Great as Yoast SEO Plugin is, there are some amazing alternatives on the SEO scene. And in this article, we showcase the Best 11 Yoast Alternatives for you to consider.
The Yoast SEO plugin is often nicknamed “the best SEO plugin for WordPress”. But is it really the best?
Ask Yoast and they’ll tell you it is the best because of the longevity of their plugin and the fact that it has millions of downloads.
On the other hand, if you ask Yoast competitors, they’ll say Yoast are now resting on their laurels, and that there are better SEO plugins out there.
But who do you believe?
I say you need to investigate, and see for yourself. Here then are 11 excellent Yoast alternatives, each worthy of your consideration.
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The Best 11 Yoast Alternatives – Read First and THEN Take Your Pick
#1- RankMath
RankMath is often recommended as the perfect Yoast SEO alternative.
It’s a relatively new plugin on the market but it has taken the SEO world by storm.
Some of the features it offers are:
- AMP;
- 404 error monitoring;
- Instant indexing for Bing and Google (hook your site to their API’s);
- Inbuilt schema;
- Image SEO;
- Link counter;
- Redirections;
- SEO analysis;
- Sitemap;
- Woocommerce integration;
- Google web stories support;
- Etc.
Yes, it’s loaded with features and I haven’t even listed half of them.
If you want to switch from Yoast SEO or any other plugin you’ll be glad to know that RankMath has an import functionality. This means you can transfer your SEO settings from Yoast without losing anything.
Very cool!
And if you want to instal RankMath but you’ve never used another SEO plugin on your blog then RankMath will guide you with their simple setup/installation wizard.
It’s the SEO plugin I use here on Astute Copy Blogging and I know you won’t be disappointed.
#2- SEOPress
SEOPress is another popular Yoast alternative and people who’ve switched over from Yoast swear that SEOPress is significantly better.
So, what is it that makes this plugin a good Yoast replacement?
Below you’ll see a list of features this plugin offers. (Warning, it’s a lot).
But before that I’d like to say that the main benefit of installing SEOPress is that it can replace several plugins you have probably installed on your site right now.
For example, you probably have Redirection installed to handle your 301’s, right?
Well, install SEOPres and get rid of that extraneous plugin.
You probably have Broken Link Checker installed (a resource hogging plugin that scans your site for broken links).
Remove it as well, because SEOPress has your back on this one.
You might even have an Open Graph and Twitter Cards plugin installed. Don’t bother with it because SEOPress can optimize your posts for Twitter and Facebook sharing.
And I could go on about which plugins you don’t need if you start using SEOPress now.
But I trust you get the point?
Another thing that’s remarkable is this plugin’s pricing. SEOPress costs only $39/yr and you get to use it on unlimited websites.
That’s right.
Whether you have 1 site or 100 sites, you can use SEOPress on all of them.
Compare that with Yoast who charges you a new license for each site you install it on.
SEOPress features:
- Easy installation wizard;
- Content analysis with unlimited keywords ;
- Mobile / Desktop Google Preview to see what your post will look like in Google search results;
- Twitter and Facebook Social Preview to improve social media postings;
- Global title set up (with dynamic variables);
- Global meta descriptions setup (also with dynamic variables);
- Twitter Cards and Open Graph to improve social media sharing;
- Google Knowledge Graph;
- Google Analytics integration;
- Custom Canonical URL setup;
- Meta robots galore (nofollow, noindex, noodp, noimageindex, nosnippet, noarchive);
- Custom XML Sitemap to improve search indexing;
- Image XML Sitemaps to improve image indexing;
- Custom HTML Sitemap to enhance user navigation and improve content indexing;
- Link your social media accounts to your site;
- Redirections;
- Automatic Image SEO;
- Import / Export settings from one website to another;
- Import function from Premium SEO Pack, Yoast SEO, All In One SEO, Squirrly, WP Meta SEO, SEO Framework, Rank Math, SEO Ultimate, WP Meta SEO..
#3- Squirrly
Squirrly is a free SEO plugin that promises to either save you from having to hire an SEO consultant, or let you fire the one you already have.
It’s the only SEO plugin on this list that is powered by an A.I. algorithm that scans your site and suggests improvement based on the knowledge it already has. And that’s knowledge and info computed from 600,000+ test sites with Squirrly installed.
As such, Squirrly is best suited for small businesses who want to have an online presence but don’t want to get into the weeds of SEO and search engine marketing.
Some of Squirrly features are:
- Long tail keyword suggest tool;
- Audit suite for complete website audit;
- SEO live assistant powered by A.I. algorithm;
- Rich pins enabled for Pinterest;
- Works with WordPress multisite;
- Etc.
Did I mention Squirrly is FREE!
You won’t be disappointed.
