It’s one of the first things SEOs ask when they’re thinking aboutSEO testing as a growth program.
What tools do I need?
To that I say, do you need a tool?
SEO testing tools make it a helluva lot easier to run, measure, and report on your hypotheses. But if you’ve never done SEO testing before (chances are you have and didn’t realize it), then I tell most people to start with the free resources already at your fingertips.
I even made mymanual SEO testing processfree so you have no excuses. Well, besides laziness. I guess that counts as an excuse but it’s a sappy one.
Even still, you’re probably at least a little bit curious to see what tools are out there and that’s why this article is here… to show you the goods.
SEO Testing Tools Do Different Things
Sounds obvious right? But you really have to know what these tools do because they’re not just a little bit different from each other.
They’rea lot differentfrom each other.
Remember that these are not always interchangeable, so you’ll need to evaluate them on multiple levels.
I’ll include descriptions to help you discern what each tool does.
1.SEOTesting.com
Perhaps the first and easiest tool to start with as you dip your toes into the SEO testing world is SEOTesting.com. This is an SEO testing tool that has quickly gained popularity due to its entry-level accessibility and its versatility of allowing you to run a variety of experiment types including split tests, time-based tests, group tests, and otherSEO test processes.
Types of SEO experiments you can run:
- Time-based tests
- A/B split tests
- Group tests
- URL switch tests
What SEOtesting.com does best:
- Reporting. The reports that this tool provides are addictive, can include algorithm overlays, and you can set automation rules to receive them right to your email.
- Data visualization. Okay, this is really part of reporting, but it is worth calling out. The data visualizations are very on-point.
- Email alerts. These are especially valuable in high-velocity testing programs when you’ve got multiple experiments running.
What SEOtesting.com doesn’t do:
- Doesn’t automatically run SEO experiments for you, which means you still need to know what you’re doing, and implement the experiments manually.
- Doesn’t use CausalImpact to measure the tests, so results aren’t necessarily measured to true statistical significance. Instead, it uses an average daily difference model, which is still highly-reliable.
Best for:
- Teams that are just getting started out with SEO testing.
- High-velocity testing programs that need an easier way to keep track of their winners and losers.
- Teams doing SEO testing on a low budget.
2.SearchPilot
SearchPilot is the SEO testing powerhouse that’s got everyone’s attention these days. Will Critchlow began SearchPilot as an R&D program with Distilled and grew the program into an industry-leading SEO testing program. SearchPilot’scase studiesare by and large, some of the most interesting and unique case studies out there, as they are literally bunking and debunking many of the common hypotheses SEO professionals wonder about.
Besides the amazing case studies, SearchPilot has some of the most advanced features and it’s the only SEO testing platform utilizing an advanced neural network model, which measures statistical significance to the best possible degree. It’s also the only SEO testing platform I’ve discovered that can render change implementations on the client side or on the server side.
Types of SEO experiments you can run:
- A/B split tests
What SearchPilot does best:
- Highest-reliability of statistical significance
- Meta-CMS enables SEOs to make changes without a developer (client-side or server-side)
- Full-funnel testing capabilities (SEO & CRO together)
- Professional services option to help execute the strongest ideas
What SearchPilot doesn’t do:
- Time-based tests
Best for:
- Mature SEO programs
- Sites that generate a high volume of traffic to programmatic page groups
- Teams with high budgets
3.SplitSignal
SplitSignal is Semrush’s flagship SEO testing platform. Similar to SearchPilot, SplitSignal enables SEO teams to runA/B split testswithout the need for developer resources. The implementations are rendered on the client-side only.
Types of SEO experiments you can run:
- A/B split tests
What SplitSignal does best:
- A/B split testing with client-side rendering
What SplitSignal doesn’t do:
- Time-based tests
- Server-side rendering (to the best my knowledge)
- Neural network statistical significance (I believe this tool is using CausalImpact, but I was unable to verify for certain)
Best for:
- Sites with 300+ programmatic (templatized) page groups
- Sites that generate over 500k monthly organic traffic sessions
- Teams that want to run advanced A/B split tests, but perhaps aren’t ready for the premium service with SearchPilot (Note: pricing information is not available, so I am not able to do any price comparisons between these two platforms)
4.Distilled DIY Split Tester
In a totally different ballpark than the previous tools, Distilled’s DIY Split Tester is completely free and available for SEOs who want to do it themselves.
This tool does require more manual execution on both the front end (implementing the tests) as well as on the back end (measuring statistical significance), which means that you really need to know what you’re doing. If you do know what you’re doing, then the DIY split tester is a priceless resource.
Because it has no price. Get it? Okay moving on…
Types of SEO experiments you can run:
- A/B split tests
What the DIY Split Tester does best:
- Makes CausalImpact analysis free!
