SEO Tools

Contents

1. 01WelcomeWhat these tools do, how many we grade and what to know before choosing
2. 02Our top threeThe three we'd look at first, and who each one suits
3. 03What they costWhat paid plans start at, the best buy at each budget and the free plans
4. 04The gradesThe highest graded, and how the whole category does on each subject
5. 05Keep or make?Which are worth paying for, and which you could make yourself
6. 06Every toolAll of them, best graded first, with what each costs
7. 07Quick answersThe questions people ask when choosing, each answered in a line or two
8. 08About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it

ToolGPA put this guide together from each tool’s own pages, their app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on the SEO Tools page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 18, 2026.

Find what people search for, see where your pages rank and fix what holds them back.

Before you choose, here are 7 things to know about SEO tools, worked out from every one we grade.

1. 1

   We grade 23 SEO tools

   13 of them are free or have a free plan, and 10 more let you try before paying. Everything in this guide comes from their own pages and our grades.

2. 2

   Paid plans start at $37.70 a month in the middle

   From $7 (Keywords Everywhere) to $129 (Clearscope), going by what each one's paid plans start at.

3. 3

   Best value: Keywords Everywhere

   Nothing on our chart scores higher than it without costing more.

4. 4

   0 of 23 have iPhone and Android apps

   20 run in a web browser and 3 have a Windows app. Check the one you need before you fall for anything.

5. 5

   The middle GPA is 2.2

   1 score 3.0 or higher. The highest is Rank Math, at 3.0.

6. 6

   Best free option: Rank Math

   Rank Math has the highest GPA of the free ones, 3.0. WordPress SEO plugin for meta tags, schema, sitemaps and rank tracking.

7. 7

   19 worth keeping, 1 you could make

   By our keep-or-make rules, 19 do something you couldn't reasonably build yourself, 1 are simple enough to make with an AI app builder, and 3 are a close call.

Part 02 · Top three

Our top three

The three we'd look at first, and who each one suits

The three SEO tools we'd look at first. First place suits the most people; second and third are the best picks for the people it leaves out. Each has an Insider's Guide of its own.

1. 1st

   

   2.6GPA

   Ranktracker

   Free trial · from $31.20/mo

   For: Most site owners and small teams

   Ranktracker tracks the top 100 results on Google, Bing, Yahoo and Yandex, including Google Maps and AI Overviews, and every plan adds keyword research, a SERP checker, backlink data, a site audit, reports and an API. Launch is $31.20 a month billed yearly ($39 monthly) for 500 keywords checked daily, with unlimited projects and users. Know the limits: it runs only in a browser, there is no free plan, just a 7-day trial without payment details, no refunds are offered during the current promotion, and Launch allows 40,000 data rows a month.

   The Ranktracker Insider’s Guide

2. 2nd

   

   2.2GPA

   SE Ranking

   Free trial · from $103.20/mo

   For: Teams and agencies tracking thousands of keywords

   SE Ranking covers the same ground, with keyword, competitor and backlink research that has no usage caps, audits of 250,000 pages a month and listings in 100+ directories. Core is $103.20 a month billed yearly ($129 monthly) for 10 projects, 2,000 keywords and 100 AI prompts tracked daily across five AI models, and the 14-day trial needs no card. It is second because it costs over three times as much to start, Core includes one manager seat (more from $16 a month) and 6 months of history, and payments are non-refundable.

   The SE Ranking Insider’s Guide

3. 3rd

   

   3.0GPA

   Rank Math

   Free plan · from €8.99/mo

   For: WordPress site owners who want to pay nothing

   Rank Math works inside the WordPress editor. The free plugin covers on-page checks against 30+ tests, 16+ schema types, sitemaps, redirects, a 404 monitor and Search Console data refreshed every 7 days. PRO is €7.99 a month for the first year, then €8.99, billed yearly before VAT, for unlimited sites you own and 500 tracked keywords. It is third because it does one part of SEO, with no keyword research, backlink or competitor data, and runs only on a self-hosted WordPress site or WordPress.com's Business plan.

   The Rank Math Insider’s Guide

Going by our grades, Keywords Everywhere gives the most for the money among SEO tools: no tool on this chart scores higher without costing more.

Paid plans start at a middle price of $37.70 a month across the 23 that charge, from $7 (Keywords Everywhere) to $129 (Clearscope).

5 of the 23 score above the category's average while starting at or below its middle price. 6 cost more than the middle price and score below the average.

Every tool gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. Here are the 12 highest graded SEO tools, then how the whole category does on each subject.

Tool	Value	Free	Features	Ease	Platforms	GPA
Rank Math	A	A	C	C	B	3.0
Keywords Everywhere	A	C	C	B	B	2.8
NeuronWriter	A	C	B	C	B	2.8
Ranktracker	B	C	B	C	B	2.6
SEOptimer	B	C	C	B	B	2.6
Sitebulb	B	C	C	B	B	2.6
Frase	C	C	B	C	B	2.4
Screaming Frog SEO Spider	B	B	C	C	C	2.4
SEO PowerSuite	B	C	B	C	C	2.4
Ubersuggest	B	C	C	C	B	2.4
Clearscope	D	C	B	C	B	2.2
LowFruits	B	C	C	C	C	2.2

Some software does something you couldn’t reasonably build yourself. Some is simple enough that an AI app builder could make the core of it in an afternoon. Here’s where SEO tools land, by the same rules for every tool.

• 19

  Keep it

  It does something you could not reasonably make for yourself, or it costs nothing.

• 3

  Your call

  You could make the core of it, and you would give something up.

• 1

  You could make this

  What it does is the kind of thing an AI app builder makes well, and it charges every month.

Every SEO tool we grade, with its GPA and what it costs. Each one has a page of its own on toolgpa.com, with its Insider’s Guide.

1. 1Rank MathFree plan · from €8.99/mo3.0
2. 2Keywords EverywhereFree plan · from $7/mo2.8
3. 3NeuronWriterFree trial · from $19/mo2.8
4. 4RanktrackerFree trial · from $31.20/mo2.6
5. 5SEOptimerFree plan · from $21.75/mo2.6
6. 6SitebulbFree trial · from $18/mo2.6
7. 7FraseFree trial · from $39/mo2.4
8. 8Screaming Frog SEO SpiderFree plan · from $279/yr2.4
9. 9SEO PowerSuiteFree plan · from $19.95/mo2.4
10. 10UbersuggestFree plan · from $29/mo2.4
11. 11ClearscopeFree trial · from $129/mo2.2
12. 12LowFruitsFree plan · from $20.75/mo2.2
13. 13OmniSEOFree trial · from $89/mo2.2
14. 14SE RankingFree trial · from $103.20/mo2.2
15. 15SemrushFree plan · from $117.33/mo2.2
16. 16SurferFree trial · from $49/mo2.2
17. 17WincherFree trial · from $49/mo2.2
18. 18AhrefsFree plan · from $29/mo2.0
19. 19MangoolsFree plan · from $37.70/mo2.0
20. 20SeobilityFree plan · from $69.90/mo2.0
21. 21SerpstatFree trial · from $50/mo2.0
22. 22SimilarwebFree plan · from $125/mo2.0
23. 23Moz ProFree plan · from $49/mo1.8

ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.

ToolGPA is free to read. It may earn a commission from affiliate links and it works with sponsors, but anything paid for is labelled and no one can pay for a grade. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.

• 2,281

  tools graded

• 73

  categories

• 426

  price changes on record

• 579

  apps priced in 12 countries