9 Best DIY SEO Software for a Small Business in 2024

Are you tired of paying hefty sums of money to SEO experts to get your website to rank higher on Google?

In this blog, I’ll be sharing with you the best DIY SEO software to help you achieve your goal of ranking higher on Google.

From keyword research tools to on-page optimization software, I’ve got you covered with this comprehensive list of both paid and free tools.

I have tested these tools personally to share my experience and give you my unbiased opinion.

So, let’s dive in!

What is DIY SEO Software?

Businesses often hire an SEO agency or specialists to run their websites and generate organic traffic.

However, if you are starting your own website or looking to provide SEO services to others you may need some tools at your disposal.

DIY SEO software allows you to form and implement your own SEO strategy.

These tools can help you with all things SEO from content planning to the content creation process.

What is the Best DIY SEO Software to Rank on Google?

SEO is an incredibly valuable skill to have.

Many tools can help you enhance your SEO game and take your traffic to the next level.

Here is a list of some of our favorite SEO tools:

Tool	Main Highlight
Surfer SEO	Content Optimization and Content Planning
Jasper AI	Content Creation
SEMRush	All-in-one SEO and Marketing Tool
Ahrefs	Tool for Overall SEO Strategy
Google Keyword Planner	Keyword Research
Mongools	SEO Tool on a Budget
Google Search Console	Analyze Your Website’s Performance
MeetGlimpse	Find New and Emerging Keywords
Answer The Public	Build Topical Authority

Surfer SEO

Overview

SurferSEO is an SEO tool specifically created to assist bloggers, content marketers, and business owners in generating organic traffic.

This is one of my favorite SEO tools to use and in my opinion a necessity for a successful SEO strategy.

This software provides valuable insights, recommendations for optimization, keyword research, and competitive analysis.

I use SurferSEO to optimize every single one of my blogs. I have seen a considerable increase in my keyword rankings and traffic since I started using SurferSEO.

Highlights

The key features offered by SurferSEO are:

Content Editor:

The content editor compares your content and the top 10 ranking pages for your target keyword to give you a content score and recommendations to improve the content.

The editor suggests LSI keywords, word count, and image optimization tips.

It also provides content outline suggestions based on the top-ranking pages.

PRO TIP: I aim for an 80+ content score before adding pictures to the content and have had great results following this strategy.

Keyword research:

SurferSEO’s keyword research tool generates topic clusters and subtopics related to your target keyword to help you build topical authority.

It also provides the search volumes and competition for these keywords along with analyzing the SERP to understand what type of content will rank best.

Here’s an example of me using this tool to come up with content ideas:

As you can see above, the tool provides you with different topics you can cover along with the search volume and keyword difficulty.

Domain Planner:

This tool helps you plan your content calendar by suggesting relevant keywords and topics based on your target audience and website goals.

It gives you a holistic view of the performance of your website along with suggestions on what area you should focus on.

Pricing

Surfer SEO offers a 7-day money-back guarantee and several pricing plans to choose from.

• The Essential plan costs $89 per month
• The Scale plan is priced at $129 per month
• The Scale AI plan, priced at $219 per month
• Enterprise plan is priced starting at $399per month

Jasper AI

Overview

Jasper AI is an AI-powered content-writing tool that offers a suite of dedicated tools to help users create content for many different purposes.

It is one of the most popular content writers on the market and is one of the better AI writing tools I have tested.

Jasper AI can help you create blogs, articles, marketing copy, product descriptions, emails, etc.

The tool also offers an integration with Surfer SEO which lets you optimize your content within the Jasper AI interface.

Highlights

Long-form content creation:

With Jasper, you can write long-form content, such as blog posts, articles, and ebooks.

You can provide it with a topic or outline, and it will generate different sections of content for you.

Short-form content creation: 

Jasper can also help you create short-form content, such as social media captions, product descriptions, and email subject lines. 

Jasper’s platform offers dedicated features for different short-form content.

You can simply give it a few keywords or a sentence, and it will generate a variety of options for you to choose from.

Content optimization: 

Jasper can help you optimize your content for search engines. 

