How Rank Tracker Works
Rank Tracker shows how a Google Business Profile ranks on Google Maps for a specific keyword across different search locations.
Instead of checking one spot only, Rank Tracker scans multiple points across an area so you can see where your business is strong, where it is weak, and how far your visibility actually reaches.
What this article covers
In this guide, you will learn:
what Rank Tracker is
what a grid is
what each pin means
how rankings are measured
how credits work
where to manage Rank Tracker inside the platform
What Rank Tracker is
Rank Tracker is the part of the platform that tracks Google Maps rankings for your Google Business Profile.
Each scan is based on:
one business
one keyword
That creates one heatmap.
A simple way to think about it is this:
1 Google Business Profile + 1 keyword = 1 heatmap grid
If you want to track multiple keywords, each keyword gets its own heatmap.
What a grid is
A grid is the map layout used to test rankings across an area.
Instead of checking only one location, Rank Tracker checks many points around the selected business.
This gives you a fuller view of how visible the business is across neighborhoods, cities, or service areas.
A simple way to understand it:
One grid = one business + one keyword + many search locations
The larger the grid, the more points are checked.
What a pin or data point is
Each pin on the heatmap represents one real search location.
That means the platform is checking:
If someone searched from this location, where would this business rank?
Example:
Someone searching from this street sees you as #3.
That is what a pin shows.
It is not one overall citywide estimate. It is one ranking result tied to one location on the map.
How rankings are shown
Once the scan runs, each pin shows the ranking position for that business at that search location.
This helps you understand:
where you rank well
where you rank poorly
where visibility drops off
which service areas need more work
You can also review the average score for the full grid and open the full heatmap for more detail.
How credits work
Credits are used when you run scans inside Rank Tracker.
The simplest way to understand it is:
1 pin = 1 credit
more pins in the grid = more credits used
larger grids use more credits than smaller grids
So if your heatmap has more data points, it will use more credits.
How to add more credits
If you need more credits, go to the billing or pricing section in your account, or contact support.
If your account runs low on credits, you may need to add more before running additional scans.
Where to find Rank Tracker in the platform
The two main sections tied to Rank Tracker are:
My Businesses
Use this section to add and manage the businesses you want to track
Local SEO Heatmap
Use this section to:
run scans
add keywords
review keyword scores
filter results
open the full heatmap
These are the main views you will use for Rank Tracker.
Why Rank Tracker it's key
Rank Tracker gives you a better view of local visibility than checking rankings manually from one location.
Instead of asking, “Do we rank in this area?”, it helps answer better questions:
where exactly do we rank well
where are we missing visibility
how far does our map visibility reach
are rankings improving over time
That is what makes the heatmap useful. It turns one keyword into a location-by-location view of performance.
How Map Ranking Compares to Other Local Rank Trackers
Quick recap
Rank Tracker measures how a Google Business Profile ranks on Google Maps for one keyword across many locations.
A grid is the full map layout for that scan.
A pin is one real search location.
One business and one keyword create one heatmap.
Credits are used based on scan points, and larger grids use more credits.
Use My Businesses to manage tracked businesses and Local SEO Heatmap to run and review scans.