The 12 Best SERP Crawling Tools of 2023 – Alex Birkett (2023)

SERP crawl tools are an important key to doing SEO at scale.

SERP tracking includes historical keyword rankings, competitor tracking of current rankings, Google SERP features, and something I like to call"Surround Sound Strategy".

What is a SERP Crawl Tool? 5 features to look for

A SERP tracking tool records and measures what ranks on a search engine results page.

In a way, a SERP tracking tool costs ten cents. Almost all SEO tools these days have some form of rank tracking functionality. However, the accuracy and depth of their data differs.

Some of them provide a snapshot of SERP rankings for a certain period of time. Some of them provide historical data and allow you to track your position among competitors.

Some products give you an idea of ​​where your domain, or where a specific domain ranks for a particular keyword. Some analyze the entire SERP, including feature snippets and changes over time.

Many simply focus on ratings. Some cover "real estate SERP": how often your brand or domain appears in a given search query.

Finally, some of them offer near real-time data. Some only take pictures once a week.

So the five features I would look for are:

1. Measurement and coverage of historical data
2. Holistic SERP analysis versus simple keyword rankings
3. SERP coverage or SERP Real Estate
4. Data latency and real-time coverage
5. Precision

Also, you can probably just use the tool you like to use the most. Usability is important here. There are some where I just don't like the UI so I don't use them even though they could be more accurate or powerful.

So, let's get to know the best SERP tracking tools...

Top 12 SERP Tracking Tools

1. SE Classification
2. SEMRush
3. ContenidoRey
4. SEOMonitor
5. Google Search Console
6. Accuranker
7. Night Watch.io
8. Ahrefs
9. winch
10. ProRank Tracker
11. SERP stats
12. visibly

Note: I will add some affiliate links where possible. This will not influence what I put on the list. I just want to make some money from my content, okay? You can also hire me to do your SEO and content. Or just use my affiliate links. Anyway. But this content takes time!

1.SE Classification

Ideal for:Small business owners, SEO professionals and agencies.

Prices:The Essential plan starts at $39 per month but with an annual subscription. SE Ranking also offers a free trial period for new users.

G2 Score:4,8/5

I recently discoveredSE Classificationbut i like it a lot. I think it's the best SERP tracking tool.

We do a lot of reporting for clients at my agency, and this one includes all the features I need.

First and foremost, it's one of the most accurate and comprehensive ranking trackers out there. It crawls almost all search engines including Google, Google Mobile, Bing, Yahoo, YouTube, Yandex, Yandex Mobile, etc. They also include keyword search volume estimates as well as relative traffic predictions for your content.

However, they also have a complete set of SEO tools. So they have data on Google Ads, Maps and local search results, and SERP features (like featured snippets, sitelinks, people ask too).

Another thing I like is that they have historical SERP data. You can go back in time and see performance differences on tracked keywords, and you can also see how the SERPs have changed over time.

As for the user interface, it is easy to use even for beginners. Easy to export data but they also have great visualizations and features in their product.

2.SEMRush

Ideal for:Companies of all sizes. They have a million tools, but you don't have to use them all.

Prices:The Pro and Guru plans offer a seven-day free trial. For annual billing, plans start at $119.95/month (the Pro plan). The most expensive plan, the Business plan, costs $449.95/month. If you buy the plans annually, you can save 16% instead of buying them monthly.

G2 Score:4,5/5

SEMRush is one of the biggest names in SEO, so you probably don't need to be familiar with the tool.

I will, though, because that's the kind of versatile blogger I am.

They are a full suite digital marketing platform. Mainly focused on SEO, but they also have tons and tons of data for PPC marketers and general market research.

Its main features include keyword research and domain analysis tool, ranking tracking, competitor analysis and PPC ad analysis.

They also have a bunch of mini-tools like the SEO writing assistant.

Of course, its range tracker is solid. But I wanted to put them on this list because of a new tool they're releasing.

This tool, which I think will be called the surround sound tool, allows you to analyze the SERP for a certain keyword, for example "best live chat software". So you can see, from 10, 20, 50, etc. top ranking pages, how many of them mentioned your domain? And of those who mentioned his domain, how many linked to it?

This introduces another element to SEO: SERP monopolization.

Ideally, you don't want to rank just for your page. You want to be listed on all listings, review sites, and other ranking pages. This way, when someone searches for "best kettlebells", your name pops up repeatedly (hence the "surround sound" effect).

Read more onsurround sound strategy here.

