Competition for the limited space on the first page of Google searches is a regular part of business.
That’s because ranking high on search engines is essential for visibility.
Recent reports by FirstPageSage revealed that the #1 result in Google’s organic search results has an average CTR of 39.6%.
I mentioned before in my affordable SEO guide that 75% of internet searches end on the first page.
And if the implications aren’t clear to you by now, I’ll bottom line it:
Not ranking high on search results = no traffic = money spent on content/SEO efforts go down the drain.
So if you’re looking to change that, you’ll need some tools to help. Here’s a rundown of the Google ranking tools I’ve tried and personally used to rank myself.
What is the best Google Ranking Software?
When trying to rank on Google, you can’t just use one tool (spoiler: it doesn’t exist).
There are a minimum of 3 types of tools I’d recommend.
- All-rounder SEO tools like Semrush and SE Ranking to track your overall site performance, do keyword research, conduct competitor anlysis etc.
- On-Page SEO tools like Surfer SEO to optimize content to rank.
- Data tools like Google Analytics for the most accurate site data.
That’s the exact tool kit I use to rank my articles. Like this one you’re reading.
I’m able to outrank 80 and 90+ DR pages with less than 2 backlinks.
| Software | Pricing (starts from) | Keyword Research | Back -linking | Competitor Analysis | Rank Tracking | Technical SEO | On-Page SEO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Semrush | $119/month | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
| Surfer SEO | $59/month | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Ahrefs | $99/month | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
| SE Ranking | $49/month | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Moz | $99/month | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Ubersuggest | $12/month | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Screaming Frog | £149/year | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
| WooRank | $79.99 | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Google Analytics | Free | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
1. SEMRush (Best Overall)
Jessica’s Recommendation
From keyword research to competitor analysis, backlinking, rank tracking, and even technical SEO – Semrush is a top recommendation loved by many pros to help you rank.
Best for: All your SEO needs
Jessica’s Recommendation
Semrush
From $119.95/mo
1743 reviews (g2)
From keyword research to competitor analysis, backlinking, rank tracking, and even technical SEO – Semrush is a top recommendation loved by many pros to help you rank.
Best for: All your SEO needs
If you’re looking for one of the most powerful Google ranking software, then it has to be Semrush.
Of all the SEO tools that I use, this is definitely one of my favorites. I use Semrush for a lot of my content, SEO, and link-building efforts, which I mentioned in-depth when discussing the best link-building tools.
This is an SEO tool that offers helpful and powerful features, with a heavy focus on keyword research. It’s the complete solution for keyword rank tracking, competitor, content, and backlink analysis.
The market research feature from Semrush will have all your competitors’ strategies laid bare.
To do this, input your website in the main search bar, and Semrush will display useful information under Domain Overview.
Then, navigate to the Compare Domains tab to get a list of your top competitors. You can get the same information by going to the Competitors tab under Organic Research.
More importantly, what can you do with this information? You can analyze their keywords.
Or discover gaps with the Keyword Gap tool. It helps you find keywords your competitors are ranking for and other areas where they are doing better than you.
Other notable features
- Link building tools that help you audit backlinks, find new building opportunities, and get insights into your strategies.
- Content Audit and SEO Checker tools to create better content that ranks you higher than competitors.
- Semrush also has keyword rank checker tools for your domain and competitor websites.
Site Audit tool for checking subdomains, website mobile version, and discovering issues.
Pricing
The pricing plans on Semrush are divided into three.
There is a Pro plan at $119.95/month for small teams and newbies. Bigger teams can use the Guru plan at $229.95, while large enterprises can opt for the Business plan at $449.95/month.
Of course, you can also save 17% by paying annually.
💬 The bottom line
Semrush is one of mine and many others #1 go-to tool for search engine rankings – and it’s not hard to see why.
From keyword research to competitor analysis, backlinking, rank tracking, and even technical SEO, it’s a top recommendation for everything that helps you to rank.
While it’s a top competitor with Ahrefs – the new pricing update for Ahrefs makes the Semrsuh Pro plan a no-brainer and the best overall for value and features (you can read why below).
And unlike Ahrefs, you get a 7-day free trial. So it’s 100% risk-free.