#4- SEOPressor Connect
Similar to Squirrly SEO above, SEOPressor is a popular WordPress SEO plugin that has an inbuilt smart algorithm that scans your website and suggests improvements across the board.
The errors it reports on range widely, from site wide errors you need to fix ASAP, to post specific mistakes you’ve made and which you need to correct to gain better SERP ranking.
As such this plugin is perfect for small business owners who don’t have time to learn SEO, but still want to have an optimized site.
I also want to add that even though SEOPressor offers a ton of features, the plugin itself is surprisingly lightweight.
I’ve read through testimonials online and most customers praise SEOPressor for NOT bogging down their website.
Now, that’s impressive!
Users also commonly mention the fact that SEOPressor, similar to Yoast, gives you actionable advice on how to optimize your on- page SEO.
But in stark difference to Yoast, their recommendations are usually more useful and actually spot on.
SEOPressor is a premium WordPress SEO plugin and there’s no free version. But the good news is that it’s really affordable.
Pay just $9/mo and it’s yours. This is a bargain considering that it can superbly optimize your site for Google to crawl it better.
#5- All in One SEO Pack
All in One SEO (AIOSEO) is the oldest SEO plugin on this list of the best Yoast alternatives. It was founded in 2007 (while Yoast started in 2010) and it has more than 2 million downloads and active installs.
That’s way more than Yoast who, although having 5+ million downloads in total, boast less than 2 million active installs on WordPress sites.
Why am I telling you this?
Because I want you to realize that AIOSEO is a powerful, beginner friendly SEO plugin that’s perfect for non-techie webmasters who still want greater visibility in the SERPs for their blogs.
With AIOSEO you can have that. The plugin is very easy to set up even if you’ve never laid your hand on any other SEO plugin. And their installation/setup wizard makes it a breeze.
I won’t list out the AIOSEO’s features because you can assume that with the name All-in-One SEO it has pretty much everything you’ll ever need. In fact, the Lite version of the plugin has way more features than Yoast premium.
One major downside is that because this plugin is so feature rich, it can significantly slow down websites hosted with inexpensive hosting providers. So if you’re on the cheapest Bluehost plan for example, you might want to avoid this SEO plugin until you upgrade hosting.
#6- The SEO Framework
SEO Framework is a popular Yoast alternative that just might be your next best SEO friend.
The plugin is one of the easiest to use that I’ve ever tested. It blends so well with native WordPress that it’s very easy to forget you’re using an external add-on.
What I like best about it is that it comes pre-configured for you.
And the default settings are top notch.
Usually, when I install any plugin on my site the first thing I do is make changes to its default settings. However, with SEO Framework no changes were needed. It’s almost as if I coded it myself 🙂
The second notable thing is that this plugin is powered by a smart algorithm that will automatically fill in metadata for all your posts and pages.
And of course you can fine-tune everything you want.
This feature makes it perfect for SEO noobs and it is an effective way to do on-page and on-site SEO without getting your hands dirty.
The free version of SEO Framework will be more than you need, especially if you have a simple site and are just starting to do SEO.
But SEO Framework also comes in premium tiers, called Pro, Business, and Agency.
These give you more options for spam protection, structured data, third-party analytics support and SEO, fully equipped extension manager, and more.
#7- WP Meta SEO
WP Meta SEO is a super beginner-friendly alternative to Yoast SEO.
Just by installing and activating this plugin you’ll get a general overview of your site’s SEO within the plugin dashboard.
You’ll be able to see how your site is performing and the whole list of errors the plugin found.
The errors in the reports will range from benign mistakes like overly long meta descriptions; to faulty schema that prevents rich snippets from appearing; to fatal errors like noindex directive in robots.txt file.
What’s more, you can hover over each report to view pages where errors are found, plus helpful advice and solutions to those problems.
I imagine this setup is perfect for SEO newbies who don’t know where to turn and what to fix first when it comes to SEO mistakes.
Another feature I like is the post SEO editor which is like an advanced version of Yoast post SEO editor.
The two work largely the same way. Both plugins scan your post and come up with suggestions. The main difference between the two is that Yoast spews out generalized suggestions, while WP Meta SEO takes a more granular, page level approach.
I get the feeling their algorithm is more sophisticated that Yoast’s.
What’s more, after this plugin has finished analyzing your page, it will give it a score and as you start fixing on-page SEO mistakes on the page, your score will improve till you reach 100% optimized for success.
WP Meta SEO also has this awesome bulk editing feature where you can bulk edit your metadata, images and links from one central editor for all posts, saving you hours of precious time.
Finally the plugin comes equipped with standard features that Yoast also has. And it also has features that Yoast is lacking (for example HTML sitemap generator and free image optimization and resizing tool).
#8- SEO Ultimate
SEO Ultimate used to be a superb SEO plugin, and the one Yoast alternative that easily blew Yoast SEO out of the water with its host of features.