3.ContenidoRey

Ideal for:Medium companies and companies

Prices:not available on website but free trial available

G2 Score:4,8/5

ContentKing has just been acquired by Conductor, an all-in-one enterprise SEO suite. So we'll see how that affects the product.

But overall, people love it. Especially hardcore SEO nerds.

It's a great product. Makes sense.

That makes? Real-time SEO monitoring.

This is particularly useful for the technical SEOs among us, as it can monitor thousands of pages to identify ranking drops and crawling issues. This allows you to quickly identify bugs and optimization opportunities.

While this one is less focused on SERPs and SERP features, I wanted to include it because it can spot issues that other tools on this list can't.

4.SEOMonitor

Ideal for:SEO Agencies and Small Businesses

Prices:There is no free version. A free trial is available. The cost depends on the number of keywords and websites you want to crawl.

G2 score: 4,7/5

seo monitoringis truly the reference tool created for agencies.

They have the full SEO suite: keyword research, ranking tracking, organic traffic estimates. But they also have additional features designed especially for freelancers and agencies that work with many clients.

One of them is SEO prediction. This allows you to create predictions from your models and initial audits, which can help you close or retain customers.

They have strong reporting capabilities, shareable reports, and great visualizations.

They also include customer management features like follow-ups and a CRM of sorts.

If you are a service provider, this is a great solution.

5.Google Search Console

Ideal for:almost everyone with a website

Prices: book

G2 Score:4,6/5

Since Google Search Console is free, and if you're doing SEO, you probably care a lot about Google data, this is a no-brainer.

I don't think I've ever come across a company that doesn't use Google Search Console. Well, I've seen many who *have* Google Search Console but don't use it to its full extent. But everyone at least has the tool set up.

You can submit sitemaps to Google for tracking, measure the performance of your keywords, view the engagement and click-through rate of your content, and track it all based on location and device.

Also, it's great for identifying website issues such as website crawling, site and page speed, security, indexing, mobile usability, and structured data.

I generally like to use Google Search Console, but it's not amazing for reporting. That's why I like to use it in conjunction with other tools on this list. A big plus is also that you can plug it directly into Google Data Studio for reporting (other tools needed to use a 3rd party integration tool).

By the way, if you're wondering, here's my exact stack:

• SE Classification
• Google Search Console
• Ahrefs
• SEMRush
• google analytics

As well as Surfer and Clearscope. Good pile!

6.Accuranker

Ideal for:SEO professionals, consultants, e-commerce companies, brands and agencies.

Prices:There is no free plan. There is a 14-day free trial. Monthly plans start at $109/month for up to 1000 keywords and $2149/month for up to 50,000 keywords. If you pay annually, you get a 10% discount.

G2 Score:4,6/5

Accurankerit's very simple and very powerful.

It's a range tracker. It does what it says it does. I like that you can set up multiple groups of keywords and tags and get emails every day or every week with your updated rankings.

Supposedly, it's also one of the most accurate on the market.

It lacks the full stack of the set as a tool for keyword research, content gap analysis, and domain comparisons. But its range-following functionality is great and it basically works on autopilot once you set it up.

It is also highly scalable, a very good tool for those who manage massive websites or for agencies that work with many clients.

Overall, I would say this is the advanced and powerful tool you want if you are really serious about SERP tracking.

7.Night Watch.io

Ideal for:Local SEOs, Great Site Managers, International Marketers

Prices:starts at $32/month for 500 daily tracked keywords and has a 14-day free trial

G2 Score:4,8/5

night visionis a ranking tracking tool that calls itself the most accurate in marketing.

It's one of the SEO tools I recently discovered, but I'm very impressed.

You can see the reach of your keyword, down to a single zip code. Very cool!

Other keyword tracking tools suffer from this lack of location specificity. While not all businesses need this, many do (especially local SEO providers and those running huge websites).

While it is a bit more expensive than other tools as it scales for many keywords and competitors, customers love it for its accuracy, reporting, and live chat support.

8.Ahrefs

Ideal for:SEO and small to large site owners

Prices:Ahrefs does not offer a free plan or free trial. There is a 7-day trial for $7 for the Lite and Standard plans. Monthly pricing starts at $99/month (Lite) and ends at $999/month (Agency). If you pay annually, you get a discount and two months free.

G2 Score:4,6/5

I'll be straight here: Ahrefs is my favorite all-in-one SEO tool.

In fact, its SERP tracking features aren't the best, especially when it comes to ranking tracking. I heard that it only updates the data once a week and I realized that the rankings can be very different from reality.

However, when you consider this tool against its extensive feature set, I think it's just fine.

