Rank tracking: the scheduled act you automate — and the archive you protect.
Rank tracking is the repeated, scheduled recording of where a URL or listing appears in search results for defined keywords, archived over time. In practice: it is the act you automate on day one, and the archive you protect forever. The local form samples per point via a geo-grid.
Definition
A rank tracker automates and archives what a manual search performs once: issue the query, note the position, repeat on schedule. The local variant records positions per geographic point, because local results vary with the searcher's location — the spatial dimension is what geo-grid rank tracking adds.
What you do with it
You schedule it, and you protect the archive. Set the cadence — weekly for active campaigns, monthly for maintenance — and let it run without interference. Every reporting workflow in this handbook depends on the archive being intact and comparable: the agency chapter and the multi-location chapter both consume it. LocalRank (localrank.so) automates scheduling for Maps and local pack tracking; the setup is in the how-to chapter.
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Related terms
Local pack · Local SEO · Google Business Profile
FAQ
What is rank tracking?
The repeated, scheduled measurement of where a URL or listing appears in search results for chosen keywords, archived over time to detect movement.
Cite this entry
Local Rank Tracking Handbook. "Rank tracking." Local Rank Tracking Handbook Glossary, https://local-rank-handbook.pages.dev/ (accessed 2026).