OnCrawl - Detailed Review
Website Tools
OnCrawl - Product Overview
OnCrawl Overview
OnCrawl is a sophisticated SEO crawler and log analyzer that plays a crucial role in the Website Tools and AI-driven product category, particularly in technical SEO audits.
Primary Function
OnCrawl’s primary function is to help businesses improve their website’s visibility, traffic, and revenue by analyzing various metrics related to their site’s content, performance, and structure. It collects and analyzes data to provide insights that can be used to optimize the website for better search engine rankings and user engagement.
Target Audience
The target audience for OnCrawl includes SEO professionals, digital marketing teams, and businesses that manage large and complex websites. It is particularly useful for companies with international websites or those with a significant number of pages, as it offers scalable solutions to manage and optimize their online presence.
Key Features
Multi-Level Crawl Strategy
OnCrawl allows users to define the scope, frequency, and notification options for each type of analysis, making it flexible and adaptable to different business needs.
Comprehensive Data Analysis
The tool analyzes thousands of metrics across the site, including content, performance, and structure, to provide a holistic view of the website’s health and areas for improvement.
Integration with Other Data Sources
OnCrawl integrates with other data sources such as Google Analytics 4 (GA4), Google Search Console, and in-house data lakes to ensure the insights are contextual and relevant.
Log File Analysis
It performs daily log analysis to reveal Google’s crawl behavior, tracks errors, status codes, and page rank, helping in troubleshooting crawlability and indexability issues.
Scalability and Support
OnCrawl is capable of handling large websites with ease and offers 24/7 support, demos, and training to help users solve their SEO issues efficiently.
By leveraging these features, OnCrawl helps businesses make informed decisions to improve their website’s overall health and drive more organic traffic.
OnCrawl - User Interface and Experience
User Interface Overview
The user interface of OnCrawl is designed with a focus on ease of use and a seamless user experience, particularly for those involved in SEO optimization.Initial Setup and Onboarding
When you first sign up for OnCrawl, you are guided through a straightforward registration process that requires minimal information such as your name, phone number, and email address. There is no need for credit card details to start the free 14-day trial. After registration, you are prompted to watch a short tutorial that helps you get started with inputting your projects into the platform. This tutorial is approximately ten minutes long and is very helpful in getting you familiar with the interface.Interface Design
OnCrawl’s interface has recently undergone a significant makeover. The new design is clean, exciting, and standardized to improve usability. The changes include new colors, fonts, and styles that align with the company’s new brand identity. However, the placement of platform elements remains the same, ensuring that long-time users can still find all features through the same paths, buttons, and shortcuts as before. This consistency helps in maintaining user habits and landmarks, making the transition smooth.User Experience
The platform is built to be user-friendly, with a focus on clarity and predictability. Each element and screen has been designed with standard positioning, coding, and visual signals to make it easier for users to identify functions and features. This approach ensures that the interface is intuitive and easy to use, even for those who are not highly technical.Key Features Access
Once you are logged in, you can easily access your projects and view detailed reports such as the ‘Crawl Report’. This report provides valuable insights into your website’s performance, including page and content quality, duplicate content, and other SEO-related metrics. The interface is structured in a way that allows you to quickly find and analyze the data you need.Cloud-Based and API Integration
OnCrawl is a cloud-based solution, which means you don’t have to worry about your machine’s resources or speed capabilities. You can launch multiple crawls without needing to monitor them constantly, and the platform allows for scheduling crawls based on your SEO needs. Additionally, OnCrawl offers an API that enables you to create custom applications, integrate data into other platforms, and automate crawls whenever your site is updated.Conclusion
Overall, OnCrawl’s user interface is designed to be accessible and efficient, making it a valuable tool for anyone looking to optimize their website’s SEO performance. OnCrawl - Key Features and Functionality
OnCrawl Overview
OnCrawl is a comprehensive technical SEO platform that offers several key features and functionalities, each designed to help users optimize their website’s performance and improve their search engine rankings.
SEO Crawler
The SEO Crawler is a central feature of OnCrawl. It allows users to monitor and analyze their website’s pages and content by crawling the site and collecting thousands of metrics. This crawler can be customized to set limits on the number of URLs, override robots.txt files, crawl subdomains, manage cookies, HTTP headers, sitemaps, and adjust crawl speed.
