PROAPC Editorial add-on · SEO and measurement
Rank tracker plugin for WordPress: mobile and desktop, AI Overviews and AI Mode
The APC Editorial Rank Tracking - DataForSEO add-on checks where each article shows up on Google for its Main Keyword, on mobile and on desktop, and tells you whether your site is cited in AI Overviews and in AI Mode. You check whenever you like, and the plugin repeats it on its own at the frequency you choose.
- Mobile and desktop
- AI Overview and AI Mode citations
- Automatic checks
In short
Rank Tracking checks the position of each article's Main Keyword in Google's organic results, on mobile and desktop, and whether your site is among the sources of the AI Overview and of AI Mode. The result stays on each theme's card, with an arrow showing how far it went up or down.
The lookups use your own DataForSEO access, and each one is charged by DataForSEO straight to your account. Before it starts, the plugin tells you how many keywords it will check and what that costs.
- Checks
- The Main Keyword of each theme with an article
- On Google
- Mobile and desktop, top 10
- In Google's AI
- Citation in AI Overview and AI Mode
- Comparison
- ▲ or ▼ against the previous check
- When
- On a click and in the automatic check (Monthly by default)
- Cost
- Charged by DataForSEO on your account
- Plan
- PRO, with 30 days free
Rank tracking
Where your article shows up, search by search.
Rank tracking means following, over time, the position a page holds on Google for a keyword. It is the most direct way to know whether an article is climbing, standing still or losing ground.
Google doesn't show the same list to everyone. The order changes with the device and the place of the person searching, and Google mainly uses the mobile version of sites to decide what to show. That is why the plugin checks both screens in every check: the position on desktop and on mobile, side by side.
The check reads the first 10 organic results, Google's first page, where most of the clicks are. If the article isn't among them, the card says not in top 10. The search runs in the country of your articles' language and, if the plan picked a place under Where Google searches from, in that place.
Sometimes what shows up for the keyword isn't the article but another page of your site. The line shows this with another page and its address, a useful sign that 2 pages may be competing for the same search.
| What you want to know | Search Console | Rank Tracking |
|---|---|---|
| Which position it shows | The average of every time the page showed up in the period | The position in a search made now, for the article's keyword |
| Device | All mixed into the average | Mobile and desktop, each with its own position |
| A keyword nobody searched in the period | Doesn't show: with no impressions, there is no position | Shows the position anyway |
| AI Overview and AI Mode | Doesn't say whether the site was cited | Cited or not cited, in every check |
| Cost | Free | Each check is charged by DataForSEO |
Both numbers are true and measure different things. With Search Console on, the checked position shows on the keyword's own row, next to impressions and clicks.
AI search
Being cited by Google's AI is a ranking too.
In many searches, Google answers before the links with an AI Overview that cites the pages it took the answer from. AI Mode goes further: it is a search in the form of a conversation, which also shows its sources. Being cited means showing up exactly where people read first.
That is why every check also reads both AI answers, on mobile and desktop, and looks for your domain among the sources. A subdomain of your site counts as your site.
- cited: your site is among the sources. In the card's header, the AI Overview and AI Mode marks turn green, with the Cited tip.
- not cited: there was an AI answer, but without your site.
- no AI Overview in this search: Google showed no AI Overview for that keyword at that moment.
- not available in this language: AI Mode doesn't serve your articles' language yet.
What it does
Everything Rank Tracking checks for you.
It works on the themes screen of each blog plan, where you already look after your articles.
Both screens at once
Each check brings the position on Desktop and on Mobile, with ▲ or ▼ against the previous check, and the date it was made.
Citations in Google's AI
In the same check, the AI Overview and AI Mode: cited, not cited or no AI answer in that search.
One theme, some or all
Check Rank on the theme card, Rank Tracking on the bar of the ticked themes, or the blue Bulk Rank Tracking button for the whole plan.
Automatic check
Under Rank Tracking: automatic check, pick Weekly, Every 2 weeks, Monthly, Every 2 months or Every 3 months. Published articles are checked on their own.
Redoes only what failed
Retry failures (N) checks again only the keywords with a failure, and only the parts that failed. What was read fine stays as it is, and you pay only for what is redone.
