Screaming Frog SEO Log File Analyser

screamingfrog.co.uk

From $11.58/mo Free plan WindowsmacOSLinux

Spec score 8.7 #1 of 27 in SEO Log File Analysis Tools

What it is

Screaming Frog SEO Log File Analyser is a desktop application for examining access logs and understanding search engine and AI bot activity. It installs locally and keeps log event data in a local database. It accepts Apache, W3C Extended, and Amazon Elastic Load Balancing logs, and can verify supported bots to identify spoofed requests. Reports cover crawled URLs, crawl frequency, response errors, redirects, bytes downloaded, and response times. Users can match imported data containing a URLs column against log activity, including crawls, directives, or external link data. Log files can be added by drag and drop, with analysis exported to CSV or Excel. The software can process millions of events, though capacity depends on hard drive space. It runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows. The free plan allows 1,000 log event lines and one project. The paid licence costs $139 per year and includes unlimited events and projects, subject to storage capacity. Free technical support is listed for both versions.

Spec sheet

What it does: The desktop application parses server access logs so SEO teams can inspect search-engine and AI-bot crawling behavior.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Purpose: The desktop application analyses access logs to give SEOs insight into search engine and AI bot crawl activity.Read 30 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Audience: The maker describes the software as specifically designed for SEOs analysing search and AI bot activity.Read 30 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Free plan: YesRead 22 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Support: Support is offered through email and tickets, with the support page stating a target response within 24 hours.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Headquarters: Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, UKRead 28 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Founded: LinkedIn gives 2010 as the founding year.Read 20 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Company: Screaming Frog says it was founded in 2010 and is based in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, UK.Read 30 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
API and SDK: The official Log File Analyser navigation and documentation describe no public API, SDK or developer integration surface.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Bot verification: The software verifies genuine search and AI bots and can expose spoofed bot IP activity.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Company headquarters: LinkedIn lists headquarters in Henley-on-Thames, England, at 6 Greys Road.Read 20 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Company size: LinkedIn lists Screaming Frog as privately held with 11–50 employees.Read 20 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Crawl analysis: It reports crawled URLs, crawl frequency, response errors, redirects, bytes downloaded and response times.Read 30 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Crawled URLs: It shows which URLs search and AI bots requested and how often each was crawled.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Data matching: Users can import data containing a URLs column and match it against log data, including crawls, directives or external link data.Read 30 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Documentation: The vendor publishes user guides covering importing, projects, tabs, configuration, bot verification, filtering, proxies and troubleshooting.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Errors and redirects: Reports identify 4xx and 5xx responses, temporary or permanent redirects, and URLs with changing response codes.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Exports: Analysis data can be exported to CSV and Excel, and version 7 added Google Sheets export.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Import and export: Users can drag and drop log files for import and export analysis data to CSV and Excel.Read 30 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Installation: Windows supports silent installation with the /VERYSILENT command-line option, and installers are also provided for macOS and Linux distributions.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Latest release: Release 7.1 dated July 6, 2026 is described as a bug-fix update.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Legal entity: UK Companies House identifies Screaming Frog Limited, company number 07277243, incorporated on June 8, 2010.Read 20 Oct 2026 · find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk
Licence expiry: After a paid licence expires, existing projects remain open but the application returns to the 1,000-event and one-project restrictions.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Licence model: The product is distributed under a commercial, per-user annual licence and no open-source licence is stated.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Licence terms: Each licence is assigned to one user; that user may install it on multiple devices, while shared use is blocked.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Limit: desktop collaboration: Auditite reports that the desktop-only design lacks cloud sharing and team-collaboration features.Read 20 Oct 2026 · auditite.com
Limit: free tier: A Trustpilot reviewer says the free Screaming Frog tier is too restricted for practical sites and pushes users toward a paid licence.Read 20 Oct 2026 · trustpilot.com
Limit: learning curve: A Trustpilot reviewer praises the audit data but says the interface feels technical and takes time for beginners to learn.Read 20 Oct 2026 · trustpilot.com
Limit: log access dependency: Auditite notes that users must obtain raw server logs, which some hosting providers or CDN setups restrict.Read 20 Oct 2026 · auditite.com
Limit: visualization: Auditite considers the visualization layer less polished than cloud products such as Botify or OnCrawl.Read 20 Oct 2026 · auditite.com
Local processing: The application stores imported events in a local database and runs on the user's computer.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Orphan analysis: Users can import URL lists to find URLs absent from logs or URLs crawled by bots but missing from their known lists.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Performance metrics: Reports include average response time, bytes transferred, last response time, referers, and directory-level crawl activity.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Praise: accessibility: Auditite calls it an accessible way to inspect real bot crawling without command-line log processing.Read 20 Oct 2026 · auditite.com
Praise: large-log handling: Auditite praises its ability to parse millions of entries and filter them by bot type, URL and response code.Read 20 Oct 2026 · auditite.com
Praise: support: Trustpilot reviewers repeatedly describe Screaming Frog email support as fast, helpful and sometimes same-day.Read 20 Oct 2026 · trustpilot.com
Rating on G2 (SEO Spider listing): 4.7 out of 5 from 84 reviews for the separate SEO Spider product.Read 20 Oct 2026 · g2.com
Rating on GetApp (SEO Spider listing): 4.9 out of 5 from 134 reviews for the separate SEO Spider product.Read 20 Oct 2026 · getapp.com
Rating on OMR Reviews: 4.0 out of 5 from 1 review.Read 20 Oct 2026 · omr.com
Rating on Softpedia: 3.5 out of 5 from Softpedia's editorial review.Read 20 Oct 2026 · softpedia.com
Rating on Trustpilot: 4.2 out of 5 from 14 reviews for screamingfrog.co.uk.Read 20 Oct 2026 · trustpilot.com
Release 7.0: The April 29, 2026 release added AI-bot verification, user-agent grouping, customizable verification, unknown-agent discovery, project import/export, Google Sheets export and ARM Linux packages.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Scale: The local database is designed to handle millions of log events, with practical limits determined by storage and hardware.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Scale and storage: The software can analyse millions of log events, and the maker says processing capacity depends on hard drive capacity.Read 30 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Security and privacy: Imported log data is kept in a local on-disk database according to the documentation, with no cloud-storage workflow described.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Self-hosting: It is delivered as a locally installed desktop program rather than a vendor-hosted web service or self-hosted server package.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Storage requirement: The vendor recommends at least 2 GB of free disk space, with additional space required for larger logs.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
Supported log formats: Supported inputs include Apache and NGINX, W3C Extended for IIS, Amazon Elastic Load Balancing, HAProxy, JSON, CSV and TSV.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk
System requirement: The minimum specification is a PC, Mac or Linux computer able to run Java 25 with at least 4 GB of free RAM.Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk

