Yoast SEO is a powerful WordPress plugin designed to enhance website visibility on search engines. It offers tools to optimize content, meta tags, and keywords, ensuring better rankings. With features like readability analysis, XML sitemap generation, and social media integration, it helps create user-friendly, SEO-optimized content.
Yoast SEO guides users with actionable insights, making it ideal for businesses and bloggers aiming to improve online presence and engagement.
SEO Analysis: A traffic light scoring system (green, orange, red) evaluates keyword use, structure, and optimization to provide real-time ranking feedback.
Readability Analysis: Sentence length, clarity, and paragraph structure receive checks, with suggestions to improve text accessibility.
Keyword Optimization: Focus keyword placement appears in titles, headings, and content; Premium allows up to five keywords per page for precise targeting.
Meta Titles and Descriptions: Customizable titles and descriptions include a snippet preview of search result appearances.
XML Sitemaps: Automatic creation of sitemaps for pages, posts, and custom content types supports efficient indexing.
Schema Markup: Structured data improves search result visibility; Premium offers advanced types such as FAQ and How-To for enhanced snippets.
Social Media Integration: OpenGraph and Twitter Card metadata ensure polished presentation on Facebook and X, with customizable titles and images.
Internal Linking Suggestions: Premium recommendations highlight related content links that strengthen site structure and SEO.
Redirect Manager: Premium functionality enables redirect setup (301, 302, 410) to prevent errors and preserve link value.
Canonical URLs: Canonical tags prevent duplicate content issues and confirm the correct page for indexing.
AI-Powered Suggestions: Premium assistance generates optimized titles and descriptions aligned with search intent.
Crawl Optimization: Premium settings reduce crawl overhead and block unwanted bots to protect resources.
Inclusive Language Analysis: Premium feedback identifies non-inclusive terms and provides suitable alternatives.
Word Complexity Check: Premium review highlights complex wording and suggests simpler alternatives for readability.
Semrush Integration: Direct access to keyword suggestions from Semrush enhances relevance inside the editor.
WooCommerce SEO: Product pages, categories, and schema markup receive optimization to improve visibility.
Shopify SEO: Real-time analysis and integrations with review platforms (e.g., Judge.me) enhance product page performance.
| Product or Plan | Price (Excl. VAT) | Notes & Included Features |
|---|---|---|
| Yoast SEO (Free) | Free | Basic SEO tools available for WordPress users |
| Yoast SEO Premium | $118.80 per year | Includes Local, Video, News SEO, AI features, Redirect Manager, internal linking suggestions, 24/7 support, and access to Yoast SEO Academy |
| Yoast WooCommerce SEO | $178.80 per year | Adds product-specific SEO, enhanced schema for WooCommerce, and includes Yoast SEO Premium |
| Yoast SEO for Shopify | $19 per month | Real-time SEO guidance tailored for Shopify stores |
| Competitor |
Pros of Yoast SEO |
|---|---|
| Semrush | Yoast SEO excels in user-friendly on-page optimization, and its traffic light system simplifies content analysis for beginners. It offers a robust free version with essential features like XML sitemaps and meta tag management, which Semrush lacks in its free tier. Yoast’s pricing is more affordable at $118.80/year for Premium compared to Semrush’s $119.95/month for the Pro plan. Its WordPress integration is seamless, and this provides a focused solution for bloggers and small businesses. Customer reviews rate Yoast highly (4.6/5 on G2), and they praise its ease of use and clear guidance. |
| Ahrefs | Yoast SEO stands out for its beginner-friendly interface, and its real-time SEO scoring helps users optimize content without advanced technical knowledge. Unlike Ahrefs, which focuses heavily on backlink analysis and costs $99/month for its Lite plan, Yoast offers a free version with core SEO tools. Its readability analysis and social media integration are unique strengths, and these features enhance content quality and sharing. Yoast’s 4.4/5 Trustpilot rating reflects strong user satisfaction for WordPress users. |