It can analyze your content and suggest improvements, such as adding keywords and phrases that people are likely to search for.

Multiple languages: 

Jasper can generate content in multiple languages, which can be helpful if you want to reach a wider audience.

Templates and recipes: 

Jasper comes with a variety of templates and recipes that you can use to create different types of content. 

For example, there are templates for blog posts, product descriptions, and social media captions.

Pricing

• Creator: Their Creator plan is priced at $49/month (billed monthly) and $39/month (billed annually).
  • 1 seat
  • 1 Brand voice
  • Access to SEO Mode
  • Jasper AI extension
• Pro: Jasper’s pro plan is priced at $69/month (billed monthly) and $59/month (billed annually). This plan includes everything in the Creator Plan, plus:
  • Includes 1 seat and you can add up to 5
  • 3 Brand Voices
  • 10 Knowledge assets
  • 3 Instant Campaigns
  • User Management
  • Jasper Art (Jasper’s Image Generation tool)

Semrush

Overview

SEMRush is one of the most complete SEO tools on the market.

The tool offers a ton of features that go beyond SEO and can help your marketing efforts.

SEMRush is used by many companies such as eBay, Samsung, Forbes, and Booking.com.

It is one of the best tools that offer features to help you every step of the way from doing your keyword research to running your ad campaigns.

If you are looking for a tool to support your overall marketing efforts, SEMRush is as good as it gets.

Highlights

Keyword Research:

• Keyword Magic Tool: Find thousands of relevant keywords based on your seed keyword, search intent, and competition level.
• Keyword Gap Analysis: See which keywords your competitors are ranking for but you’re not to get content ideas and build topical authority.
• Organic Traffic Insights: Analyze your competitors’ organic traffic and identify their top-performing pages.

SEO Related tools:

• On-Page SEO Checker: Audit your website’s pages for technical SEO issues and content optimization opportunities.
• Site Audit: Get a comprehensive health check of your website, identifying broken links, slow loading times, and mobile-friendliness issues.
• Position Tracking: Track your website’s ranking for specific keywords on Google and other search engines.

Competitor Analysis:

• Domain Overview: Get a complete picture of your competitor’s website, including their organic traffic, backlinks, and top keywords.
• Backlink Analytics: Analyze your competitor’s backlinks to identify their most valuable links and build similar ones for your own website.
• Social Media Post Tracking: Track your competitor’s social media activity and see what content resonates with their audience.

Content Marketing:

• SEO Content Template: Create SEO-friendly content briefs that will help you rank higher in search results.
• Topic Research: Discover trending topics and related keywords to fuel your content strategy.
• SEO Writing Assistant: Get real-time feedback on your content’s SEO score and readability.

Social Media Marketing:

• Social Media Poster: Schedule and publish social media posts across multiple platforms from one place.
• Social Media Analytics: Track your social media performance and measure the impact of your campaigns.
• Brand Monitoring: Monitor your brand mentions online and respond to reviews and comments.

Pricing

SEMRush currently offers three tiers:

• Pro: $129.95 per month. Allows up to 5 projects and up to 500 keyword tracking.
• Guru: $249.95 per month. Allows up to 15 projects and up to 1,500 keyword tracking.
• Business: $499.95 per month. Allows up to 40 projects and up to 5,000 keyword tracking.

You can also access a free tier of SEMRush if you Sign up and don’t choose a paid plan. But remember, the free plan has some limitations compared to the paid plans:

• You’ll have a limited number of daily requests to the analytics reports (10 per day).
• You can only create and manage one project.
• You can track a maximum of 10 keywords in Position Tracking.
• Access to some tools and features is limited or restricted.

Ahrefs Webmaster Tools

Overview

Afrefs is the best Keyword Research tool you can find on the market.

The data on Ahrefs is frequently updated. It collects this data using crawlers and happens to have the best crawlers besides Google.

However, it offers a wide array of features that include site explorer, rank tracking, site auditing, etc.

It also offers great insight into any site’s backlink profile.

This is the tool I use to research keywords and plan the content for my website, and couldn’t recommend it more.

