Dealer platform survey, October 2026
What the biggest independent tractor dealers' websites run on.
We checked the websites of the 350 largest independent tractor dealers in 16 states. One in five runs on Dealer Spike and one in five on TracTru.
Which platform, out of 350 dealers
| Platform | Dealers | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Dealer Spike, including ARI | 75 | 21% |
| TracTru's Thrive | 72 | 21% |
| WordPress, built by many agencies | 71 | 20% |
| Sandhills | 33 | 9% |
| Other platforms and site builders | 41 | 12% |
| Could not identify | 58 | 17% |
Percentages are rounded. "Could not identify" includes 25 sites that blocked our checker.
How we chose the dealers
From Google's business listings in Arkansas, California, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Tennessee and Texas, we took up to 25 of the largest independent tractor dealers in each state, ranked by number of store listings and then by reviews.
We left out John Deere stores, corporate chains and dealers without an agricultural tractor line. A few states had fewer than 25 dealers that qualified.
We identified each platform from the site itself: the code it serves, the credit in its footer, and the robots file a platform installs on every dealer site it hosts.
How fast they load on a phone
Google's Lighthouse test, mobile setting, on up to 10 sites per platform, October 7, 2026. Google's guideline is to show the main content within 2.5 seconds.
| Platform | Median score, out of 100 | Main content within 2.5 seconds |
|---|---|---|
| Dealer Spike | 86 | 8 of 10 |
| Sandhills | 47 | 1 of 10 |
| WordPress | 46 | 1 of 8 |
| TracTru's Thrive | Not testable | Not testable |
Thrive sites sit behind a security checkpoint that stopped all 10 automated tests. One lab run per site; your own site's result will vary.
What we found when we looked closer
Live checks of 15 dealer sites in a browser, October 7, 2026.
- 5 of 5
Thrive sites delivered their inventory page with no machine names and no links to machines. The list is drawn in afterward by a script.
- 3 of 3
Dealer Spike Spark sites, the platform that used to be ARI, delivered real links to every machine. Credit where it's due.
- 0 of 5
Sandhills sitemaps listed any machine page at all, including one for a dealer with 527 machines for sale.
- 5 of 5
Sandhills sitemaps gave every entry the same date.
What it means for a dealer
Every one of these platforms is built to run a dealership: inventory, leads, service. None of them is built to keep a page working for you after the machine on it sells. That part is what we build, alongside the site you already have.
See what we found on Dealer Spike, Thrive and Sandhills sites, with checks you can run on your own in a minute.
Want these checks run on your site?
Send us your website. We run them and send back what we find, whether or not you hire us.