13 Best Free and Freemium Keyword Rank Checking Tools – Tested & Evaluated by an SEO Expert with 13 Years of Experience

So, it looks like you’re tired of collecting keyword positions from the GSC every week and putting them into Google Sheets. Now you’ve decided to find a tool that automatically tracks your website’s visibility for relevant keywords without breaking your bank account. You’ve come to the right place. For this article, I reviewed 13 website rank-tracking tools with a free and freemium payment model. Have fun learning!

Why Are Google Search Console, Ahrefs, and SEMrush No Good for Tracking Positions?

As a rule, people look for a ranking tool in two cases: to check the positions of their site or a competitor’s site, or to regularly monitor their website’s visibility.

In the first case, you will be fine with free online checkers without a personal account. That’s why I’ve added some to my list.

In the second case, you need a tool that saves the keyword position history, which allows you to control your organic traffic and plan new SEO experiments. Google Search Console would be a good tool for this, but there is no way to group keywords. Plus, if you have more than 100 pages, you have to jump around from tab to tab to see what’s going on.

Most SEO tools, like Ahrefs and Semrush, have included a position tracker in their core package. Sure, they’re awesome, but you don’t always need all of their features every month (and pay at least $100 per month); however, position tracking needs to be done continuously several times a week. That’s why it makes sense to use a separate tool for position tracking.  Tools with a freemium subscription model, providing you with position monitoring history and keyword clustering, and which are suitable for monitoring positions on small projects.

My Quick Suggestions for Free Keyword Rank Checkers

If you’re on a tight schedule and don’t have time to read this full, detailed guide, check out my suggested keyword rank checkers for different setups:

  • JaySearch — free daily rank tracker based on Google Search Console API
  • SEO PowerSuite — for those who need offline website ranking reports on desktop (Windows, Linux, Mac)
  • Whatsmyserp — for those who need quick SERP research for customized devices and locations

How I Tested Every Rank Checker

I didn’t reinvent anything: I just downloaded the tools or registered in them (in the case of online products), went through all the stages of standard SEO tasks, and compared the accurate keyword positions with what each tool displayed.

I reviewed each tool from the perspective of typical SEO specialist user cases, such as quick keyword checking, monitoring keyword positions by day, tracking and comparing positions with competitors, and grouping keywords by segment. Furthermore, I also considered the service’s usability, KW checking speed, and consistency with Google Search Console data for my site. Specifically, I looked at how the positions of jayserch.com keywords coincided with GSC data.

Keywords for Ranking Accuracy Comparison
Keyword Volume GSC Position*
seo portfolio examples 30 1
seo portfolio 80 3.2 → 3.0
content marketing portfolio 50 3.3 → 3.0
content marketing portfolio examples 20 3.8 → 4.0
pillar page examples 250 52.1 → 52.0
pillar page 800 90.3 → 90.0
seo audit template 350 83.4 → 83.0
seo audit example 70 55.1 → 55.0
keyword mapping template 100 84.9 → 85.0
content map template 200 38.6 → 39.0

* GSC positions can be expressed in decimal numbers, so we rounded them up to whole numbers to be able to compare them with other checkers

In the following table, you can see the characteristics of each product according to the following parameters:

  • Version (web or desktop). Desktop software is more suited for individuals. It’s impractical for a team to use. Free and freemium online applications are usually very limited in features and capacity. They are suitable for small projects and tests before switching to the pro version.
  • Search results scanning depth. An indicator that shows how many search engine results the tool can scan to find your website. As a rule, the tools may scan the first 10, 50 or 100 search results. A high search results scanning depth (top 50 or top 100) is needed for new websites when you need to monitor them to grow.
  • Personal account. Necessary for saving position history. A must-have for long-term projects where you need to track your site’s rank every week.
  • Limits per day and month. Choose services with the highest possible limits. There is no sense using a service that tracks 10 keywords a day – it’s better to take data from the Google Console and, if necessary, save it to Google Sheets.
  • Geo settings. This parameter shows whether keyword positions can be tracked by country, city, or even street. If you are promoting magazines, SaaS businesses, or services across the country, the country-specific geo setting is sufficient. If you are dealing with local SEO, the service should check the keywords within the city and even the district (street).
  • Keyword clustering. This is a valuable feature that allows you to categorize queries into groups to track your site’s ranking in important segments. If your site has more than 100 pages, this feature is a necessity.
  • How much paid options start at. This is essential if you want to upgrade from the freemium version to a more feature-rich plan or more capacity.
  • Tracking accuracy. I compare how different the positions that were shown by the service are from the data from the GSC.

But before I begin, here is a brief informational rundown on a key concept in my review.

What Is Meant by Tracking Accuracy and How I Calculated It

Simply put, the tracking accuracy is a measure of the overlap of the data with the actual search results. Since GSC is widely considered to be the benchmark for accuracy of ranking data, I proceeded from its data.

