By Bret Moleta, Founder, Mindsaw · Published October 25, 2026 · Last updated October 25, 2026
You don’t need a stack of subscriptions to work on your Google Maps ranking. You need a way to see where you rank, a way to see what your competitors picked, and a way to check your own pages. These are the tools I use and show in my videos, and what each one is for.
No paid mentions here. None of these companies paid to be on this page, and there are no affiliate links on it. Two things you should know: in one older video I mention an affiliate link for Local Falcon in that video’s description (2:15 in “How to set up a Local SEO Campaign for Beginners”), and the person behind Local Dominator is a friend of mine.
Why do you need a rank grid tool first?
Because your ranking changes block by block.
“you may be sitting in your office and you go, well, you know, we’re we’re ranking. But, you know, if you drive to a coffee shop, you know, two blocks away, you’re not ranking.”
Bret Moleta, Your Competitor Is Silently Stealing Your Calls 7 Fixes at 1:54
“you can’t do SEO without having a SEO grid program.”
Bret Moleta, Your Competitor Is Silently Stealing Your Calls 7 Fixes at 2:11
A grid tool searches your keyword from points all around your business and shows where you show up at each one.
Watch: Your Competitor Is Silently Stealing Your Calls 7 Fixes, from the clip above.
The ones I name in my videos: Local Falcon, BrightLocal, Local Viking and Local Dominator. In my older beginner video I call Local Falcon “the one that I use” (2:20 in “How to set up a Local SEO Campaign for Beginners”). Lately I lean toward Local Dominator, and you should know why:
“we’re starting to lean more towards local dominator. Uh Eldar Cohen is a really good guy. He’s a friend of mine,”
Bret Moleta, Get More Google Reviews: Your Free Review QR Code in 2 Minutes at 9:45
So weigh my pick with that in mind. Any of them works, so pick one and stick with it so your before and after scans compare.
How do you see your competitors’ Google categories?
With a Chrome extension called GMB Everywhere. It has a free version and a paid one. It shows the categories the businesses on the results page use, including the secondary ones the listing doesn’t show.
“I do not have an affiliate code. I don’t get paid by them. I use it.”
Bret Moleta, The Top 3 LOCAL SEARCH RANKING FACTORS FOR 2026 at 3:23
“I suggest you get it, even the free version, because it gives you so much information, right?”
Bret Moleta, Spy Your Competitor’s Google Categories Before You Touch Yours at 4:05
No extension? You can still do it:
“you don’t necessarily need that program. You just do it by eyesight.”
Bret Moleta, Spy Your Competitor’s Google Categories Before You Touch Yours at 4:01
Search your main keyword, open the top listings, and note their primary categories.
How do you find keywords your competitors missed?
Google Trends. It’s free.
“how to use Google Trends to come up with keywords that maybe your competition isn’t looking for,”
Bret Moleta, Google Trends Just Got Dangerous for Local SEO: Here’s How I’d Use It at 0:33
Put in your state or town, compare a few ways people say your service, and see which one people search more and when. Trends shows interest relative to itself, not exact search counts, so use it to compare terms, not to predict calls.
How do you check your own pages?
SEO Minion (free Chrome extension) shows your page’s headings at a glance:
“what this will do is this will check all the h1s h2s and so on and so forth on the website”
Bret Moleta, How I Start Every Google Maps Campaign (Step by Step – Full Tutorial ) at 2:32
Your headings should say what you do and where. If they say “Family owned” and “Quality you can trust,” Google learns nothing about your service.
A location changer extension lets you see results the way a customer across town sees them:
“if you’re doing client work you want to see what they are seeing”
Bret Moleta, How I Start Every Google Maps Campaign (Step by Step – Full Tutorial ) at 5:16
What else do you actually need?
Your own Google Business Profile dashboard and Google Search Console. Both are free and both are Google’s own data. Start there before you pay for anything.
Your tool checklist
- [ ] One rank grid tool, used the same way every time
- [ ] GMB Everywhere, free version is fine (or a manual check), to see competitor categories
- [ ] Google Trends to compare how people word your service
- [ ] SEO Minion to check your headings
- [ ] A location changer to see what customers across town see
- [ ] Google Business Profile and Search Console checked every month
Next step
Want to see your own grid scan without buying a tool? Get a free Google Maps audit or text (718) 227-2300. Then work through the local SEO checklist.
Written from Bret’s videos with AI help; reviewed by Bret.
