Developing an SEO (search engine optimization) strategy to grow your small business can be daunting.
Lucky for you, there’s a slew of excellent SEO tools that make understanding your site’s metrics, competition, and SEO needs a breeze.
But which are the best tools for small business digital marketing?
I’ve tested dozens of SEO tools on the market and decided that these software are the best to bring into the new year.
The last time we did a review like this was in 2018, and you can check it out for an idea of how the landscape has changed.
What Are Our Top Tools for Small Business SEO?
No matter your needs or budget, you’re sure to find a tool in this list to help your business thrive in search engines.
If you have questions about small business SEO, scroll to the bottom of this article and review our top picks.
Without further ado, here are 9 life-changing tools to help your SEO strategy!
SEMrush is a major player in the SEO game right now, and not without good reason.
Their suite of SEO tools is relatively affordable, great for both beginners and experienced users, and extremely flexible depending on the purpose of your campaign.
Key Features
- Local SEO
- On-page SEO
- Keyword research
- Competitor analysis
- Rank tracking
- Link building
- Competitor analysis
- Content creation
Pricing
Semrush has three pricing plans: Pro, Guru, and Business.
For your small business needs, I’d recommend the Pro plan at $119.95/month.
It comes with the major tools SEMrush offers for a great SEO campaign, as well as five project slots and up to 500 trackable keywords.
Pros
- Beginner and enterprise-friendly
- Efficient and accurate data
- Clean interface
- Highly-ranked
Cons
- Not all tools available in lower-price plans
If you’re looking for a cost-efficient way to create superior content without having to invest in outsourcing, Jasper is your solution.
With its powerful artificial intelligence capabilities, this software can scour the web and generate informative articles that are tailored specifically for any niche – all with precise accuracy and eloquence!
Jasper offers content that’s 100% original, so you don’t have to worry about plagiarism.
When it comes to delivering content, Jasper is 2-5x faster than humans.
This is great for an SEO campaign, because the more quality content and keywords you post, the more likely you are to land in high-ranking search results.
Key Features
- All different kinds of writing genre templates, from blog posts to newsletters
- Keyword recommendation
- Surfer SEO integration
- Text and paragraph summaries
- Customizable tone of voice
Pricing
Jasper’s Starter plan is the best option for those with a smaller budget.
For $59 per month, you’ll get access to Japer’s features with 50 templates and for 50k words.
However, the Boss Mode’s pricing works on a sliding scale based on the size of the project.
Pros
- Major customizability
- Time-saving tool
- Aids in content generation
Cons
- Jasper content often requires extra polishing
Surfer SEO is a revolutionary suite of clever and user-friendly SEO tools.
It really gives small businesses a competitive edge.
This savvy software platform is equipped with influential tools to make accurate decisions about your small business’s digital presence.
That way, you’re always one step ahead in the ever-changing, competitive online environment.
Furthermore, Surfer SEO was designed with a user-friendly interface so that even those new to SEO can take advantage of its many features.
It’s great for advanced SEO users and newbies alike.
Key Features
- Content editor tool
- Keyword generation tool
- SERPs analysis options
- Site audits
Pricing
Surfer offers a couple of free tools, like a keyword and outline generator.
However, their four price packages are worth the investment for a longer-term SEO strategy.
The Basic price plan is best for small businesses at $49/month for a yearly plan. The Pro plan costs $119 for medium organizations and the Business plan is $239 for larger businesses. There is also a custom plan, called Enterprise, for users who want to personalized their experience.
It comes with all of Surfer’s key tools and aforementioned key features, as well as tracking for two websites, weekly SEO analytics, two team member seats, and more.
Pros
- Super advanced toolbox
- Great value
- Scalable as your business grows
- Good customer support, even though the interface is accessible
Cons
- No consulting services
Ahrefs offers a whole host of tools that are useful both in creating an SEO strategy and monitoring its progress.
It’s most well-known for its Site Explorer tool, but you can also use the Ahrefs toolbelt to research keywords, audit different websites, track your SERP ranking, and more.
With Ahrefs’ insightful data, helpful guidance, and user-friendly interface, it’s an investment worth making.