Here’s how I calculated it:

Tracking Accuracy

where a – the position of the GSC; b – the other instrument position.

But how did I determine what the acceptable accuracy was? I did the calculations, and I determined that an accuracy of under 60% is low, 60% to 79% is medium, 80% to 89% is good, and over 90% is excellent.

13 Best Free and Freemium Keyword Rank Checking Tools
Keyword Rank Checker Key Features Accuracy and User Case
1. JaySearch — Free GSC-Based Tracker With Daily Position Updates

Online, Free

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 100+
  • Geo range: choice of country
  • Keyword clustering: Yes
  • Limits per month: unlimited
  • Paid options are not provided
Project monitoring with Google Search Console data

Tracking accuracy: 100%

2. SEO PowerSuite — Offline Reports on Desktop (Windows, Linux, Mac)

Desktop, Freemium

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 50
  • Geo range: choice of country
  • Keyword clustering: Yes
  • Limits per month: unlimited
  • Paid options start from $25
Regular monitoring of a large project by one person (without a team)

Tracking accuracy: 64%

3. Whatsmyserp — Tracking Top Competitors in Search Results

Online, Freemium

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 100
  • Geo range: choice of country, region, or city
  • Keyword clustering: No
  • Keyword tracking limit per month: 300
  • Paid options start from $4.99
Quick keyword recurrence for customized devices and locations

Tracking accuracy: 82%

4. Serprobot — Checking an Entire Cluster of Keywords

Online, Freemium

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 100
  • Geo range: choice of country
  • Keyword clustering: No
  • Keyword tracking limit per month: 1500
  • Paid options start from $4.99
Making a content plan and a one-time test of a cluster of key queries

Tracking accuracy: 86%

5. Seobase — Regular Website Ranking Monitoring

Online, Freemium

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 100
  • Geo range: choice of country
  • Keyword clustering: Yes
  • Keyword tracking limit per month: 10
  • Paid options start from $4.99
Monitoring data of dates and analyzing how your website’s metrics change over time

Tracking accuracy: 79%

6. SEOwl — Multilingual Position Checking

Online, Freemium

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 100
  • Geo range: choice of country and language
  • Keyword clustering: No
  • Keyword tracking limit per month: unlimited
  • Paid options start from $25
Working in/with multilingual countries

Tracking accuracy: 77%

7. Search Engine Reports — Monitoring Positions Simultaneously With Competitors

Online, Free

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 100
  • Geo range: 23 countries
  • Keyword clustering: No
  • Keyword tracking limit per month: No
  • Paid options are not provided
Conducting self or competitive keyword position analysis

Tracking accuracy: 83%

8. The HOTH — Detecting Your Top 100 Keywords in Google

Online, Free

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 100
  • Geo range: 4 countries
  • Keyword clustering: No
  • Keyword tracking limit per month: No
  • Paid options are not provided
Checking your top 100 keywords with their traffic and comparing results

Tracking accuracy: 75%

9. Small SEO Tools — Checking the Position Trends of 10 Keywords

Online, Free

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 10
  • Geo range: choice of country
  • Keyword clustering: No
  • Keyword tracking limit per month: No
  • Paid options are not provided
Tiny websites where you have limited keywords to track

Tracking accuracy: 71%

10. Keyword Tools by Seobility — Previewing the Top 100 Positions in Search Results

Online, Free

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 100
  • Geo range: USA and Germany
  • Keyword clustering: No
  • Keyword tracking limit per day: 5
  • Paid options are not provided
Assessing the competition for the targeted keyword

Tracking accuracy: 74%

11. Dopinger — Tracking Position Changes Over Time

Online, Free

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 100
  • Geo range: USA and Germany
  • Keyword clustering: No
  • Keyword tracking limit per day: not provided
  • Paid options are not provided
If you don’t have specific keywords to check and want to understand what keywords you are ranking for

Tracking accuracy: 62%

12. Ahrefs Free Rank Checker — Detailed SEO Stats for Top 5 Search Results

Online, Free

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 100
  • Geo range: choice of country
  • Keyword clustering: No
  • Keyword tracking limit per day: unlimited
  • Paid options are not provided
Checking not only keyword positions, but SERP overview as well

Tracking accuracy: 85%

13. SEO Review Tools — Analysis of the Top 10 Sites in Google Search Results

Online, Free

  • Search results scanning depth: Top 10
  • Geo range: choice of country
  • Keyword clustering: No
  • Keyword tracking limit per day: unlimited
  • Paid options are not provided
Checking backlinks, traffic and auditing for each competitor in top 10 results

Tracking accuracy: 85%

And now let’s discuss each rank checker in more detail, including its features and a guide on how to use it.

