Introduction
Local SEO is one of the most effective marketing strategies for businesses that serve local customers. Using the right local SEO software can help optimize your online presence, claim and complete local listings, analyze local competition and gain more visibility in search engines and directories. This guide reviews the 15 best local SEO software tools to consider in 2023 based on their specialized features for local businesses.
Methods of Evaluation
To evaluate and rank the top local SEO platforms, we considered several key factors – specialized local optimization features like local listing management and citations, tools for local search ranking analysis, capabilities for competitive research and link building opportunities specific to a local business, pricing affordability and overall functionality. We also looked at other modern metrics like number of backlinks, website traffic and keyword search trends that indicate the market leadership of these companies.
1. Moz
Moz is a leading SEO software and tools provider founded in 2005 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Moz offers a suite of SEO tools to help marketers, agencies and businesses optimize websites, monitor link profiles, analyze competitors and track local SEO metrics. Some of Moz’s most popular products include Moz Pro, Moz Local and Moz Link Explorer.
Pros: Some key advantages of Moz tools include:
– Powerful link building and research tools
– Robust location and citation monitoring
– Strong reputation management features
Cons: One potential disadvantage is the cost as Moz Pro pricing starts at $99/month which may not be suitable for all budget sizes.
Pricing: Moz offers various pricing plans including:
– Moz Pro starting at $99/month
– Moz Local starting at $99/month
– Additional a la carte tools and reports available separately
Some key stats about Moz include:
– Over 60,000 customers worldwide spanning more than 120 countries
– Processes over 45 billion URLs and 500 million domains
– Indexes 5 billion links daily
– Ranks #1 for the keyword phrase ‘best seo tools’
2. SEMrush
SEMrush is a comprehensive online marketing toolkit that provides tools for SEO, PPC, content marketing, social media, and more. Founded in 2008, SEMrush aims to make online marketing easy with over 55 different tools to help companies analyze, optimize, and compete effectively online.
Pros: Some key advantages of SEMrush include:
– Value-packed all-in-one toolkit with over 55 tools vs separate point solutions
– Detailed competitive insights with visibility into over 1 billion domains and 150 million keywords
– Advanced technical SEO diagnostics help identify and fix on-site issues hurting rankings
Cons: One potential disadvantage is the price – Premium plans start at $99/month which may be cost prohibitive for some smaller businesses or individual users. The tools also generate a lot of data that requires time to properly analyze and act upon.
Pricing: SEMrush offers several different pricing plans tailored for individual, agency, and enterprise needs. Premium plans start at $99/month for an individual plan and scale up based on the number of users and features needed.
Some key stats about SEMrush include:
– Used by over 5 million marketing professionals worldwide
– Tracks keyword rankings and changes for billions of keywords
– Monitors over 1 billion competitors monthly
– Competitive research tools analyze over 150 million domains
3. Ahrefs
Ahrefs is a leading SEO tool with an extensive database of links and analytics. Founded in 2008, Ahrefs helps SEOs, marketers and site owners optimize their online visibility. Their tools allow users to analyze backlinks, discover content opportunities, track rankings and monitor the competition. With features like Site Explorer, Content Explorer, and Link Explorer, Ahrefs provides a holistic view of a website’s search performance.
Pros: Some key advantages of using Ahrefs include:
– Extensive backlink database that covers billions of links
– Robust content and technical audits to identify SEO issues
– Comprehensive competitive research tools to analyze rivals
– Tracking of keywords rankings over time for performance analysis
Cons: One potential disadvantage is the pricing, as Ahrefs plans start at $99/month which may be too expensive for some smaller businesses or individuals.
Pricing: Ahrefs offers three paid plans – Basic, Standard, and Advanced. Pricing starts at $99/month for the Basic plan and goes up to $199/month for the Advanced plan. Discounts are available if billed annually.
Some key stats about Ahrefs include:
– Tracking 200 billion+ indexed pages and 7.5 billion+ backlinks
– Over 1 million monthly active users
– 15+ platforms their data can be accessed from like Excel, Chrome, etc.
– 3,000+ rankings updated every day
4. SimilarWeb
SimilarWeb is a leading local SEO software developed by SimilarWeb, an Israeli company founded in 2007. SimilarWeb provides comprehensive website traffic analytics to help businesses analyze website performance, search traffic, mobile insights and more.
