Your hard work SEO-wise must be rewarded with great results. However, you won’t know if you’re making progress unless you use some of the best rank-tracking software. SEO rank checker tools will tell you more about your website’s position on the playing field. How does it work? Well, rank tracking usually revolves around keeping tabs on a group of keywords. You’ll have to provide a few keywords, after which, the tool will show you how you rank amongst the competition for the few selected key phrases.
These tools work the same in essence but they differ in features and capabilities. A rank-tracking tool can track your keyword ranking daily or weekly. It can also come with other SEO features like link building, site audits, and many others.
This definitive guide will cover diverse tools to cover all your needs. Our SEO experts tested and used dozens of them and we’re ready to divulge our findings to the loyal reader base. If you’re unsure which rank tracker to pick, we advise not leaving yet.
Best Rank Tracking Tools: Our 8 Favorite Options in 2024
This ranking will include mostly premium options that offer “la crème de la crème” of the rank-tracking tools. We picked 8 amazing choices for you that you can use to monitor dozens of keywords daily. Our favorite picks for 2024 include:
1. Semrush
© Semrush
- Starting Monthly Price: $108.33
- Minimum Number of Tracked Keywords: 500
- Maximum Number of Tracked Keywords: 5,000
- Supported Search Engines: Google, Baidu, Bing
- Free Trial: 14 Days
Semrush is a paramount rank-tracking tool for all purposes. Its “Position Tracking” tool allows you to track your website ranking daily. Moreover, it includes helpful extras to help you stay on top of your game. One of them is “Estimated Traffic”.
This metric shows you the traffic estimation for the given keyword. For instance, Moz Pro doesn’t display this metric. Moving on, Semrush includes “Ranking Distribution”, explaining how well your page ranks in the top 3 or up to the top 100 Google search results. You can also discover the top keywords on your website according to their ranking on Google.
Its “Summary” menu is particularly great. It gives you an overview of your website’s performance. You’ll see if the visibility for the given keywords has changed, letting you know if you’re going in the right direction. Semrush has even more tools!
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For example, there’s the “Cannibalization” page that informs you if specific pages are ranking for the same keywords as the others. It can also discover featured snippets opportunities to boost your ranking for the keywords you want.
Semrush isn’t a dedicated SEO rank tracker, as it includes plenty more. There’s a Keyword Overview, Domain Overview, Link-Building Tool, Site Audit, and dozens more tools. Semrush can also be used to improve your on-page SEO.
Being the best rank-tracking software in 2024, Semrush isn’t the most affordable. However, this reliable option includes a 14-day free trial, a free plan, and 500 trackable keywords in its cheapest deal. Sounds good? We’d say so.
2. SE Ranking
© SE Ranking
- Starting Monthly Price: $44
- Minimum Number of Tracked Keywords: 750
- Maximum Number of Tracked Keywords: 15,000
- Supported Search Engines: Google, Bing, Yahoo, YouTube
- Free Trial: 14 Days
SE Ranking is almost at the top of our ranking of the most dependable rank checker software. As discussed in our review of SE Ranking, it’s affordable, intuitive, and packed with the information you desire so much. It includes a full-fledged rank tracker to monitor your website daily.
With daily updates, you’ll know exactly how well your site performs. Again, you’ll have to provide a few keywords, select the country, and get info like the average position, search visibility, and even traffic forecast i.e. estimated traffic.
SE Ranking includes graphs to display your website’s performance over time. You’ll see your top-ranking keywords and their search volumes. Additionally, SE Ranking includes position filters to monitor your keywords’ performance in SERPs.
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You’ll see if the keyword made it to the top 5, let’s say, or top 30 positions. Like Semrush, SE Ranking comes with cannibalization reports that are handy for preventing two or more pages from ranking for the same keyword.
You can use SE Ranking to monitor your website ranking for 750 keywords in the cheapest plan, which is impressive! On top of that, you get other tools, including site audits, keyword research, local SEO, and content marketing for added versatility.
SE Ranking supports a heap of search engines, including Google, Bing, and Yahoo. It lacks a free SEO solution but you get a generous 14-day trial with no credit card. Oh, and its premium plans start at $44/mo, so yeah, it’s extremely attractive!
3. Mangools SERPWatcher
© Mangools
- Starting Monthly Price: $19.90
- Minimum Number of Tracked Keywords: 50
- Maximum Number of Tracked Keywords: 1,500
- Supported Search Engines: Google
- Free Trial: 7 days
Mangools is one of our favorite tools for tracking your website ranking. Its SERPWatcher is very intuitive and while not as advanced as Semrush, the amount of data you get is satisfying. Better yet, it can monitor website ranking for free.