I said “used to be” a superb SEO plugin because that was over 4 years ago when it was last updated.
Now, I recommend you go for SEO Ultimate.
As you can probably guess, this is the premium version of SEO Ultimate and this plugin is a beast, to put it mildly 🙂
With it you can bulk edit links, images and metadata. It has a powerful code inserter module which lets you modify headers, footers and sidebar of any theme you’re using.
It also has an automatic internal linking functionality which lets you add internal links throughout your site with desired anchor text.
This feature alone can save you $100+ because you won’t need to get premium internal linking plugins like Link Whisper, Internal Link Juicer or Autolinks Manager Pro.
However, I must say that SEO Ultimate is not for the faint of heart.
Because the features you get can be quite overwhelming especially when you first instal and activate it.
It’s also not for those whose sites are hosted on very cheap and slow hosting. Because this plugin is so feature rich it’s bound to add extra load time to your site’s pages when activated.
Finally, I suspect the SEO geeks will love it. In fact I know they’ll do so because SEO Ultimate+ is one of the most widely used Yoast alternatives despite the fact it’s a premium plugin.
Over all, it’s very high quality and you need to check it out here!
#9- Premium SEO Pack
Premium SEO Pack is another one of the best Yoast alternatives that’s seriously worth considering.
It offers a ton of features, half of which you won’t find in Yoast. And the free version of the plugin gives you 95% of everything it has to offer. The final 5% (realy the features you’ll hardly use) plus better support come with the premium tier.
Similar to some of the plugins mentioned above, Premium SEO Pack is built to make your life as an SEO easier.
With it you can bulk optimize your metadata across all of your pages from one central location.
This feature alone saves you from hours of repetitive, mind numbing work where you load up a post in WordPress, change its meta title and description, save and repeat.
That’s something a VA should be doing, but you won’t need to hire a VA if you install Premium SEO Pack.
It also has a similar bulk image SEO tool where you can optimize images for SEO directly from WP image library instead of one by one from the posts themselves.
Finally, this plugin comes with a link manager/redirect tool that can replace premium internal link plugins. This can save you either from installing an unnecessary redirection plugin or trying to redirect via htaccess and possibly making a critical mistake.
One thing to note though is that this plugin is not that user friendly and it’s definitely not for beginners.
It’s feature-packed, but the plugin’s interface is not very thought out and it’s almost the opposite of intuitive.
I’ve been dealing with SEO plugins for years, but there was still a decent learning curve for me before I was able to test it comfortably.
As mentioned, there’s a premium version of SEO Premium Pack, though I suggest you start out with the free stuff first.
#10- Bavoko SEO Tools
Bavoko is a new and impressive player in the SEO plugins arena and another one of our Yoast SEO alternatives.
This tool is jam-packed with useful features and unlike with the entry above (SEO Premium Pack I’m looking at you :)) everything is laid out in a logical and helpful manner
Once you install the plugin and you go through the setup wizard (a 5 minute job) you’ll land inside the dashboard.
Right in front you’ll see your keywords that Bavoko pulled out of Google Search Console along with queries your site is indexed under, clicks you’re getting and impressions count.
On the left there’s a dedicated side menu where you can tweak the default settings.
Bavoko SEO also has a decent post SEO feature which lets you optimize each post to the fullest and which won’t leave you hanging when it comes to intelligent on-page suggestions.
One feature I really like is that after you’ve installed Bavoko on your site, in the bottom right corner there’ll be a chat icon which you can use to contact their support.
This is unique to Bavoko and no other SEO plugin offers it.
Finally, the free version of Bavoko doesn’t hold back anything from you and it’s enough for most people reading this best Yoast alternatives post.
And the premium stuff just adds more data to the keyword panel + better support.
#11- Smart Crawl SEO
The final entry in this best Yoast SEO replacement post is Smart Crawl SEO.
Even though the name suggests it’s some kind of website crawler like SiteBulb, DeepCrawl or Screaming Frog, Smart Crawl SEO is actually an SEO plugin.
Once you install it ,it’ll greet you with a simple setup wizard which will show you the settings that are turned on/off and the reasoning behind all of it.
Of course, you’re free to change everything you want, though I strongly suggest you leave it alone if you don’t know what you’re doing.
The default settings are optimal for most websites.
The best feature of this plugin is its comprehensive dashboard which shows you all the problems it encountered throughout your site in one place.
Another noteworthy feature is that every improvement suggestion comes with detailed tooltips that explain why something is either good or bad for SEO. This very helpful for newbies and even pros alike.
The downside to Smart SEO Crawl is that it pushes you to upgrade to the Pro version a bit too much. In that regard it’s similar to Yoast SEO who also advertise heavily within their free plugin.