Key Features
- Loaded tool belt with all kinds of content creation and management tools
- Great reporting data
- Super-fast web crawler
- Backlink audits
- Competitive research
- Ranking history
- Outbound links monitoring
Pricing
Ahrefs’s pricing plans are cheaper if you pay annually, with two months free of the service, and come with excellent value for the price point.
If you combine Ahrefs with other tools like Google Analytics or Google Keyword Planner, you shouldn’t need to pay for any other SEO services.
The best plan for small businesses is the Lite package, at $83/month for a year.
It comes with all of their key SEO software tools, as well as a reports feature and batch analysis.
Pros
- History and long-term data
- SERP updates
- Customizable metrics and filtering
- Huge link database
- All-in-one suite
Cons
- Can be pricy for small businesses
GrowthBar made our list because it’s highly intuitive and easy to use.
This makes it one of the best SEO tools for beginners.
They display robust sets of data in a way that’s easy to understand, so you get the best of both worlds: advanced technology on an accessible interface.
Key Features
- Chrome extension to do SEO on the go
- Organic keyword research
- Streamlined competition metrics
- Genius content generator and keyword ideas
- Keyword tracker
- Backlink and hyperlink analysis
Pricing
GrowthBar offers a 5-day free trial, as should all SEO tools for small businesses.
That way, you can test out their services instead of investing a chunk of your budget before you know if it’s the right pick for you.
They offer a Standard price plan at $29/month for a year that comes with AI-generated blog and content ideas, unlimited keyword research, competitor backlinks, and two user accounts.
This is the best option of their price packages for small businesses, as it’s the most budget-friendly and relevant to individual creator needs.
Pros
- Highly accessible
- Great for competitive research
- Great for content generation and keyword ideas
Cons
- Not the best option if you're looking for technical metrics
- No audit feature
SE Ranking is a good choice, particularly for smaller marketing agencies.
If you’re starting a digital marketing agency and want to outsource your SEO work, SE Ranking offers marketing features in their plans that will help both you and your clients.
Key Features
- In-depth site audit
- Backlink monitoring for broken and lost links
- On-page SEO analysis to optimize your site’s code
- White-label features are great for marketing
- Keyword research
Pricing
There are three price plans for SE Ranking based on the 3-day rankings check frequency: Essential ($39.20/month), Pro ($87.20/month), and Business ($191.20/month).
Each of these prices includes the 20% discount that comes if you pay annually upfront.
Any of these are suitable for small businesses depending on your budget.
As you go up in price, you’ll gain access to more user seats and competitor analysis.
There are also customizable plans if you need more keyword checks and site audits per month.
Pros
- Scalability
- Marketing options available
- Solid data analysis
Cons
- Potentially requires external research about SEO quotas
Sitechecker is an excellent website if you’re looking for down-deep SEO analysis and metrics to improve your site.
It’s also super easy to use.
All you have to do is input your site URL, and Sitechecker will run a full-scale site audit to deliver insights about your traffic, SERP (search engine results page) rankings, backlinks, and more.
If you’re less interested in content generation and more concerned with what kind of SEO your site needs, Sitechecker can give you valuable answers.
Key Features
- Consistent sitewide auditing
- Website traffic check for competitors
- Daily backlink tracking
- Rankings tracking
Pricing
Sitechecker’s four price plans are affordable for all that they offer.
For a whole host of data analysis and search engine optimization tools, you only need to say $23/month for a year on their Basic plan.
This plan has unlimited seats, making it an excellent choice for small businesses.
You can also gain statistics from three different websites.
If you need more sites, Slack alerts, and even more backlinks and keywords, opt for the Standard plan at $39/month for a year.
However, for users who want access to more of Sitechecker’s features, the Premium plan costs $79/month annually and the Enterprise plan is $319/month each year.
Pros
- Metrics and data-focused tracker
- More in-depth data analysis than other SEO sites
- 7-day free trial
Cons
- You may need to pair with a content generation tool if you want more than data insights
Authority Labs is similar to Sitechecker, in that they’re one of the best SEO tools for small business campaign tracking.
