How we test and score SEO tools
Last updated Oct 6, 2026
Every listing on SMB SEO carries one of two labels, so you always know how much work sits behind it.
- Tested. A named reviewer used the tool hands-on, following a written protocol for that kind of tool, and saved dated screenshots of what they found.
- Researched. The facts come from the vendor’s own pages, each with a source and the date we checked it. We haven’t used the tool hands-on yet, and the listing doesn’t claim we have.
How we check facts
Prices, plans, limits and trial terms come from the vendor’s pages, never from memory or third-party lists. Each fact keeps its source and the date we captured it. Before a listing goes live, a person checks every number against its source, and the listing shows the date of that check. Automated checks look for price and link changes every week, and we re-test the most-used tools every quarter.
How we test
Each kind of tool has its own protocol. For example:
- Shopify apps. We measure the app’s effect on page speed with Lighthouse before and after installing it, weighted the way Shopify measures it (home page 17%, product page 40%, collection page 43%), counting the median of several runs per page because single runs vary. An app fails when it lowers that score by more than ten points, the limit Shopify sets for its Built for Shopify badge. We check whether its changes actually reach the live store. Then we uninstall it and compare the theme’s files with how they were before the install: the uninstall is clean when nothing is left behind.
- WooCommerce plugins. The same speed approach on a standard WooCommerce test store, plus schema output and theme conflicts.
- Amazon and Etsy tools. We compare keyword volumes and sales estimates with real data from partner sellers.
- Local SEO tools. We check rank tracking for one location and 25 keywords against Search Console, and run local grid scans on public listings.
- AI-visibility trackers. We run the same prompts repeatedly, because AI answers change from run to run.
- Every tested tool. We check the billing, trial and cancellation terms and take screenshots, and where a public trial exists we sign up and cancel.
When a vendor gives us an account to test with, the review says so. We test the plan the public buys, and vendors never see a review before it’s published. Each tested review names the reviewer, the plan we tested and where, shows dated screenshots and links to the raw results.
How we score
Tested tools get an SMB Fit score out of 10, built from six parts:
| Part | Weight |
|---|---|
| Value for money at small-business usage | 25% |
| Ease of setup and use | 20% |
| Coverage of the jobs small businesses need done | 20% |
| Platform fit: local features for local tools, store features for ecommerce tools | 15% |
| Data quality and accuracy | 10% |
| Support and onboarding | 10% |
Store apps also show a pass or fail for speed impact and for a clean uninstall, next to the score. Commission, sponsorship and lead fees never change a score or the order of a list.