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SpyFu

SpyFu

Overview

What is SpyFu?

SpyFu is the eponymous SEO and PPC research platform from the company in Scottsdale, Arizona focused on "spying" on competitors, or basically using their behaviors to refine your own through keyword and content analysis, and backlink poaching. This positional search…

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Recent Reviews

TrustRadius Insights

SpyFu has proven to be an invaluable tool for conducting competitor research and analysis in the advertising industry. Users have praised …
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TrustRadius Insights
TrustRadius Insights

Smooth and Easy PPC Research Tool!

9 out of 10
September 01, 2022
I use SpyFu for researching competitor PPC campaigns and keeping an eye on their strategies. I find it helpful to see what keywords they …
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SpyFu- give it a tru!

8 out of 10
May 19, 2022
Incentivized
We are looking for help with ranking our website in both paid and organic searches. SEO keyword research can be overwhelming, and we did …
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Awards

Products that are considered exceptional by their customers based on a variety of criteria win TrustRadius awards. Learn more about the types of TrustRadius awards to make the best purchase decision. More about TrustRadius Awards

Popular Features

View all 14 features
  • Competitive analysis (50)
    9.1
    91%
  • SERP ranking tracking (43)
    8.1
    81%
  • Keyword analysis (51)
    6.9
    69%
  • Backlink management (39)
    5.8
    58%

Reviewer Pros & Cons

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Verified User
Manager in Marketing
Investment Management Company, 11-50 employees
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Pricing

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Basic

$39

Cloud
per month

Professional

$79

Cloud
per month

Team

$299

Cloud
per month

Entry-level set up fee?

  • No setup fee

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services
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Product Demos

Using Spyfu to Find Leads for a B2B Google Ads or SEO Agency - SpyFu Review and Demo For B2B Leads

YouTube

Jeff Demo 07 - Using SpyFu for Local SEO YouTube

YouTube

SpyFu Review Video Demo - Excellent or Scam?

YouTube

Domain Ad History Demo, Part 2 | SpyFu Domain Ad History

YouTube

Domain Ad History Demo, Part 1 | SpyFu Domain Ad History

YouTube

Spyfu Review: Pros, Cons, and Alternatives (+ Demo)

YouTube
View more demos
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Features

SEO

Core features related to search engine optimization

7.2
Avg 7.8

SEO Channels

Features related to optimizing your website for specific channels

7.7
Avg 7.6

SEO Platform & Account Management

Features related to scalability and integration of the SEO platform

8.7
Avg 8.4
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Product Details

What is SpyFu?

SpyFu Video

SpyFu Demo

SpyFu Competitors

SpyFu Technical Details

Deployment TypesSoftware as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based
Operating SystemsUnspecified
Mobile ApplicationNo

Frequently Asked Questions

SpyFu is the eponymous SEO and PPC research platform from the company in Scottsdale, Arizona focused on "spying" on competitors, or basically using their behaviors to refine your own through keyword and content analysis, and backlink poaching. This positional search engine optimization and paid listings management platform touts the ability to lower costs and raise rankings via a Kombat-oriented approach... basically a cute way of saying "it makes comparisons" of how well your site does in niche keyword areas vis-a-vis rival actors in the same or contiguous marketing space. Published pricing starts at $79 per month with the Basic plan, for Google, Yahoo & Bing research, 6 years of historical access, unlimited access to SpyFu's tools, but somewhat limited access to leads and domain contacts keyword rank tracking. The $139 Professional plan gives full access to UK data and doubles the rank tracking of keywords from 400 to 800, and provides custom branded (white label) reports and API access. the $999 Agency plan gives team access (10 user logins) and unlimited tracking and reporting capabilities.

Moz Pro and RavenTools are common alternatives for SpyFu.

Reviewers rate Competitive analysis highest, with a score of 9.1.

The most common users of SpyFu are from Small Businesses (1-50 employees).
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Comparisons

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Reviews and Ratings

(132)

Community Insights

TrustRadius Insights are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, 3rd-party data sources. Have feedback on this content? Let us know!