Highlights

Backlink analysis:

• Site Explorer: Check the backlinks of any website or URL, including the referring domain’s Domain Rating (DR), the type of link (dofollow/nofollow), anchor text, and more.
• Link analysis tools: Analyze your own backlinks, identify broken links, and find link-building opportunities.

As you see in the image above you can see a list of domains linking to another site. It is a great tool for finding back-linking opportunities.

Keyword research:

• Keywords Explorer: Discover profitable keywords to target, see their search volume, difficulty, and CPC, and find related keywords.
• Content Explorer: Find high-performing content in your niche and see who is linking to it.

Ahrefs offers keyword research experience among all the marketing tools I have tested.

Rank tracking:

• Rank Tracker: Track your website’s ranking for specific keywords in different search engines and locations.

Site audit:

• Site Audit: Identify technical SEO issues on your website that are hurting your rankings.
• On-page optimization: Get recommendations for improving your title tags, meta descriptions, and other on-page elements.

This is a great feature to help you track the overall health of your website and provide recommendations to improve it.

Content marketing:

• Content Explorer: Find content ideas that are likely to get traffic and backlinks.
• Alerts: Get notified when someone mentions your brand or keywords online.

Competitor analysis:

• Site Explorer: See what your competitors are doing in terms of SEO and content marketing.
• Content Gap Analysis: Find keywords that your competitors are ranking for but you’re not.

 

Pricing

Ahrefs offers 4 pricing plans:

• Lite Subscription: $99 per month. Perfect for small businesses or hobbyists.
• Standard: $199 per month. Perfect for freelancers or SEO consultants
• Advanced: $399 per month. Great for an in-house marketing team.
• Enterprise: $999 per month. Perfect for an agency

Google Keyword Planner

Overview

Google Keyword Planner is a free tool offered by Google Ads that allows users to research and analyze potential keywords for their website or campaign.

I often use this tool to find keyword ideas, historical metrics, search volume trends, and estimates for potential clicks and costs.

It can be a valuable resource for businesses and advertisers looking to optimize their websites and target their audience with relevant keywords.

And a great place to start if you’re on a tight budget.

Highlights

Keyword Discovery:

• Brainstorming: Enter broad seed keywords related to your niche or website. Keyword Planner will suggest related keywords and long-tail variations.
• Website Insights: Enter your website URL to discover keywords relevant to your existing content, identifying potential ranking opportunities and areas for expansion.

It’s a great way to find emerging keywords that many other tools may not even capture. However, Google can provide you accurate data.

Search Volume & Competition:

• Monthly Searches: Get estimated search volumes for your target keywords, understanding their search popularity and potential traffic value.
• Competition: You can use “Top of page bid” estimates to gauge the competition. High competition suggests tougher organic ranking but potentially higher value leads.

Keyword Planning & Organization:

• Keyword Lists: Create and save keyword lists for future reference or to share with team members. This helps organize your research and track progress.
• Forecasts: Use Keyword Planner’s forecasting tool to estimate potential clicks, impressions, and conversions based on your chosen keywords (helpful for understanding potential SEO impact).

Pricing

Google Keyword Planner is completely free to use. You can access it by creating a Google Ads account.

Mangools

Overview

Mangools is one of the most complete SEO tools for the price it offers.

It is geared towards bloggers and marketers who are looking for an SEO tool on a budget.

It offers a comprehensive bundle of tools including keyword research, site analysis, SERP checker, backlink analysis, and rank-tracking features. 

Mongools User interface is also strikingly easy to use and I prefer it over many other fancy tools.

Highlights

Keyword Research:

• Keyword Finder: This tool helps you find relevant keywords for your target audience and niche. Enter a seed keyword, and Mangools will generate a list of related keywords, along with their search volume, competition level, and other important metrics.
• SEO Difficulty: This metric gives you an estimate of how difficult it will be to rank for a particular keyword. Use this to focus on keywords that are within your reach and avoid wasting time on keywords that are too competitive.
• SERP Checker: This tool shows you the top results for a given keyword in Google. You can see what kind of content is ranking, the domain authority of the ranking websites, and other useful information. Use this to understand what you need to do to outrank your competitors.