Log Analyzer
The Log Analyzer is another crucial component of OnCrawl. It helps in analyzing log files to identify how search engines interact with the website. This feature provides insights into issues such as crawlability, indexability, and other technical SEO problems. By integrating log data, users can gain a deeper understanding of how search engines are crawling and indexing their site.
SEO Impact Report
OnCrawl generates detailed SEO Impact Reports that help users assess the technical health of their website. These reports include data on content quality, performance, and structure, allowing users to prioritize projects that can have the most impact on their site’s visibility and traffic.
Customized Crawls and Automation
Using OnCrawl’s API, users can automate various tasks such as launching verification crawls after website updates to ensure no regressions have occurred. This automation helps in maintaining the site’s health and performance without manual intervention. For example, you can integrate API calls into deployment scripts to launch appropriate crawls automatically.
Customized Alerts and Notifications
OnCrawl allows users to set up customized alerts based on specific KPIs and metrics. Through the API, users can retrieve data and integrate it into their alerting tools, ensuring they are notified about changes or issues without needing to log into the application. This can include alerts for changes in active pages, traffic generation, or poorly positioned but frequently crawled pages.
Data Integration and Machine Learning
OnCrawl integrates seamlessly with data science platforms like Dataiku, allowing users to incorporate their SEO data into machine learning projects. This integration enables advanced analytics such as identifying new or unindexed content, automated SEO text generation, anomaly reporting, and predicting future trends. The use of machine learning algorithms, supported by tools like Google Colab and languages like Python and R, helps in addressing strategic SEO issues.
Segmentation and Performance Analysis
OnCrawl’s segmentation feature helps in organizing and analyzing technical SEO data in meaningful ways. This is particularly useful for large e-commerce websites where it can highlight trends and behaviors across different sections of the site. Additionally, the crawler provides detailed information on site speed performance, including page load times, weight distribution, and load times by page depth, which is crucial for optimizing user experience.
AI Integration
While the primary features of OnCrawl are driven by its crawler, log analyzer, and reporting capabilities, the integration with machine learning algorithms through OnCrawl Labs brings AI into play. These algorithms help in addressing strategic SEO issues, such as predicting future trends, generating automated SEO text, and identifying anomalies in crawl results. This AI-driven approach enhances the platform’s ability to provide actionable insights and improve SEO strategies.
Conclusion
In summary, OnCrawl’s features are designed to provide a comprehensive view of a website’s technical SEO health, automate key tasks, and integrate with advanced data science tools to drive better decision-making.
OnCrawl - Performance and Accuracy
Performance of OnCrawl
OnCrawl is renowned for its high performance in the category of website tools, particularly in technical SEO and website crawling.Speed
One of the standout features of OnCrawl is its speed. It can process up to 300 URLs per second, making it one of the fastest crawl tools available.Scalability
OnCrawl can handle websites of all sizes, from small sites to those with millions of pages, without compromising on speed or efficiency. This makes it highly effective for large-scale website audits and monitoring.Flexibility
The tool allows for a multi-level crawl strategy, enabling users to define the scope, frequency, and notification options for each type of analysis. This flexibility is crucial for managing multiple projects and workflows.Accuracy
OnCrawl’s accuracy is bolstered by its comprehensive data collection and analysis capabilities.Comprehensive Metrics
OnCrawl collects and analyzes thousands of metrics across a website, providing detailed insights into indexability, structure, and content performance. This helps in identifying areas for improvement and optimizing SEO strategies.Log File Analysis
The tool’s log file analysis feature allows users to understand how search engines interact with their website, pinpoint crawl issues, and maximize their crawl budget. This ensures that search engines are accessing and indexing the most crucial content.Integration with Analytics Tools
OnCrawl integrates with leading analytics platforms like Google Analytics and Adobe Analytics, allowing users to merge multiple data sources for a complete view of their website’s performance.Limitations and Areas for Improvement
While OnCrawl is highly effective, there are some limitations and areas where it could be improved:Crawl Boundaries
A crawl has limitations in terms of what it can discover. For instance, it cannot see pages that aren’t linked to in the site structure (orphan pages) or take into account off-site factors like backlinks and competitor sites. However, OnCrawl provides options to include data from third-party sources like Majestic for backlink insights and Google Analytics for identifying orphan pages.JavaScript Rendering
Crawling sites with heavy JavaScript usage can be challenging. OnCrawl’s bot can handle JavaScript rendering, but users need to enable this option in the crawl settings.Data Analysis Limitations
When using tools like Google Sheets for content analysis, there can be limitations such as slow performance with many active content URLs and the need for frequent updates to maintain accuracy.Real-Time Monitoring and Customization
OnCrawl offers real-time monitoring capabilities, ensuring users stay informed about their website’s performance. Customizable alerts and notifications help in proactively addressing potential issues before they impact search engine rankings. The tool also provides customizable dashboards and reports, making it easier to visualize data and monitor progress effectively. In summary, OnCrawl’s performance and accuracy are highly regarded due to its speed, scalability, and comprehensive data analysis. While it has some limitations, the tool offers various features and integrations to overcome these challenges and provide a thorough SEO audit and optimization solution. OnCrawl - Pricing and Plans
OnCrawl Plans and Pricing
Basic Plan
- This plan is suited for audits, crawls, and analyses.
