When people create a website or online business, the number one thing they need is for others to know about their website or business. One of the best ways to increase exposure for your website is through a comprehensive keyword ranking and SEO strategy.
These online businesses are trying to tell search engines to rank their page higher than any other page through SEO. For example, when someone does a quick Google search for “flowers in Los Angeles,” if you own a flower shop in Los Angeles, you want to be on the first Google results page.
Of course, there are other factors to consider, such as keyword difficulty, but this is just a simple example of what you want to rank for if you own a flower shop in LA.
There are different SEO tools you can use and one of the best is a keyword rank tracker. A keyword tracking tool helps people identify certain keywords that apply to that business and ones that can help a business rank higher in search results.
A keyword rank tracker helps show your site’s progress in ranking for keywords and phrases on search engines like Google and Bing.
They strive to provide you with information about how well your site is performing for specific keywords or phrases that you set up while also providing information about what kind of competition there is for those same keywords/phrases.
To effectively rank for certain keywords, research on the best keywords is required. That’s where these keyword rank tracker tools come into play. Not only will they help you identify valid keywords, but they will also identify how they are ranked and which keywords people are searching for.
In this review, we’ll take a look at the best tools for tracking keyword rankings. We’ll explain the best features of these tools and why you should consider them a big part of your SEO strategy.
Our Top Picks For Keyword Rank Tracking Tools
- Best For Digital Marketers – SEMrush
- Best Overall Keyword Ranking Tool – Ahrefs
- Best For Keyword Research – Moz
- Best For Different Search Engines – SE Ranking
- Best Real-Time Ranking Tool – SERPWatcher
Reviews Of The Best Keyword Rank Tracking Tools From Our Research
SEMRush
SEMrush is a keyword rank tracking tool that is one of the more popular ones because of its ease of use at pinpointing search volume and the target keywords you need to rank for. It is especially popular with agencies and marketing departments because it can be tailored for lead generation and client management.
SEMRush’s main feature is the ability to track keywords for ranking purposes. You can enter up to five different terms, and it will list their rankings in Google and Bing Search Results pages while also providing stats about how many backlinks they have gained or lost over time.
SEMRush’s competitive intelligence, organic research, and keyword research can help you understand your competition better.
The site also provides you with detailed data about keywords’ performance and other information that will help make informed decisions on which ones to prioritize for your SEO campaign.
Features
- Comprehensive keyword research features including keyword overview, organic keyword research, keyword magic tool, and more.
- Spy on your competition using the competitor analysis tools which track their traffic, keyword usage, and more.
- Excellent SERP tracking tools such as position tracking and keyword ranking helps keep track of your performance on Google’s SERP.
- Backlink analysis tools.
Pros
- Robust and detailed keyword research tool.
- Good alternative keyword suggestions.
- Competitor analysis is easy to conduct.
- Keyword Magic tool helps pinpoint the best keywords to use using advanced filters.
- Great flexibility with pricing plans.
Cons
- Need to have some knowledge of SEO and keywords to navigate through the software.
- Audit reports can sometimes produce errors or incorrect data.
Pricing
Monthly pricing:
Annual pricing:
Ahrefs is a highly effective rank tracking tool because of its intuitive user interface and the wealth of features included. For SEO beginners, Ahrefs also provides users with comprehensive and free learning tools to help you use its software and learn more about SEO.
Ahrefs
The key feature of Ahrefs is its ability to monitor your competitors’ rankings and your own on a large number of keywords simultaneously. This makes it easier to find winning strategies and increase your traffic from search engines.
You can even track backlinks by project, so you know how quality links impact different keywords over time. Best of all, there’s no limit on the number of websites or domains you can monitor with this software.
Features
- Track your ranking progress with the keyword rank tracker tool.
- Keywords Explorer function is perfect for studying what your audience and customers are searching for.
- Ahrefs shows the number of clicks for keywords which can be a more useful metric than search volume.
- SERP overview and keyword ranking positions history show you the history of the best organic search results.
Pros
- Easy software to use for all levels.
- It is the only keyword ranking tool to conduct keyword research for 10 different search engines.
