It may be time-consuming that earn your black belt in SEO, but trust us – it’s worth the effort. And with so many options out there for the best SEO tools, it can be challenging to know where to start.
SEO should be a top priority if you’re serious about digital marketing and growing your online presence. A strong SEO strategy can mean the difference between your website being buried on the 10th page of Google search results and being at the top of the first page.
But let’s face it, mastering SEO can be an overwhelming task – there are so many tools and resources out there, not to mention constantly changing algorithms to keep up with.
That’s why we’ve gone ahead and tested them for you. Our top picks? Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Surfer SEO all make the cut as essential tools for any digital marketer looking to step up their search engine game. Ultimately, investing in one (or all) of these fine-tuned tools can significantly impact your SEO game this year.
SurferSEO
SurferSEO is like the Swiss Army knife of SEO tools. Not only does it have everything you need for keyword research and technical website audits, but it’s also got a content planner feature to help organize your strategy. In other words, SurferSEO covers all the bases so you can focus on what really matters: boosting your rankings on Google. And let’s face it – who doesn’t want to be on the first page of search results? SurferSEO is the perfect tool to help you get there. So why waste time with other less comprehensive tools? SurferSEO has it all. Time to ride the wave of success and give SurferSEO a try.
KEY FEATURES
Content Editor
Surfer SEO is taking content optimization to the next level. Gone are the days of simply counting the number of times a keyword appears on a page – Surfer is leveraging AI technology to measure the prominence of each word on your competitor’s pages, giving you the most accurate and competitive guidelines for your content. And don’t worry about manually analyzing all that data – Surfer’s instant content score gives you immediate feedback so you can make necessary revisions and see results quickly. So why stick with old-school keyword density tactics when Surfer SEO offers cutting-edge AI technology? Upgrade your content game with Surfer SEO.
Audit Tool
Let’s face it, optimizing your website can be a pain in the butt. But thanks to the audit tool of Surfer, all that stress and frustration is a thing of the past. This tool scans your website with just a few clicks and gives you valuable insights on everything from LSI keywords to image and heading usage. It also checks page load time and suggests ways to improve it. And let’s not forget about those oh-so-important meta titles and descriptions – the audit tool has got those covered too. So why suffer countless hours of trial-and-error optimization when the audit tool can do it for you? Make life easier and give Surfer’s audit tool a try. Trust me, you won’t regret it.
SERP Analyzer
If you want to stay on top of the search engine game, you need to understand what’s affecting your keyword rankings. And let’s be honest, who has time to manually audit hundreds of potential ranking factors? Enter Surfer SEO’s SERP Analyzer, an audit tool like no other. With just a few clicks, this tool clarifies the impact of various ranking factors on your chosen keyword post. And the best part? The results are presented in easy-to-understand charts, so you don’t have to be a data nerd to get in on the action.
Content Planner
The Surfer SEO Content Planner is more than just a keyword tool – it’s a game changer for your website’s content strategy. Not only does it give you a grouping of keywords to target, but it also classifies the type of content each keyword would pair well with. No more guessing whether you should be writing a blog post or creating an infographic – the content planner will tell you exactly what your audience is looking for. And what sets this tool apart is its audit feature, which scans your website and will identify any missing opportunities for enhancing your SEO strategy. So why waste time trying to develop content ideas when the Surfer SEO Content Planner can do it all for you? Invest in this valuable tool and see your search rankings soar.
Grow Flow
Surfer SEO’s newest audit tool! This freemium feature offers easy-to-follow suggestions for adding keywords to existing pages and uncovering untapped internal linking opportunities. It even provides recommendations for potential topics to target in your content creation efforts, helping you build out your site’s topical authority.
What I Dislike
- Workflow management is confusing for new users.
- The free version provides very minimal functionality.
- If you have a large website or multiple projects, the limits on the basic pricing plan will fill up quickly.
GrowthBar
GrowthBar is one of the market’s simplest, most user-friendly SEO tools. With just a few clicks, you can access millions of keyword results, analyze your competition’s backlinks, check out Google Ads data, and even generate blog content. Stop struggling with complicated tools and upgrade to GrowthBar for an easy and stress-free SEO experience.