It works simply by obtaining the domain from you. After that, you select the country and the preferred platform – mobile or desktop. Finally, you can provide up to 50 keywords and when you initiate tracking, magic happens.
The Performance Index shows you the performance graph of each keyword. Moreover, you’ll find the top gainers and losers – these are the keywords that improved the most or least respectively. Estimated Visits are there too.
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Impressively, SERPWatcher also displays rank changes and average ranks for each keyword. Green signifies it’s going up, while red signals the decline in ranking. SERPWatcher lacks cannibalization reports and other advanced functions.
It supports only Google – no Bing or Yahoo are there. The limit of 50 tracked keywords can be expanded to 1,500 in the most expensive plan. In addition, Mangools includes a few more tools to boost your overall SEO swiftly.
These include LinkMiner, SiteProfiler, KWFinder, and SERPChecker. We strongly encourage you to try all of them because they’re free. With a 7-day free trial and a starting price of around $20 a month, you can’t go wrong with this reputable rank tracker.
4. Ahrefs
© Ahrefs
- Starting Monthly Price: $108
- Minimum Number of Tracked Keywords: 750
- Maximum Number of Tracked Keywords: 10,000
- Supported Search Engines: Google
- Free Trial: No
Ahrefs is one of the leading rank-tracking software. It offers a plethora of amazing features and is the closest rival to Semrush, especially in backlink analysis, where Ahrefs perhaps takes the lead.
Its rank tracking tool, however, updates your rankings WEEKLY, which many will find underwhelming. You have to pay more for daily updates, making Ahrefs quite an opulent pick. Still, you’ll get lots of data like SERP features and current ranking.
Ahrefs also includes position distribution and we like its share of voice metric. It divulges the percentage of organic visitors to your website. Ahrefs is third-party-friendly, so integration with Google Search Console is allowed.
This lets you reap more information like core web vitals and additional rank-tracking data. Ahrefs is an all-around SEO tool like Semrush and SE Ranking, so expect more stuff like the Keyword Explorer, Site Explorer, Site Audit, and Content Explorer.
It’s a bit weaker in site audit than Semrush and lacks a capable link-building tool. Ahrefs also relies on its credit system and “credits” that you spend doing pretty much anything in the app. As a result, it’s quite expensive, which explains why so many people are looking for an alternative to Ahrefs.
While it’s one of the top-ranking SEO rank trackers, it doesn’t offer a free trial, so you can’t test it risk-free. You have to buy it right away and pay at least $99 a month for 750 tracked keywords, Doesn’t sound as amazing as SE Ranking, right?
5. Moz Pro
© Moz
- Starting Monthly Price: $99
- Minimum Number of Tracked Keywords: 300
- Maximum Number of Tracked Keywords: 4,500
- Supported Search Engines: Yahoo, Bing, Google
- Free Trial: 30 Days
Being outside of our top 3 rank-tracking tools, Moz Pro isn’t impressive. However, it’s pretty reliable and unlike Ahrefs, updates your rankings daily. Its interface is a bit “dull” but its rank checker tool is undoubtedly capable.
Providing the domain and keywords you want to track produces a handful of information, such as the current ranking, search visibility, SERP features, and a few more. Additionally, there’s the “Competition” menu that we found useful.
It tracks your competitor’s ranking and lets you compare your website’s performance to theirs. Moreover, there’s the “Opportunities” menu, allowing you to discover new chances of improving your ranking and appearing at the top of SERPs.
Users can also use this great SEO rank tracker to monitor mobile performance. We think this is mandatory because around 60% of internet users rely on their phones to go online. Moz Pro works like a charm, especially when using other tools.
In particular, Moz Pro is stellar at backlink analysis and keyword suggestions. It lacks polish compared to Semrush but its 30-day free trial makes up for it. It’s easily the longest free trial on this list, and with it, you can track 300 keywords.
Moz Pro monitors your website ranking on Google, Yahoo, and Bing – more than enough. Its starting price is $99/mo, so it’s not the most affordable. However, this somewhat high price is justified with all the other SEO tools on the shelf.