- Able to see the estimated traffic for the top 10 search results pages so that you can use these figures as a benchmark.
- Provides detailed competitor analysis, including which folders of their website rank best and where there are content gaps between you and your competitors.
- The free learning resources are helpful for beginner marketers.
Cons
- It can be costly, especially if you’re an agency.
Pricing
Monthly pricing:
Annual pricing (get 2 months for free):
Moz Pro
Moz Pro is one of the best keyword rank tracking tools because it has many features that make SEO easier. Moz is one of the top SEO tools because it’s easy to use, interactive, and arguably has the most effective keyword research function of any keyword tracking tool.
For example, Moz will show you a long list of short-tail and long-tail keywords, how many backlinks your competitors have, and what their domains are ranking for. This way, you can see where they’re getting links from (and from what keywords) and try to get links from those sources as well.
Best of all, Moz lets you see a graphical representation of your website’s search engine rankings over time so that you can examine trends in the SERPs over days or months.
Features
- Track your website’s keyword ranking results on search engines to see which ones are performing the best. It can be tracked over a set period of time.
- Track your competitor’s keyword rankings on search engines to see the gaps between your keywords and theirs.
- Keyword Explorer tool lets you find and rank the most effective keywords to target.
- Detailed metrics and reports give you a high-level snapshot of your keyword tracking over time.
- Can track the difference between desktop and mobile device search results behavior and adjust your keyword campaigns according to this data.
Pros
- Provides a spotless, easy-to-read dashboard and interface.
- Keyword research and explorer tools are great at discovering and targeting new short and long-tail keywords.
- Moz Pro makes it easy to understand how difficult certain keywords are to rank for and how competitors are faring with their own keywords.
- SERP features are excellent at illustrating keyword positions and how to optimize your SEO performance best.
Cons
- It can be costly, depending on the plan you choose.
- The keyword research tool can be difficult to get the results you want, as results can be too broad or narrow.
- Generating reports can be hard to set up at first and you’ll likely need some experience with creating reports to do it on the first few tries.
Pricing
Monthly pricing:
Annual pricing:
SE Ranking
SE Ranking has a huge database with over 10 million keywords, making it an ideal tool for SEO professionals who want access to as many data points as possible.
One of its standout features is that you can measure a keyword’s performance across up to five different search engines. Search engines aren’t necessarily limited to Western ones, as you can also view keywords on Baidu, the largest Chinese search engine.
It also provides users with personalized reports on how they perform against competitors, so they always know where they stand in the market.
Features
- 100% accurate keyword rank tracking.
- Excellent SERP features that allow for accurate competitive research.
- A thorough analysis of any keyword and keyword phrases.
- Ability to assess keyword positions and the level of keyword competition.
- Graphical representation of keyword difficulty score, search volume, and keywords for PPC campaigns.
Pros
- Can see the keywords your competitors are targeting and the ads they run with the targeted keywords.
- Easy to review which ads your competitors ran were the most and least successful.
- Bulk keyword analysis means you can dump all your keywords into a spreadsheet and upload it to get a broad report on every keyword’s difficulty and search volume.
- It offers the best value in terms of SERP features for the price you pay every month.
Cons
- Customer support could be improved.
- SE Ranking could offer more support resources to better help people that are new to the software.
- Keyword research tool shows fewer results than other more reputable keyword tracking tools.
Pricing
Monthly pricing and rank tracking the lowest number of keywords for each plan:
Monthly pricing and rank tracking the highest number of keywords for each plan:
SERPWatcher is another helpful keyword tool that allows you to track keyword rankings for your website. You can use SERPWatcher to find out which keywords bring in the most traffic and how many of those visitors convert into paying customers.
SERPWatcher
For instance, you may want to know the percentage of people who click on your website from a specific keyword and then buy something from your site within a certain period of time. SERPWatcher will help you analyze your SEO strategy and determine if it’s working for you or not.
For those that are wondering about their name, SERP is actually an acronym for a prevalent SEO term: search engine results page.