- Features include:
- Multiple projects (websites)
- Multiple crawl profiles
- High-speed crawls
- JavaScript crawl
- Core Web Vitals analysis
- Crawl comparison
- Crawl scheduling
- Limited data scraping (5 rules)
- Limited segmentations (2 per project)
- Limited alerting (2 per project)
- Limited data ingestion (5 per project)
- Limited custom dashboards (2 per project)
- Data explorer exports
- Optional exceptional, oversized crawls
- Google Search Console integration
- Analytics integrations (GA4, Adobe, Piano)
- Majestic integration
- Looker Studio integration
- Ranking Performance analysis (included for one project, scalable in option)
- Log file analysis (included for one project, scalable in option)
- API access
- Optional export to cloud storage
- Online help and Oncrawl Academy courses.
Core Plan
- This plan is geared towards automation, monitoring, and cross-analysis between data sources.
- It includes all the features of the Basic Plan, but with fewer limitations:
- Unlimited segmentations, alerting, data ingestion, and custom dashboards
- Full data scraping capabilities
- Comprehensive customer success support, including onboarding workshops and SEO workshops (optional)
- More extensive integration options and advanced analytics features.
Free Plan
- OnCrawl also offers a free plan, which allows users to crawl up to 100,000 URLs for one project.
- Features include:
- One report
- Access to all features, but data is only available for 30 days
- Users can still access data visualizations after the 30-day period, but cannot download the data.
Pricing Models
- OnCrawl supports various pricing models, including yearly, monthly, and one-time (perpetual license) payments.
Additional Notes
- The exact pricing for each plan is not explicitly listed on the OnCrawl website, but it is mentioned that the average annual cost can be around $25,000, with a maximum price of around $93,000 depending on the company’s specific needs.
For the most accurate and up-to-date pricing, it is recommended to contact OnCrawl directly or request a demo through their website.
OnCrawl - Integration and Compatibility
OnCrawl Overview
OnCrawl, a comprehensive SEO platform, integrates seamlessly with a variety of external tools and services, enhancing its functionality and providing a more holistic view of website performance.
Integration with Analytics Tools
OnCrawl supports integrations with major analytics platforms such as Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, and AT Internet. For instance, the Adobe Analytics integration allows users to combine analytics data with crawl data, providing insights into user behavior and the impact of SEO indicators on web traffic. This integration enables the creation of custom dashboards, reports, and page group segmentations, all while ensuring secure connections via OAuth to protect user credentials.
Integration with Search Marketing Solutions
In addition to analytics tools, OnCrawl integrates with other key search marketing solutions like Google Search Console and Majestic. These integrations help in gathering a comprehensive view of a website’s performance and health on search engines. For example, data from Google Search Console can be combined with crawl data to analyze how bots and visitors interact with the website.
API and Custom Analysis
OnCrawl is built around a REST API, which allows users to access and manage their crawl data, projects, and crawls programmatically. This API enables the creation of custom applications, dashboards, and integrations with other platforms. Users can generate API tokens or use OAuth applications to connect to OnCrawl, making it flexible for various development environments.