SpyFu has proven to be an invaluable tool for conducting competitor research and analysis in the advertising industry. Users have praised its ability to provide strong directional insights for evaluating search advertisers, allowing them to understand their potential clients' past PPC efforts and identify opportunities for new campaigns. With its keyword research capabilities, users have been able to optimize their AdWords campaigns and allocate budgets effectively, ensuring that they are targeting the right keywords and avoiding spending on ineffective ad campaigns. SpyFu's SEO insights have also been highly beneficial for users, enabling them to assess the effectiveness of their SEO efforts and identify areas for improvement. By analyzing competitors' backlinks, users have been able to enhance their own backlink profiles, improving their website's authority in search engines.

The software has matured over time and added new elements, making it an integral part of users' arsenal for competitor research and baseline SEO analysis. Users have particularly praised SpyFu's ability to deliver a domain's ad history, which has helped them remain competitive in paid search. By identifying profitable keywords and uncovering low-hanging fruit through keyword tracking and competitor analysis features, users have been able to drive successful SEO campaigns. SpyFu's impact on search marketing ventures cannot be overstated, as it provides users with a powerful edge over their competitors in the search engine space.

In addition, SpyFu has become widely utilized for SEM and SEO business intelligence. Its comprehensive insights into competitors' monthly spending, ad copy, keywords, and SEO rankings allow users to gain valuable information for strategic decision-making. The tool has proven effective in pivoting campaign strategies quickly based on the insights provided by SpyFu. Users have found it instrumental in competitor analysis and strategizing marketing programs, helping them understand the competition landscape and assess viability within given budgets.

Furthermore, SpyFu has been used for various purposes such as analyzing potential keywords, conducting SEO data research, gaining insights into how search engines perceive websites, establishing baselines, conducting competitive analysis, and performing marketing and brand audits. Its advanced competitive keyword research capabilities have allowed users to collect thousands of keywords for themselves and their competitors, providing a wealth of data for analysis and optimization. SpyFu's auto-generated SEO reports have also been vital to the success of SEO efforts, providing users with comprehensive insights into core keywords and identifying new opportunities or challenges. Additionally, the estimation of competitors' monthly AdWords spending by SpyFu has provided valuable information in highly competitive fields.

With its interface and growing catalog of advantages, SpyFu has met users' needs

Intuitive User Interface: Many users have praised SpyFu for its highly intuitive and easy-to-navigate user interface. They appreciate the straightforward design and layout, which allows them to quickly access the information they need. This user-friendly interface has been mentioned by several reviewers, making it accessible to employees of all experience levels and easy for anyone to use and navigate.

Competitor Analysis: The ability to analyze competitors' advertising strategies and tactics is highly valued by users. Several reviewers have expressed their appreciation for being able to see what advertising has been done in the past. This feature allows them to gain insights into their competition's strategies, stay informed about their industry, and make data-driven decisions for their own campaigns.

Keyword Insights: Users find the keyword tool within SpyFu to be a great resource for understanding their website's performance as well as comparing it to their competitors'. Many reviewers have highlighted how this tool helps them identify top-performing keywords and compare them against their competitors' keywords. By optimizing SEO strategies based on these insights, users are able to stay ahead of the competition in search engine rankings.

  1. Lack of Clarity in Explanations: Some users have found that certain aspects of SpyFu are not well explained, leading to confusion and difficulty in understanding their purpose.

  2. Irrelevant Keywords: Several reviewers have mentioned that the keywords provided by SpyFu can be irrelevant to the selected business, which compromises the accuracy of the data.

  3. Graphs Difficult to Work With: The graphs in SpyFu have been described as challenging to navigate at times, indicating that they may not be intuitive or user-friendly.