While the free version of SmartCrawl is more than enough for starters, the Pro version adds a ton of new features. Some of them include internal link management and automation, better on-page content analyzer, more robust social sharing options etc
Honestly, I’m not sure Smart Crawl SEO Pro is worth it because you can get those features for free with other SEO plugins, but that’s up to you to decide.
Try out Smart Crawl SEO today!
Again, it’s free!
Best Yoast SEO Alternatives FAQ- Everything You Need to Know to Decide
Picking a new SEO plugin for your site is serious business. It can literally determine whether you rank in Google and make money, or not.
So it’s best to learn everything you can before you pick.
Below are answers to your hot, burning questions about the best Yoast SEO alternatives.
#1- Is Yoast the Best SEO Plugin on The Market?
No, Yoast SEO is not the best SEO plugin on the market.
It’s the most popular SEO plugin and most newbies go with it (partly because they’re clueless about Yoast alternatives);
However, some of the plugins I talked about above offer more functionalities in their free versions than Yoast does with their premium SEO plugin.
Think about it.
#2- What is The Best Yoast Alternative?
In my opinion, the best Yoast SEO alternative is RankMath.
This SEO plugin newcomer (with over 600,000 installs already) offers everything Yoast SEO does, and then some.
Their plugin is also notable for being very light weight.
For example, look what kind of speed difference it made for Matthew Woodward when he switched from Yoast over to RankMath.
#3- Do I Really Need an SEO Plugin For My Site?
Technically, you don’t. That’s because anything a plugin can do you can do… if you know how to code.
And IF you’re willing to spend hours on it.
And IF you’re a masochist. Sorry, just kidding 🙂
Really, you don’t need an SEO plugin if you’re going to have a 5-page static website and you know how to code those pages yourself.
And you don’t really care about rankings, as long as you get indexed. But if you intend to have a large website and you want to make money with it, then you will need a plugin.
Having a dedicated SEO plugin installed will simplify your workflow processes 10-fold and you’ll be able to spend more time on actually marketing your website properly.
So to answer your question, you do need an SEO plugin for your website.
#4- How Do I Switch From One Plugin To Another?
Transferring from one SEO plugin to another is easy. That’s because these plugins have internal agreements with each other and they make it easy to switch.
Going from one SEO plugin to another is as easy as transferring data from your current SEO plugin to your next one. And that is achieved with a push of a button. For example, here’s what it looks like in RankMath.
#5- Are All Free Yoast Alternatives Regularly Updated?
Yes, all free Yoast SEO alternatives are regularly updated.
Remember, free plugins serve as entrance points for leads/potential customers so they have to be in top-notch conditions to sway the user to go with the pro version. So you have nothing to worry about as these plugins are all regularly updated.
The only exception is the SEO Ultimate plugin whose free version was last updated in 2017. However, their premium version still rocks with the newest and greatest WordPress versions.
#6- Can I Use More Than One Plugin on My WordPress Site?
You can use more than one SEO plugin on your site, but you shouldn’t.
This goes for all plugins, not just for those that manage your WordPress SEO. When you have 2 active plugins that do the same thing, they are going to conflict and possibly cause big problems for your site.
Problems can range from wrong SEO setup of the site, to slow load times, to possibly even bringing your site offline. This is an extreme case but it could happen, especially if a robots.txt file is involved.
So the answer is no, having one SEO plugin is optimal.
You May Be Interested In..
Here’s a selection of some of our best resources on SEO to move you to the next level:
- SEO For Bloggers: 48 Experts Share Website Optimization Tips
- Rank Math SEO Vs Yoast SEO: Which SEO Plugin Is Better For You?
- Yoast SEO Meta Tags – What They Are, And How To Use Them To Your Advantage
- 38 Experts Reveal Best Keyword Research Tools For SEO (Top 10 Leaderboard Included)
- Best SEO Tips for Beginners and New Websites
- 7 Proven Tips to Instantly Improve Content Readability for SEO
- The Actionable On-Page SEO Guide on How to Rank in Google
- Semrush Vs Ahrefs: Which SEO Tool is Best?
- SEO Certification Through Free Online Courses
- SEO For Dummies: What Is SEO And How It Works
Concluding this Best Yoast SEO Alternatives Guide for 2022
You came here wondering what SEO plugin is the best Yoast SEO alternative. And now you’re about to leave knowing that there are 11 excellent Yoast competitors to pick from.
So quick question for you.
I want to ask you, now that you’ve read through this Yoast SEO alternatives post.
All 11 plugins I talked about are great choices, but you only get to pick one because one SEO plugin is optimal for your WordPress site
So, which one will it be?
- Rankmath?
- SEOPress?
- Squirrly?
I’m curious, please let me know in the comment section below. Leave a comment and join the conversation.
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