1. JaySearch — Free GSC-Based Tracker With Daily Position Updates

Version: Online

Personal Account: Yes

Search Engines Tracked: Google

SERP Tracking: Unlimited

Search results scanning depth: Top 100+

Competitors Analysis: No

Payment Model: Free

Paid Options: Not Provided

JaySearch
With JaySearch, you can get the most accurate data on your website positions with the GSC integration

JaySearch is a new tool for checking website positions, developed on the Google Search Console basis. This allows you to get the most accurate data on the rendition and positions of pages and individual search queries, as well as allows you to monitor the data obtained and determine the effectiveness of your SEO work.

In addition to the standard set of options, such as checking traffic, positions and special reports, this tool also offers an additional AI tool called SEO Insights. By using it, you can supplement your pages with relevant keys for better rankings and build up extra clusters, which you can later organize into special reports. It will also help you understand which pages need SEO improvement and why.

Why Use JaySearch?

JaySearch will help you perform a number of crucial SEO tasks at once, such as monitoring site positions and individual keywords, and maintaining regular reports. It will become your indispensable assistant, since it has:

  • GSC-based data;
  • daily position updates;
  • keyword position history;
  • personal account;
  • SEO Insights tool — it allows you to search for long-tail keywords as well as prospective keywords (with position 5-20, but with clicks and impressions).

And all of these goodies are completely free!

JaySearch’s Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position JaySearch Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 2 0
content marketing portfolio 3 3 0
content marketing portfolio examples 4 4 0
pillar page examples 52 52 0
pillar page 50 50 0
seo audit template 83 83 0
seo audit example 55 55 0
keyword mapping template 85 85 0
content map template 39 39 0
Average tracking accuracy: Medium (100%)

How to Use JaySearch

There are two ways to use this service for position checking:

  • by URL;
  • by a certain keyword.

Below I will describe each of them in more detail.

Method 1: Tracking Positions by URL

With JaySearch, you can easily monitor the performance of every article on your site. Now I will show you how.

Step 1: Click on Pages and enter the needed URL in the input box. It doesn’t have to be the full link address, you can choose the “contains” option for example, then you will get more variations.

Click on Pages and enter the needed URL

Step 2: Look at the keywords for which the page is given out, as well as how the positions for these keywords have changed over a certain period of time.

Look at the keywords for which the page is given out

Step 3: Hover over the specific date on the graph to see what position, CTR, clicks and impressions the page had on that day.

Hover over the specific date on the graph

Step 4: Click on the + by the needed keywords, they will appear on the clipboard to the left of the main chart. Next, click on the Create new report button.

Click on the + by the needed keywords

Step 5: Next, name the report and select how often you want to record changes in keyword positions.

Name the report and select how often you want to record changes

Step 6: Use this report to quickly track positions for the needed queries. For example, I create reports for important articles on my site to monitor changes in positions and promptly solve problems with the page’s performance in Google.

Use this report to quickly track positions for the needed queries

Method 2: Tracking Positions by Keywords

Now let’s look at how you can check out the site’s position for the keyword you’re interested in.

Step 1: Click on Keywords and enter your query in the input field. It doesn’t have to be the exact keyword, you can choose, for example, the “contains” parameter, then you can get more variations.

Click on Keywords and enter your query in the input field

Step 2: In the “Pages” tab, the tool will show you all the pages on the site that are given for the given keyword and its position on each page. In the “Keywords” tab, you can see the different variations of the keyword and the pages to which they apply.

In the "Pages" tab, the tool will show you all the pages on the site that are given for the given keyword

Best for: Project monitoring with Google Search Console data

2. SEO PowerSuite — Offline Reports on Desktop (Windows, Linux, Mac)

Version: Desktop Software

Personal Account: Yes

Search Engines Tracked: Google, Bing, Yahoo, Naver, Baidoo, Yandex

SERP Tracking: up to 500 URLs per day

Search results scanning depth: Top 50

Competitors Analysis: Yes

Payment Model: Freemium

Paid Options: start from $299 per year

SEO PowerSuite
Rank Checker seamlessly integrates with other SEO PowerSuite tools, such as Website Auditor, SEO SpyGlass, and LinkAssistant

The freemium model will be enough for those who need the basic functionality of the tool. It offers a fairly wide range of features compared to the competitors. For example, even with the free version of Rank Tracker, you can scan the top 10, top 50, or even top 1,000 search results, track global and local keyword rankings, get positions in Google SERPs, or check any alternative search engine ranking.

SEO PowerSuite’s Rank Tracker is desktop software, which means you download it to your personal computer and can use it even without constant Internet access. When you install SEO PowerSuite, it offers to install other products as well (except the Rank Tracker): WebSite Auditor, SEO SpyGlass, and LinkAssistant.

Why Use SEO PowerSuite?

Rank Tracker is suitable for all types of professional SEO tasks. You can:

  1. Track ranks without any keyword limits,
  2. Check positions in desktop and mobile SERPs,
  3. Do keyword research,
  4. Analyze competitors’ keywords and traffic.

This keyword ranking tool is a great way to check the potential of your keywords and prioritize the right ones. It helps you decide which keywords are easier to rank for.

