Self-Hosting GeniusRank

GeniusRank is free and open source. Self-hosting means the app costs $0. You bring your own DataForSEO API key and pay DataForSEO directly for API usage.

There are two self-hosting paths. Both use email and password accounts: the first visitor creates the admin account and teammates join from invitation links.

Docker, on your own server or computer. A prebuilt image that is ready in seconds, and works with Compose-based platforms such as Coolify, Portainer and Dokploy.
Cloudflare, with no server to run. One deploy command puts GeniusRank on your own Cloudflare account, with automatic database backups, and it works on Cloudflare's free plan.

GeniusRank also runs on EveryApp, which installs it on your own Cloudflare account with sign-in, team access and your DataForSEO key handled for you.

For security-conscious setups, you can replace the accounts with your own network controls: Cloudflare Access in front of the Cloudflare deploy, or Docker without sign-in behind Tailscale or a private network.

DataForSEO API key setup

GeniusRank uses DataForSEO to fetch SEO data. DataForSEO is a paid third-party service unaffiliated with GeniusRank. You need an API key to connect GeniusRank to it.

Go to DataForSEO API Access.
Click "Send by email" to get your credentials.
Copy the longer credentials labelled "Base64" credentials.
Set this as DATAFORSEO_API_KEY in your environment:
- Docker: deploy/standalone/.env
- Cloudflare: .env.selfhost
- Local development: .env.local

New DataForSEO accounts include $1 of free credit to test with, and the minimum top-up is $50. See pricing for cost estimates. Self-hosted costs run slightly lower, since the hosted service adds a 28% fee on DataForSEO requests.

Optional features

Google Search Console

Search Console is optional and works in self-hosted deployments using your own Google OAuth client. It takes about 10 minutes of one-time setup. See the Google Search Console guide on GitHub.