The Best SERP Tracking Tools

The importance of tracking SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) is hard to over state. tracking your pages' progress in search engine rankings needs to be part of any successful SEO strategy.

When your page or blog post is published, how will it be ranked by the search engines?To follow a post's progress and see which keywords it ranks for, you’ll need to track your keywords or phrases with a SERP tracker. Sure, you can use Google Search Console, but there are several reasons why this is not the optimal way to track rankungs. 

There are dozens (maybe hundreds) of SERP checker tools available. You should understand what each tool can do to choose the best tool for your marketing needs because they all offer different benefits and serve unique purposes. My goal is to help content marketers and owners of small businesses make an educated decision on which tool will work best for their needs.

The best SERP keyword tracking tools don’t just provide keyword ranking tracking. They send notifications, warn you when you're losing ground, and congratulate you when you're beating your competitors. They offer reporting and detailed analysis of how your keywords are ranking in the different types of SERP features. 

Rank tracker tools are an invaluable way for content marketers to see how their content is performing online. These tools can help you gauge the success of your content and know what needs to be done to improve it.

A few things to keep in mind when using and choosing from this list of the best SERP monitoring tools

  1. No tool has direct access to Google’s data. Each SERP tracking software has its own way of analyzing the search results. None will be 100% correct.
  2. Some tools are better for local, highly specific rank tracking. Others are better or cheaper for people that need countrywide SERP tracking (USA, UK, Australia, for example)
  3. Think about how often you need updates. Daily updates might seem like a great idea until you consider that rankings fluctuate regularly and that it’s the overall trends that are important. And data might not be accurate every single day. 
  4. Do you need to check rankings on different search engines? (Google Mobile, Google Desktop, Google Maps, Bing, Yandex, etc) If so, the costs can add up if each search engine counts as another keyword to be tracked. Check if the tool allows you to track across multiple search engines for a single keyword credit.
  5. Do you need to track competitors? Some rank trackers charge more to track competitors and others limit you to one or two domains. 

SE Ranking

This is the tool we've been using the longest continually at Fat Frog Media. The reporting features are second-to-none and SE Ranking comes packed with many other useful tools that will make your life as a marketer so much easier. 

se ranking keyword tracking dashboard

Pros

  • White-label solution for agencies and freelancers with clients
  • Intuitive dashboard and menus
  • Lead generation tool 
  • Precise location-based SERP tracking
  • Comes with a suite of other SEO-related features

Cons

  • Can be slow to update new keywords
  • No access to API on lower plans 

Nightwatch

There are many tools on the market that claim to be the most accurate rank tracking tool. Nightwatch (not to be confused with any Game of Thrones references) is often touted as the most accurate.

Certainly, it's very precise, but what a lot of people don't realize is that it's also one of the easiest to use. The interface is foolproof, which leads to a better user experience and can significantly speed up reporting processes.

Using the Keyword Discovery feature, you'll be able to discover new keywords and segment them strategically for maximum visibility.

Nightwatch's local rank tracking lets you track your critical keywords in 107,296 locations worldwide, both on the search engine results page and in the map pack. From what I can tell, that's more than any other tool.

For Daily, Weekly, and Monthly changes, the software's developers have chosen to display results in one column. Though this might not sound that innovative, it's actually a handy way to see how your ranking has changed over time.

Adding tags to a keyword is a fast and easy process. And I stress the word fast here because with many other rank tracker tools, this is a multi-step and cumbersome process.

A SERP preview for every keyword provides a sidebar with search results based on the location specified and a graph showing your keyword's ranking. By adding dimensions like Click Potential, Average Position, CTR, you can really do some deep surgery on the keyword.

Keyword rankings can be compared with multiple competitors, which can help you determine target keywords to improve.

And finally, agencies and in-house SEOs can create rank reports to distribute to stakeholders and colleagues.

One additional feature worth mentioning is the Site Audit tool, which analyzes individual pages or your entire website. It seems like there are a lot of on-page audit tools these days, but this one is pretty effective. You don't have to be a scientist to understand the results. The interface isn't too complicated, or so dumbed down that it's impossible to use. Power users will enjoy using the filters (to identify pages of interest) because they're super fast and easy to use.

Nightwatch is one of the few accurate rank tracker tools that connects to Google Analytics and processes the data for a better picture of your website's traffic.

Overall, it's one of the most robust rank tracking tools at a mid-range price. Cheaper than Accuranker but more expensive than SE Ranking. The interface is free of clutter and pages load very quickly.

SEMrush

SEMrush is one of the longest established SEO tools and still one of the most impressive in terms of features. For beginners and small businesses, the interface (and number of features) can be overwhelming. And it’s certainly true that most people will not regularly use the majority of reports and tools in this SEO suite. But if you consider what you get with the competitor research, keyword research, and rank tracking tools, all seamlessly combined in one tool for one price, it’s a great deal. 