Cross-Platform Compatibility
OnCrawl is a cloud-based solution, which means it does not require specific hardware or software configurations. Users can access and use OnCrawl from any device with an internet connection, without worrying about the resources of their local machine. This cloud-based approach also allows for scheduling crawls and performing analyses without the need for constant user surveillance.
Data Management and Security
When integrating external data sources, OnCrawl ensures precise control over the subsets of data shared. Users can define the scope of a data source, assign it to a project, and share it with collaborators while preventing sensitive data leaks. This is achieved through the distinction between “connected apps” (the external services) and “data sources” (the specific data subsets shared within OnCrawl).
Compatibility with Various Data Sources
OnCrawl’s flexibility extends to its ability to handle various types of data sources. It supports multiple report suites from analytics tools and can incorporate data from log file analysis, backlink analysis, and other sources. This multi-faceted approach helps in creating actionable reports that correlate different data points to provide a comprehensive analysis of website performance.
Conclusion
In summary, OnCrawl’s integration capabilities are extensive and well-suited for a wide range of SEO and analytics needs, making it a versatile tool for managing and optimizing website performance across different platforms and devices.
OnCrawl - Customer Support and Resources
Customer Support
OnCrawl provides a dedicated Customer Success team, composed of experienced and talented technical SEOs. This team goes beyond traditional support by helping users determine the most efficient crawl strategies, conducting workshops, giving conferences, and assisting with the integration of OnCrawl into their data flows and data lakes. Here are some key aspects of their customer support:Workshops and Conferences
The Customer Success team offers workshops and conferences to educate users on how to effectively use OnCrawl.
24/7 Support
Users can expect around-the-clock support to help solve their SEO issues and streamline their processes.
Onboarding Workshops
OnCrawl provides onboarding workshops to help new users get started with the platform.
Additional Resources
OnCrawl offers a variety of resources to help users optimize their SEO strategies:Oncrawl Academy Courses
These courses are designed to educate users on how to use OnCrawl effectively and improve their SEO skills.
Online Help and Documentation
Extensive help articles and guides are available to assist users in setting up and using various features of OnCrawl. This includes step-by-step guides on account setup, crawl configuration, and connecting additional data sources.
Case Studies and Success Stories
OnCrawl shares client success stories and case studies to demonstrate how the platform can help improve rankings, organic traffic, and overall SEO performance.
Data Integration Guides
Detailed guides are provided on how to connect external data sources such as Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, and Majestic, allowing users to integrate and analyze data from multiple sources.
These resources and support options are aimed at ensuring that users can fully leverage OnCrawl’s features to drive website success through data-driven decisions.
OnCrawl - Pros and Cons
Advantages of OnCrawl
OnCrawl offers several significant advantages that make it a valuable tool for SEO managers and digital marketers:Scalability and Big Data Handling
OnCrawl is particularly adept at handling large websites with millions of pages, using Big Data technology to analyze and process vast amounts of data efficiently. This makes it an excellent solution for large eCommerce sites and enterprise organizations.Comprehensive Technical SEO Analysis
The platform provides thorough technical SEO checks, including the ability to spot and fix technical issues that might be hindering website performance. It offers nearly 1,200 metrics and allows users to add their own custom metrics to monitor key ranking factors.Log File Analysis
OnCrawl includes a powerful log files analyzer that provides insights into how search engine bots interact with the site. This feature helps in understanding crawl behavior, identifying issues before they become major problems, and optimizing page depth and internal link structure.Content Optimization
The platform offers content optimization tools that help ensure the content is SEO-friendly. It includes features like unique content analysis, n-grams analysis, and a heatmap content detector to identify and optimize unique and duplicated content across the site.Custom Dashboards and Integrations
Users can create custom dashboards to monitor their important metrics. OnCrawl also integrates with leading search marketing solutions such as Google Search Console, Google Analytics, and Adobe Analytics, providing a comprehensive view of the website’s performance.User-Friendly Interface
Despite its advanced features, OnCrawl is known for its user-friendly interface, making it accessible even for those who are not SEO experts.Data Security and Compliance
OnCrawl ensures data security through technological and process choices, and it is ISO 27001 certified, SOC-2 Type I and Type II compliant, and GDPR compliant.Disadvantages of OnCrawl
While OnCrawl offers many benefits, there are also some potential drawbacks to consider:Resource Intensive
During large crawls, OnCrawl can be resource-intensive, which might be a concern for some users.Learning Curve
Although the interface is user-friendly, it may still take some time to get accustomed to, especially for those new to SEO.Cost
OnCrawl is pricier than some other SEO tools available in the market, which could be a barrier for smaller businesses or individuals.Manual Setup for Some Features
Some features of OnCrawl require manual setup, which can be time-consuming and may not be ideal for all users.Limited Compatibility with Third-Party Tools
OnCrawl does not integrate as seamlessly with as many third-party tools as some users might prefer, which could limit its versatility in certain workflows. By weighing these pros and cons, users can make an informed decision about whether OnCrawl is the right fit for their SEO needs. OnCrawl - Comparison with Competitors
OnCrawl Overview
OnCrawl is a technical SEO platform known for its ability to handle large and complex websites. It collects and analyzes technical SEO data, blending different types of information to help prioritize SEO projects and identify critical areas for improvement. OnCrawl integrates multiple data sets to provide insights into how search engines view your site, including tracking bot hits, analyzing ranking factors, and comparing budget to ROI.Unique Features of OnCrawl
- Customizable Data Sets: OnCrawl enhances its data with customizable third-party datasets, providing a comprehensive view of your website’s performance.
