page Speed

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Meta Tags Quality

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JavaScript Rendering Dependency

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