Backlink Analysis:

• Link Miner: This tool helps you find backlinks to your website and your competitors’ websites. You can see the domain authority, link type, and other metrics for each backlink. Use this to identify opportunities to build high-quality backlinks to your website.
• Link Strength: This metric gives you an estimate of the overall strength of a backlink. Use this to focus on building backlinks from high-quality websites.
• Competitor Backlink Analysis: See where your competitors are getting their backlinks from and try to replicate their success.

Rank Tracking:

• Rank Tracker: This tool tracks your website’s ranking for a set of keywords in Google. You can see how your rankings are changing over time and identify areas where you need to improve.
• Local Rank Tracking: Track your website’s ranking in Google for different locations. This is important if you are targeting a local audience.

Pricing

Mangools offers three categories with monthly and annual payment plans.

• Mangools Basic plan at $26.91 per month 
• Mangools Premium plan at $40.41 per month 
• Mangools Agency plan at $80.91 per month

You can save up to 35% or more with annual payment plans depending on the offer available.

Mongools also offers a 10 day free trial to help you get a feel of all of its features.

Google Search Console

Google Search Console (GSC) is a free SEO tool that acts as your direct line to how Google sees your website.

It’s like peeking behind the curtain of the search engine to understand your performance, diagnose issues, and ultimately improve your organic visibility.

I use this tool basically every day to view and understand the performance of my website.

Overview

Performance Monitoring:

• Track keyword rankings: See which keywords your website ranks for on Google Search and their respective positions.
• Analyze traffic data: Monitor impressions, clicks, and average click-through rates (CTR) for your pages.
• Identify top-performing pages: Discover which pages attract the most organic traffic and analyze their content for insights.

Technical SEO Diagnostics:

• Index coverage: Check if all your important pages are indexed by Google, identifying any errors that might block them.
• Mobile usability: Test your website’s mobile-friendliness and discover any issues impacting mobile users.
• Core Web Vitals: Monitor page loading speed, responsiveness, and visual stability, which are crucial for SEO and user experience.
• URL inspection: Get detailed information about any specific URL, including crawl, index, and mobile rendering status.

Pricing

Google Search Console is a free tool.

MeetGlimpse

MeetGlimpse isn’t a conventional SEO tool; it’s an extension for Google Trends that enhances its data to give you deeper insights into search data for your content strategy.

Think of it as taking Google Trends on steroids for SEO professionals.

I have personally used MeetGlimpse to find some amazing new keywords for my content.

Highlight

Keyword Research:

• Uncover hidden gems: Go beyond broad terms and discover long-tail keywords, related searches, and rising trends you might have missed.
• Plan content based on trending topics: MeetGlimpse can help you identify emerging trends and create content that capitalizes on the rising search volume.

SEO Strategy:

• Prioritize your efforts: Focus on keywords with high search volume and low competition, optimizing your time and resources.
• Identify seasonal trends: It also helps you identify seasonal trends so you can optimize your content for seasonal changes in search behavior.

Pricing

Free Trial:

• Access to basic features like keyword exploration, related searches, and limited trend data.
• Ideal for getting a feel for the tool and its capabilities.

Pro Plan:

• Starts at $40 per month
• Includes 250 keyword lookups/month, tracking 100 keywords, and Google Sheets integration.
• Suitable for solopreneurs and small businesses.

Expert Plan:

• Starts at $199 per month
• Includes all features of the Pro plan, unlimited keyword lookups/month, Tracking 5000 keywords, and CSV Import & Bulk tracking.
• Ideal for small teams and agencies.

Answer The Public

Overview

AnswerThePublic isn’t your typical SEO tool.

It goes beyond search volume and competition, tapping into the minds of your target audience.

It’s a search listening tool that unveils the actual questions, comparisons, and even prepositions people are using around your chosen keyword.

This goldmine of consumer insights fuels killer content and SEO strategies. Mainly this is a great tool to help you plan your content to build topical authority.

I have integrated Answer The Public in my content strategy to ensure that I am building good supporting content around my pillar topics.