6. AccuRanker
© AccuRanker
- Starting Monthly Price: $116
- Minimum Number of Tracked Keywords: 1,000
- Maximum Number of Tracked Keywords: 100,000
- Supported Search Engines: Baidu, Google, YouTube, Bing
- Free Trial: 14 Days
If you’re after dedicated rank-tracking software, AccuRanker is a competitive choice. It focuses on monitoring your website ranking and displaying information relative to the given keywords. Data like the number of keywords, traffic value, and average ranking are there.
Furthermore, AccuRanker displays Search Intent, which you’ll find in Semrush and SE Ranking. We love its Ranking Distribution section, where you’ll see the percentage of keywords ranking from the top 1 to the top 100 positions in SERPs.
AccuRanker integrates Google SEO tools perfectly too. This means you can enable Google Search Console and perform additional analyses. We love how simple and easy-to-use it is, especially with daily ranking updates that make things way better.
The best thing about AccuRanker is its flexible pricing. You’ll pay per number of tracked keywords, from 1,000 to 100,000 and the starting price is $116 a month. AccuRanker is one of the few ranking tools that supports Baidu and YouTube search engines as well.
Users will appreciate its SERP feature tracking and share of voice, which is also found in Ahrefs. Apart from sheer SEO rank tracking, it includes competitor tracking where you can compare up to 10 competitors to your website ranking-wise.
AccuRanker has a 14-day trial, which is very generous if you’re looking to test it. However, it’s not our #1 rank tracker because of its lack of advanced SEO features like site auditing, keyword research, and content marketing found in Semrush and SE Ranking.
7. Nozzle
© Nozzle
- Starting Monthly Price: $49
- Minimum Number of Tracked Keywords: 10,000 SERPs
- Maximum Number of Tracked Keywords: 130,000 SERPs
- Supported Search Engines: Google
- Free Trial: 14 Days
Nozzle is a pretty popular option for in-depth and extremely accurate rank tracking. It updates its information every 5 minutes to keep you posted about turbulence and fluctuations in the market. Its interface is feature-rich and displays plenty of data.
However, we found it to be a bit cluttered and somewhat intimidating for beginners. Nozzle offers information like current ranking, search volume, PPC value, estimated traffic, the number of keywords, and SERP features. It can be handy for comprehensive analysis.
We found Nozzle’s other features excellent too. For instance, there’s brand monitoring, which helps with business-related SEO needs. Competitive analysis is another step in the right direction, as you can effortlessly compare your website to organic rivals.
Regardless of the feature, its 5-minute update frequency is active, so every bit of data is delivered to your doorstep with incredible accuracy. Nozzle’s pricing is flexible enough too, plus, it offers a nifty “little” 14-day free trial for any plan you choose.
Nozzle charges you per the number of SERPs you want, so there’s no limit on tracked keywords. For example, the Basic plan at $49/mo allows for 10,000 SERPs and you can go with up to 130,000 SERPs in the Pro Plus plan at $499/mo.
If you need more generosity from Nozzle, you’ll have to pay more for Business plans. Just bear in mind that Nozzle is a great rank-tracking tool for Google – not any other search engine. That makes Semrush and SE Ranking a lot better.
8. Pro Rank Tracker
© Pro Rank Tracker
- Starting Monthly Price: $49
- Minimum Number of Tracked Keywords: 500
- Maximum Number of Tracked Keywords: 2,500 (20,000+ for the Agency Plan)
- Supported Search Engines: Amazon, YouTube, Yahoo, Bing, Google
- Free Trial: 14 Days
At #8, we have Pro Rank Tracker, a well-established SEO tool that helps you monitor how a website or webpage is ranking on search engines. While it’s a dedicated tool, it’s not as advanced as Semrush’s Position Tracking option. However, it includes plentiful information about ranking changes in specific periods.
Current ranks can also be monitored, where you’ll see the number of keywords ranking in the top 1, 3, and up to 101+ search results. Pro Rank Tracker lets you add up to 20 keywords in its free plan and apply geo-location parameters to suit everything to your needs.
Its interface is intuitive enough even for newcomers. Additionally, Pro Rank Tracker updates its data daily and offers unlimited reports in every plan. The thing we appreciate is local tracking, which helps boost your local SEO and strengthen your business.
Pro Rank Tracker has a few auxiliary tools that you can also test. For instance, there’s SERP checker that works with sites like YouTube, Amazon, Google, Bing, and Yahoo. Then, there’s full SERP API access that allows for app integrations and further expansions.
As one of the top rank-tracking software, Pro Rank Tracker can monitor your performance across the aforementioned search engines. Amazon tracking is useful if you’re a seller and want to drive more customers and boost sales. We’ve left the best for the end.
