TL;DR – This guide explains how to use the Yoast SEO plugin to optimise WordPress sites. It covers setting up basic settings, optimising titles and meta descriptions, using focus keywords, improving readability, and leveraging built-in tools to boost search visibility and on-page SEO performance.
How to Use Yoast SEO Like a Pro
- Install and activate Yoast SEO early in your WordPress setup.
- Complete the Yoast configuration wizard to set foundational site settings.
- Use focus keywords on each page to guide optimisation without overstuffing.
- Craft clear, compelling SEO titles that include your main keyword.
- Write meta descriptions that summarise content and encourage clicks.
- Check Yoast’s readability analysis and fix flagged issues for better user experience.
- Use internal linking suggestions to connect related content.
- Optimise image alt text to improve accessibility and SEO relevance.
- Monitor Yoast’s SEO scores and adjust content based on feedback.
- Regularly update content and Yoast settings to reflect changes in focus or strategy.
If you’re running a WordPress site, there are very few things more important than getting your SEO foundations right. You can publish genuinely great content, but if search engines can’t properly understand it—or can’t find it at all—it won’t bring in traffic, enquiries, or sales.
SEO (search engine optimisation) isn’t a one-off task you tick off and forget. It’s an ongoing process that needs regular attention, small adjustments, and sensible decisions over time. One of the simplest ways to get those foundations in place is by using a free plugin called Yoast SEO.
Yoast has been around for years and is widely used for a reason. When it’s set up properly, it gives you clear guidance on how each page is structured, how it appears in search results, and whether Google can easily understand what it’s about.
Below, we’ll walk through how to configure it correctly—based on real-world use, not theory—especially if you’re setting up a site for the first time.
Why Yoast SEO Is a Good Starting Point
Launching a new website can feel overwhelming. Hosting, themes, content, speed, security—it all adds up quickly. SEO often ends up being pushed aside simply because it feels too technical.
Yoast helps remove a lot of that uncertainty. Its traffic-light system gives you immediate feedback on your content: red flags real issues, orange highlights areas to improve, and green confirms you’re broadly on the right track. It’s not perfect, but it’s a solid guide—especially when you’re learning.
Once installed, Yoast checks whether your chosen keyword appears in the places that actually matter: the page title, URL, headings, meta description, and body content. If something’s missing or overdone, it tells you. Used sensibly, this feedback can save a lot of trial and error.
Dashboard Settings
Start by going to the Yoast SEO Dashboard.
One of the first things we recommend is enabling the advanced settings pages. This unlocks additional controls over indexing, canonical URLs, and meta behaviour. You may not need all of these immediately, but having access to them avoids limitations later.
You’ll also see a section for Webmaster Tools. If you’re planning to connect your site to Google Search Console, this is where the verification code goes. If you don’t have that set up yet, leave it empty—you can come back to it at any time without causing issues.
Titles and Meta Settings
Only enable “Force rewrite titles” if you actually have a problem with titles not displaying correctly in Google. We’ve seen this fix theme-related conflicts before, but if your titles look fine, leave it off.
Choose a title separator next. This is the symbol between your page title and site name in search results. It’s largely cosmetic, but consistency matters—pick one and stick with it.
Keep both SEO analysis and readability analysis switched on. Even if you don’t follow every suggestion, they’re useful prompts while you’re writing.
This is also where you can disable the traffic-light system entirely. Some experienced site owners prefer not to use it, but if you’re still building confidence with SEO, it’s worth keeping enabled.
Post Types
This section controls how different types of content appear in search.
For posts and pages, decide whether to show the publish date in search snippets. If you’re writing evergreen content—guides, services, or advice—the date can sometimes make a page look outdated even when it isn’t. In those cases, hiding it can be beneficial.
For media, set attachment URLs to noindex. WordPress automatically creates a separate page for every image you upload, and these pages almost never add value. Noindexing them prevents search engines from wasting crawl budget on thin content.
Taxonomies (Categories and Tags)
Categories and tags help organise your content, but they can also create duplicate or low-value pages if handled poorly.
If you’re intentionally building category landing pages with useful content, indexing them can make sense.
If not, it’s usually better to set both categories and tags to noindex. This avoids multiple URLs competing for the same keywords and keeps Google focused on your main pages and posts.
You’ll find these settings under Search Appearance > Taxonomies.
Archives
Archives are one of the most commonly overlooked SEO issues on WordPress sites.
If your site has a single author, author archives rarely add value. Set them to noindex.
The same applies to date archives unless you publish news-style, time-sensitive content. Otherwise, they’re just another version of content Google has already seen.
Also set subpages of archives to noindex. You don’t want /page/2 or /page/3 appearing in search results—only the main archive page should be accessible.
Social Settings
This section doesn’t directly improve rankings, but it does improve how your content looks when shared.
Add your main social profiles so search engines can associate your site with your brand.
Enable Open Graph data for Facebook and Twitter Cards for X (Twitter). This ensures the correct title, image, and description appear when links are shared, which can significantly improve click-through rates.
Poorly displayed shares don’t just look unprofessional—they get ignored.
XML Sitemaps
Yoast automatically creates an XML sitemap, which helps search engines discover and understand your site structure.
Make sure sitemap functionality is enabled.
If you’ve disabled things like author archives or certain post types, double-check that they’re also removed from the sitemap. There’s no benefit in submitting URLs you’ve deliberately chosen not to index.
Beyond that, it’s best to leave advanced sitemap settings alone unless you know exactly why you’re changing them.
Once the sitemap is ready, submit it to Google Search Console so Google knows where to find it.
Final Thoughts
Yoast SEO isn’t a magic switch, but it is a very effective framework. When it’s configured properly and used consistently, it helps your content become clearer, more structured, and easier for search engines to understand.
Quick setup checklist
- Install and activate Yoast SEO
- Enable advanced settings
- Check title and meta behaviour
- Set attachment URLs to noindex
- Choose whether categories and tags should be index or noindex
- Disable low-value archives where appropriate
- Add social profiles and enable Open Graph/Twitter Cards
- Enable XML sitemaps and remove unused sitemap items
- Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console
Written by Terry Burrows, an experienced freelance SEO consultant. I have been helping businesses improve search visibility through practical, data-driven optimisation since 2002. My work focuses on measurable results, ethical SEO practices, and strategies that support sustainable long-term growth.