What the DIY Split Tester doesn’t do:
- Everything else (aside from CausalImpact analysis)
Best for:
- Savvy SEOs who understand how to use the tool
- SEO’s who want to learn the first principles of A/B split testing
- Low-budget teams that need to run split tests
5.SiteSeer (formerly Zyppy)
SiteSeer is the brainchild of Cyrus Shephard and one other co-founder. The tool was initially launched under the brand name, “Zyppy” with server-side title tag testing being the tools first feature. SiteSeer lets users scale time-based title tests and track their performance with unique features like the ability to see when Google rewrites your page titles + recommendations for new title tag ideas.
Separate from title testing, SiteSeer’s other key feature is an internal linking analyzer that helps SEOs improve their sites’ internal linking patterns.
Types of SEO experiments you can run:
- Time-based title tag tests
- Bulk testing of page titles
What SiteSeer does best:
- Server-side publishing + WordPress integration
- See when your titles are being dynamically rewritten by Google
- Recommends title enhancement ideas
- Helps track the performance of time-based tests
What SiteSeer doesn’t do:
- A/B split tests
- Statistical significance measurement models
Best for:
- Any website, regardless of content types or traffic thresholds
- Teams that arenew to SEO testing
- Teams that want to scale up their title testing efforts across more pages
- Lower-budget teams
6.ClarityAutomate
ClarityAutomate’s split tester (by seoClarity) is in the same camp of tools as SearchPilot and SplitSignal. This tool offers SEOs the ability to implement split tests externally with client-side JS and makes it easy to measure experiments.
The website is unclear about which statistical technique the tool uses to measure split tests, and pricing is also unavailable, so it’s difficult to compare ClarityAutomate with SearchPilot and SplitSignal without speaking to a sales representative.
Types of SEO experiments you can run:
- A/B split tests
What ClarityAutomate does best:
- Client-side execution to reduce dev time
- Test automation with a controllable schedule
- Measurement and reporting for SEO split tests
What ClarityAutomate doesn’t do:
- Time-based tests
- Server-side rendering
- Neural network statistical significance (unclear which statistical model this tool relies on)
Best for:
- Sites that generate high volumes of traffic on programmatic page groups
- Teams that want to run advanced A/B split tests, but perhaps aren’t ready for the premium service with SearchPilot (Note: pricing information is not available, so I am not able to do any price comparisons between these platforms)
7.SEO Scout
SEO Scout is another split testing tool that uses a client-side JS implementation program. My research with this platform was limited due to the lack of specificity in SEO Scout’s website content. For example, I was unable to find details about the tool’s measurement techniques, reporting, and pricing.
What did stand out to me was a feature that they call, “automated SEO testing,’ which tracks whenever a change is made on your website and monitors the impact of the changes for you. In this regard, I believe SEO Scout might be a viable option for time-based SEO testing.
Types of SEO experiments you can run:
- A/B split tests
- Time-based experiments
What SEO Scout does best:
- Client-side execution for A/B split tests
- Automated SEO testing
What SEO Scout doesn’t do:
- Server-side rendering
- Unclear which statistical model SEO Scout relies on for measuring split tests
Best for:
- Sites that generate high volumes of traffic on programmatic page groups
- Teams that want to automate time-based SEO testing in addition to A/B testing
- Teams that want to run advanced A/B split tests, but perhaps aren’t ready for the premium service with SearchPilot (Note: pricing information is not available, so I am not able to do any price comparisons between these platforms)
8.Ryte
Ryte added SEO testing to their robust suite of SEO features in March of 2021. Based on the information I’ve seen on Ryte’s website, this feature is not as high-tech as some of the other A/B testing tools, like SearchPilot, SplitSignal, etc. But more like SEOtesting.com, where implementation must be done manually and the data is measured with an average daily difference model.
Types of SEO experiments you can run:
- A/B split tests
What Ryte does best:
- Reports on the results of your A/B split tests
- Broad suite of SEO tools for other tasks
What Ryte doesn’t do:
- Time-based testing
- Statistical significance models like CausalImpact or Neural Network
- Test implementation (client-side or server-side)
Best for:
- Teams who are dabbling in SEO testing, but are primarily interested in Ryte’s other features
Honorable Mentions
These tools appear to be sunsetted, but I thought it would be good to highlight them as they’ve each been valuable contributions in the SEO testing tools space.
Clickflow
Clickflow was a tool that served the lower-budget SEO testing space with similar features to SEOtesting.com. Recently, Clickflow’s website has been 404’d, so although I was unable to find any current updates about the tool, I believe it may have been sunsetted.
RankSense
RankSense was built by Hamlet Batista, whose tragic passing rattled the SEO community in early 2021, which put an unfortunate halt to the tool’s development. RankSense helps SEOs scale up their SEO testing velocity through “Edge SEO,” or server-side rendering akin to SearchPilot and SiteSeer. This technology allows SEOs to scale up their time-based experiments with very little time investment. RankSense was later acquired by seoClarity, so perhaps we’ll see more progress in the years to come.
May Hamlet’s legacy live on through the technology he created and the thousands of lives he touched.