GrowthBar utilizes Open AI, the most sophisticated language model ever to grace the tech world. In other words, this thing is more intelligent than Einstein, asks fewer questions than Alexa, and has all the sleekness of a Tesla. And, best of all, it’s totally intuitive.
Its simple user interface and robust data sets make it a favorite among startups and freelancers. But even bigger companies like Minted, MagicJack, and Square have succeeded with this tool. So whether you’re Peach Blossom Village or Empire City (or somewhere in between), GrowthBar can take your business to the next level.
GrowthBar Chrome extension allows you to get all your SEO insights without leaving your current webpage. No more endless scrolling through search engine results pages – all the information you need is just a click away.
KEY FEATURES
- It’s free for 5 days.
- With just one click, you can create SEO-optimized blog outlines that are complete with proper keywords, word count, headlines, and readability.
- Improve your website with GrowthBar’s artificial intelligence that creates meta descriptions, blog ideas, and quick paragraphs.
- Keep an eye on your–or your client’s–keyword ranking performance in beautiful, easy-to-use dashboards.
- With Keyword Tool, you can get an extensive amount of keyword ideas, search volume data, estimated traffic statistics, and competitiveness scores.
What I Dislike
- It could be better with an SEO audit feature.
- Technical SEO metrics are missing, and this is very crucial for SEO. So, it’s not a one-stop solution.
- GrowthBar is only suitable for basic SEO projects.
- The keyword suggestion list misses difficulty scores.
SEMrush
SEMrush has been around for over a decade and is one of the go-to tools in the industry. This comprehensive platform offers everything from keyword research to technical SEO audits, competitor analysis, and link-building opportunities. And with its easy-to-navigate interface and customizable dashboards, it’s perfect for both beginners and seasoned pros.
KEY FEATURES
- Organic traffic metrics both for you or for your competitors like country-specific traffic history, and organic keywords.
- Detail backlink analysis tool with authority score, backlink counts, root domains, and new and lost backlinks.
- Referring to domain categories to better understand backlinks’ topical relevancy.
- PPC in-depth analysis with Advertising Research feature. You can see your competitor’s ad copies as well.
- With the traffic analysis feature, you can get ideas about bounce rates, page-level traffic details, and a lot more.
Best Use Cases
- Finding low competitive keywords to rank easily
- Finding great backlink opportunities
- Perfect PPC campaigns from competitors’ data
- Finding out competitors’ best and worst points to improve your own website.
- Keyword rank tracking to focus more when necessary
- Technical SEO audit to fix the website and welcome more traffic from search engines.
What I Dislike
- New users might get confused while using it as it is robust software with lots of options. I would suggest watching some tutorial videos before using them.
- Price is not friendly for small business owners.
- Inaccurate backlink and advertisement data.
Ahrefs
If you’re serious about SEO, you need Ahrefs. It’s the industry standard for competitive analysis, backlink audits, and URL rankings. And it’s used by some of the biggest names in the business, including Canva, and HubSpot.
But Ahrefs is more than just an SEO tool. It’s also a powerful keyword research tool that can help you uncover long-tail keywords and get insights into how your competitors are ranking for them.
And if you’re looking for creative inspiration, Ahrefs can help with that too. Just enter a competitor’s URL into the Site Explorer tool and see what content is performing well for them. Then create something even better!
KEY FEATURES
- Ahrefs generates millions of keywords on a single research query, so you can be sure you’re getting the most accurate and up-to-date information possible. And their tools are really easy to use, so you’ll be able to get the most out of your research in no time.
- With Ranking History, you can see how your keywords have performed on any page of your website, so you can identify which ones are working and which ones need more work.
- With Content Explorer, you can search our database of more than 1 billion web pages to find the content you’re looking for. Plus, you can filter your results by things like language, country, and topic to make your search even more targeted.
- 2nd position in case of database
Best Use Case
- Finding low-difficult keywords
- Content gap analysis to rank for more keywords
- Deep backlink analysis to increase relevant backlink count
- Finding the best guest post opportunities
- one-stop tool for sky scrapper backlink technique
Cons
- The price is very high. Not for small business owners anymore.
