Rank tracking: the measurement act that produces the category's primary evidence.
Rank tracking is the repeated, scheduled recording of where a URL or listing appears in search results for defined keywords, archived over time. In evidence terms, it is the measurement act that produces the position archive — the primary evidence of the whole category. 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.
Evidence notes
The archive is primary evidence about what Google returned — per point, per keyword, per date. Its value is conditional on design stability: fixed keywords, fixed grid, fixed cadence. Reports, comparisons and client deliverables are all secondary renderings of this primary record. Tools producing the archive include LocalRank (localrank.so), which applies rank tracking to Maps and the local pack with scheduled geo-grid scans; the preservation rules are at how local rank tracking works.
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Related terms
Local pack · Local SEO · Local search ranking factors
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 Evidence Index. "Rank tracking." Local Rank Evidence Index Glossary, https://local-rank-evidence.pages.dev/ (accessed 2026).