- Cross-Analysis: It allows for the blending of different types of information to prioritize SEO projects and understand relationships between technical SEO metrics, website performance, and business KPIs.
- Enterprise Focus: OnCrawl is particularly suited for large and complex websites, making it a strong choice for enterprise-level SEO needs.
Potential Alternatives
Sitebulb
- Pricing and Flexibility: Sitebulb Cloud is priced at £195 a month, which is half the cost of OnCrawl. It offers a hybrid solution with both cloud and desktop applications, and there are no project limits, making it ideal for freelance and agency SEOs.
- Customer Service: Sitebulb is praised for its highly responsive and helpful customer service, which contrasts with OnCrawl’s sometimes lackluster support.
Lumar (formerly Deepcrawl)
- Continuous Updates: Lumar is constantly updated to adhere to the latest website technical health best practices. It offers webinars, a knowledge center, and newsletters to keep users informed.
- User Interface: Lumar is known for its ease of use and is often recommended as a top alternative to OnCrawl due to its user-friendly interface and comprehensive data analysis capabilities.
Botify
- Enterprise-Level: Botify is highly configurable and provides unparalleled data and insights, making it an excellent choice for large e-commerce sites. However, it is on the expensive side and has a steep learning curve due to its numerous filters.
- Partnerships: Botify has impressive partnerships, including Groupon and The New York Times, which speaks to its enterprise-level capabilities.
JetOctopus
- Speed and Integration: JetOctopus is known for its speed, crawling 200 pages per second, and its ability to integrate data from Google Analytics. It is preferred by some users for its feature updates and roadmap direction.
- User-Friendly Interface: JetOctopus has an accessible interface that divides data into specific sets and charts, making it easier to interpret without needing to scroll through spreadsheets.
Screaming Frog SEO Spider
- Desktop-Only: Unlike OnCrawl, Screaming Frog is a desktop-only tool, which may limit its use for larger websites or collaborative work. However, it is straightforward and easy to use, presenting technical SEO suggestions in a clear dashboard.
- Comprehensive Data: It provides detailed data on each page, including meta information and word count, with many features available in the free version.
ContentKing
- Real-Time Auditing: ContentKing offers real-time SEO auditing and change management, automatically performing scans and alerting users to problems. This feature is particularly useful for continuous monitoring.
Other Considerations
- Semrush and Ahrefs: Both tools offer site audit capabilities but have limitations. Semrush has restrictions on projects and crawling, while Ahrefs operates on a monthly crawl credits system, which can be restrictive. However, Ahrefs excels in link-building and backlink analysis.
- Moz Pro: Moz Pro is an end-to-end SEO solution with a strong list of features, though its auditing element is smaller compared to other tools. It offers flexible pricing and is suitable for both large enterprises and agencies.
OnCrawl - Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some frequently asked questions about OnCrawl, along with detailed responses to each:
What is OnCrawl and what does it do?
OnCrawl is a web-based SEO tool that focuses on technical SEO solutions to help businesses improve their website’s performance, organic traffic, and search engine rankings. It uses an SEO crawler and log analyzer to identify issues such as HTML errors, linking structure problems, and content issues that could harm a website’s ranking.What are the main features of OnCrawl?