2. Surfer SEO (Best For On-Page SEO)
Jessica’s Recommendation
Surfer SEO is a must for on-page SEO. It has all the advanced AI technology packed in a simple interface to tell you what and how to optimize content to rank.
Best for: On-Page SEO
Jessica’s Recommendation
Surfer SEO
From $19-29/mo
465 reviews (g2)
Surfer SEO is a must for on-page SEO. It has all the advanced AI technology packed in a simple interface to tell you what and how to optimize content to rank.
Best for: On-Page SEO
When it comes to ranking on any search engine, a lot of the growth component comes from writing and publishing content.
And to rank, it’s incredibly important and necessary that you use a search engine results tool that will help you optimize content to rank.
Surfer SEO is the tool I use to do that. It’s an on-page keyword ranking tracker tool that will help you get your article on Google’s radar.
The tool works by analyzing the select top articles or pages for any keyword you’re targeting. Take this keyword for “content engagement strategies” as an example:
It then averages metrics like word count, paragraphs, and images to give you the average gauge of what you should aim for if you also want to rank on the top SERPs.
More significantly, it gives you an indicator of the terms to use and the frequency. From there, you can get an optimized content score.
Other notable features
- Content Optimisation in multiple languages
- Free tools like AI Outline generator and keyword surfer
- SEO audits to optimize existing content
- Browser extensions and integrations with apps like Google Docs, WordPress, Jasper AI, etc.
Pricing
The pricing plan for Surfer SEO is simple.
- Lite: $29/mo or $19/mo paid annually.
- Basic: $89/mo or $69/mo paid annually (in my opinion, the most bang for buck for beginner bloggers).
- Advanced: $179/mo or $149/mo paid annually.
- Max: $299/mo or $249/mo paid annually.
💬 The bottom line
If you’re serious about wanting to rank or remain competitive in the online space, then having a tool like Surfer SEO is a non negotiable.
And I don’t say that lightly – at minimum, anyone doing blogging/SEO/content needs a tool like Semrush/Ahrefs along with Surfer.
I’ve personally ranked on the top page of google with zero links and Surfer alone.
3. Ahrefs
Ahrefs is one of the most powerful google keyword ranking tools that exist, especially if you’re looking for something to help with link analysis.
One of the most impressive features, apart from providing all the data you need for making informed decisions, is the ability to do a competitor analysis.
The good thing about this Ahrefs feature is it’s an excellent keyword research technique that gives you insights for ranking above your competitors on search engines.
Start by typing in your website. Ahrefs presents valuable information, including ratings, backlinks, and traffic generation.
Then, click on Competing Domains on the left-side menu, and it displays your top competitors and how you compare with them.
You can also use the Content Gap feature to identify keywords you should be paying attention to. I use the top three or four competitors for comparison based on the combination of details.
That brings up the keywords, keyword positions on search results, etc., with links to all the pages.
This will let you know when keywords your competitors are ranking for that you’re not and can be taken into account as part of your content strategy.
Other notable features
- Site Audit feature reveals exhaustive information about your site.
- Keywords Explorer gives a deep dive into specific keywords to uncover what customers are interested in.
- Link Intersect feature shows prospective sites that link to some of your competitors and may link to you.
- Site explorer allows you to view all the meaningful statistics like
- Ahrefs also has an in-built keyword rank checker to reveal your progress.
Pricing
Ahrefs has some free tools you can access through the Ahrefs Webmaster Tools.
The main pricing starts at $99/month. Other plans include Standard at $199/month, Advanced at $399/month, and Enterprise at $999/month.
💬 The bottom line
Ahrefs offers equally powerful features to Semrush, and most people doing SEO is either using one or the other. These are tools that offers a wide range of search engine optimization improvements.
However, since their pricing plan update in early 2020 – for the same benefits and functions you get on the Semrush Pro $119.95/mo plan – you’ll have to pay for the Ahrefs Standard $199/mo plan.
So if pricing isn’t a factor – consider the Ahrefs Standard plan.
4. SE Ranking (Best Value)
If both Semrush and Ahrefs don’t seem like feasible options, you may consider giving SE Ranking a try.
It’s an all-in-one SEO tool that can run technical audits, competitor analyses and is a very accurate and robust backlink and rank tracking software.
