19 Best SEO Tools SEO Professionals Actually Use

A popular question that I get from readers is for recommendations on SEO tools, training, resources and services available for search engine optimization.

People especially want to know what tools I use to run SEO Mechanic and our client’s SEO campaigns.

Because of that I’ve put together a list of recommended SEO tools that I personally use or one’s that come highly recommended by industry professionals.

Breaking Down the Types of SEO Tools

But how will you outrank the competition? How will you achieve success when so many others share the same goal?

In addition to implementing a strategy that fits within Google’s Webmaster Guidelines, it’s important to take advantage of the best SEO tools and software that help:

• Link building
• Technical SEO
• Keyword research
• Rank tracking
• Content optimization
• Backlink analysis

Featured SEO Tool Reviews

As a small business owner or marketing professional, you understand the importance of search engine optimization (SEO). After all, there’s nothing better than moving to the top of the rankings for your target keywords.

According to HubSpot, “61% of marketers say improving SEO and growing their organic presence is their top inbound marketing priority.”
With this statistic in mind, there’s a good chance your competition is already spending time, money, and manpower on building a strong SEO strategy.

If you want to follow suit – and hopefully beat them to the top of the search engines – it’s important to take advantage of every tool that’s available to you.

While there are hundreds of SEO tools to choose from, some are more powerful and useful than others. Here are five to experiment with in the near future (if you’re not already doing so):

1. Ahrefs

It’s hard to find any list of top SEO tools that doesn’t include Ahrefs. Not only does it share advice on how to improve your website, but the competitor analysis tool gives you a clear idea of what your competition is up to.

If you want to build a sound SEO strategy, Ahrefs should be a big part of what you do.

2. Google Search Console

You should always have a beat on the health and performance of your website. Google Search Console provides you with a variety of data to better understand how your site is performing and changes you can make in the future.

For example, you can learn more about:

• Number of backlinks to your site (and where they come from)
• Top performing keywords
• Number of indexed pages
• Site errors

If you’re not yet using Google Search Console, it’s time to change your ways. It’s free to use and only takes a few minutes to setup, so don’t wait another day to get started.

4. Ryte

Find and fix issues on your website with Ryte’s technical SEO analysis, and craft content both users and search engines will love with our extensive content optimization features. See your digital ROI rocket with a flawless website that is guaranteed to keep users engaged. Sign up for a free Ryte account.

4. SEMRush

Where is your site ranking for your target keywords? Are your rankings on the rise or fall? Rather than check manually, you can use a tool like SEMRush to do all the heavy lifting for you.

Also, SEMRush allows you to easily compare your website to any competitor, giving you a clear idea of how you stack up and the best ways to make up ground.

5. Ubersuggest

Do you often struggle to identify new keywords? Do you often wonder if a keyword has the potential to drive traffic?

With Ubersuggest, you can uncover keywords, learn more about search intent, and review metrics such as:

• Keyword volume
• CPC
• Competition
• Trends

A good SEO strategy starts with a solid keyword foundation. If you need help with this, Ubersuggest is the tool for you.

6. SpyFu

A big part of reaching the top of the search engines is understanding what your competition is doing.

Rather than guess, let SpyFu show you the way. This tool provides you with a clear overview of your competitors, including the keywords they’re targeting, how many organic keywords they rank for, and the number of clicks they generate each month.

In the SEO game, the old saying “keep your friends close, but your enemies closer” remains true.

7. Majestic

With one of the largest link intelligence databases in the world, you can use this tool to learn more about inbound links, how your competition is performing, and much more. A simple domain, URL, or keyword search will get you started.

8. DeepCrawl

Are all your pages reachable within a few clicks from the homepage? When it comes to diagnosing on-page and technical issues, DeepCrawl is your best friend. Discover missed opportunities with your site structure, orphaned pages, and SEO effects on UX.

9. Copyscape

Are you worried about duplicate content? Copyscape will put your mind at ease, pointing this out and allowing you to remove it from your website or avoid posting it in the first place.

10. Google Keyword Planner

If you need help choosing target keywords or are ready for your next PPC campaign, this tool is a great place to start. Its tagline reads:

Plan your Search Network campaigns, get performance insights, and see keyword ideas.

11. Google Analytics

How can you make intelligent SEO decisions without the proper data? Google Analytics provides an in-depth look at everything from how visitors find your website to the most popular pages and much more.

12. Google PageSpeed Insights

Page speed is more important today than ever before, as a slow website can have a negative impact on your search engine rankings. Use this tool to improve your page speed.

13. MozBar

Here is the tagline:
“Download the MozBar to streamline your SEO. The MozBar provides easy access to the most powerful SEO tools and data while you surf the web.”
That’s pretty easy to understand, right?

14. Screaming Frog

Not only is this a powerful website crawling tool, but it can be customized to suit the needs of you, your SEO strategy, and of course, your website.

15. Searchmetrics Visibility Charts

By tracking the search visibility of your website, you can gain a better understanding of performance, what’s working, and what isn’t working.

16. SERPmetrics

Search engine rankings are in a constant state of flux. With this tool, you can track any website to see how it is ranking over the past 30 days.

17. Whitespark Local Citation Finder

If local SEO is on your mind, you know one thing to be true: getting local citations can work in your favor. With this tool, you can discover where to list your website to boost local search rankings.

18. Raven

Raven offers a variety of SEO tools, including its popular website auditor. This is perfect for those times when you want to get a high level overview of your website.

19. Bing Webmaster Tools

Even though Google is the leader in the search engine space, Bing is a viable alternative that has the potential to drive serious traffic to your website.

Other things Bing Webmaster Tools does:

• Clicks from search
• Appeared in search
• Pages crawled
• Crawl errors
• Pages indexed
• Inbound links
• Organic search keywords

With approximately eight percent of search engine market share with 6 billion monthly desktop searches, trailing only Google and Baidu, webmasters should focus some attention on obtaining traffic from Bing.

Final Thoughts

These seventeen SEO tools can transform your marketing strategy in no time at all. If you’ve yet to use one or more of these tools, set the goal of doing so in the near future. You won’t be disappointed with your decision!

Do you have any favorite tools to add to this list?