Craigslist is the number one source of free classified ads on the web and is known to just about anyone using the Internet. Craigslist.org receives more than 20 billion page views per month yet with all this activity a Craigslist search has its share of challenges. The Craigslist classifieds site still has limited capabilities for searching its numerous geographic locations and categories. To help people search Craigslist classified ads more efficiently a number of web-based tools have sprung up. One of these tools is CraigsList Reader which I wrote about in a previous tech tips post, “CraigsList Reader – Free Tool to Search Craigslist Ads More Efficiently.”
New Search Tools for Craigslist Classified Ads
Since that earlier post the number of tools for preforming a Craigslist search has grown significantly and the previously free version of CraigsList Reader is now a seven-day free trial. Whether you are searching for a garage sale, wants ads, jobs, services, personals or an apartment here are seven tools for monitoring and searching Craig list classified ads more efficiently.
1. CraigsList Reader from Motion Technologies is a software program, which along with CraigsPal.com, represents the most full-featured search tool for Craiglist. CraigsList Reader delivers an easy-to-use layout combined with a broad feature set and the ability to search multiple locations and categories with a single click. Users can setup alerts and receive email notifications of automated Craigslist searches. Versions available include a seven day free trial and three tiered versions based on the number of locations being searched and the level of automation. Prices range from $27 to $97.
2. CraigsPal features a robust set of searching tools and consists of two versions: CraigsPal Free also know as Craigslist Reader Pro and CraigsPal. Both versions allow for personally selected search parameters and create custom multi-city, multi-state, multi-country Craiglist searches with an advanced keyword interface. The difference between the two versions is that the free version is a search screen only while the paid version includes fully automatic Craigslist search (autopilot), instant notifications of new search results, backup of user defined searches and free updates. The paid for version is $30.
3. Search Tempest is a web based service from SearchTempest Online that provides Craigslist search results based on distance from a specific city or zip code. The distance is user controlled from 25 miles to any distance. SearchTempest has a single page interface that, in addition to variable distance, utilizes categories, sub-categories and keywords. A main departure from other services is that SearchTempset can also search EBay, Backpage, and Kijiji in addition to Craigslist. The service is free. A separate product “Ad Notifier for Craigslist” is available for $10.
4. Crazedlist.org is an interesting tool that consists of a large grid of checkboxes for all US cities that are served by Craigslist.org. This service allows you to check the appropriate Cities and geographic areas, enter keywords, select a category and then preform a Craigslist search. It isn’t fancy but Crazedlist.org does deliver results quickly and in a clean, easy to read interface. There is also a smaller grid on a second tab for searching worldwide. One twist is that this only works with Firefox or Chrome browsers, but not Internet Explorer, and requires a minor tweak to a low level browser setting for referrer data. This is a free service.
5. Craiglook.com is a much more Spartan search mechanism for Craigslist online classifieds. Craiglook is strictly a web based tool with a single page interface that consists of two search boxes for keywords and city or zip code along with a wide range of category checkboxes. All searches in CraigLook are for a 250 mile radius. The service is free.
6. Craigstoolbox.com is a plugins for the Firefox browser that enhances the Craigslist Search results. CraigsToolbox is a simple tool that works in conjunction with the Craigslist website and provides additional features such as the Image Preview Tool, an Alerts Listing tool and a Save Listing tool. A free trial version is available and the cost for the paid version is $9.95 per year.
7. Search All Craigs consists of a basic search box interface that returns Google-type results. These results can be confined to one of seven specific geographic areas within the US or the UK. There is very little filtering capabilities with the Search All Craigslist tool. This site is essentially a stylized custom Google search with limited functionality.
Craiglist Classified Ad Search Tools – Take Your Pick
These are some very useful tools for searching the vast amount of classified ads data on Craiglist.org. The levels of features and functionality vary widely among these search tools. If you search Craigslist online classifieds (or criagslist, or craglist, or craig list or cregslist or graigslist or craigslsit or graiglist – lots of common misspellings) with any frequency one or more of these tools should help streamline your Craigslist search processes depending on your needs and budget.
Here are some other interesting facts about Craigslist: (from Craigslist Fact Sheet )
- More than 50 million people use Craigslist in the US alone
- Craigslist.org is #7 worldwide in terms of English-language page views
- Craigslist.org receives more than 1 million new job listings each month
- Craigslist users self-publish about 50 million new classified ads each month
- Craigslist has expanded to more than 700 local sites in 70 countries
- The Craigslist discussion forums feature more than 120 million user postings in 100 topical forums.
- CraigsList currently employs a whopping 30 people to run this enterprise.
Happy Searching!
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I was just on Craigslist I was actually consdiering placing one of my business’s up for sale there to see what type of leads come in, I haven’t committed yet though.
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I don’t see Craigslist Ultimate Reader here. I have used CraigsList Reader, Craigspal and Craigslist Ultimate Reader and find Craigslist Ultimate Reader the most mature and professional tool among those three. It even has a map preview of the results. I’m quite disappointed with Craigspal – many bugs.. can’t rely on it. CraigsList Reader is bug free but needs much RAM and is a bit slow. Also there is adware in it.
Anyone know of a free alternative to CraigsPal?
Thanks
@Pat Roberts — I haven’t heard of a free alternative that has the same level of functionality as CraigsPal. At one time there used to be a free version of CraigsList Reader, but has evolved into a 7-day trial version that times out and you then need to purchase.
–Mike
I’ve been using the search function on the site for the location I want to target. Then I add the RSS feed to my Google reader. It’s been pretty effective so far.
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@Mical — Yes, there are some different approaches for getting a handle on Craigslist searching. One of the benefits of some of these tools is the ability to search and monitor multiple locations at the same time. However if your solution meets your needs then it sounds like you have things solved.
If you do a lot of searching or ongoing monitoring of your searches on Craigslist it might be worth taking a look at a couple of these tools as they may save you some time and effort in the long run. Thanks for stopping by.
–Mike
I am pretty disappointed with version 20.9.10.6 of CraigsList Reader. It just keeps hanging up. Despite the fact that I purchased it for a year there is no technical support and don’t know if the issue will be fixed. I think Free CraigsList Reader version worked much better.