SEO PowerSuite’s Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position SEO PowerSuite Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 2 33
content marketing portfolio 3 3 0
content marketing portfolio examples 4 3 25
pillar page examples 52 88 69
pillar page 50 Not found in top Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 Not found in top 50 Checking is not possible
seo audit example 55 72 30
keyword mapping template 85 Not found in top 50 Checking is not possible
content map template 39 Not found in top 50 Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: Medium (64%)

How to Use SEO PowerSuite

So, you have already gathered a list of keywords that you need to know the positions of. How can you do this with SEO PowerSuite? Follow these simple steps:

Step 1: Install the software on your computer.

Step 2: Choose your site. Enter the site you are going to work with further.

Choose your site

Step 3: Select your target search engines Go to Preferences > Preferred Search Engines and select your target search engines from the list of over 570 supported.

Select your target search engines

Step 4: Specify your target location. In Preferences > Preferred Search Engines, click the Add Custom button next to one of your target search engines. You’ll see an advanced settings window where you can set a variety of language and location preferences.

Specify your target location

Step 5: Decide on your landing pages. In Rank Tracker, select the keyword(s) for which you’re optimizing a particular page, right-click on the selection, and click Assign selected keyword(s) to landing page.

Step 6: Set up SERP history tracking. In Rank Tracker, go to Preferences > Rank Checking Mode and make sure the Track organic results only box is unchecked and the Track multiple results for keyword box is checked. Once you’ve done this, SERP features will be tracked along with regular organic results every time you check rankings.

Set up SERP history tracking

Step 7: Add competitor sites. Specify the URLs of your competitors. Go to Preferences > Competitors in Rank Tracker, press to add a competitor, and fill in the competitor’s details.

Step 8: Check your rankings. In your Rank Tracker workspace, click Check Rankings to update your site’s positions in your target search engines. If you’ve checked your positions more than once, you’ll see a Difference value calculated to reflect your ranking progress.

Check your rankings

If you need a more detailed demonstration of this tool’s functionality, I suggest you watch the video below. In it, Mary from SEO PowerSuite explains and shows you all the ins and outs of this software so you can get the most out of it.

Best for: Regular monitoring of a large project

3. Whatsmyserp — Quick Search Results in Any Location

Version: Online

Personal Account: No

Search Engines Tracked: Google

SERP Tracking: up to 10 per day

Search results scanning depth: Top 100

Competitors Analysis: No

Payment Model: Freemium

Paid Options: start from $4.99 per month

Whatsmyserp
WMS also supports local SEO, allowing you to search from a specific location

The Whatsmyserp SERP Checker is also a freemium product, but unlike SEO PowerSuite, its functionality is much lower. So, with its assistance, you can use a keyword to determine the top 100 in Google search results.

WMS (Whatsmyserp) also offers a free browser extension, which is an easy-to-use tool for discovering search volume, cost per click, and related phrases in Google search results.

Why Use Whatsmysep?

The combination of these free products makes it a great option for someone who is searching for a niche for their new product and needs a quick competitor analysis.

You can also choose the types of devices when checking your site (by the way, the results can really vary) and the exact location, which is especially important for small businesses.

Whatsmysep’s Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position WMS Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 2 33
content marketing portfolio 3 3 0
content marketing portfolio examples 4 3 25
pillar page examples 52 40 23
pillar page 90 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 66 20
seo audit example 55 32 41
keyword mapping template 85 92 8
content map template 39 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: Good (82%)

How to Use Whatsmysep

Since the free version is quite sparse in functionality, it is also relatively easy to use.

Step 1: Type your keyword, then select your device type and country (or a specific location).

Write your keyword and select your device

Step 2: Look up the top 100 listings on Google and find your URL if necessary. That’s it!

Look up the top 100 listings on Google

Best for: Quick keyword recurrence for customized devices and locations

4. Serprobot — Checking an Entire Cluster of Keywords

Version: Online

Personal Account: Yes

Search Engines Tracked: Google

SERP Tracking: up to 5 trackings per day

Search results scanning depth: Top 100

Competitors Analysis: Yes

Payment Model: Freemium

Paid Options: start from $4.99 per month

Serprobot
Serprobot gets right to the point with just three elements in the tool: the region menu, the domain field, and the keyword fields

What sets Serprobot’s free SERP checker apart is its accessibility, as users can access the tool without creating an account or downloading any software. However, as a free tool, it does have some limitations, such as allowing users to perform only 5 searches per day.

Like Whatsmyserp, the free checker does not require registration, but it offers more functionality. So, you can get more detailed data on each of the 10 added keywords, namely your keyword position and the top 10 competitors from Google.

Why Use Serprobot?

The awesome part about this tool is that you can get data based on both URLs and keywords. This provides the most complete picture of how your resource appears in the search engine.

