Rank Math vs SmartCrawl (2026): which should you pick?
As of Oct 23, 2026, SmartCrawl grades higher than Rank Math: 3.2 against 3.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA
SmartCrawl grades higher on features. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Rank Math
WordPress SEO plugin for meta tags, schema, sitemaps and rank tracking
SmartCrawl
WordPress SEO plugin from WPMU DEV with audits, schema and autolinks
Which one is for you
Pick Rank Math if
- Fits if your site runs on WordPress and you want SEO settings in the editor
- Works for someone with several sites of their own, since PRO covers unlimited owned sites
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if your site isn't on self-hosted WordPress or WordPress.com's Business plan, as it runs nowhere else
- Not for you if you need keyword, backlink or competitor research, which it doesn't do
- Tight if you build sites for clients, as PRO excludes them and Business is €27.99 a month at renewal
- Watch out: prices are in euros before VAT, billed yearly only, with a lower first year, and the 30-day refund skips renewals
- Pricey if you want AI writing, a separate Rank Math AI subscription from €6.99 a month billed yearly
Pick SmartCrawl if
- Fits if you want a guided setup and a one-click SEO checkup in WordPress
- Works for agencies already running client sites from WPMU DEV's Hub
Look elsewhere if
- Watch out: Pro isn't sold alone, so every paid plan is WPMU DEV's whole bundle of Pro plugins
- Tight if you stay free, as scheduled audits, auto-linking, IndexNow, regex redirects and white label need Pro
- Watch out: Premium is $4.99 a month for the first 3 months, then $9.99
- Skip it if your site isn't on WordPress, as there's no standalone app
How we grade them
| 3.0GPARank MathVery good | 3.2GPASmartCrawlVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AGraded against its alternatives. PRO is €8.99 a month at renewal (€7.99 in the first year), billed yearly before VAT, for unlimited sites you own and 500 tracked keywords. That's under 60% of this category's cheaper quarter, even after converting from euros. | APro Basic is $50 a year for one site, about $4.17 a month, and brings WPMU DEV's other Pro plugins along. That's under 60% of this category's cheaper quarter. Premium is $9.99 a month for unlimited sites, after 3 months at $4.99. |
| Free plan and trial | AThe free plugin from WordPress.org does the core job with no cap a normal site will reach: on-page checks, 16+ schema types, sitemaps, redirects, a 404 monitor and Search Console data every 7 days. | AThe WordPress.org plugin has no caps: a setup wizard, SEO checkup, titles and meta, sitemaps, social tags, a schema builder, 301 redirects, breadcrumbs and post checks. Scheduled audits and auto-linking are Pro. |
| Features | COn-page scores against 30+ tests, schema, sitemaps, redirects and rank tracking fed by Search Console. It does its job fully, but that job is on-page SEO for WordPress, with no keyword research, backlinks or competitor data. | BKeyword and readability checks, sitemaps, social tags, a schema builder the product page puts at 150+ types, redirects, scheduled audits and crawls, auto-linking and IndexNow. It covers the whole job, with the audits on Pro. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record. Inside WordPress it feels familiar, but you need a self-hosted WordPress site or WordPress.com's Business plan first, then the setup and the Google connections. | CNo rating on record. A setup wizard walks you through it inside WordPress, but there are title formats, sitemap types and schema to choose before it's done. |
| Platforms and integrations | BRuns inside WordPress in the browser and connects to Search Console, Analytics, Google Trends, WooCommerce, Elementor, Divi, WP Rocket and WPML. Nothing for sites that aren't on WordPress. | BWeb only, inside WordPress. It connects to Moz and IndexNow, works with WooCommerce, and ties into WPMU DEV's Hub for managing client sites. |
| Best for | SEO settings inside WordPress | WordPress SEO inside WPMU DEV's plugin bundle |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Rank Math and SmartCrawl. How we grade
Where they differ
- Rank Math also covers reports and rank tracking.
- SmartCrawl also covers site audit, content optimization, schema markup and internal linking.
At a glance
| Rank Math | SmartCrawl | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | €8.99 per month at renewal, billed annually, after a first year at €7.99 | $50 per year for 1 site |
| Free plan | Free plugin from WordPress.org: content analysis, 16+ schema types, sitemaps, redirects, 404 monitor, and Search Console and Analytics data refreshed every 7 days. | Free plugin on WordPress.org: setup wizard, SEO checkup, titles and meta, XML sitemaps, social tags, schema types builder, 301 redirects, breadcrumbs and content analysis. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Rank Math | WPMU DEV |
| Price read from | rankmath.com | wpmudev.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 23, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Rank Math
- It runs only inside WordPress, on a self-hosted site or on WordPress.com's Business plan; there is no standalone app.
- The pricing page shows prices in euros before VAT, billed yearly only, with a lower first year; the 30-day refund does not cover renewals.