Plans and prices

Free Free 1,000 log event lines · 1 project Read 30 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk

Paid $139 a year Licences last 1 year and require renewal Unlimited log events · Unlimited projects Read 22 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk

Free Version Free 1,000 log-event lines · 1 project · unlimited imported-URL matching Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk

Paid licence $139 a year Per Year Unlimited log events, subject to hard drive capacity · Unlimited projects · Per user · Licence lasts 1 year and requires renewal Read 30 Sep 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk

Paid Version $139 a year per licence, annually Unlimited log events subject to disk capacity · unlimited projects · free technical support Read 20 Oct 2026 · screamingfrog.co.uk

Every Screaming Frog SEO Log File Analyser plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

Supports three listed log formats
Checks supported bots for spoofed requests
Exports analysis to CSV and Excel
Free technical support for both versions

Limits

Free plan limited to 1,000 log event lines
Free plan limited to one project
Paid licence costs $139 per year

Who it suits

It suits SEOs examining search and AI bot activity in access logs. The local database and URL matching may also suit users comparing log activity with other URL-based data.

Screaming Frog SEO Log File Analyser in depth

Read the full write-up

Overview

Screaming Frog SEO Log File Analyser is a local desktop tool for examining server access logs and understanding search and AI crawler behaviour. It is best suited to SEO practitioners who need to connect bot requests with the URLs and responses they produce. Its focused reporting and local database are strengths; the free edition’s small caps make it a limited workspace for sustained analysis.

It handles Apache, W3C Extended and Amazon Elastic Load Balancing logs, and can analyse millions of events, with capacity ultimately constrained by hard drive space. That makes it a practical choice for substantial local log work, rather than a hosted analytics service. Screaming Frog was founded in 2010 and is based in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, UK.

Key features

Bot verification

The analyser checks supported search and AI bots to establish whether requests are genuine, helping avoid decisions based on spoofed crawler traffic. This is particularly useful when interpreting bot activity as evidence of how search engines or AI services access a site.