The right page ranking
When another page of your site shows up instead of the article, the line shows another page with its address. Off the first page, it shows not in top 10.
No surprises
Numbers you can take to your client.
A rank check costs money on your DataForSEO account. That is why the add-on shows the price first, runs without you waiting and never makes up a result:
- The price before the click: the window says how many themes and keywords will be checked and what it costs. Themes without an article are left out, and the window says how many.
- A background queue: one keyword at a time, even with the page closed. The one being checked shows Checking… and the others In queue (N of M).
- Never "not cited" without reading it: if Google showed the AI Overview but DataForSEO couldn't open its sources, the card says exactly that and offers Check now.
- Redoing never spoils what was right: a position that was already read is only replaced by a new reading that also worked.
Step by step
Track your rankings in 4 steps.
The add-on comes on with PRO. All that's left is the DataForSEO access and choosing the frequency.
-
Install and go PRO
Download APC Editorial, sign in with your jode.io account and turn on PRO. The first 30 days are free.
-
Save your DataForSEO access
In the DataForSEO card of Global Settings, fill in API login and API password and click Save access.
-
Choose the frequency
At the end of the same card, under Rank Tracking: automatic check, pick the frequency. The choice is saved right away.
-
Check your first plan
On the themes screen, click Bulk Rank Tracking, check the price in the window and confirm.
Want to see each screen? The step by step in the docs shows the 3 ways to check and what to do when something fails.
Free and PRO
Rank Tracking is PRO.
On Free, you follow the whole site's average position through Search Console. On PRO, each article gets its own check.
The whole-domain view
- Search Console for the domain: the site's impressions, clicks, CTR and average position, Before | Now
- IndexNow to tell Bing on every publish
Every article, checked
- Position on mobile and desktop, and citation in AI Overview and AI Mode
- Checks by hand, in bulk and automatic, with Retry failures (N)
- With the same DataForSEO access, the backlinks of your site and of your competitors
- 30 days free to try everything; see the PRO price
FAQ
Questions about tracking your Google rankings.
What's the difference between Rank Tracking and Search Console's position?
Search Console shows the average position of every time the page showed up in the period, mixing devices and places. Rank Tracking shows the position in a search made at that moment, for the article's keyword, on mobile and on desktop. Both are right: they measure different things.
Why is the mobile position different from the desktop one?
Because Google builds different results for each device: the order, the blocks that show up and the room each one takes change. That is why the plugin checks both in every check and shows each position separately.
What does it mean to be cited in AI Overviews or AI Mode?
It means your site shows up among the sources of Google's AI answer for that keyword. When it does, the AI Overview or AI Mode mark turns green on the theme card, with the Cited tip.
Do I need a DataForSEO account? What does it cost?
Yes. The lookups use your DataForSEO access, and each check is charged by DataForSEO straight to your account. Before any check, the window shows how many keywords go in and what it costs, and the automatic-check block says roughly what each round costs.
Which keywords are checked?
The Main Keyword of each theme that already has an article, in blog plans. A draft counts for a check by hand; the automatic check only covers published articles. The Canonical Keyword is never checked, and themes with no article or no keyword are left out.
How often is the position checked on its own?
At the frequency you choose: weekly, every 2 weeks, monthly (the default), every 2 months or every 3 months. Each article waits the whole period after its last check, by hand or automatic, and a new article counts from its publish date. To stop it, turn the add-on off in Global Settings › Add-ons/Tools.
What shows up when a check fails?
The card says why, and the Retry failures (N) button checks again only the parts that failed: Google on desktop or mobile and AI Mode on desktop or mobile. With no failures, the button doesn't show.
Does it work for sites in any language?
The search runs in the country of your articles' output language. If AI Mode doesn't serve that language yet, the line says not available in this language. If Google has no country for the language, the add-on tells you and the automatic check doesn't run.
More add-ons and tools
Works together with these.
Each add-on and each tool turns on and off on its own, in Global Settings › Add-ons/Tools.
APC Editorial
Try it free for 30 days, with everything unlocked.
The Rank Tracking - DataForSEO add-on is part of APC Editorial, the plugin to generate articles with AI with editorial planning. Free add-ons and tools stay free forever; PRO ones are unlocked during the 30 free days.