3Jun

For this blog post, I've reviewed EVERY Craiglist search engine.  Most are web based applications, but some are desktop software. Some only monitor Craigslist and send alerts, while others can only search.  If I've forgotten any, please let me know.  I don't want to exclude anyone.

 

Web Based Search Engines

Of the web based tools, a common scheme is to create a simple Google Custom Search and drop that into a two page site surrounded by ads.  There's not a whole lot of value in these types of sites, so they're listed at the end.

Starting with the best and working my way down:

http://searchtempest.com

SearchTempest searches Craigslist and eBay and it can do some cool zip code based logic where you enter your zip code and select a mile radius for your search.  This can save you some time when compared to crazedlist.org where you have to click on every Craigslist location you want to include in your search.

I was really hoping the search results would show up in one result grid, but that's not possible because of how web browsers work.  Instead the results are listed for each location in your search area.  While this makes it difficult to compare your search results, it's much better than just using Craigslist.

http://crazedlist.org

This site only works with FireFox...Chrome and IE can't hide the referrer which is important because Craigslist has blocked all traffic originating from websites like this one.  

However, even with FireFox the site won't let you search until you've changed the setting that removes the referrer information.  Desktop applications don't have this problem.  I never did get it working, but I've heard good things about this site from people who have.

http://padmapper.com

I really like this site.  Find your next apartment by looking at maps which is a very intuitive and instantly weeds out the apartment listing you'll never want because of their location.  

Unfortunately, they only cover major metro areas and, since not all apartment listing can be mapped because they don't have an address, I guess they're not shown. 

http://clgenie.com

This site will monitor Craigslist for you and send an email when a new ad is posted.  Unfortunately, you can only do one location and one category at a time.  If you have very simple needs this might work for you. 

Eventually, as more people sign up for their service, Craigslist will ban their IP address because they'll be generating thousands of hits per hour to run searches.  This has been the fate for all the websites that monitor Craigslist for you.  As soon as they get popular, Craigslist turns off the spigot.

http://craigswish.com

I just found this site even though it's been around for a while.  The concept is interesting.  Unlike our system that alerts you when a new ad matches your search, their website automatically responds to the ad with a message you provided ahead of time. 

I don't see a way to filter on location or category, so it must monitor all of the US?  I wouldn't be comfortable sending out form letters to whoever happens to match my search...maybe that's just me.

http://craiglook.com

This website looks really cool, but it looks better than it functions.  It doesn't complain about your browser, but it doesn't really search Craigslist in real-time either. 

I ran a search that I knew should have a few results for today, but the latest result on their website was three days old!

http://google.com

You can search Craiglslist on Google by adding the text "site:craigslist.org" to your search.  Many sites use Google Custom Search and as such have little difference in the value they add.  Here's the list:

• http://searchallcraigs.com
• http://craigzoom.com
• http://everycraigslist.com
• http://searchtheentirecraigslist.com

Notice some of these sites have Craigslist in the name.  They're just asking for trouble. Here's a site that learned the hard way: http://craigslist-search.com.

Desktop Based Search Engines

I tested every desktop tool on a Windows XP SP3 virtual machine using Microsoft's Virtual PC.  I used AVG 8.5 to scan for viruses before I installed each application and then I re-ran the virus scan after I had used each tool for a while.  Every tool listed here was clean.

http://motiont.com

This software is completely free, there is no premium option.  There are ads in the application, but they're not really that bad.  Some parts of the applications I really like, and some parts...not so much. 

I think the results display grid and menu on the right side of the built-in browser are slick, but other parts are kinda broken looking.  The advanced search doesn't seem to display correctly and creating an alert seems more complicated than it needs to be. 

Since this is a desktop application, your computer must be running to get alerts sent to you.  So it's not good for people who use laptops or keep their computer off most of the time.

http://craigspal.com

These guys have been at this for a while and have some great features.  Like our search tool, they store your searches online, so you can access them from any computer. 

For paying members, they have a feature for sending "digest" emails, which will email you new results from your saved searches at the beginning of the day.  They have instant alerts, but your computer must be on for you searches to be run.  So, like motiont.com's Craigslist Reader, it's also not good for laptop users.

http://craigstoolbox.com/

This is a browser plug-in that shows you the images in the ad without having to click into the ad.  That's all it does, but it's definitely better than the alternative as demonstrated in their video. 

My only grip with these guys that that they don't post a price.  There's a 14 day trial, but it's not clear how much they charge afterwards.

http://adnotifier.com/

This software is really just for notifications, but still it's not that easy to use.  You can not easily set up alerts across multiple locations or categories.  Your initial search only displays results in the normal Craigslist website, there's no value add for searching with this software. 

Like the other software mentioned above, you won't get alerts unless you're computer is running.

http://freecraigslistwatcher.com/

This is beta software that is a little under developed at this point.  I don't think there's any notification system built into the product, but it maybe too early to tell.

The NotifyWire.com Difference

So what makes NotifyWire.com different?  Well, our search tool is similar to some of the other desktop tools, however there are two key differences. 

First, all your data is stored on our website and that means you can access your account from multiple installations of our search tool (think work and home).  Also, you can view and edit your alerts and bookmarks directly on our website.  You can also change your Ad Alert search criteria online.

The most important difference is that we use "Grid Computing" to monitor Craigslist.  Every instance of our search tool functions as a node on the grid.  So, when you shut your computer off, only one node of the grid stops running.  

The grid always has active nodes running and we have a complex algorithm to make efficient use of hits against Craigslist's servers and also limits the number of hits per computer to Craigslist.

This is our "secret sauce" that allows us to monitor Craigslist when your laptop is off and enables us to check Craigslist more frequently than anyone else without getting banned.  The more people that join the grid, the better the entire system becomes, so make sure to tell your friends.