Crawl and response reporting

Reports cover crawled URLs and crawl frequency, as well as errors, redirects, bytes downloaded and response times. The combination helps SEOs see not just what bots request, but where requests encounter response problems or consume bandwidth. It is a focused crawl diagnostic view, not a general-purpose traffic analytics product.

Match and move data

Users can import URL data and match it against log activity, including crawl information, directives or external link data. Log files can be dragged in for import, and analysis data exported to CSV or Excel. This supports comparisons with other URL datasets and onward analysis in spreadsheet workflows without implying an automated integration.

Pricing

The free plan costs nothing and allows 1,000 log event lines across 1 project. That is enough for a small evaluation or narrow sample, but the event cap is quickly restrictive for ongoing analysis of a large site. Free technical support is included.

The paid licence costs $139 a year, billed per year, per user. It removes log-event and project limits, although practical processing capacity still depends on hard drive capacity. The licence lasts one year and requires renewal, so the annual term and per-user cost matter for teams. Paid users also receive free technical support.

There is a free trial, but no trial length is stated. The main decision is whether the free plan’s event and project caps fit the work: readers who need repeated or large-scale analysis will need the paid annual licence.

Platforms

The application runs on Linux, macOS and Windows. It installs locally and stores log event data in a local database, making it suited to users who want analysis kept on their own machine. Its scale is not unlimited in practice: the maker ties processing capacity to available hard drive space.

Who it's for

This is for SEO practitioners investigating search and AI bot crawling, especially those who need to verify crawlers, examine response behaviour and compare logs with URL datasets. It is a less natural fit for readers seeking a hosted, real-time service or a broader analytics platform; its design is specifically aimed at SEO log analysis.

Pros and cons

Useful crawler validation: verifies supported search and AI bots, reducing the risk of treating spoofed requests as real crawl activity.

Good diagnostic coverage: combines URL and frequency reporting with errors, redirects, bytes and response times.

Local data handling: keeps event data in a local database, with Linux, macOS and Windows support.

Hard free-plan ceiling: 1,000 event lines and 1 project make the free edition better for evaluation than regular large-log work.

Annual, per-user commitment: the $139 a year paid licence requires renewal, which may be less convenient for occasional or multi-user use.

Storage-bound scale: million-event analysis is possible, but processing capacity depends on hard drive capacity.

Alternatives

Choose SEOMER for web-based SEO checks with a free tier and paid top-ups, rather than a locally installed log analyser. Its free access is limited to quick page checks and daily usage.

LogLens is the alternative to consider when a web, API or self-hosted service and monthly request allowance are a better fit: its free plan includes 500K requests per month, one website and 30 days of history.

SEO Log Auditor is a free, open-source option under the MIT licence that runs locally, for readers who prefer that model over Screaming Frog’s capped free tier and paid annual licence.

Spider-Lens is another free option, with Linux, Windows, macOS, web and self-hosted platforms and no paid plans or usage limits stated.

Consider CrawlGenius Log Analyzer for a web-based alternative: its free plan allows 10,000 log lines per month, one project and a seven-day visible window.

SEO Skill Server Log Analyzer is a free alternative for readers comparing server log analysis options.

EdgeComet Log Analyzer is worth considering if an API or self-hosted option and a paid plan with up to 200K Googlebot requests, two users and 30-day data are a better match; its Professional annual plan costs $87 a year.

Log File Bot Traffic Cost Analyzer is a free alternative when the goal is bot-traffic cost analysis, with browser triage under 500 MB, CLI handling for 500 MB–50 GB and BigQuery for 50 GB or more.

For broader comparisons, browse SEO Log File Analysis Tools, SEO Crawler Software, Technical SEO Software or SEO tools.

Verdict

Choose Screaming Frog SEO Log File Analyser if you are an SEO who needs locally stored, substantial log analysis with bot verification and detailed crawl-response reporting. Its main advantage is the depth of focused diagnostics across major log formats; its main drawback is that the free tier is tightly capped and serious use requires a renewing per-user annual licence. Look elsewhere if you want a hosted analytics service or a free plan for ongoing large-scale work.

Verdict

This tool focuses on local log analysis, bot verification, and crawl reporting for SEO work. The free edition has firm event and project limits; the paid licence removes them, subject to hard drive capacity.