| Rank Math | Yoast SEO provides a more polished and intuitive setup wizard, and this ensures easy configuration for non-technical users. Its free version includes comprehensive features like schema markup and canonical URLs, which Rank Math also offers but with a less streamlined interface. Yoast’s premium plan at $118.80/year is competitive, and it includes AI-powered tools and 24/7 support. Users rate Yoast 4.6/5 on G2, and they appreciate its reliability and extensive documentation. |
| All in One SEO (AIOSEO) | Yoast SEO’s traffic light system for SEO and readability analysis is intuitive, and this makes it ideal for beginners. It offers a free version with strong features like XML sitemaps and social media metadata, which AIOSEO matches but with a less visually engaging interface. Yoast’s premium plan at $118.80/year includes advanced schema and redirect tools, and it integrates well with WooCommerce and Shopify. Customer reviews (4.4/5 on Trustpilot) highlight Yoast’s ease of use and consistent updates. |
| SEOPress | Yoast SEO offers a more established reputation, and its 4.6/5 G2 rating reflects strong user trust. Its free version includes robust features like XML sitemaps and content optimization, which SEOPress also provides but with less comprehensive documentation. Yoast’s premium plan at $118.80/year includes AI tools and 24/7 support, and this gives it an edge over SEOPress’s $49/year plan. Yoast’s beginner-friendly interface and regular updates make it a preferred choice for WordPress users. |
Competitor |
Cons of Yoast SEO |
|---|---|
| Semrush | Yoast SEO lacks the comprehensive marketing suite that Semrush offers, and its focus remains primarily on on-page SEO. Semrush provides advanced keyword research, competitor analysis, and PPC tools, which Yoast does not include. Yoast’s premium plan at $118.80/year is cost-effective, but Semrush’s broader feature set (priced at $119.95/month) appeals to agencies needing all-in-one solutions. Customer reviews (4.5/5 for Semrush on G2) note its superior support and analytics, and these highlight Yoast’s limited scope for advanced users. |
| Ahrefs | Yoast SEO falls short in backlink analysis, and Ahrefs excels in this area with detailed link-building tools. Yoast’s focus on on-page optimization and content analysis cannot match Ahrefs’ in-depth competitive research and keyword tracking, priced at $99/month. Users rate Ahrefs 4.5/5 on G2, and they praise its setup ease and support, which expose Yoast’s weaker performance in advanced SEO analytics. Yoast’s free version is robust, but it lacks the depth needed for large-scale campaigns. |
| Rank Math | Yoast SEO’s premium version at $118.80/year is pricier than Rank Math’s $59/year plan, and this makes it less appealing for budget-conscious users. Rank Math offers more advanced features in its free version, such as unlimited keyword optimization, which Yoast restricts to one in its free tier. Users rate Rank Math 4.9/5 on G2, and they note its faster setup and broader functionality, which reveal Yoast’s limited feature depth and occasional performance lags. |
| All in One SEO (AIOSEO) | Yoast SEO’s premium version at $118.80/year offers fewer advanced features than AIOSEO’s $99/year plan, and this includes AIOSEO’s superior site audit and user access controls. AIOSEO’s TruSEO analysis is more detailed, and it outperforms Yoast in technical SEO customization. Customer reviews (4.7/5 for AIOSEO on G2) praise its comprehensive modules, and these suggest Yoast’s interface and feature set can feel outdated for advanced users. |
| SEOPress | Yoast SEO’s premium plan at $118.80/year is significantly more expensive than SEOPress’s $49/year, and this raises questions about its value. SEOPress offers similar features like unlimited keyword optimization and advanced schema in its lower-priced plan, which Yoast restricts to Premium. Users rate SEOPress 4.4/5 on G2, and they note its usability and support, which indicate Yoast’s reliance on outdated keyword density metrics and lack of live chat support. |
