Most SEO tools available on the market, such as Semrush, Ahrefs, and Surfer SEO, are expensive to use. They require monthly or annual subscription fees, which makes it difficult for small and medium-sized businesses to take advantage of them at a cost-effective rate.
However, this limitation does not have to cripple in-house SEO efforts as many free SEO tools can help get the SEO job done. Yes, they may not offer all the fancy and advanced features, but they can help get a lot of SEO jobs done faster and more efficiently.
In this blog post, we will discuss five of the best free SEO tools that small businesses and
digital marketing agencies in Montreal can use or fiddle with to serve clients better and bolster their web marketing efforts.
SEO tools have come a long way, and in 2025, the gap between free and paid versions is narrower than ever.
Free tools now offer robust features, such as keyword tracking, technical audits, and content optimization, which were once only available in premium software. This has made free tools a preferred option not just for small businesses but also for SEO companies.
That said, paid tools still provide advantages like advanced data, competitor insights, integrations, and automation. For businesses running a small website or just getting started, free SEO marketing tools might be all that is needed instead of investing more in paid SEO tools.
We have carefully selected these tools as we use many of them in our SEO workflows at OptiWeb Marketing. These tools have helped us improve our SEO efforts without adding to our overheads.
We are confident that these tools can help any business do the same.
1. Google Search Console
Google Search Console (GSC) allows businesses to monitor, maintain, and troubleshoot a website’s presence in Google Search results. It also provides insights into how a site is performing and which keywords drive traffic. Use GSC to identify technical SEO issues that may affect rankings.
All these features make GSC one of the best free Search Engine Optimization tools
in the field.
Here are a few key features of the tool:
- Obtain performance reports with clicks, impressions, CTR, and average position for pages and keywords.
- Sitemap submission feature to submit XML sitemaps for faster and more accurate indexing.
- Core Web Vitals help assess site speed, interactivity, and visual stability for better UX and rankings.
Google Search Console Pros
- Completely free and supported by Google.
- Integrate with Google Analytics for deeper insights.
- Essential for monitoring search visibility and technical health.
Google Search Console Cons
- Only limited keyword data is shown.
- Lack of competitors and backlink analysis.
At OptiWeb Marketing, we use GSC to understand how well our clients’ sites are performing. Our SEO team considers the tool to be an integral part of their work in building SEO strategies for our clients.
Ahrefs Webmaster Tools is one of the best free SEO Audit tools
that lets a business audit its website for SEO issues and monitor its backlink profile. Using this tool, businesses can understand their site’s health and discover technical problems.
It also identifies opportunities to improve rankings and ensure consistent, high-intent, and organic search engine traffic.
Ahrefs Webmaster Tools come with a variety of features, such as:
SEO audits to scan and identify 100+ SEO issues, including technical, broken links, and content.
Backlink analysis helps link sites, spot toxic links, and monitor backlinks.
Organic keyword tracking to view which keywords your site ranks for and analyze their performance.
- Comprehensive site audit and backlink analysis are free.
- Add an unlimited number of verified sites to the account.
- Regularly updated data on site health and backlinks.
- User-friendly UI offering clear, actionable insights.
- No data export or historical data access.
- The tool can be used only with verified sites.
At OptiWeb Marketing, we use Ahrefs Webmaster Tools to run site audits for technical and backlink insights. The tool makes prospecting easier for us to source backlinks from relevant and authoritative websites for our clients.
3. Screaming Frog SEO Spider
Screaming Frog SEO Spider is a free website-crawling tool that scans a site for technical SEO issues. Identify broken links, analyze on-page elements, and generate XML sitemaps using Screaming Frog SEO Spider, which is one of the best free SEO tools. Analyze meta tags, headings, and duplicate content and optimize them for better search engine visibility.
The tool offers a variety of SEO features as below to help improve SEO efforts:
- Crawl up to 500 URLS for free to identify various SEO problems and devise strategies to address them.
- Generates XML sitemaps for a website quickly for better indexing and search engine rankings.
- Audit a website to find broken links and help address them for a better user experience and distribution of backlinks.
Screaming Frog SEO Spider Pros
- Suitable for small and medium-scale businesses.
- Identifies and notifies of SEO technical issues.
- Fast, efficient, and detailed crawling of URLS up to 500.
Screaming Frog SEO Spider Cons
- Advanced crawling features need a subscription.
- UI may feel complex for beginner SEOS.
Screaming Frog SEO Spider is one of the most frequently used SEO audit tools at OptiWeb Marketing. Our team's experience shows that it offers better SEO audit support than many paid SEO tools on the market.
4. Answer The Public
Answer The Public is one of the top free SEO tools that visualizes questions, prepositions, and related searches people enter into Google. This keyword research tool lets businesses discover what their audience is searching for on diverse search platforms like Google. Create content that targets real search intent and ranks for long-tail keywords. Download the keyword data to use in other SEO software
and tools.
The tool offers several features that make it a favourite for many businesses and SEO agencies, including OptiWeb Marketing, a top SEO company in Montrea
l.
Here are a few top features of Answer The Public:
- Visualization of questions, comparisons, and related topics in an easy-to-read format for even first-time users.
- Download keyword lists for further keyword analysis, content planning, and content optimization.
- Keyword idea generation based on real user queries and autocomplete data in diverse business categories.
Answer The Public Pros
- Obtain unique insights into user intent and trending questions.
- Simple, intuitive interface suitable for all experience levels.
- Identify search intent for better content optimization.
Answer The Public Cons
- Limited searches for free users.
- No direct competition or search volume data.
At OptiWeb Marketing, we use the free version for the initial content research process. This has helped us reduce the time needed to develop and optimize blog SEO
content strategies.
5. Google PageSpeed Insights
Google PageSpeed Insights is a free tool that analyzes a website's speed and performance. The platform lets businesses check their site's speed on desktop and mobile devices. It offers a range of actionable suggestions to help improve load times and user experience for better SEO. Many businesses use it as a go-to tool for technical SEO audits.
The platform offers a range of features to help SEO agencies and businesses understand their site's speed and performance, such as:
- Performance score for mobile and desktop versions of a site to understand how well it fares.
- Shows issues slowing down any pages, such as unoptimized images, unused JavaScript, or server response times.
- Measures Core Web Vitals, which are critical ranking factors for Google to help improve performance.
Google PageSpeed Insights Pros
- Completely free to access and easy to use.
- Prioritized technical and non-technical recommendations.
- Aligns with Google’s ranking factors and SEO best practices.
Google PageSpeed Insights Cons
- Focuses only on speed and performance
- Suggestions need technical help for implementation
At OptiWeb Marketing, we use this tool to understand how our clients’ sites perform generally in terms of speed and performance. The insights offered by the platform often help us tweak the site for better speed and user experience.
Hire an SEO Company in Montreal for Better, Faster Results
The free SEO tools we have discussed above can help improve SEO efforts. However, they may not replace the support of a reliable and experienced seo company in Montreal.
For businesses looking for such an SEO company in Montreal, OptiWeb Marketing is one of the best in Canada. With a team of expert SEO professionals adept at using paid and free SEO marketing tools
, we can deliver top-notch SEO services. Over the years, we have worked with diverse businesses in Canada and across the world, and we can devise the best SEO strategy for converting traffic.
Book a free consultation call with our SEO team to grow organic ranking and increase the quality of your website's traffic.
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