Serprobot’s Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position Seorobot Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 2 37
content marketing portfolio 3 3 0
content marketing portfolio examples 4 4 0
pillar page examples 52 41 21
pillar page 90 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 66 20
seo audit example 55 35 36
keyword mapping template 85 86 1
content map template 39 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: good (86%)

How to Use Serprobot

Step 1: Select the Google region within which you would like to do the check, and your type of device.

Step 2: Enter the domain name you want to search for — not including http:// and www.

Enter the domain name

Step 3: Enter up to 10 keywords. These are the exact terms you want to check your rank for.

Enter up to 10 keywords

Step 4: Wait for your rankings to be displayed. (This can take a few minutes at very busy times).

In order to get the most unbiased search ranking results when manually checking against our results, we recommend you:

  • Use an incognito/private window in your browser,
  • Sign out of all Google accounts,
  • Clear your browser cache to remove all cookies,
  • Consider using a proxy or VPN if you need to change your IP location.

Wait for your rankings to be displayed

If you do decide to buy the paid version of this product, we recommend that you watch the video below. It tells about the Serprobot’s full functionality and demonstrates how to work with it.

Best for: Making a content plan and doing a one-time test of a cluster of key queries

5. Seobase — Regular Website Ranking Monitoring

Version: Online

Search Engines Tracked: Google, Bing, Yandex

SERP Tracking: 30

Personal Account: Yes

Search results scanning depth: Top 100

Competitors Analysis: Yes

Payment Model: Freemium

Paid Options: start from $15.99 per month

Seobase
Seobase can be integrated with other SEO tools and platforms, allowing you to streamline your SEO process and get a holistic view of your SEO performance

Seobase provides accurate, real-time ranking data for your keywords. This means you can track your SEO efforts in real time and adjust your strategy accordingly.

Seobase supports a wide range of search engines, not just Google. This can be particularly useful if your target market uses other search engines like Bing, Yahoo, or even region-specific ones like Baidu or Yandex.

Why Use Seobase?

Here are some reasons why you might consider using Seobase as a rank checker:

  • Seobase allows you to track your competitors’ rankings as well. Knowing where your competitors rank for certain keywords can help you optimize your own SEO strategy.
  • It lets you group related keywords, making it easier to manage and analyze your keyword strategy.
  • Seobase can send you scheduled reports so that you can keep up with your rankings without having to manually check them every time. This can save you a lot of time and allow you to focus on other aspects of your SEO strategy.

Seobase’s Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position Seorobot Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 1 66
content marketing portfolio 3 3 0
content marketing portfolio examples 4 3 25
pillar page examples 52 41 21
pillar page 90 Not found Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 91 9
seo audit example 55 41 26
keyword mapping template 85 Not found Checking is not possible
content map template 35 Not found Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: Medium (79%)

How to Use Seobase

Step 1: Create your project. Seobase offers you two ways to create a project: importing data from GSC, or manually adding project data.

Create your project

I chose the second option just as an experiment.

Step 2: Enter your project details.

Enter your project details

In the free version, you can select the location and the language, and add your 10 keywords whose positions you want to monitor. If you do not have them, Seobase will offer you the option to pick them from a suggested list.

Keyword Explorer Suggestions

Step 3: Track your keyword positions, traffic and more.

Track your keyword position

Step 4 (optional): If you want to work in more detail with a particular keyword, just click on it. You will be able to track competitors in the top search results, the competitiveness of the query, and changes in its ranking.

Track competitors in the top search results

Best for: Monitoring data of dates and analyzing how your website’s metrics change over time

6. SEOwl — Multilingual Position Checking

Version: Online

Personal Account: No

Search Engines Tracked: Google

SERP Tracking: Unlimited

Search results scanning depth: Top 100

Competitors Analysis: No

Payment Model: Freemium

Paid Options: start from $25

 

SEOwl
This tool queries Google in real time using a mobile device to check the live SERP and display your position. Since search results can be personalized, you may have different results if you do a manual check

This is a simple and uncomplicated rank checker. You fill in the keywords and get the position of your site on them.

To track your rankings automatically every day, SEOwl offers you the option to register a free account (as of June 1, 2023, they do not accept new users).

Why Use SEOwl?

This checker has one distinctive feature: you can choose not only the country, but in some cases the language of keywords in that particular country. This is useful for those who work with multilingual countries.

SEOwl Rank Checker Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position Keyword Tools by Seobility Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 2 33
content marketing portfolio 3 2 33
content marketing portfolio examples 4 3 25
pillar page examples 52 28 46
pillar page 90 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 82 1
seo audit example 55 35 36
keyword mapping template 85 94 10
content map template 35 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: Medium (77%)

How to Use SEOwl Rank Checker

Step 1: Enter the keywords you want to check in the first input (one per line).

Step 2: Enter your website in the second input.

Step 3: Select your Google region for geolocated checking. If you want global results, you can leave it as is.

Select your Google region

Step 4: Click on the “Get positions” button.

Step 5: Wait for your results to appear in the results table.