One big selling point is that it is a much more affordable option than Ahrefs and Semrush while still delivering really great value.
It’s also incredibly easy to set up – with a 5 step process for the onboarding process.
You can also add competitors and constantly check how your keywords are performing against them.
Other notable features
- Easy to view dashboards for a Summary, Detailed or Overall glance at rankings.
- The ability to connect to Google Analytics and Google Search Console to view in the dashboard.
- Their marketing plan feature has a list of To-Do’s for on-site optimization, keyword research, content strategy, and more.
- Social Media Dashboards for Facebook and Twitter etc., for an all in 1 overview.
Pricing
SE Ranking has a pretty unique pricing plan that provides discounts based on 2 factors:
- Your rank tracking frequency: Daily, Every 3 days, or weekly.
- How many months in advance you’d like to pay.
Obviously, the more frequent the rank tracking, the less discounted the plan.
The more months you pay in advance, the higher the discount.
Their base (monthly) plans for daily rank tracking are as follows:
- Essential: $49/mo
- Pro: $109/mo
- Business: $239/mo
They also have a 14-day free trial you can take advantage of.
💬 The bottom line
SE Ranking is definitely a close competitor to Semrush and Ahrefs. While you’d have to access the Pro plan to get the most out of the tool, it still remains great value for money compared to others.
It’s definitely the tool I recommend if you’re looking for something flexible and affordable without the compromise. Plus it’s 100% risk free with a no credit-card 14 day free trial.
5. Moz
Moz started as an online community in 2004.
Today, it is a top contender for the best Google ranking software.
Moz Pro also has many features, but of particular interest to me is its on-page optimization, which is unavailable in Ahrefs.
On the Page Optimization section, you can put a URL and insert the keyword you want the page to rank for. This feature works like AI tools to display the current page score and tips to improve the google keyword rankings.
Moz Pro also has a more in-depth Page Optimization report accessible from the Tracked Keywords Overview in the Rankings section.
Other notable features
- Link Profiler is the main feature, and it gives detailed information about your website.
- Fresh Web Explorer feature search for recent mentions of your organization and content.
- Its Keyword Rank Checker goes in-depth to deliver specific keyword performance.
- Keywords Explorer is the most powerful tool on the Moz platform. It gives you metrics like search volume, difficulty level, and click-through rates. It also generates new keywords you can use.
Pricing
Moz’s pricing starts at $99 for the most basic plans. However, you can get more value with the higher plans.
💬 The bottom line
Moz is a highly impressive tool that offers many features to rank higher on search engines.
It’s not as powerful as Ahrefs and SEMRush, but can be a decent alternative.
6. Ubersuggest
Ubersuggest is owned by Neil Patel and he’s done an excellent job of improving the tool.
Its main feature is keyword research.
Just insert the keywords and location in the bars under the Keyword Overview section. Ubersuggest will list some key insights immediately. This feature works better because you can use it directly for competitor analysis.
I find some of the features here quite similar to Moz Domain Authority.
Then, it will suggest relevant long-tail keywords with vital details like search volume, CPC, and difficulty.
💡 Pro tip: Note that metrics used by these tools, such as “Keyword Difficulty” for Ahrefs, “SEO difficulty” for Ubersuggest, etc are all just estimated parameters by the tools.
They are a good, interchangeable benchmark to make your content decisions on, but what should matter first is whether the content is relevant for your customers/audience.
And like BuzzSumo, there is Content Ideas, a list of pages already ranking on the keyword.
Other notable features
- Site Audit analyzes your entire domain and gives suggestions to improve your ranking.
- Traffic Analyzer lets you see your competitors’ activities.
- You can get backlinking information from the Backlinks section.
- I also love the Dashboard feature, which allows you to run and track projects from a single place.
Pricing
Ubersuggest has an exciting pricing offer. You can either pay between $12 and $40/month or save as much as 90% when you pay for the lifetime offer.
💬 The bottom line
This is an overall decent tool that does the basics. While I would recommend it to anyone on a budget who wants quality insights, I do think that other tools like Semrush, Ahrefs and SE Ranking just do much better.
7. Screaming Frog (Best for Technical SEO)
Screaming Frog is another popular tool that can help you improve your position on search engines.