Pros: Some key advantages of SimilarWeb include:
– Comprehensive website traffic analysis including traffic sources, geographic sources, browsers used etc.
– Mobile insights included to analyze mobile traffic and app downloads
– Ability to compare websites against competitors to analyze strategies and market share
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that the free version only allows tracking of 3 websites per month which may not be sufficient for in-depth competitive analysis.
Pricing: Pricing for SimilarWeb starts from $99 per month for the Individual plan allowing tracking of up to 15 websites. The top-tier Enterprise plan provides custom quotes for organizations.
Some key stats about SimilarWeb include:
– Tracks over 500 million websites globally
– Over 100,000 monthly active users
– Raised over $150 million in total funding
5. Backlinko
Backlinko is a link building and SEO software tool developed by Brian Dean. It provides localized SEO software and services to help businesses rank higher on search engines like Google.
Pros: Some key advantages of using Backlinko include:
– Helpful content for optimizing sites locally through local link building guides and tools
– Extra features like link tracking and competitor research modules to gain insights
– Constant updates and training from Brian Dean on advanced SEO strategies
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that it is not quite as full-featured as more expensive enterprise SEO tools, so may not be suitable for the largest companies with advanced SEO needs.
Pricing: Backlinko offers affordable monthly pricing starting at $49 per month for the Standard plan. It also offers a 14-day free trial to test out the software and key features.
Some key stats about Backlinko include:
– Used by over 50,000 businesses worldwide
– Built a top SEO blog with over 10 million monthly visitors
– Offers localized link building strategies and templates
– Can track links from over 50 sources
6. CoSchedule Social Analytics
CoSchedule Social Analytics is a social media marketing platform that provides comprehensive insights and analytics. Founded in 2011 and based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, CoSchedule’s platform helps marketers organize, plan, and track all their social media and digital marketing activities in one place.
Pros: Some key advantages of CoSchedule Social Analytics include its free tier that provides basic social analytics and insights, detailed post and channel performance metrics for auditing strategies, and integrated work management features that allow coordinating content calendars and approvals.
Cons: A potential disadvantage is that the free version only provides analytics for the past 6 months of social data, so it may not be suitable for brands wanting to analyze longer term social media performance.
Pricing: Pricing for CoSchedule Social Analytics starts from $79 per month for a Standard plan for up to 5 users with enhanced analytics and no data limits. Team and Enterprise plans are also available for larger teams and companies.
Some key stats and features of CoSchedule Social Analytics include free social media analytics across major networks like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google; in-depth post performance analytics including engagement, shares and followers over time; and competitive research and benchmarking against similar brands and industries.
7. BrightLocal
BrightLocal is a leading local SEO tool founded in 2008 and based in London, England. The software helps thousands of businesses and agencies manage their local SEO through a single, online platform. Key features include local business listing management across search engines and directories, citation and profile completion tracking, and local search ranking reports.
Pros: BrightLocal stands out for its comprehensive all-in-one platform. Key advantages include:
– Comprehensive local listing management across Google, Bing, YellowPages and other top sources
– Citation and profile completion tracking to ensure business visibility
– Robust local search ranking reports to measure SEO performance
Cons: One potential disadvantage is the pricing, as the tool is on the more expensive side for smaller businesses or solopreneurs. However, larger agencies appreciate the powerful feature set.
Pricing: BrightLocal offers three pricing tiers:
– Startup ($49/mo): For up to 5 locations
– Professional ($99/mo): For up to 25 locations
– Enterprise (Custom Pricing): For large business or agency needs
Some key stats about BrightLocal include:
– Manage over 200,000 local business listings
– Used by over 5,000 agencies and businesses worldwide
– Track citations on over 100,000 sources
– Monitor local search rankings across Google, Bing, Yahoo and more
8. Screaming Frog
Screaming Frog is a SEO software tool that helps analyze websites and perform technical SEO audits. Founded in 2008, Screaming Frog is based in the UK and has become one of the most popular website auditing and analysis tools for SEO professionals.
Pros: Some key advantages of Screaming Frog include its affordable pricing, robust technical auditing tools, and powerful features for gaining competitive insights. It helps SEOs and businesses identify technical issues holding a site back from ranking well and provides data to inform optimization strategies.
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that Screaming Frog is primarily a crawler and analyzer tool rather than a full-featured SEO platform. It does not offer on-page optimization or content creation capabilities that some other SEO software includes.
