Web Ranking: Alexa’s Exit Brings Other Alternatives To Prominence

The shutdown of the Amazon-owned web ranking platform, Alexa, has propped several other alternative platforms that were not reckoned with until now. According to web experts, some of the alternatives, which include Similarweb, Semrush, SpyFu, among others, provide better insights on websites compared with Alexa.

Alexa ranks websites and was for generations of SEO practitioners, the first port of call for “content research, competitive analysis, keyword research. However, the company in December last year, announced it would be shutting down on May 1, 2022.

The company followed its plan as it shut down on May 1, leaving a message on its website that reads: “We retired Alexa.com on May 1, 2022, after more than two decades of helping you find, reach, and convert your digital audience. Thank you for making us your go-to resource for content research, competitive analysis, keyword research, and so much more.”

What experts are saying

• Speaking with Nairametrics, the Founder of TechNavel, Mr. Muritala Bello, noted that Alexa had outlived its usefulness, hence the shutdown. He said: “Alexa was no longer profitable for Amazon, and that was why it shut it down. The reality is that with the latest SEO software bearing all features that you can find on Alexa, the platform has outlived its usefulness.
• There are several other platforms that are offering the same services being offered by Alexa, some even have more features than Alexa,” he added.
• Also speaking, a web expert, Mr. Kayode Arowolo said: Alexa’s exit marks the end of an era but the beginning for many other platforms offering the same service. Now people can explore other alternatives, some of which are even offering better services. Obviously, a lot of businesses in Nigeria relied on Alexa, but they can also get the same result on a platform like Similarweb, so nothing changes.

Alternatives to Alexa

While there are over 20 platforms that offer similar services like Alexa, according to industry experts, here are 5 of the top alternatives:

1. Similarweb (www.similarweb.com)

This is a simple web traffic comparison all you need? Start with Similarweb. With Similarweb, you can view the region, country, and category ranks of millions of websites, along with engagement and geo-specific traffic metrics.

2. Semrush (www.semrush.com)

Semrush is a popular content marketing platform with powerful tools for website analysis and SEO. Launched in 2008, it has an extensive set of features that help marketers with SEO, market research, and paid search campaigns. Semrush is trusted by millions of digital marketers around the world, and is a viable alternative to Alexa.com for keyword research and traffic analytics.

3. Ahrefs (www.ahrefs.com)

Ahrefs is a household name in the digital marketing community, and another popular substitute for Alexa.com. SEO experts love the Ahrefs platform for its ability to monitor web rankings and assist with optimization, competitive analysis, and keyword research.

Ahrefs is widely-recognized for its quality data metrics; the platform monitors nearly 12 billion keywords across 10 different search engines.

4. SpyFu (www.spyfu.com)

Another Alexa.com alternative worth checking out is SpyFu. SpyFu lets you track keyword rankings, view PPC keywords of competitors, check organic competitors, check competitor backlinks by keyword, and much more.

Once you have gathered the data, you can choose to export them as an Excel file, CSV, or PDF. While the free version has a decent set of features, the premium subscription gives you unlimited access to data, data exports, over a decade of historical data, and API access.

5. Ubersuggest (www.neilpatel.com/ubersuggest)

For those new to the world of web traffic rankings, consider the beginner-friendly platform, Ubersuggest. With Ubersuggest, you get domain overviews, a dashboard of top-ranking pages, keyword suggestions, content ideas, and backlink history.

While the service is not as feature-packed as others on this list, Ubersuggest remains a solid choice thanks to its clean UI and capabilities within its free version.