- PRO is for sites you own only; client sites need Business (100 sites) or Agency (500 sites).
- AI writing tools are a separate Rank Math AI subscription, from €6.99 a month billed annually, with a 15-day trial included on paid plans.
SmartCrawl
- It runs only inside WordPress; there is no standalone app.
- Scheduled audits and crawls, automatic linking, IndexNow, advanced redirects and white label need a Pro plan.
- SmartCrawl Pro is not sold alone: every paid plan is WPMU DEV's bundle of Pro plugins, such as Smush Pro and Forminator Pro.
- Premium is $9.99 a month after a first 3 months at $4.99; paid plans have a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Key features
Rank Math
- On-page content checks
- Scores each post against 30+ SEO tests in the editor, with focus keywords per post and suggestions for what to fix.
- Schema markup
- The free plugin covers 16+ schema types. Paid plans add a schema generator for building your own types and reusable templates.
- Sitemaps, redirects and 404s
- Builds XML sitemaps with custom post type support, manages redirects at scale and logs 404 errors, all from the WordPress dashboard.
- Rank tracker and analytics
- Pulls rankings and traffic from Google Search Console and Analytics into WordPress: 500 tracked keywords on PRO, 10,000 on Business.
- AI Link Genius
- Listed on the paid plans: internal link suggestions while writing, automatic keyword-to-page links and a broken link checker.
- WooCommerce and local SEO
- The free plugin adds schema and meta tags for WooCommerce products and local SEO tools; paid plans list WooCommerce SEO PRO and multiple locations.
SmartCrawl
- SEO checkup and content analysis
- Runs a checkup with fixes to apply, and grades each post for keyword use and readability in the editor, on the free plugin.
- Titles, sitemaps and social tags
- Sets title and description formats, builds XML sitemaps with chosen post types and taxonomies, and adds Open Graph, Twitter cards and Pinterest verification.
- Schema types builder
- Adds and customizes schema for articles, web pages, reviews, products, local businesses and more; the product page counts 150+ schema types.
- Scheduled audits and crawls
- Pro runs SEO audits and URL crawls on a schedule, finding broken URLs, 404s and redirect chains, with white-label reports for clients.
- Automatic linking
- Pro turns chosen keywords into internal or external links across the site automatically.
- Redirects and indexing
- 301 redirects are free; Pro adds regex and location-based redirects and notifies search engines of changes through IndexNow.
Plans
Rank Math
Free€0
The WordPress.org plugin: on-page checks, schema, sitemaps, redirects and Google Search Console and Analytics integration.
PRO€8.99
per month at renewal, billed annually (first year €7.99)
Unlimited sites you own, no client sites, and 500 tracked keywords. €7.99 a month for the first year, then €107.88 a year, ex VAT.
Rank Math + WP Rocket€13.99
per month at renewal, billed annually (first year €11.99)
PRO on unlimited sites you own plus the WP Rocket caching plugin for one site. €11.99 a month for the first year, ex VAT.
Business€27.99
per month at renewal, billed annually (first year €24.99)
Up to 100 client sites and 10,000 tracked keywords, with priority support. €24.99 a month for the first year, ex VAT.
Agency€64.99
per month at renewal, billed annually (first year €54.99)
Up to 500 client sites and 50,000 tracked keywords, with priority support. €54.99 a month for the first year, ex VAT.
SmartCrawl
Free$0
The WordPress.org plugin with on-page settings, sitemaps, schema, 301 redirects and an SEO checkup.
Pro Basic$50
per year for 1 site
SmartCrawl Pro and the rest of WPMU DEV's Pro plugins on 1 site, with a CDN allowance, backup storage and 24/7 support.
Pro Standard$75
per year for 3 sites
The same Pro plugin suite on 3 sites.
Pro Plus$100
per year for 10 sites
The same Pro plugin suite on 10 sites.
Premium$9.99
per month for unlimited sites
All Pro plugins on unlimited sites, plus hosting discounts, a reseller platform, unlimited seats and CRM. $4.99 a month for the first 3 months.
Ways to pay less
Rank Math
- Other savings
Lower price for the first year
Paid plans cost less in the first year, ex VAT: PRO €7.99 a month then €8.99, Business €24.99 then €27.99, Agency €54.99 then €64.99.
SmartCrawl
- Other savings
Premium at half price for 3 months
WPMU DEV's pricing page shows Premium at $4.99 a month for the first 3 months, then $9.99 a month.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Rank Math or SmartCrawl?
As of Oct 23, 2026, SmartCrawl is cheaper to start with: $4.17 a month when paid by the year, against about $10.07 a month for Rank Math. Rank Math starts at €8.99 per month at renewal, billed annually, after a first year at €7.99, and SmartCrawl starts at $50 per year for 1 site.
Which has a free plan, Rank Math or SmartCrawl?
As of Oct 23, 2026, both Rank Math and SmartCrawl have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.