A key feature is that it allows you to create real-time alerts by setting up keywords and competition for any websites that might be ranking higher than your website. The app will then send you an email notification when the keyword or keyword phrase is used. This way, you’ll know what’s being said about your business before your competition does.
Features
- SERPWatcher’s own “Performance Index” is an aggregate score designed to measure your current keyword tracking, positions, and search volumes.
- You will receive keyword rank updates from Google rankings daily.
- You can opt in to receive email alerts if there are any major shifts in keyword rankings.
- Can analyze the behavior of users between mobile and desktop devices.
- Affordable and flexible pricing plans for individuals and agencies.
Pros
- Provides excellent and interactive keyword rankings reports that are shareable with a clickable link.
- The interface is intuitive and easy to navigate.
- The email alerts feature is excellent to have because you can make real-time updates to your keyword strategy as they come in.
- It comes with a 10-day free trial if you are not convinced this is the right keyword rankings tool for you.
Cons
- Significantly falls short on competitor keyword research when compared with other keyword tracking tools.
- Since the Performance Index score is an aggregate score based on numerous factors, it can be hard to determine what factor(s) to improve on to bump up your score.
Pricing
Monthly pricing:
Annual pricing:
Buyer’s Guide For Keyword Rank Tracking Tools
If you’ve never used a keyword rank tracking tool before, it’s important to understand a few concepts as to why you need such a tool in the first place. SEO tools like a keyword rank tracker will greatly help your SEO efforts and get your page to be ranked higher in search engines and discovered.
What Is A Keyword Rank Tracking Tool?
A keyword rank tracking tool is software that helps you with your search engine optimization (SEO). It does this by monitoring your website’s search engine position on the search engine results page (SERP). The tool will then report on any changes to your website’s SERP ranking and notify you when there are any major fluctuations.
Some of the best keyword rank trackers will allow people to track multiple keywords at once, which saves time and makes it easier to see patterns as well as progress over time. It also helps with SEO because if someone wants to know where their competition ranks for a certain keyword, they can simply enter it into the tracker and see all of the relevant information about what their competitors are doing.
The best keyword rank tracking tools will also provide you with updates, including daily, weekly, or monthly reports of the changes in your SERP rankings. This makes it easier for users to see what is happening with their websites’ search engine results pages (SERPs).
These keyword rank tracker tools also offer other features like competitor analysis, link management, and alerting which can help optimize user experience (UX) through enhanced site visibility and increased visitor traffic rates.
Why Are Keywords Important To SEO?
Keywords are a part of determining SEO performance, which is the process of getting higher rankings on search engine results pages.
In order to rank high in a Google search, you have to use keywords that people type into search engines when looking for your business or product. Your website content should be rich with those keywords so the content shows up as a result of searches.
The more often you rank high for certain keyword phrases, the better your chances are at ranking higher overall and being found by potential customers searching for what you offer online.
Being able to see what your competition’s target keywords are can be helpful for you because it lets you know what keywords they are actively targeting and if you should adjust your keyword strategy.
Going after target keywords can also depend on the search volume, as the more results a keyword generates, the harder it will be to rank higher in the SERPs.
What Is A Search Engine And Why Are Search Engine Results Important?
Search engines are a means of accessing information over the internet. They provide links to websites, images, videos, and various other types of content.
Keyword rank tracking tools allow users to track their rankings in SERPS for keywords that they are targeting. This is important because the higher you can rank for certain keywords, the more likely your page or business will be found.
Since Google is the most used search engine globally, everyone is trying to rank as highly as possible on their search engine rankings. You want to aim to be on the first page of Google search results because that’s usually where all the relevant information will be.
Final Thoughts
If you want to improve your SEO strategy, it’s important to track keyword rank changes. This is a great way for marketers and online professionals to gauge the success of their SEO efforts over time.
The best keyword rank tracking tools will help you find out what keywords are working best on search engines and which ones need more attention from your marketing team or company.
These tools can also help with content planning because you can see how long it takes for certain pages to rank highly in Google searches. They are helpful because they can help with keyword research and identify more keywords you should be targeting for.