The user suggests trying the free trial of SpyFu first and utilizing the on-boarding support provided. They highly recommend using SpyFu for SEO and PPC, considering it a great tool for competitive keyword research. Utilizing the help section and video tutorials is recommended. SpyFu is seen as worth the money, offering numerous features at a reasonable price. It is suggested to use SpyFu to stay competitive in advertising and to target specific issues with the help of the provided videos. For small businesses unable to afford SEO and PPC agency prices, SpyFu is considered a great investment. Trying SpyFu and upgrading are recommended, as it is easy to use, particularly for SEO purposes. Tracking competitors' ads, keywords, and spending using SpyFu is also advised. To improve digital marketing efforts, it is suggested to take advantage of SpyFu's capabilities. The tutorial videos provided by SpyFu should be watched for better utilization of the tool. For PPC professionals, SpyFu is considered a must-have. Running reports often and leveraging the information provided by SpyFu for informed business decisions are recommended practices. Taking advantage of reduced pricing for the trial period and the guided tour offered by SpyFu are additional suggestions. SpyFu is highly regarded as a great tool for competitive research and SEO analysis in online marketing. Considering SpyFu for gaining valuable insights and ensuring competitiveness online is suggested. Reviewers find it fast, easy to work with, and reasonably priced. For paid search analysis, utilizing SpyFu is recommended. The competition section of SpyFu can also be used to expand prospect pipelines with more companies.

Attribute Ratings

Reviews

(26-50 of 61)
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January 18, 2020

SpyFu has given me the best value and insight for keyword and competitor research

Verified User
Project Manager in Marketing
Marketing & Advertising Company, 1-10 employees
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
If you are starting out your business idea, it is wise that you first do keyword research to make sure there is an interest in your business idea, especially if it's an online business. It is also very helpful when you want to see who will be your competitors and how well they are performing by reviewing their website.
December 12, 2019

SpyFu is a lot of data for a great price.

Verified User
Director in Marketing
Transportation/Trucking/Railroad Company, 201-500 employees
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
I think that SpyFu is an awesome tool for the money. There is unlimited data that you can slice and dice. You just have to figure out what exactly you need in terms of SEO/SEM, PPC, competitive analysis &/or keyword research and then SpyFu can provide you with the reporting that you require.
November 07, 2019

Accessible and easy to use

Austin Voigt | TrustRadius Reviewer
Austin Voigt
Manager - Paid Media
Augurian (Marketing and Advertising, 11-50 employees)
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
SpyFu has a very friendly user interface that is easy to navigate, it has a lower price entry point which is great for smaller businesses like ours, and it does provide the basic data we need for our digital marketing research from both an SEO and paid media perspective. However, there are a few things that get sacrificed with these benefits; the data is not as robust as other platforms, the user interface is not a bit over-simplistic and not as customizable, and you're definitely getting a bit less when you pay a bit less.
August 27, 2019

I like SpyFu. You will too.

Angela Lyons, MBA | TrustRadius Reviewer
Angela Lyons, MBA
Marketing Manager
Client Hub (Internet, 11-50 employees)
Score 6 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
Spyfu is great for both PPC and SEO keyword research. You can also see what your competitors are doing which can give you ideas for your own company.

I really like the feature that allows me to see ads that competitors are using.

Kombat is fun because you can compare yourself with competitors and see where there are similarities and differences.
January 30, 2019

SpyFu is the spy that You Need.

Max Milano | TrustRadius Reviewer
Max Milano
Director of Inbound Digital Marketing
SherpaDesk (Marketing and Advertising, 11-50 employees)
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
Spyfu is a must before starting any AdWords campaign. If you didn't use it you would be in the dark about your competitors and it would waste a lot of your budget. Not really needed if you don't plan on running an Adwords campaign. It's still good to see what competitors are doing though.
December 21, 2018

Frictionless, affordable, and badass competitor intelligence you can act on right now!

Sylvia Flores | TrustRadius Reviewer
Sylvia Flores
Chief Creative Officer + Founder
Bad Agency (Marketing and Advertising, 1-10 employees)
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
I think it's an excellent tool for marketers to keep a consistent eye on their competitive landscape so they can pivot as required. But the reporting feature is not great and creates an additional layer of hands-on manual work.
December 21, 2018

A Comprehensive Competitive Analysis in One Place

Verified User
Account Manager in Marketing
Marketing and Advertising Company, 1-10 employees
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
Whenever a teammate has to complete a competitive analysis or asks about what the "others" are doing - I always will recommend that they use SpyFu to answer those questions. "what keywords should we target?" are also able to be answered using SpyFu. This helps when setting up a Bing or Google Adwords campaign.
December 19, 2018

SpyFu for Competitive Intelligence

Verified User
Director in Marketing
Marketing and Advertising Company, 11-50 employees
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
SpyFu is an essential source of information that can be used to set the initial assumptions guiding a digital marketing campaign. However, because the data is not a primary source it would be a mistake to continue to guide campaign decisions in the long haul using this tool. Google Analytics and primary source advertising data is ultimately the key.
December 17, 2018

SpyFu is a must-have for businesses!

