Semrush Alternatives (2026): 11 Cheaper or More Focused SEO Tools, Priced

Short answer: for most people leaving Semrush, Ahrefs is the best like-for-like replacement (Lite is $129 a month, $108 on annual billing). SE Ranking is the best value full suite: $129 a month ($103.20 annual) tracks 2,000 keywords a day, against 500 on Semrush's $139 SEO plan. Moz Pro starts at $99 ($79 annual), and Mangools is the cheapest real toolset at $37.70 a month billed yearly. If you only need one job done, pick a focused tool: SpyFu for competitor and PPC research, Surfer for content, OmniSEO for AI-search visibility. Start with Google Search Console, which is free. Updated November 9, 2026.

How we checked: every plan, price and limit below comes from the vendor's own pricing page, read November 9, 2026. Several of those pages only show prices in a real browser, so we read them there. Prices are in US dollars per month unless noted. We did not test these tools hands-on or compare their data accuracy; where a vendor's page does not state something, we say "Not stated". If you are weighing just two tools, see our SE Ranking vs Semrush comparison.

Semrush renamed its plans in 2026, and there is no longer a plan called "Pro". The lineup on its pricing page is SEO at $139 a month ($117.33 billed annually), Starter at $199 ($165.17), Pro+ at $299 ($248.17), and custom-priced Advanced and Enterprise. The $139 SEO plan covers 5 websites and 500 keywords tracked daily, with keyword research, competitor analysis, position tracking and site audit. Starter adds AI-visibility prompt tracking (50 a day) and keyword optimization tools. Pro+ raises the limits to 15 websites and 1,500 keywords and adds historical data and content optimization.

Three things push people to compare:

• Seats: the pricing page does not state how many users each plan includes; extra users are an add-on from $45 a month each.
• Toolkits: AI Visibility, Traffic & Market, Local, Content and others are priced separately from the SEO plans.
• Tracking per dollar: 500 tracked keywords for $139 is the number most alternatives beat.

Semrush has a free plan (1 demo project, 10 reports a day) and a 7-day free trial on paid plans.

Ahrefs covers the same ground as Semrush: keyword research, competitor analysis, backlinks, rank tracking and site audits. On its pricing page, Lite is $129 a month ($1,290 a year, about $108 a month) with 5 projects, 750 tracked keywords, 6 months of history and 1 user. Standard is $249 ($208 annual) with 2,000 tracked keywords and 2 years of history; Advanced is $449 ($374 annual) with 5,000. Extra users cost $40 to $80 a month depending on the plan, and Lite caps credits at 1,000 per user.

There is also a $29 Starter plan for keyword and competitor lookups (its limits are not stated on the pricing page) and Ahrefs Free, formerly Ahrefs Webmaster Tools. Ahrefs Free audits your own verified sites (5,000 crawl credits per project a month) and shows up to 1,000 backlinks and 1,000 keywords for them. For a site owner who only cares about their own domain, that free tier plus Search Console covers a lot.

Not for: teams that want many seats cheaply, or anyone who needs AI-search tracking without paying extra; Brand Radar AI is an add-on from $199 a month.

SE Ranking is the pick when the Semrush bill is the problem. Core is $129 a month ($103.20 annual) for 10 projects, 2,000 keywords tracked daily, 250,000 audited pages a month, 6 months of history and 25 AI-visibility prompts a day across 5 AI engines. Growth is $279 ($223.20 annual) for 30 projects, 3 seats, 5,000 tracked keywords and all-time history. Extra seats start at $16. The trial is 14 days with no credit card, per its pricing page.

Our SE Ranking review covers the tool in depth, and the SE Ranking vs Semrush comparison goes plan by plan.

Not for: people who need Semrush's separate traffic, advertising or social toolkits in the same account.