This is because they help you easily access and understand rank-tracking data to improve your SEO strategy.
They have an especially intuitive interface, so we had to include them on this list.
Key Features
- Local tracking
- Global tracking
- Effective keyword targeting and tools
- Daily in-depth reports on your rankings
Pricing
Authority Labs offers a Plus package ($49/month) and a Pro package ($99/month) which are most suitable for small businesses.
There is also the Pro Plus package ($225/month) and Enterprise ($450/month)
The Pro is the best value, with 1k keywords per month, 100 domains, mobile and local tracking, and daily updates.
Pros
- 30-day free trial
- Major keyword solutions
- Accessible interface
- Constantly updating data
- Every account has unlimited users
Cons
- Limited filter options on keyword settings
- On the pricier side
Serpstat is a powerhouse SEO suite offering services for digital marketing and SEO tactics.
It comes with an incredibly easy-to-use, no-frills dashboard, but that doesn’t mean its data and analytics aren’t top-tier and accurate.
Key Features
- Site analysis that includes SEO and PPC research
- Great keyword research tool
- Site audits
- Competitive analysis
- Backlink and hyperlink tracking
Pricing
There is are four price plans Serpstat offers.
The price plan most suitable for small businesses is the Lite plan. It has everything you could need for the beginning of your SEO journey, all for $69/month.
These features include 15+ SEO, SEM, and PPC tools, 5k searches per day, 10k results for site and backlink analysis, API access, and a whole host more.
Pros
- Customizable metrics within their tools
- Huge range of digital marketing options
- Beginner-friendly interface
- International data
Cons
- Site auditing can be slow
Best Free SEO Tools
If you’re looking to boost your Google rankings, you can just take advantage of the remarkable SEO tool Google Search Console.
This resource will help you get more eyes on your site in no time.
You may know Google Search Console as Google Webmaster Tools, its last name.
To take advantage of this service, sign up for an account.
With that done, you will be notified if Google can detect any issues or errors with your website.
You’ll be able to access invaluable data, such as keyword analytics and the number of clicks per keyword.
Unlock more SEO-related insights and metrics when you connect your Google Analytics account to Google Search Console!
Key Features
- Comprehensive selection of search data
- Easily spot issues on your webpages
- Keyword research tools
- Integration with Google Analytics
- Integration with Google Maps
Pricing
Free!
Pros
- Inexpensive
- Easily rank on Google
- Accessible interface
Cons
- Only offers Google-based analytics
Google Analytics is a major name in site intelligence.
It can be difficult to learn to use at first, but the learning curve is totally worth it for the invaluable host of data you’ll receive.
All you need to start is an account with Google Ads, which doesn’t cost any money.
Key Features
- Constantly updating analytics
- Data visualization
Pricing
Google Analytics is free to use.
Pros
- Data is highly accurate
- Free to use
- Keep all of your Google-related data in one place
Cons
- Not the best customer support
- Limited to Google, not other search engines
If all you need for your SEO campaign is some keyword research, don’t pay for a whole suite of tools.
Instead, turn your attention to one of the best SEO tools out there.
You need a Google Ads campaign to use it.
Once that’s set up, you’ll have access to data about the average monthly searches for any given keyword, as well as the competition level and ranking score for that keyword.
Key Features
- Advertised toward marketing and SEO professionals
- Search any kind of keyword
- Reliable search data
- Discover PPC costs
- Customizable filters
Pricing
This keyword tool is completely free!
Pros
- You can easily customize search metrics to fit your campaign
- Google Ads and Analytics integration
- All the basic data you could need
Cons
- Search volume data could be more detail
- d Competition level isn't always accurate
What Are SEO Tools?
As a small business owner, it is critical to understand the value of search engine optimization (SEO) and how it can help your business succeed.
A website needs to be optimized to show up in relevant searches and ensure it is optimized for potential customers.
That’s where SEO tools can help, especially if they have small-scale and affordable price plans for businesses with low traffic and starter needs.
For small business owners, an effective SEO tool should boast features such as keyword research functionality, a user-friendly interface, and analytics & reporting tools tailored to enhance website rankings.