Lee'Ann Burgess | TrustRadius Reviewer
Lee'Ann Burgess
Founder
Social Vibe Marketing, Inc. (Marketing and Advertising, 1-10 employees)
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
If you own your company and have any involvement with tracking your marketing efforts as well as keeping tabs on what your competitors are doing and how they are ranking, I would recommend using SpyFu and at the very least, try it out for free to see if it is a good fit for you and your organization. It's a helpful tool and I have been using it for several years for my company.
November 29, 2018

An SEO competitive analysis tool that drives action

Verified User
Analyst in Marketing
Transportation/Trucking/Railroad Company, 201-500 employees
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
SpyFu is meant to be a competitive analysis tool and give you an idea where your competitors are with their content. This is not a standalone keyword research tool. I highly recommend utilizing at least one other service to back up keyword opportunities that are uncovered using SpyFu. The same goes in the opposite direction I would not suggest diving into a keyword theme without knowing how the competition is ranking and using that theme.
September 27, 2018

Good SEM Competitor Tool

Verified User
Partner in Marketing
Marketing and Advertising Company, 11-50 employees
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
It is a directionally useful tool for providing full service SEM strategy. It is a must have in an agency's toolkit, since it's one of the most progressive competitive intelligence database out there that isnt from a vendor.
August 20, 2018

SpyFu is great for keyword research

Jordan Comstock | TrustRadius Reviewer
Jordan Comstock
Digital Marketing Specialist
busybusy (Construction, 51-200 employees)
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
SpyFu is my favorite tool to gather mass keywords. So if you were looking to do competitive keyword research for your long term SEO strategy, it would be important to get as many keywords as possible. They don't charge by the row or anything, so you can grab many many keywords from as many competitors as you would like.
June 04, 2018

SpyFu the best on competitor analysis.

Rachel Hensley | TrustRadius Reviewer
Rachel Hensley
Marketing
Miami County Live (Marketing and Advertising, 201-500 employees)
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
If you are just developing an AdWords campaign, SpyFu is one of the first places to start to see what the most successful businesses are doing with their Adwords strategy. It is also good to continually watch so you can always stay ahead of the industry you are in.
February 28, 2018

SpyFu Is A Great Organic SEO & PPC Analysis/Research Tool

Verified User
Manager in Marketing
Internet Company, 1-10 employees
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
SpyFu is excellent for both advertising and marketing teams looking to improve their paid and organic SEO ranks across Bing and Google. SpyFu can help you retain and gain market share on all web platforms with many different, unique SEO & PPC tools that provide you with detailed analyses via downloadable reports.
March 14, 2017

SpyFu Helps To Make Spying Online Much Easier

Chandler Elmore | TrustRadius Reviewer
Chandler Elmore
Digital Marketing Account Manager
Huebner Marketing Communications (Marketing and Advertising, 11-50 employees)
Score 6 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
SpyFu is great if you need a quick, broad overview of your online efforts compared to the online efforts of your competition. It is a great tool to use when you are needing to estimate or come up with a new PPC spend for a client. It also is good in looking at the effectiveness of your website's keywords as compared with your competitors.
June 07, 2016

Spyfu is our go-to product for Competitive Intel

Gwendolyn Guarino | TrustRadius Reviewer
Gwendolyn Guarino
SEM/PPC Campaign Analyst
Independent Consultant (Marketing and Advertising, 1-10 employees)
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Likelihood to Recommend
I think Spyfu is the most effective when you have very little core data - seeking out a competitor list, gathering a comprehensive keyword or ad group list, building out new campaigns, and the like. If you already have a lot of intel, Spyfu will regurgitate the same information.
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