Pricing: Screaming Frog offers three pricing tiers – Personal ($79/year), Agency ($249/year) and Enterprise (custom pricing). The Personal plan allows for crawling of up to 500 URLs while the Agency tier has no URL limits. All plans include access to Screaming Frog’s technical analysis and reporting features.
Some key stats about Screaming Frog include: it can crawl over 10,000 URLs per minute, scan over 100 technical SEO issues on a site, and provides deep insights into backlink profiles and technical SEO of competitors.
9. Majestic
Majestic is a powerful link intelligence platform that maps and categorizes the internet. Founded in 2002, Majestic analyzes billions of web pages and extracts detailed data on links, citations and trust networks to help marketers, agencies and webmasters develop effective SEO strategies. With over 20 billion domains and 500 billion pages in their index, Majestic provides the most comprehensive dataset available for link analysis and backlink opportunities.
Pros: Some key advantages of Majestic include:
– Powerful backlink and trust flow data for researching link opportunities and competitor analysis
– Affordable personal use plans for freelancers and small businesses
– Simple interface and robust APIs for easy integration into workflows
– Regular updates with new features and improvements based on customer feedback
Cons: The main disadvantage of Majestic is the higher pricing for teams and enterprise plans compared to some competitors. However, they counter this with the most comprehensive datasets.
Pricing: Majestic offers various paid plans starting from $99 per month for a personal license. Team and enterprise plans are available for larger businesses and agencies with custom pricing.
Some key stats about Majestic include:
– Index of over 20 billion domains and 500 billion web pages
– Database of over 1 trillion links dating back to 1996
– Fresh data added daily from billions of page scans
– Used by over 5,000 customers globally including top brands and agencies
10. LinkAssistant
LinkAssistant is a leading local SEO software created by Link-Assistant.com. Since 2007, Link-Assistant has helped over 500,000 marketers, agencies and SMBs optimize their local SEO. Some key facts about LinkAssistant include that it offers a full suite of technical SEO, content and competitive analysis tools to help users rank higher on Google and other search engines.
Pros: Some key advantages of LinkAssistant include:
– Powerful technical link auditing to identify and fix issues impacting rankings
– Robust content and structural insights to optimize website structure and content for search
– Affordable barebones pricing that is accessible for most local businesses and agencies
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that the more advanced FEATURES and TEMPLATES require upgrading to a higher pricing plan, so it may not be fully featured for some users on the basic plan.
Pricing: LinkAssistant offers three pricing tiers:
– Basic: $49/month
– Pro: $99/month
– Agency: Custom pricing
All plans include Technical SEO Audit, Competitor Analysis, Link Building features and support. Higher tiers unlock more sites, features and team collaboration tools.
Key stats about LinkAssistant include:
– Analyzes over 200 on-page and technical SEO factors
– Audits links from over 100,000 domain
– Provides insights into content gaps and keyword opportunities for over 5 million businesses
– Affordable pricing starting from $49/month
11. SE Ranking
SE Ranking is a local SEO software developed by SE Ranking, a company that has been providing SEO solutions since 2007. Their cloud-based platform allows users to perform comprehensive local SEO audits, track keywords, monitor competitors and gain insights to improve search rankings.
Pros: Some key advantages of SE Ranking include:
– Robust technical SEO module for auditing on-page and off-page SEO issues
– Powerful keyword tracking to measure keyword performance and rivals’ rankings
– Advanced competitive profiling to analyze top competitors’ backlinks, citations and more
Cons: A potential disadvantage is that the paid plans can be cost-prohibitive for very small businesses or solopreneurs on a tight budget.
Pricing: Pricing starts from $49/month for the Solo plan (up to 5 projects) and goes up to $299/month for the Team plan (unlimited projects).
Some key stats about SE Ranking include:
– Over 15,000 customers globally in 85+ countries
– Integrations with over 150 tools including Google Analytics, SEMrush, Ahrefs and more
– Monitors over 100 local ranking factors across multiple locations
12. Yext
Yext is a digital experience platform that powers location and listing information across 150 countries and multiple third-party channels including Google, Amazon, and Bing. With over 27,000 customers, Yext is the industry leader in digital knowledge management and ensures businesses are presenting accurate, consistent information wherever customers may search.