OnCrawl has several key features:- SEO Crawler: Monitors pages and content, providing insights to improve page quality and user experience.
- Log Analyzer: Analyzes log files to understand how search engines interact with your site.
- SEO Impact Report: Provides detailed reports on SEO performance, including backlinks, rankings, and more.
What are the different pricing plans offered by OnCrawl?
OnCrawl offers three main pricing plans:- Explorer: Suitable for beginners, includes one project domain, a monthly URL crawl quota of 100,000, and features like Javascript crawling and custom dashboards.
- Business: For those looking to enhance their SEO efforts, includes two project domains, a monthly URL crawl quota of 500,000, and additional reports like SEO Analytics and Backlinks Reports.
- Infinite & Beyond: For large enterprises or SEO agencies, offers customizable project domains and URL crawl quotas, along with advanced features like log volume analysis and additional bots.
How does OnCrawl’s SEO Crawler work?
OnCrawl’s SEO Crawler allows you to set specific crawl parameters, such as the number of URLs, site architecture, and crawl speed. You can also override robots.txt files, crawl subdomains, and manage cookies and HTTP headers. The crawler provides valuable insights into page quality, content, and structure, helping you optimize your website for better search engine rankings.Can I customize the crawl settings in OnCrawl?
Yes, you can customize the crawl settings in OnCrawl. You can set limits on the number of URLs, choose to crawl subdomains, manage cookies and HTTP headers, and even override robots.txt files. Additionally, you can schedule crawls and receive email alerts once the analysis is complete.How does OnCrawl help with SEO monitoring and alerts?
OnCrawl allows you to set up SEO alerts to monitor metrics like 404s, redirects, and duplicate titles. You can create custom alerts and use the Data Explorer to get detailed information about issues affecting your website’s performance. This helps in proactive monitoring and quick resolution of SEO issues.Can OnCrawl integrate with other tools and platforms?
Yes, OnCrawl integrates with various tools and platforms, including Google Search Console, Google Analytics (GA4), Adobe, Piano, and Majestic. It also supports integrations with Looker Studio and offers an API for further customization and data ingestion.What kind of support does OnCrawl offer?
OnCrawl provides several support options, including live chat, online help, OnCrawl Academy courses, and onboarding workshops. For the higher plans, you also get access to a Customer Success Manager who can help with efficient crawl strategies, workshops, and integrating OnCrawl into your data flows.How does OnCrawl help in improving website performance and rankings?
OnCrawl helps by identifying technical issues such as HTML errors, linking structure problems, and content issues. It provides detailed reports and insights that allow you to prioritize projects based on their impact on your website’s performance and rankings. This includes analyzing load times, links breakdown, HTML quality, and status code errors.Can I use OnCrawl for multiple projects and websites?
Yes, OnCrawl supports managing multiple projects and websites. The Business and Infinite & Beyond plans allow for multiple project domains, and you can set up different crawl profiles and schedules for each project. OnCrawl - Conclusion and Recommendation
Final Assessment of OnCrawl
OnCrawl is a powerful and versatile technical SEO tool that offers a comprehensive suite of features to help users optimize their website’s performance and improve their search engine rankings.Key Features
- SEO Crawler: This is the core feature of OnCrawl, allowing users to monitor and analyze their website’s indexability, structure, and content. It can handle thousands of metrics, including identifying duplicate content, tracking changes, and guiding visitors to the most important pages.
- Log Analyzer: This feature provides daily log analysis, revealing Google’s crawl behavior and helping users track errors, status codes, and other critical metrics.
- SEO Impact Report: This report helps users identify how their site’s content, performance, and structure work together, enabling them to prioritize projects that can have the most impact on their SEO.
Who Would Benefit Most
OnCrawl is beneficial for a wide range of users, including:- Freelancers: Those relying on their website for contracts can use OnCrawl to ensure their site is optimized for search engines.
- Startups: Small businesses can leverage OnCrawl to improve their organic traffic and rankings.
- SMEs and Agencies: These can use OnCrawl to manage multiple projects and workflows efficiently.
- Enterprises: Large corporations, especially those with international websites and a high number of pages, can benefit from OnCrawl’s scalable SEO solutions.