Mangools
Mangools is an all-in-one SEO toolkit. But what really sets Mangools apart from the competition is its affordability. Unlike Moz, SEMrush, and Ahrefs, Mangools offers premium features even in its most basic plan – starting at just $30 per month. And while other expensive SEO tools limit their features for those on a budget, Mangools doesn’t skimp on any of its offerings. So why pay top dollar for limited access, when Mangools gives you everything you need at a fraction of the cost?
Key Features
KWFinder: KWFinder provides hundreds of suggestions for every search, making it easy for you to find just the right one for your needs. And not only does it offer a vast array of options, but it also allows you to analyze and compare each keyword’s search volume and competition level.
SERPChecker: With just a few clicks, you can see what sites are ranking for your target keywords in multiple locations across the globe. And if you’re wondering how your website performs on mobile devices, fear not – SERPChecker has got you covered with mobile rankings as well.
SERPWatcher:
- The ability to track rankings for keywords
- The ability to track rankings on desktop and mobile devices
- A historical ranking graph so you can track your progress over time
- An alerts system so you can be notified when there is a change in your ranking
LinkMiner:
- View a list of backlinks for any URL
- Analyze the backlink profile of any URL
- Find link-building opportunities for your website
- Analyze backlink profiles of competitors
- Find link-building opportunities
SiteProfiler:
SiteProfiler offers users the ability to see how their website ranks among their competitors, as well as detailed information about their competitor’s website traffic and backlinks.
Best Use Case
- Finding low-hanging keywords
- Finding new keywords like questions and autocomplete
- Finding competitor’s best keywords to rank for your website
- Rank tracking and alerts
Cons
- there is no top-level dashboard for easy navigation and understanding
- The database is not that rich it is hard to get a proper idea about competitors.
SpyFu
SpyFu is a comprehensive backlink analysis and domain analysis tool that can help your business focus on the core metrics that will get you onto page one of Google search results pages. It does a great job with domain and keyword analysis, but it holds its own as a backlink analysis tool, too. SpyFu is a great option for smaller businesses that want to focus on the core metrics that will get them onto page one of Google search results pages at a very reasonable price.
This tool offers an in-depth look at the domain and keyword analysis without overwhelming you with excessive information. It’s perfect for small businesses that want to focus on getting to page one of Google and for bigger brands that want a snapshot of competitor activity. And let’s not forget about SpyFu’s historical data feature – because as we all know, history has a way of repeating itself in the world of search engine optimization. The bottom line, SpyFu is a valuable addition to any marketer’s toolbox.
Key Features
Domain Overview:
When it comes to analyzing your competitor’s SEO and PPC strategies, the SpyFu domain overview is your trusty sidekick. Simply enter a domain name in the search bar and SpyFu will report back on everything from the number of keywords they currently rank for, to their biggest competitors. The recent keywords that have dropped off page one of Google provide insights into changes in their strategy, while the inbound links showcase any partnerships or collaborations they may have formed. It’s all there at your fingertips on the SpyFu domain overview screen – so what are you waiting for? Start digging into that data and stay a step ahead of your competitors.
Keyword analysis
SpyFu’s keyword research tool is a powerhouse, and it offers some unique features that make it stand out amongst the competition. The inclusion of historical data for all subscription plans is a major bonus—after all, the world of SEO rankings is always in flux, so getting a longer-term perspective is essential. Plus, with the added filters to view only those keywords that have recently increased or decreased in ranking, you’ll have all the ammo you need to stay on top of your SEO game. In other words, SpyFu’s keyword analysis tool is pretty darn impressive.
Backlinks analysis
While this platform has historically been known for its keyword and competitor analysis capabilities, it also contains highly effective backlink analysis tools. The process is simple and intuitive, making it easy to import links and compare them against competitors. Plus, there’s a handy feature that extracts contact details for targeted sites, so you can focus on building those valuable links instead of searching for email addresses. So say goodbye to messy spreadsheets and hello to efficient backlinks analysis with SpyFu.
Best Use Case
- Best to spy on your competitors
- Influencer marketing which other tools will not give you details
- Keywords tracking, backlink analysis, and other generic SEO tasks
- Keyword grouping definitely a good option while writing content.
Cons
- Some features, like the AdWords history, are only available for higher-tier subscriptions.
- The interface can be a bit cluttered and overwhelming for those new to SEO. However, there is an extensive help section and tutorials available to ease the learning curve.