Wait for your results

Best for: Working in/with multilingual countries

7. Search Engine Reports — Competitors’ Keywords Performance Analysis

Version: Online

Personal Account: No

Search Engines Tracked: Google

SERP Tracking: up to 500 URLs per day

Search results scanning depth: Top 10

Competitors Analysis: No

Payment Model: Free

Paid Options: Not provided

Search Engine Reports
This Google rank checker allows you to check not only your rank, but the rank of any website for any word by merely inserting the relevant keywords and domains

This keyword rank checker by Search Engine Reports allows you to check not only your rank, but the rank of any website for any word by merely inserting the relevant keywords and domains. Use it for conducting self or competitive keyword position analysis. Just place the keywords and domain, and with a single click, you get accurate results.

However, you can check only 5 target keywords. Also, the results are shown only if your website is in the top 10 search results. So, if you’re only just starting your online project, there is no point using this service, because you simply will not see your positions.

Why Use Search Engine Reports?

I recommend this service for two reasons:

  • You can analyze yourself and your competitors based on 5 keywords in parallel.
  • You can choose how to check the ranking depending on your goals: by keywords (if you need to check certain ones) and by URL (if you want to see what words you are ranking for).

Search Engine Reports’ Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position Search Engine Reports Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 1 66
content marketing portfolio 3 3 0
content marketing portfolio examples 4 4 0
pillar page examples 52 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
pillar page 90 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
seo audit example 55 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
keyword mapping template 85 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
content map template 35 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: Good (83%)

How to Use Search Engine Reports

There are two ways to use this service:

  • Checking positions by keywords
  • Determining keywords and their positions

I will describe each of them in more detail.

Method 1

Step 1: Fill in the information about your project: a link to the site + 5 keywords + the required number of competitors.

Fill in the information about your project

Step 2: Check the search engine results.

Check the search engine results

Step 3: Compare your performance with your competitors’.

Compare your performance

Method 2

Step 1: Add a link to your site.

Add a link to your site

Step 2: Get a list of 10 keywords with positions.

Get a list of 10 keywords with positions

You can download the results in Excel file format. It looks as follows:

Excel file

Best for: Fast top 10 keyword position analysis

8. The HOTH — Discover The top 100 Website Keywords in Google

Version: Online

Personal Account: No

Search Engines Tracked: Google

SERP Tracking: Unlimited

Search results scanning depth: Top 100

Competitors Analysis: No

Payment Model: Free

Paid Options: start from $15

The HOTH
The report will show the keyword ranking, search volume, how much traffic the keyword is driving to your site, and whether the keyword is trending upwards or downwards

This free rack checker by The HOTH helps you to determine your website’s SEO ranking and find high-traffic keywords that will move you to the top of Google’s SERP results.

You can also export the list as a CSV or PDF file for future reference or to include as part of a report.

Why Use The HOTH Rank Checker?

The HOTH free rank tracker shows you the high-traffic keywords your website can rank for, so you can add them to your content to improve your performance in search engine results.

The HOTH’s Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position The HOTH Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 2 33
content marketing portfolio 3 3 0
content marketing portfolio examples 4 3 25
pillar page examples 52 25 52
pillar page 90 Not found Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 100 20
seo audit example 55 30 45
keyword mapping template 85 Not found Checking is not possible
content map template 35 Not found Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: Medium (75%)

How to Use The HOTH Rank Checker

Step 1: Enter a URL in the box below and click “View Google Rankings”.

Enter a URL in the box

Step 2: Get a comprehensive list of 100 of your keywords. You’ll see the keyword ranking, search volume, how much traffic it’s driving to your site, and whether the keyword is trending up or down.

Get a comprehensive list of 100 of your keywords

Step 3: Hover over the “Add Links” button to see which page the given keyword belongs to.

Hover over the "Add Links" button

Step 4 (optional): Export the list as a CSV or PDF file for future reference or to include as part of a report.

Newbie in SEO? It might sound daunting, but once you start using it on a regular basis, you’ll take your SEO to the next level. Here’s a video that will help you get started.

Best for: Discovering your top 100 keywords with their traffic and comparing results

9. Small SEO Tools — Checking the Position Trends of 10 Keywords

Version: Online

Personal Account: No

Search Engines Tracked: Google

SERP Tracking: No

Search results scanning depth: Top 10

Competitors Analysis: No

Payment Model: Free

Paid Options: Not provided

Small SEO Tools
The keyword rank checker by Small SEO Tools will determine where your keyword is ranked compared to all websites that use the same keyword or phrase

The Small SEO Tools rank checker tool provides you two options to check SERP position for a keyword. You can either check your keyword ranking position by keywords or by URL.

Note that you can check only up to 10 keyword positions at one time. I wouldn’t recommend using this online keyword ranking checker tool to check Google rankings for a big website with thousands of keywords.

Why Use Small SEO Tools?

As this checker shows only top 10 positions, I’d call it great free keyword rank checker software for small or new websites where you have limited keywords to track.

