SEMrush is a popular SEO and marketing analytics tool used by businesses and marketers to research competitors, track keywords, and analyze website traffic. But where does all the data that SEMrush provides come from?
Here’s an overview of the main ways SEMRush gathers its extensive database of information.
How Does SEMRush Get Its Data
Keyword Data
One of the main things SEMrush is known for is its keyword tracking. It provides keyword search volume, competitiveness scores, and other metrics for keywords related to your business. This data primarily comes from a couple of sources:
- Google AdWords Keyword Planner – SEMrush utilizes Google’s keyword data tools for search volume and forecasts. Though not exact, this provides estimates.
- Browser extensions and analytics software – SEMrush has various browser add-ons and tracking tools that harvest keyword data from real organic searches and paid ads.
Backlink Profiles
A key feature of SEMrush is showing the backlinks pointing to a particular domain or URL. It finds these backlinks via:
- Crawlers – SEMrush uses crawling technology to discover backlinks pointing to sites.
- Access to public backlink data – Various public databases show backlinks and SEMrush can aggregate those.
Competitor Research
To show competitive intelligence around businesses operating in an industry, SEMrush gathers information on things like organic rankings, paid ads, and traffic estimates. Data sources include:
- Google APIs – Interfaces like Google Search Console and Google Analytics provide some access to competitor search presence and rankings.
- Website crawlers – SEMrush crawlers continuously scan competitor website pages looking for changes.
- Industry data – SEMrush also licenses information from various industry databases to flesh out their profiles of businesses.
Pros
- Huge database of metrics across search, social, keywords, and competitors
- Useful SEO and marketing tools for analysis and tracking
- Data generally considered accurate and reliable
Cons
- Don’t have full access to real internal Google data
- Some data estimates and sampling could be imprecise
- Lacks industry-specific metrics you may find elsewhere
Key Points:
- SEMrush gathers data from Google public sources, browser tools, website crawlers, and industry databases
- Data sources include Google Keyword Planner, Analytics, competitor websites, and backlink profiles
- Metrics like keyword searches, rankings, and traffic are continuously updated
- Considered highly accurate but some estimates could be imprecise
Conclusion
While SEMrush doesn’t have exclusive access to search engine data, its multitude of public sources, proprietary analytics tools, link crawlers, and industry data provide an extensive and well-rounded database for researching the competitive landscape. SEMrush offers some of the best SEO and marketing intelligence available through third-party tools.
FAQ
Does SEMrush have direct access to Google data?
No, SEMrush does not have any special access rights to Google data. It relies on public sources, aided by proprietary tracking tools and analytics software.
What is the main technology behind SEMrush data?
SEMrush uses a combination of website crawlers, browser extensions, third-party industry databases, and integration with platforms like Google Analytics and Keyword Planner.
How often is SEMrush data refreshed?
Frequency varies, but most SEMrush data is refreshed multiple times per day or week, depending on the metric. So it stays reasonably up-to-date.