Pro Rank Tracker comes with cheap prices that start at $49/mo. This plan tracks 500 keywords but can be customized to track either 750 or 1,000 at an increased price. The Pro Plan at $109 supports 1,500 to 2,500 keywords and updates on demand.
How to Use SEO Rank Tracking Software?
At the start of our article, we briefly explained how this software works. In essence, you’re tracking your keyword performance on specific search engines. The gist of it is simple and our favorite SEO rank trackers work the same under the hood.
If you’re unsure how to use them, we’ll take Semrush as an example to show you how everything works. You’ll first need to get this tool – the Semrush coupon below allows for a discount and a 14-day free trial if you’re interested.
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Once you subscribe and set it up, you’ll find the Position Tracking tool on the left. Click on it and then use the blue button titled “+ Create Project.” Now, provide your domain address – it can be a specific page on the website or a root domain, your choice.
Name the project and then click on “Create Project” to start. From here, it’s crucial to select the search engine from Google, Bing, or Baidu. Also, select either mobile or desktop devices and choose the location. Semrush supports 150+ of them.
© Gizmodo
Finally, you’ll have to add the keywords you want to track. The allowance depends on the subscription plan. An optional step is to add competitors if you’re after a direct comparison. Initially, you’ll have to wait for a report for a few minutes.
© Semrush
After it’s completed, here’s what it’ll look like. As you can see, every bit of information is displayed clearly, accompanied by comprehensive graphs to signal the most important metrics. Semrush will now update this information daily, keeping you always posted.
Can I Track My Website Ranking for Free?
A feature as important as this one is usually reserved for paid users. As explained, our list includes services that offer free SEO tools but they’re usually lacking in features. Semrush, for example, limits your number of requests and search terms.
We tested its free rank tracker and it works but you can’t select as many locations and keywords as you’d normally do. Its 14-day free trial is an excellent pick because you’re getting its premium version for 14 days to track 500 keywords for greater accuracy.
Generally speaking, we don’t recommend using free options if you want to maintain the quality of information you get. Cheap rank-tracking software is a better option, in which case, you can go for SE Ranking or Mangools for $44/mo and $19.90/mo respectively.
If you can’t pay for any reason and want to analyze your website ranking for free, here are the limits of our best tools’ free versions:
| Rank Tracker | Number of Tracked Keywords in the Free Plan |
| Semrush | 10 |
| SE Ranking | No Free Plan |
| Mangools | 50 |
| Moz | Rank Checker Isn’t Free |
| Ahrefs | No Free Plan |
| AccuRanker | No Free Plan |
| Nozzle | No Free Plan |
| Pro Rank Tracker | 30 |
You can see that only 3 out of 8 tools support this feature in the free plan. Others, unfortunately, offer a free trial that leads to payment if you want to keep using them.
Using Google Search Console for SEO Rank Tracking
Before wrapping this discussion up, let’s go over Google Search Console for a second. Many ask if this tool can be used for this analysis. Technically, you can make it work. Google Search Console comes with lots of information to help you evaluate your keyword performance.
You’ll find the option to add keywords and monitor their ranking on Google, tool. If we factor in that it’s free and you can use it as soon as you connect your site to it, this seems like a perfect option. Well, in our book, it’s not because it lacks a few features.
Our most reliable rank trackers work with a few search engines, including Bing, Yahoo, and YouTube. Whereas, Google Search Console is suitable only for Google rank tracking. Another issue is the lack of other SEO features. After all, GSC is a limited tool.
Good to know is that GSC can be integrated into the SEO tools we mentioned previously. Semrush, SE Ranking, and others support GSC, which then serves as a complementary tool that adds accurate Google-related information about your website’s performance.
The Final Verdict
Now that we have everything sorted out, you should be able to make the right choice. Semrush, SE Ranking, and Mangools top the list as the most reliable and feature-rich SEO tracker tools. We invite you to read our Semrush test to see what it’s truly capable of.
If you’d rather go with Ahrefs or Moz Pro, that’s okay. Both of them are accurate and insightful, with valuable tools to boost your SEO. We’ve left AccuRanker, Nozzle, and Pro Rank Tracker as more “dedicated” tools for this purpose.
They’re not our absolute favorites but are great for budget users with moderate needs. In our experience, all-around SEO tools like the first five on the list are always better. They’ll tackle other SEO aspects, improving your overall ranking over time. It’s your call.
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