Small SEO Tools’ Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position SST Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 2 33
content marketing portfolio 3 2 33
content marketing portfolio examples 4 2 50
pillar page examples 52 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
pillar page 90 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
seo audit example 55 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
keyword mapping template 85 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
content map template 35 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: Medium (71%)

How to Use Small SEO Tools

Like Search Engine Reports, SEO Small Tools offers you two ways to use their checker:

  • Checking positions by keywords
  • Exploring your keywords and their positions

Way 1

Step 1: Fill in the information about your project: a link to the site + 10 keywords + your competitors if needed.

Fill in the information about your project

Step 2: Get the results of your 10 keywords. You can also take a look at keyword trends.

Step 3: Compare your performance with your competitors’.

Compare your performance

Way 2

Step 1: Add a link to your site.

Add a link to your site

Step 2: Get a list of 10 keywords with positions.

Get a list of 10 keywords with positions

Best for: Tiny websites where you have limited keywords to track

10. Keyword Tools by Seobility — Previewing the Top 100 Positions in Search Results

Version: Online

Personal Account: No

Search Engines Tracked: Google

SERP Tracking: No

Search results scanning depth: Top 100

Competitors Analysis: No

Payment Model: Free

Paid Options: Not provided

Keyword Tools by Seobility
This keyword rank tracker is made to evaluate the competition and analyze the other pages’ snippets

The key strength of this tool is that you can see the top 100 search results for the keyword you are interested in. The results will be non-personalized, so you will see the real picture without regard to your Google user experience.

However, it is worth noting that Keywords SEO Tools by Seobility allows you to check only 5 keys per day. In order to see more, I recommend using a VPN.

Why Use Keyword Tools by Seobility?

This tool will be useful to you in two cases:

  • You want to assess the competition for a particular keyword. Then you just need to enter the keyword (without the domain) and see the top 100 results.
  • You want to see how your site performs for that query. Then next to the keyword you add your site, and you will be shown your position in the top 100 results.

Keyword Tools by Seobility’s Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position Keyword Tools by Seobility Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 2 33
content marketing portfolio 3 2 33
content marketing portfolio examples 4 3 25
pillar page examples 52 27 53
pillar page 90 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 74 10
seo audit example 55 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
keyword mapping template 85 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
content map template 35 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: Medium (74%)

How to Use Keyword Tools by Seobility

Step 1: Add a keyword and a website this keywords refers to.

Add a keyword

Step 2: Get the keyword ranking results. You can also download it as a CSV file.

Get the keyword ranking results

Step 3: Check up to the top 100 results in Google and the competitors’ snippets.

Check up to the top 100 results

Best for: Assessing the competition for the targeted keyword

11. Dopinger — Tracking Position Changes Over Time

Version: Online

Personal Account: Yes

Search Engines Tracked: Google

SERP Tracking: No

Search results scanning depth: Top 100

Competitors Analysis: No

Payment Model: Free

Paid Options: Not provided

Dopinger
The Dopinger rank tracking tool is completely free, and personal data will be requested from you for any device

The Dopinger’s rank checker requires minimal information — just a URL. In addition to simple list of keywords and query monitoring, you will get detailed information on each of your keywords like volume and popularity.

You can also filter by keyword or URL, choose between top 1 and top 100, and get a comprehensive report.

Why Use Dopinger?

Since this tool cannot track the positions of custom keywords, I would recommend it to anyone who wants to know what keywords their website is ranking for.

The second way to use it is to parse competitors’ sites for new keywords.

Dopinger’s Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position Keyword Tools by Seobility Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 1 66
content marketing portfolio 3 Not found 33
content marketing portfolio examples 4 Not found 25
pillar page examples 52 Not found Checking is not possible
pillar page 90 Not found Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 52 37
seo audit example 55 16 70
keyword mapping template 85 Not found Checking is not possible
content map template 35 Not found Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: Medium (62%)

How to Use Dopinger

Step 1: Go to the Dopinger tools page and open the Rank tracking tool.

Step 2: Enter the site you want to analyze in the box.

Enter the site you want to analyze

Step 3: Click the “Analyze” button. This will bring up the results of the site you searched for.

Click the “Analyze” button

Step 4: A list of keywords will open up for you to rank for. They are categorized by position.

A list of keywords will open up for you

Step 5: Examine each keyword. You can select a date or a period of time.

Examine each keyword

Best for: Cases when you don’t have specific keywords to check and want to understand what keywords you are ranking for

12. Ahrefs Free Rank Checker — Detailed SEO Stats for the Top 5 Search Results

Version: Online

Personal Account: No

Search Engines Tracked: Google

SERP Tracking: No

Search results scanning depth: Top 10

Competitors Analysis: No

Payment Model: Free

Paid Options: Not provided

Ahrefs Free Rank Checker
This tool offers the widest pool of countries among the free ones — 243 countries

The free Ahrefs  rank checker is not a bad free tool for experienced SEO specialists.