Pros: Key advantages of Yext include best-in-class coverage of major third-party listings sites and search engines, powerful knowledge graph capabilities to enrich and interconnect data, and a superior reputation for customer support.
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that the platform requires ongoing management of listings and claims which adds to the customer’s workflow.
Pricing: Yext offers various pricing tiers depending on the number of locations and listings managed. Plans range from $99/month for smaller businesses up to custom enterprise plans for the largest global brands.
Some key stats about Yext include: ability to manage over 225 million listings globally, integration with thousands of third-party channels and services, over 10 billion searches monthly on listings managed by Yext.
13. Keywords Everywhere
Keywords Everywhere is a digital marketing research tool developed by Keywordseverywhere.com. Powered by a Chrome browser extension, it allows users to research keywords, track rankings, and monitor competitors directly from the Google Search results page or any website.
Pros: Some key advantages of Keywords Everywhere include:
– Keyword ranking tracking browser extension for real-time visibility into search performance
– Free version available for basic usage at no cost
– Insights like keyword difficulty, monthly searches and competition directly from Google
– Competitor research and backlink analysis tools for auditing the strengths of others
Cons: The main disadvantage is that some advanced features like project management, custom reports and team collaboration are only available in the paid version.
Pricing: Keywords Everywhere offers both a free basic version as well as paid premium plans starting at $9 per month for an individual account. Volume discounts are also available for agencies and businesses with annual plans.
Some key stats about Keywords Everywhere include:
– Over 1 million users worldwide
– Active in more than 150 countries
– Supports 15+ languages
– Free version available for basic usage or $9/month for additional features
14. OptimizePress
OptimizePress is a WordPress plugin developed by Anthropic that allows users to create high-converting landing pages, sales funnels, and product checkouts without any coding. Founded in 2015, OptimizePress has grown to serve over 350,000 customers worldwide.
Pros: Some key advantages of OptimizePress include:
– Robust content management plugin that makes it easy to build and optimize landing pages
– Powerful technical optimization tools to improve page speed and SEO
– Useful SEO analytics extras to track campaign performance
Cons: A potential disadvantage is that the plugin is less customizable than standalone page builder software since it must work within the WordPress environment.
Pricing: OptimizePress offers three pricing tiers:
– Startup Plan: $67 per year
– Growth Plan: $97 per year
– Unlimited Plan: $197 per year
Some key stats about OptimizePress include:
– Over 350,000 customers globally
– Supported in over 40 languages
– Backed by a team of over 50 employees
– Consistently ranked as one of the best WordPress page builders
15. Raven Tools
Raven Tools is a leading local SEO software provider founded in 2009. Their flagship software product allows users to perform automated technical SEO audits, generate comprehensive marketing reports, and more. With plans starting at just $49/month, it offers an affordable solution for agencies, freelancers and businesses of all sizes.
Pros: Some key advantages of the Raven Tools software include:
– Comprehensive technical SEO module that audits on-page SEO, mobile speed, links, HTTPS implementation and more
– Powerful backlink auditing capabilities to analyze links from Majestic, Ahrefs, SEMRush and more
– Link building and research extras like site: queries, competitor analysis and outreach list generation
Cons: One potential disadvantage is that the software is best suited for agency use cases rather than individual freelancers or solopreneurs due to its emphasis on generating reports for clients. The learning curve may also be slightly steeper than some simpler reporting tools.
Pricing: Raven Tools offers affordable monthly pricing plans starting at $49/month for the Standard plan. This includes features like 5 automated site audits and reporting for 1 client website. The higher-tier Premier plan is $99/month and upgrades you to unlimited audits and reporting for 3 sites. Both plans offer a 15-day free trial.
Some key stats about Raven Tools include:
– Serving over 10,000 customers globally
– Performs 300,000+ automated technical SEO audits each month
– Generates over 500,000 marketing reports annually
– Integrates with over 150 tools like Google Search Console, SEMRush and Ahrefs
Conclusion
While all the above mentioned local SEO software platforms provide robust feature sets tailored for local optimization, Moz, SEMrush, Ahrefs, BrightLocal and Yext stand out as the top-ranking options for businesses in 2023. Their in-depth analytics, powerful link building and research integrations along with industry-leading customer support make them the leading choices for businesses aiming to dominate local search results. Select the right toolkit based on your unique local SEO needs and goals to gain a competitive edge in the new year.