Pros

  • Lots of customisable and comprehensive reporting tools
  • Includes PPC data (for paid ads – useful to see how much businesses spend on keywords in Google Ads)
  • Excellent additional optimization tools for SEO

Cons

  • Google search engine results only. This won’t be a major issue for most people but worth keeping in mind that you can’t track other search engines

Sitechecker

With its clean and fast user interface, Sitechecker is the epitome of a modern rank tracking tool. Many of the big names have been around for a long time and to be honest, some need a serious redesign. Sitechecker's interface is modern and extremely fast. It is also easy to use and accurate. Rankings are checked daily, on four search engines, including mobile rankings, and on a local level.

Sitechecker is based out of Ukraine 🇺🇦, which appears to be where all of Europe's serious software development talent resides.

Whether or not you choose this tool depends on your own preferences and your own analysis of its accuracy. The trial version gives you the chance to do just that. 

This is a complete package. But what about the cost? It's a lot more affordable than most other tools. At $39 per month or $470 per year, the Startup Plan is the most cost-effective plan but there is a cheaper alternative. With this plan, you track 5000 keywords, which is quite generous.

However, as a reader of this blog, you can get 30% off any plan with the code fatfrogmedia30.

It is worth noting that the suite includes additional tools, such as Site Audit, Site Monitor, Backlink Tracker, etc. Try it out!

SERPwatcher by Mangools

SERPwatcher is another tool with a beautiful interface, something that makes working in the app more enjoyable. The team at Mangools have obviously spent a lot of time tweaking the look of their tool to make it not only easy to navigate, but beautiful to look at and use. 

mangools serpwatcher keyword rank tracking tool

The Mangools suite of tools comes as one package paid monthly or yearly. It’s not possible to purchase individual tools like the keyword finder or link miner serparately, but the price is pretty reasonable for all of the power you get in one SEO suite.

For around $30 you can track up to 200 keywords daily (as well as 100 keyword research lookups, 100 SERP lookups, and various other reports that any digital marketer will find valuable).

The Premium plan, at around $40 gets you 700 tracked keywords so there’s a significant jump in the value you get by doubling the monthly price. 

There’s a free 10-day trial so you can see just how good it is. 

Pros

  • Clean UI and super fast keyword rank tracking
  • Bundles with an excellent suite of search optimization tools
  • Retains data for one year so you can compare reports
  • Local results tracking

Cons

  • Lacks featured snippets and other SERP feature tracking
  • Lacks general features that other tools have

Wincher

Wincher is a polished SERP tracker from a team based out of Stockholm, Sweden. Marketed as the world's simplest SEO tools, there's something reassuring about the simplicity and eye-catching user interface of Wincher's web platform. Everything about it screams professionalism and accuracy. And that's exactly how I've found Wincher to be. It's a solid rank tracker that's easy to use and comes with lots of features that make your life as an SEO, marketer, or entrepreneur easier.

wincher serp tracking tool report

The dashboard displays SERP movement data, detailed analysis of specific keywords, and a neat way to group keywords for better progress management.

My experience with the support team has been positive. The team behind Wincher are skilled engineers and support staff. Unlike some tools, I get the impression that more time is spent on engineering than marketing the product. This is great for you as a user, but might explain why you might not have heard of it. Wincher is not as well-known as some of the other products in this review. However, it's vying for the top spot in my rank tracker tool list.

Wincher costs $29 a month to track 500 keywords, $49 for 1000 keywords, and $199 for 5000 keywords.

🎯 Get 30 EUR/USD off any plan and type of billing. Use code WELCOME30.
Sign up for a free trial with no credit card required.

Pros

  • Great value for the price
  • Unlimited website tracking and white label reporting on the Business plan and above
  • Over 130 search engines and over 100,000 locations tracked

Cons

  • The only negative is the WordPress plugin's lack of functionality

TrueRanker

TrueRanker's mission is to clearly establish its business as the global leader in online ranking analytics and provide the ultimate analysis services for both small and large businesses alike.

Unique features with TrueRanker include:

  • Cannibalization reports – TrueRanker can help you identify and fix cannibalization issues that could be hurting your SEO.
  • High-accuracy local tracking – Track your keywords' Google rankings by country, province and city. More than 40,000 locations at your disposal. TrueRanker is the Rank Tracker for small business SEO you need today.
  • Mobile, web, and Website integration – Monitor your keyword positions with the web-based Rank Tracker or the TrueRanker mobile app. You can also integrate TrueRanker into your WordPress website.

Connect Google Search Console with the click of a button and you've got even more accurate results. Get keyword suggestions and add notes so you can stay on top of changes and updates.

Ahrefs

Ahrefs is full-stack SEO tool that is regarded in the marketing community as one of the gold standard reporting tools, especially for SEO agencies. It’s main competitors are MOZ, SEMrush, and SE Ranking. But that’s because Ahrefs is more than just a SERP tracker. However, the keyword position tracking feature is one of the best around. Nicely presented and packed full of useful data that will help you use the information in reports to outperform your competitors in organic search. 

