Tracking website positions

[Manpreet Iyer]

Hi everyone!
I use Semrush tool to track positions, lately there are big doubts about the accuracy of the results.
How do you track your site positions? What services do you use?

[wonderpunter]

ahrefs but even still now there are so many variables its hard to get a precise prediciton

[allfreechips]

ahrefs does ok but like wonderpunter said, location, mobile, desktop, heavy winds.... its all over but will give you and idea of the direction

[newcustomeroffer]

I look at the google search console positions but it's generally so volatile that any average position doesn't tell you the whole story. For key search terms the simple eye test tells you what's really happening in the wild.

[iso2009]

You can use SerpRobot (I'm using it for years), you can set it up to check daily. With different regions, languages, mobile or desktop. And you can also track Bing.

[johan_s]

I use Wincher for tracking keyword positions.

[eenzoo]

You can use SerpRobot (I'm using it for years), you can set it up to check on an hourly basis or twice a day, or daily. With different regions, languages, mobile or desktop. And you can also track Bing.

At the product website, it sounds to me you have to setup each SerpRobot (who is crawling up to 75 kw's) manualy?
So, instead he is crawling and monitoring my rankings, i need to give him his job KW by KW?

[iso2009]

I see they changed some things, but I remember they had the option to check every 12 hours...

Anyway, to answer your question, yes, you have to get the keywords from your google console (or Semrush, Ahrefs etc) and the bot will check them at minimum each 24 hrs (US, ROW, mobile, desktop etc).

It's a position monitoring tool, not a keyword discovery and monitoring tool. For me, it's one of the things I need especially on google updates. It's up to date, unlike Semrush or Ahrefs.

You can argue that Google Console does the same if you apply enough filters, but I kind of like it to be done by an external source too.

I use it to monitor the most difficult/important keywords. Maybe overall it's not that useful or I am getting used to it, but I like it

[ZeroToHero]

Hey! I use a mix of Ahrefs and manual checks in incognito for spot-checking in VPN for better accuracy especially in non english geolocations. SEMrush can be a bit off sometimes, so it's good to compare them both, but keep in mind that both Ahrefs and Semrush give out delayed results.

[JazzD]

Wincher is the best tool if you want to have a good overview over your ranking for specific Keywords. You can also get a good overview of how the keywords are doing in different countries. It usually gets data from the SERP 2-3 times a day and their position/ranking information is supper accurate. The negative part is that their traffic (or search volume) assumption for each KW is not correct. But you have the same issue with other tools.
I've been working with SEO for 8 years, and I see Wincher as the best tool for checking my sites ranking.

[OnlineProxy]

Yeah I feel you on SEMrush been noticing the same thing lately, especially with all the algo changes. Im in the VPN and tech tools space, so accurate rank data really matters. I use Ahrefs a lot too, mostly for backlink stuff, and still do manual checks for my top terms once or twice a week just to be sure. For local or mobile tracking, BrightLocal has honestly been a lifesaver.

[OnlineProxy]

Hi everyone!
I use Semrush tool to track positions, lately there are big doubts about the accuracy of the results.
How do you track your site positions? What services do you use?

Totally agree - Semrush has been a bit hit or miss lately, especially when it comes to daily fluctuations and mobile data. I've actually shifted most of my rank tracking over to AccuRanker too, it insanely fast and the data feels way more stable. Wincher’s also been super handy for client reports, especially when I need to break down mobile vs desktop performance cleanly.

I’m doing something similar with GSC—hooked up a custom Looker Studio dashboard that pulls in position trends and CTR shifts. It’s not perfect, but it helps flag the weird stuff that sometimes slips past rank trackers.

Also +1 on Ahrefs for international. I have found it surprisingly solid for some EU and LATAM markets where Semrush just doesn’t have the depth. Mixing tools definitely gives a better overall view these days.

[Eleni-CasinoGruppen]

I am using a mix of ahrefs, filtered GSC and Looker Studio custom template plus VPN incognito searches to verify. I have minimal experience with semrush, but I can confirm that in a multitude of cases semrush/ahrefs results deviated when comparing similar info. I still don't know which one is more accurate though.

[luckraise]

I'm currently using SEranking and it works quite well. The rankings seems to be accurate, but it's worth remembering that these days, different people can see different websites ranking nr1 for the same keyword.

[James Laplanche]

Hi! You're absolutely right — getting accurate ranking data is becoming more difficult due to personalization, location-based results, and fluctuations across Google data centers.

Personnaly, I use a mix of tools to cross-check and get a clearer picture:

BrightLocal: Great for local SEO and geo-specific tracking, especially when you want to simulate results from different zip codes or cities
SEO Hero Ninja: Simple but powerful tool to see unbiased rankings from multiple data centers — really helpful for spotting inconsistencies.
RankTracker for robust historical tracking

I still keep ahrefs in the mix for broader trend monitoring, but I don't rely solely on it for position accuracy anymore.

Also, doing manual checks in incognito with a VPN from different locations still gives valuable insights.