When you’re trying to optimize your website for search engines like Google, there are many different techniques you can use to improve your rankings and increase site visibility. The strength of your SEO efforts depends on the rankings for the keywords that you use throughout your website. Keyword rankings are important measurements that allow you to effectively identify where your website ranks within the search result pages for a specific keyword or phrase.

Keep in mind that more than 67 percent of all clicks on search engines occur with the first five results. If you want your website to bring in a high number of site visitors and increase in popularity, it’s important that it ranks highly with some of the more popular keywords. However, it can prove difficult to rank highly if you’re uncertain of which keywords and phrases you should place in the content on your website. Optimizing your website for search engines won’t be effective if you use the wrong keywords. Your primary goal when optimizing your website should be to obtain keywords that your target audience will invariably use when searching for a website or company like yours.

It’s important to understand that the search algorithm Google uses to rank websites believes keywords to be the most important element of ranking a website. As such, it’s essential that you use the right keywords throughout the content that you place on your website. Even if your website is an eCommerce store, you should still outfit the site with a blog, which will allow you to provide regular content that will engage your customers and give you the opportunity to further optimize your website with keywords.

If you’re able to correctly perform on-page SEO, there’s a great chance that your website will show up in the first 30-50 search results for popular keywords. However, you should strive to appear on the first page of results, which will significantly increase the likelihood that site traffic will improve. When you want to take steps to improve your SEO, it’s important that you use tools that will allow you to identify the current strength of your keywords. There are numerous SEO tools that offer functionality for checking keyword rankings. If you use these tools, you can determine which keywords are effective and which ones should be replaced. This article takes a comprehensive look at some of the top SEO tools that will allow you to check your Google keyword rankings.

1. SEMrush

SEMrush is a powerful keyword ranking tool that gives you the ability to check all of the keywords that are being used on your website. However, a separate project will need to be started for each domain that you’re using if you want to analyze site performance and keyword rankings. The specific SEMrush tool that allows you to effectively track the keyword rankings for your website is the Position Tracking tool. With this tool, you can monitor the local, regional, and national positions of all keywords that you’re currently using.

If you want to use all of the tools and features that are available through SEMrush, there are three separate packages that you can sign up for, which include the pro, guru, and business packages. These packages are priced at $100, $200, and $400 respectively. While the SEMrush tool can’t be used for free on a long-term basis, a free seven-day trial is available for the pro and guru packages.

When you begin a project with SEMrush, you can start tracking the performance of your keywords with daily data for as many as 60 days. Competitor analysis is also available with the ability to add 10 competitive domains with your tracking campaigns. Another notable feature of this tool is that you will receive weekly notifications that identify any ranking changes.

2. Ahrefs

Ahrefs is a precise ranking tool that allows users to obtain granular details about their keyword rankings. If you decide to use this tool, there are four separate packages that are available for purchase, which include lite, standard, advanced, and agency packages. These packages are priced at $99, $179, $399, and $999 respectively. If you opt for the lite package, you can create five different projects with the ability to track as many as 500 keywords. Functionality and features improve with the more expensive packages. For instance, the advanced package allows users to track 5,000 keywords and create 25 projects.

Updates are also provided every three days as opposed to the seven-day interval that occurs when you have the lite package. Even though a free option isn’t available, you can try out the standard and lite plans for one week at a price of $7. One thing that this tool does differently than others is that it offers expansive keyword tracking functionality. For instance, you can obtain data on 13 SERP features and can track your ranking position at multiple levels. Using the Ahrefs tool is easy since you only need to import a keyword list to begin tracking.

3. SERPWatcher

SERPWatcher is a unique keyword tracking tool that allows users to track the overall progress of specific keywords. The tool that’s used to track keyword rankings is the Dominance Index. This tool is provided alongside SERPChecker and KWFinder within three separate packages, which are known as basic, premium, and agency. These packages are priced at $49, $69, and $129 per month respectively. If you purchase one of these packages on an annual basis, your savings will amount to around 40 percent.

The specific package that you choose will dictate the number of keywords that can be tracked, which could be anywhere from 200-1,500. Keep in mind that there’s no limit on the number of domains you can use when tracking keyword rankings. If you want to try out the SERPWatcher tool, a 10-day free trial is available that gives you the ability to track 10 keywords.

The tool itself is very easy to use and highly versatile. You can remove, delete, add, or rename keywords whenever you want. The dashboard also gives you a couple of different options for displaying the results of your tracking. Along with interactive and shareable reports, users of SERPWatcher are provided with event-based and scheduled email alerts.

4. Moz Rank Tracker

Moz Rank Tracker is a feature-rich tracking tool that makes it easy to track search engine visibility and keyword rankings over an extended period of time. Every plan features full SEO tools, which include a keyword researcher, an on-demand site crawl tool, and a rank tracking tool. The four plans available with Moz include the standard, medium, large, and premium plans, which are priced at $99, $179, $249, and $599 per month respectively. These packages allow you to start anywhere from 5-50 campaigns.

If you decide to use the Moz Rank Tracker tool, you can receive event-based and periodic alerts, which makes the tool very easy to use. You also have direct control over how informative the generated reports are. A drag-and-drop tool included with Moz Rank Tracker allows you to add graphs and charts to the reports that contain your own notes. Among the most notable features provided with this tool is the ability to view premium data like page authority and domain authority.

5. Google Rank Checker

Google Rank Checker may be the ideal option for your website since it can be used for free. One great feature that’s included with Google Rank Checker is the ability to segment keyword rankings by mobile and desktop devices. As the name implies, this specific tool applies solely to the Google search engine. The tool itself will allow you to track the positioning of your keywords with Google search results.

When you decide to use this tool, all that’s required of you is to input a keyword, your domain name, and a location. From here, you can obtain the exact position of the keyword on Google. Despite the simplicity of the tool, it gives you everything you need to check your Google keyword rankings. If you want to use your marketing and SEO budget for other purposes, Google Rank Checker may be right for you.

Conclusion

The SEO tool that you choose largely depends on what you want when checking your Google keyword rankings. If reliability and popularity are key factors for you in selecting a keyword ranking tool, SEMrush maybe your best option. This tool provides you with keyword positions in Bing and Google, which can be helpful when you’re trying to improve your visibility across both search engines. You’ll also receive a suite of additional features that can help you enhance your SEO efforts. These features extend to the ability to complete a full site audit, a backlink checker, and a keyword research feature.

If you want to check your Google keyword rankings without spending any money, the Google Rank Checker tool could be what you’re looking for. However, the features of this tool are limited. While the other four tools on this list can’t be used for free on a long-term basis, the most generous free plan when starting out is available with Moz Rank Tracker. With this tool, you can use all of the features that are available in the medium plan through their 30-day free trial.

As for the other tools on this list, SERPWatcher, Ahrefs, and SEMrush all have their own distinct benefits that you can take advantage of when you’re attempting to improve your keyword rankings. No matter the size or scope of your website, a comprehensive SEO plan is necessary if you want long-term success for your business. By optimizing your website for search engines, your site visibility will improve as your rankings go higher. Over time, you may become the default website to visit for certain keywords, which can pay dividends at getting users to your website.