A top-notch small business SEO tool should also always include tutorials and guidance on optimization tactics, so even if you are unfamiliar with search engine optimization, you can quickly learn the ropes of what needs to be done and how.
You can’t skimp on SEO if you want to see your business grow.
It’s that simple.
If your small business is starting or relies heavily on organic search traffic, an SEO tool suite will make all the difference to ensure you are discovered online and in physical stores.
Investing in a reliable SEO package will help get your small business noticed faster than ever!
As you advance, you can start to link your SEO tactics with social media and look into advanced tactics like backlink outreach.
What Should You Look for in a Great SEO Tool?
We have a whole article about developing an SEO strategy for your small business.
Here’s, in a nutshell, what you should look for in an SEO tool.
Keyword Volume
One primary metric for SEO is keyword volume.
Knowing how often a keyword is searched can help determine which keywords are worth optimizing.
It makes sense to focus on keywords that have more monthly searches, so you can ensure people are seeking your content.
You also want to avoid going for the top-searched ones to begin, though, as your site might get lost in the results.
Keyword Difficulty
Your SEO suite needs to be able to search for keywords and determine the competition level or “difficulty” of ranking on search engines.
This can indicate how hard or easy it will be to get your content onto the first page of sites like Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc.
A higher difficulty rating means more competition, and it may require a lot of work to get your page to the top.
Competitor Review
Knowing your competitors’ actions can help you stay ahead of the game.
A great SEO tool should be able to give you competitor analytics, including a comprehensive overview of how their website is performing.
You can use knowledge of how they manage their search engine optimization to improve your own site.
Site Audit
With site auditing, you can ensure that all elements of your site structure, from metadata to titles to text, are optimized for the best results.
You can also audit competitor sites to gain information about their SEO tactics and what’s working for them.
Rank Tracking
Finally, you need to track your site’s performance in search engine rankings.
Not only should a tool for SEO help you develop content that will rank. It should also tell you how it’s ranking and help you monitor that progress.
A great SEO tool should have an automatic rank-tracking feature that can be used to monitor your website’s performance over time.
This data can help you determine if any changes you make are improving or hurting your overall ranking.
SEO Tool Benefits
SEO Tools Save You Time
SEO keyword research, site audits, metadata analysis, etc., can take months.
That will cut your time budget as a small business owner.
You can focus on other aspects of running your company by outsourcing your SEO needs, like product optimization and branding.
SEO Tools Earn You Money
SEO tools increase your site’s visibility, allowing more people to find you.
When done correctly, this can open up a new market of potential customers.
SEO Tools Predict Ranking Time
This can significantly benefit planning your long-term site strategy and ensuring you’re prepared for any traffic you gain.
Plus, this is evidence that SEO increases your site’s visibility results.
SEO Tools Help You Monitor Your Site
Using SEO tools to analyze site performance will give you valuable insight into what works and doesn’t.
This knowledge allows you to stay relevant and on top of the trends, so your product can be noticed in a heap of other results on SERPs.
Wrap Up
Small businesses can benefit immensely from SEO tools.
They save you time, earn money, predict the ranking time, and help you monitor your site’s performance.
Using the right tool for your small business can ensure that your content is visible to potential customers, helping your business grow and succeed.
If you want to increase your SEO presence and maximize your search engine visibility, consider investing in any of the SEO tools we mentioned.
Your business will thank you!
Ultimately, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to achieving success with SEO.
Small businesses must take into consideration their own needs and scale.
Please keep these factors in mind when choosing the right tool.
Happy hunting!
FAQs about topic
SERPStat is a solid and affordable beginning SEO tool that offers reliable customer support and an easy-to-use interface.
Ahrefs has consistently accurate data that rivals Google.
SEO is definitely still relevant in 2023, as it’s ever-changing and constantly updating.
Make sure to stay on track with new SEO trends to keep your sites consistently ranking on SERPs.
Google Search Console is one of the best tools for SEO, and it’s completely free. Link it to Google Analytics for even more advanced data.
SEO tools are a great option for business owners to save time in the short term and earn more money long term.