We will retire the SpyFu Recon Reports on March 31, 2025.
For many of our customers, you are likely using our newer, on-page reporting instead. If that's the case, this won't affect your work in any way.
But I know that some legacy Recon Files customers want to be sure we can still deliver what you've come to rely on.
We're committed to doing just that.
What's Different: Then vs Now
When we created Recon Files 15 years ago, it was to offer more than what we could deliver at page-load speed. Asking someone to wait hours on the page wasn't realistic. It still isn't.
But in 2010, if we wanted to share deeper analysis and calculations, that was our best solution.
Since then, we made a lot of improvements to SpyFu overall--including adding functionality that we were able to develop for Recon Files. Our current reporting engine captures those features and many upgrades along the way:
| Old Way (Recon Files Reports) | New Way (Sitewide Reporting) |
|---|---|
| Top 50 SERP Rankings | Top 100 SERP Rankings |
| Took Hours or Days to Process | Instantly Available |
| US-only Data | Full US + International Dataset |
| 50 Million Keywords Available | 1.5 Billion Keywords Available |
| Fastest Rank Update: Weekly | Fastest Rank Update: Real Time |
| Aesthetically Dated | Clean Interface, Modern Appearance |
| Required Credits for each Report | Unlimited Reports with Any Plan |
SERP Rankings up to 100
Recon Files work off of a dataset that wasn't in sync with what's live on the SpyFu site. It pulls from the top 50 entries on a SERP. Our on-page reports use the upgraded dataset that goes deeper. By pulling SERP entries up to the 100th position, we capture keywords that the domain has just started to rank for. Casting a wider net like this helps to give a truer picture of the domain's SEO footprint.
Instantly Available
Our PDF exports capture what you are seeing on the page, including any filters you applied and how you sorted the page. All you have to do is click the export option, and the report is available immediately to download or email.
You can still set these to go out on a schedule just like with Recon Files reports. You have weekly and monthly options, and we can automatically email them out to anyone you'd like.
Full US + International Dataset
Today's instant SpyFu reports work for every country in our dataset. You can create these instant client reports by toggling the country option in the search bar.
1.5 Billion Keywords Available
Today, we're doing 1.5 billion searches per month. Not only is that far more searches than what went into Recon Files data, it's putting us ahead of tools like Semrush and Ahrefs for how deep they dive into every website. That means that the reports you run today on SpyFu give you and your clients a more accurate view of what's happening in their SEO niche.
Fastest Rank Update: Real Time
Frustratingly, by the time monthly Recon Files were delivered, the data was already a couple of weeks old. We saw it as a trade-off for being able to report on rank comparisons and deeper calculations.
Since then, we have incorporated on-page side-by-side rank comparisons for SEO keywords. We also added live rankings that give instant details to arm you with current ranking details when you dig into a domain's position on specific keywords.
This far outshines the weekly rank figures we were doing via Recon reports.
Clean interface, Modern Appearance
Our new reporting is a PDF of exactly what you see on the SpyFu website. It captures the clean interface and professional charts on the overview pages.
Unlimited Reports with Any Plan
There is no cap on how many reports you can create with our new process. That frees you to create reports for potential client prospecting, for client recaps, or even different reports for different people--depending on what you want to roll up.
Since you can grab new reports on the fly, you don't have the restriction of going through the set-up process for any one-off domain that you want to report on.
What Do You Hope to See?
Honestly, we kept it around specifically to make sure we never interrupted our customers' practices. We're finally at a point where I am confident that SpyFu's on-page reporting can match--and even surpass--what you have come to expect from Recon Files.
We built a reporting engine to work with deeper data that loads in real time. Ultimately, you can show more insights. It has more functionality, and the reports are more customizable.
If I missed anything that you're concerned about, I'd like to hear it. Really, reach me directly: [email protected] or on my LinkedIn.
And if you could use more specific one-on-one help, feel free to ask our Support Team for help. They're on live chat and also reachable via [email protected].
Thanks,
Mike