As one of the most expensive tools in this review, Ahrefs isn’t for everyone but if you’re looking for one SEO tool that does pretty much everything, this is a great investment. 

Pros

  • Fast and uncluttered interface 
  • Industry-beating SEO tools included
  • Great for filtering keywords and ranking positions

Cons

  • This is off-topic, but the keyword research tool is unreliable and inaccurate
  • Local rank tracker is unsophisticated
  • 7-day SERP rank change updates on the Lite plan
  • Can be slow and cumbersome to use

SERP robot

This simple rank tracker is often advertised as free SERP checker software, but that's not strictly true. It’s only free for 14 days. You're essentially getting a two week free trial. That being said, the prices are reasonable. While I find the interface a little clunky, it’s a very popular SERP tracking tool that many SEOs and marketers use and respect. 

It’s worth checking out to see if it meets your needs and if you can work with the interface. 

SERP robot rank tracking summary screen

The pricing structure his also confusing. They really need to make things clearer. One thing’s clear, this is not a tool for beginners or marketers with little time to spare. This is a tool for serious SEOs that can get past the weird pricing and confusing onboarding.

300 tracked keywords costs $9.99 a month. Note that there’s often a special offer available which gives you 50% discount on this. Results are updated daily so it’s a pretty good deal for anyone that needs regular updates on SERP movements. 

What’s My Serp

Another free tool that takes away a lot of the complexity of SERP tracking tools and gives a stripped-down, yet accurate database of current rank positions in Google.

You get 5 keywords on the free plan, which isn’t much to work with but it’s a great way to test out the product and the keywords never expire. 

What's my SERP interface with ranking positions

When it’s time to upgrade you’ve got 4 choices of plan:

  • 25 keywords: $4.99 / month
  • 200 keywords: $19.99 / month
  • 500 keywords: $29.99 / month
  • 1000 keywords: $59.99 / month

This is a reasonably priced rank tracking software compared to the competitors. Keep in mind, however, that this is a new service and is not quite as refined as many of the others on this list. 

There’s also a free extension that gives you instant keyword volume data in your browser as you search. This is a very valuable tool for anyone that performs keyword research regularly. 

Pros

  • Reasonably cheap price per keyword
  • Simple, fast, uncluttered interface
  • Email reports on a weekly or monthly basis
  • Includes local map pack results for local SEO

Cons

  • Google only 
  • Limited features

Rank Tracker by SEO PowerSuite

One of the oldest tools in this review, SEO Powersuites’s Rank Tracker is also the only desktop-based tool in the list. But it’s also one of the most powerful rank trackers with excellent geo-specific rankings for any location, excellent keyword analysis tools, task automations, and custom reports. 

Rank Tacker is one of the best tools for tracing featured snippets 

The biggest plus of using this tool is the unlimited number of tracked keywords and domains. You can literally track every keyword that appears on the SERP for any domain. 

There’s a free version that you can use forever, including updates. But to get the most value from the tool, it’s worth upgrading to the Professional version at €149 per year 

Pros

  • Track unlimited domains and keywords.
  • Check rankings in almost 600 international and local search engines
  • Custom reporting for colleagues and clients
  • Schedule automatic rank checks 

Cons

  • The desktop suite of tools is not ideal for everyone and can use up local system resources.
  • The auto-renew policy is unclear and can cause confusion
  • The interface is not as modern or user-friendly as cloud-based tools
  • Customer service could be better

Accuranker

Accuranker does one thing well and that one thing is SERP tracking. 

Accuranker’s reports might be the most comprehensive of any rank tracker on this list. For every project, you get multiple tabs that break down the SERP positions into different reports.

accuranker overview screen

Overview – shows the share of voice, average rank (for all target keywords), number of keywords above the fold, and traffic value. Instantly compare your site to dynamically generated competitors. 

Keywords – check the keyword rank, movements, search volumes, target URL, estimated visitor count, share of voice (SoV), and SERP features. That last metric shows you the kinds of SERP features that appear on Google for every keyword, for example: knowledge panel, reviews, thumbnail, people also asked, and more. This is great for strategy planning and deep competitor analysis. 

Agregated SERP Analysis – view the types of SERP features your keywords rank in, for example: recipes or reviews

Competitors – Excellent comparison charts to see just how well your website compares against the competition

Competitor ranks – Compare individual keywords against hour competitor rankings

Landing pages – narrow down your focus to landing pages to see how well they perform based on values such as cost, organic visitors, and average time spent. 

Pros

  • The most comprehensive and accurate keyword reporting of any tool.
  • Includes local results 
  • Multiple search engine tracking available
  • Advanced segmentation of data and reports
  • Unlimited users and domains

Cons

  • The minimum monthly price is $99. While that gives you a generous 1000 keyword tracking limit, the cost will exclude many small businesses, freelancers, and solopreneurs. 

Have you used another keyword rank tracking tool that you like? Why do you like it and why is it better than the apps on this list?

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