Highlight

Uncover Untapped Keyword Opportunities:

• Forget generic keywords, dive into long-tail questions and comparisons your audience is actively searching for. The image you see above shows you a list of questions related to a parent topic.
• Discover niche subjects and unexpected keywords you might have missed, attracting targeted traffic.
• Identify low-competition, high-intent keywords for content creation and easy ranking wins.

Generate Content Ideas that Convert:

• Answer The Public shows you exactly what your audience wants to know. Create content that directly addresses their questions, concerns, and desires.
• Find inspiration for engaging blog posts, FAQs, product descriptions, and even video scripts.
• Uncover surprising angles and unique selling points for your content.

Pricing

SEO Tips and Tricks

In 2024, it is more than just about making SEO-optimized content and targeting the right keywords.

With Google’s new Helpful Content Update, the focus is shifting towards creating content that satisfies the users’ needs.

To rank your articles you need to create informative content that demonstrates Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (or EEAT).

Additionally, you need to make your content easily digestible and readable.

Use small paragraphs along with bold text to emphasize important information and use images and infographics wherever you deem necessary.

You can even use AI tools to help you with the content creation process.

Check out full reviews of our favorite AI content writers: Conch AI, Writesonic, Smodin AI, and our favorite AI image generators: Dezgo AI.

In Conclusion

Optimizing your website for search engines is crucial for improving your online visibility and driving organic traffic.

DIY SEO software provides a cost-effective solution for you to take control of your website’s optimization and rank on Google’s SERP.

In this blog, we’ve shared our top picks for the best DIY SEO software to help you achieve your SEO goals in 2023. From keyword research to on-page optimization to link building, these software tools offer a range of features to suit different needs and skill levels.

It’s important to note that while DIY SEO software can automate tasks and provide valuable insights, it’s crucial to approach SEO with a strategic mindset and a focus on creating high-quality content that meets user needs.

By combining the power of DIY SEO software with a solid SEO strategy and a commitment to providing value to your audience, you can achieve long-term success on search engines and grow your online presence.

DIY SEO Software: Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is DIY SEO software?

A: DIY SEO software refers to software tools that website owners and bloggers can use to optimize their websites for search engines. These tools allow users to perform various SEO tasks, such as keyword research, competitor analysis, on-page optimization, link building, and more.

Q: Why should I use DIY SEO software?

A: Using DIY SEO software can help you save money on SEO services while still achieving higher rankings on search engines. These tools give you greater control over your website’s optimization and allow you to make informed decisions based on data and insights.

Q: Can I use DIY SEO software if I have no experience in SEO?

A: Yes, most DIY SEO software is designed to be user-friendly and intuitive, making it accessible to beginners. Additionally, many software tools offer tutorials, training, and support to help users get started.

Q: What are the benefits of using the best DIY SEO software?

A: The best DIY SEO software can help you optimize your website for search engines, increase organic traffic, improve website visibility, and boost your website’s rankings on search engine results pages (SERPs). Additionally, these tools can save you time and money by automating SEO tasks and providing data-driven insights.

Q: Are DIY SEO software tools expensive?

A: DIY SEO software tools come in a range of prices, from free to several hundred dollars per month. However, many affordable and effective options are available, making it possible for website owners on a budget to access these tools.

Q: Do copywriters need SEO tools?

A: If you have a copywriting business, SEO tools can be of great help to you. SEO software can help you write content that is more optimized for Google’s search engine. This is a valuable skill and as a copywriter, you can charge more for SEO content.

Q: Can I use DIY SEO software to guarantee a #1 ranking on Google?

A: No, it is not possible to guarantee a #1 ranking on Google or any other search engine. SEO is a complex process that involves various factors, such as competition, user intent, and algorithm updates. While DIY SEO software can help you optimize your website, it cannot guarantee specific rankings.

Q: How do I choose the best DIY SEO software for my website?

A: To choose the best DIY SEO software for your website, consider your budget, goals, and level of expertise. Look for software that offers features that align with your SEO strategy and that provide reliable data and insights. Additionally, read reviews and compare different options to find the best fit for your needs.

Q: Can you use SEO tools for high-ticket digital marketing?

A: Yes, SEO is a big aspect of high-ticket digital marketing. SEO tools can help you generate traffic through Google searches and build your audience.