First, range tracking is definitely sufficient for most purposes. Some of our customers demand more accuracy and better reporting, but many are happy with Ahrefs' features.

Second, as an SEO research tool, Ahrefs excels. With content gap analysis, top page reports, competitor domains and backlink speed reports, it is undeniably a powerhouse when it comes to usability.

Frankly, it's also fun and easy to use, which means a lot to me.

For your keyword research reports, you can also see what featured snippets and SERP features there are (although not in rank tracking reports):

Additionally, the keyword research tool shows you a current snapshot of SERP rankings and their associated DR and backlink counts. A good SERP checker for a given keyword (useful for planning content and focus strategy):

I love Ahrefs. I use together withSE Classification, Clearscope and Google Search Console for my complete SEO package.

9.winch

Ideal for:growing companies, SaaS companies, startups

Prices:starts at $29/month (with free trial)

G2 score: 4,8/5

winchis a modestly priced rank tracker that also has features to help you find and explore new keyword opportunities, as well as the ones you're already targeting.

I like that you can do one-time audits, but you can also set up alerts and notifications to be sent regularly at timed intervals or based on changes in performance.

Overall, compared to some of the others, Wincher is easy to use, affordable, and does the basic job of tracking keyword rankings well.

10ProRank Tracker

Ideal for:Advanced SEO with less budget, freelancers and agencies

Prices:$13.50/month

G2 score: 4,3/5

ProRankTracker is another simple ranked keyword tracking tool for agencies.

This one is unique in that you can create white label reports for your SERP ranking and keywords. White label reports can give your client's work a nice professional and consistent feel.

They regularly update ranking tracking reports and also provide international tracking across all popular search engines, including desktop and mobile organic results and other search elements.

The breadth of range tracking is impressive here. They have local and mobile results:

• Top 100 organic results from all Google sites
• Device Tracking – Desktop Results and Mobile Results Tracking
• Google Snack Pack (3 pack local listings)
• Google Local Finder (Top 100 Map Listings)

They are also great for international sellers, providing reports in 12 languages ​​in addition to English: Arabic, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish.

solid tool.

11SERP stats

Ideal for:big companies, PPC specialists, SEO specialists, agencies

Prices:starts at $69/month

G2 score: 4,6/5

SERP statsIt is a powerful digital marketing tool.

It is rich in features:

• Competitor analysis in organic and paid search
• keyword analysis
• Batch analysis of keywords and domains
• Rating tracking tools
• position tracking
• Website audit tools
• Contextual advertising analysis
• text analysis
• Grouping
• SERP tracking
• Team management

SERP statsalso has agreat API, who I worked with at one point to create my own surround sound tool (which I wrote a bit about in this post aboutlearning R for marketers).

I'd say this one is aimed at a more technical and advanced audience, but their power is hard to match in terms of the breadth of features they have (with the exception of maybe SEMRush, but I actually like the SERPStat API better). One of the best SERP tools I've ever come across.

12visibly

Ideal for:digital public relations, link builders, SEO

Prices:starts at $249/month

G2 Score:N / D

visibly, like the SEMRush surround sound tool, is a very different SERP tool on this list.

It's for the "surround sound strategy". It allows you to see which pages are currently ranking for a particular keyword and then analyze which of those pages mention your brand or link to your brand.

While it's a little more expensive than others on this list, it's quite powerful. The basic package lets you track up to 500 keywords, on desktop and mobile devices, and with over 76,000 locations available. Reports are automatically updated weekly and sent to you.

Only a subset of readers will be interested in this type of service, but I can tell you firsthand that if you invest in a surround sound strategy, the payoff can be huge. It's hard work, but it's very persuasive to potential buyers when it appears on every SERP listing.

And if you are not in any of them? Well, you're not even in the conversation.

Conclusion

The “best SERP tracking tool” is the one that best fits your budget and purpose.

SERP tracking tools handle keywords, position tracking, SERP resource tracking, and also analyze actual SERP listings to see what text, branding, and links they mention.

This list, while not completely comprehensive, contains tools for each use case. Whether you just want to see how your keywords rank or you want a real-time monitoring system to track SERP changes, you will find your solution here.

One of the most comprehensive keyword research and tracking tools on this list is SE Ranking. I love it, although if you need something more powerful you might want to check out SERPStat. If accuracy is what you want, SERP tracking tools like Nightwatch or Accuranker would be ideal.

For agencies, SERP tracking software like ProRankTracker and SEOMonitor are solid.

And if you want surround sound, you have to build your own tool like I did, or just use SEMRush or Visably.

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