Arguably, it’s one of the best tools that allow you to do a complete technical audit on your site.
Although it has several features I love – the Screaming Frog SEO Spider Tool is the one that I find most useful.
You can use this tool for Google-type website crawling to detect issues like broken links, javascript issues, HTTP, and HTML errors.
For example, its Find Broken Links feature lets you detect broken links on your website.
Simply insert the link in the space provided to crawl the website.
Then, go to the Response Codes tab and select Client Error in the filters.
Other notable features
- Duplicate content can hurt your Google keyword ranking, and you can trust Screaming Frog to identify this.
- Audit scheduling helps to program audits and produce reports through popular formats.
- Do you have faulty, duplicate, or missing page titles and meta descriptions? Screaming Frog can analyze your URLs to correct errors.
Pricing
The pricing for Screaming Frog SEO Spider is pretty affordable, coming to £149/year. But you can use the tool for free to crawl websites with <500 links.
💬 The bottom line
Screaming Frog is THE tool you need for anything to do with technical SEO. It’s extremely useful for technical fixes which can play a big part in your site’s ability to rank. Of course – it is naturally limited when it comes to other parts of SEO like link building, competitor analysis, keyword research etc.
You should still use this tool regardless, but don’t count on it as the only tool you need.
8. WooRank
WooRank’s tool and browser extension analyze on-page and off-page SEO with specific solutions to improve them.
Just get on the site and click on the button.
WooRank will analyze the page’s primary data, like title tags and mobile optimization. This also works for competitor analysis.
You can also sort based on the performance of page components. For instance, selecting Errors displays page issues with solutions to correct them.
Other notable features
- Keyword Tool to research relevant SEO keywords to rank for.
- Check out multiple competitors’ strategies with the Competitors feature.
- Digital marketing tools to enhance your marketing strategies with key insights.
Pricing
WooRank’s pricing is divided into Pro at $79.99/month, Premium at $199.99/month, and Enterprise for large teams.
💬 The bottom line
WooRank surprised me. It’s a pretty decent tool that provides valuable data on your website, pages, and competitors from within your browser.
However, for the price – you definitely get more bang for buck with other tools without the limitations of WooRank.
9. Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a free tool that gives you all the information you need about your website. I’m adding this to the list because this should be your first data source to see how your site is perfoming when it comes to traffic.
The dashboard combines details like traffic, bounce rate, visitors, and sessions to glance at your website’s performance.
And you can dive into the specific data to understand your audience behavior, traffic acquisition source, any CTAs conversion, top pages, etc.
It’s also a must for local SEO. All these insights allow you to improve your page, target your audience better, and rank higher.
Other notable features
- Behavior reveals important patterns for understanding how you generate traffic. It contains information like how many new and recurring visitors you’re getting. Demographics will go further to detail their journeys on your site.
- Demographics shows where your visitors live and the languages they speak.
- Acquisitions allow me to see where my traffic source is coming from.
Technology is another section I love because it shows the devices they visit your website with. This lets you better optimize your content for the devices that matter most.
💬 The bottom line
Google Analytics can present some unique ranking opportunities for site owners, and is the most accurate source of data when compared to the other tools on the list. Especially when used with other free SEO tools, like the Google Search Console and Google PageSpeed.
It obviously lacks the sophistication of other keyword ranking tools, which makes sense as it only allows you to delve into the data of your own site. But again, this should be one of the many tools in your arsenal when it comes to helping your site rank.
In a nutshell…
Gone are the days when Google ranking factors used to be a mysterious affair. Although no magic button can take you to the top of search engines, you can get marked improvements by putting the right strategies in place.
And that is where Google ranking software comes in. By supplying you insights, testing existing methods, tracking performance, and correcting errors, you can make helpful adjustments that rank your pages higher.
Above are the best ranking tools that can help you get the job done – unfortunately there is no tool on the market that can do it all. You absolutely need different tools for different purposes, and hopefully I’ve given you a decent list to start off with.
Now of course, the ultimate aim is to create better content that helps visitors. So as long as your customers are at the forefront of your strategy – with the right tools and execution, ranking should be a question of when, rather than if.
But if you don’t want to go through all that trouble – you can always hire content marketing consultants like me to help!
What other tools have I missed?
Good Luck!