You can check an unlimited number of words. The only thing is that you can only check them one at a time. So if you have a large list of target keywords, you will have to have time and patience.

Why Use Ahrefs Free Rank Checker?

I would recommend this rank checker to those who need not just a position for a keyword, but also further SEO statistics.

For each page in the top 5, this free rank checker shows:

  • Domain Rating (DR)
  • URL Rating (UR)
  • Number of backlinks
  • Number of referring domains
  • Estimated organic traffic
  • Number of keywords
  • Ranking URL

Ahrefs Free Rank Checker’s Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position Ahrefs Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 3 0
content marketing portfolio 3 3 0
content marketing portfolio examples 4 3 25
pillar page examples 52 38 0
pillar page 90 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 53 36
seo audit example 55 27 51
keyword mapping template 85 92 8
content map template 35 Not found in top 100 Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: Good (85%)

How to Use Ahrefs Free Rank Checker

Step 1: Add a keyword and URL, and choose from over 200 countries.

Add a keyword and URL

Step 2: Get the SERPs of the first five pages in the SERPs for the selected keyword.

Get the SERPs

Best for: Not only checking keyword positions, but doing a SERP overview as well

13. SEO Review Tools — Analysis of the Top 10 Sites in Google Search Results

Version: Online

Personal Account: Yes

Search Engines Tracked: Google

SERP Tracking: No

Search results scanning depth: Top 10

Competitors Analysis: No

Payment Model: Free

Paid Options: Not provided

SEO Review Tools
This ranking tool lets you track the rankings for desktop in 14 countries and for mobile in 5 countries

The SEO Review Tools rank tracker helps you quickly check up to 10 keywords. The tool will check if one or more URLs are found on the first page of Google (top 10 search results).

After the details for each word, you get an overall summary and your average ranking.

Why Use SEO Review Tools?

I advise you to use this tool if you want to analyze your main competitors in the top in order to improve your position.

SEO Review Tools Tracking Accuracy

Keyword GSC Position SEO Review Tools Position Difference, %
seo portfolio examples 1 1 0
seo portfolio 3 2 33
content marketing portfolio 3 3 0
content marketing portfolio examples 4 3 25
pillar page examples 52 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
pillar page 90 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
seo audit template 83 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
seo audit example 55 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
keyword mapping template 85 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
content map template 35 Not found in top 10 Checking is not possible
Average tracking accuracy: Good (85%)

How to Use SEO Review Tools

Step 1: Choose a country and add up to 10 keywords and your Site URL.

Choose a country and add up to 10 keywords and your Site URL

Step 2: Get the results. As a reminder, only positions up to 10 are displayed.

Get the results

Step 3: See the results for each word separately.

You can also click on “Research” to check backlinks, traffic and auditing for each individual page in the top 10 search results.

See the results for each word separately

Best for: Checking backlinks and traffic, and auditing for each competitor in top 10 results

Conclusion

That’s it for our guide to the best free rank checker tools. No matter your business size or goals, you will surely find something here to help you measure your site’s rankings and improve your organic search results and traffic.

Use other tools to track positions? Leave a link in the comments, I’ll look into it and possibly add it to my review.

Roman – JaySearch Author
Hi I'm Roman
I'm a growth marketing consultant who helps B2B, SaaS and eCommerce companies generate more leads and sales through content marketing. Connect with me on LinkedIn and Facebook.

2 thoughts on “13 Best Free and Freemium Keyword Rank Checking Tools – Tested & Evaluated by an SEO Expert with 13 Years of Experience”

  1. I’ve stumbled across an interesting discrepancy while optimising a website’s visibility on Google. According to Google’s Search Console, the site is ranked a commendable 5.8 for a particular keyword. However, real time searches for this keyword invariably place the site on page two, around 12th or 13th.

    I’ve confirmed this anomaly through multiple searches from three different locations within a similar geographical radius. I’m aware that there can be discrepancies between Search Console data and live search results. However, this discrepancy seems unusually large.

    My client would like to know the source of this discrepancy, and frankly, so would I. I hope you can shed some light on this matter and suggest possible reasons for this discrepancy. Thank you upfront for your help!

    Reply
    • Hi Elijah,

      The Google Search Console calculates the average position of your website every time it appears in search results, across all global locations. This method can often produce a different average than a rank tracker due to its universal application. However, it’s important to remember that Search Console’s position is still an average and there are over 200 ranking factors that influence it. These include variables such as the user’s browsing history and geographical location.

      For example, a search for ‘coworking’ from a laptop in New York City will return local coworking locations, whereas the same search in Los Angeles, Austin or Chicago will return different results. This variability also applies to non-business related keywords. It’s also important to consider the browsing mode in which you’re conducting your search. For example, results can vary significantly between ‘private mode’, where tracking is disabled, and ‘normal mode’, where Google can track your activity. This means that the mode in which you’ve searched can affect the results very significantly.

      Reply

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