Moz Pro starts lower than Semrush or Ahrefs. On its pricing page, Standard is $99 a month ($79 billed yearly) with 1 user, 3 tracked sites, 300 tracked keywords and 5,000 backlink queries a month. Medium is $179 ($143) with 2 users, 10 sites and 1,500 keywords; Large is $299 ($239) with 3 users and 3,000. Every plan includes AI-visibility prompt tracking (150 to 600 prompts, weekly) across GPT, Gemini and Google AI Mode. Moz also lists a $49-a-month entry plan for people managing a single website.

Not for: anyone whose main job is keyword research at volume: Standard allows 150 keyword queries a month, against 5,000 on Medium.

Mangools bundles keyword research, SERP analysis, rank tracking, backlinks and site analysis in a simpler interface. Basic is $37.70 a month billed yearly ($452.40 a year, or $732 a year on monthly billing) with 100 keyword lookups a day, 200 tracked keywords updated weekly and 100,000 backlink rows a month. Premium is $52.70 billed yearly with 700 tracked keywords and up to 3 extra seats; Agency is $97.70 with 1,500 keywords updated daily. Every plan includes its AI Search Watcher with 500 monitored prompts, plus API and MCP access. There is a 48-hour money-back guarantee.

Not for: agencies that need daily tracking on the cheaper plans, or more than one seat on Basic.

SpyFu is built around one question: what are competitors ranking and bidding on. Basic is $39 a month with 10,000-row results, 5,000 weekly tracked keywords and 10+ years of history. Pro + AI is $59 for the first month, then $119, with unlimited results and exports and 15,000 tracked keywords. Team/Agency is $249 with 5 users. Annual billing saves 25%, and there is a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Not for: deep backlink work or technical audits at scale; it is strongest on search and ad history for competitors.

Ubersuggest is the cheapest subscription here: Individual is $29 a month (1 project, 150 reports a day, 125 tracked keywords updated weekly), Business $49 (7 projects) and Enterprise $99 (15 projects). Each also sells as a one-time lifetime plan at $290, $490 or $990. Monthly plans get a one-time 7-day free trial; lifetime purchases are final. Backlink data is capped at 2,000 to 10,000 rows depending on the plan, and there is no API.

Not for: professionals who need large exports or an API.

Similarweb is a different kind of tool: it estimates competitors' traffic, channels and audiences, with SEO on top. On its pricing page, Competitive Intelligence is $199 a month ($125 billed annually) without SEO tools. Competitive Intel & SEO & AEO, the plan that matches Semrush, is $399 a month ($333 annually) for 1 user with keyword research, rank tracker, site audit, backlinks and 150 tracked AI prompts. Business plans are custom-priced.

Not for: anyone who mainly needs rank tracking on a budget; it costs more than the dedicated suites above.

Surfer does not replace Semrush's rank tracking or backlink research. It writes and optimizes content against what ranks, audits your existing pages and tracks AI visibility. On its pricing page, billed yearly, Discovery is $49 a month (120 documents, 1 seat), Standard $99 (360 documents, 3 seats, 25 AI prompts weekly) and Pro $182 (50 AI prompts daily, 5 seats). Monthly-billing prices are not stated on the page. Many teams pair Surfer with a cheaper suite. For more writing tools, see the best AI SEO content writing tools.

Not for: keyword tracking or link research; it has neither as a core feature.

Ranked AI is for owners who do not want to run an SEO tool at all. Its plans are managed SEO: Standard is $99 a month per website for 25 focus keywords and one blog article a week, Plus $198 for 50 keywords and two articles, Enterprise $349 for 100 keywords and four. Every plan includes on-page work, backlink acquisition and the software (keyword, prompt and backlink tracking). Plans are month to month, with 20% off yearly and a free trial. Setup fees are not stated.

Not for: SEOs who want to do the research themselves; you are buying a service, not a research database.

OmniSEO tracks how your brand shows up in AI answers, which Semrush now sells as a separate toolkit. Starter is $45 a month ($450 a year) for 25 saved prompts, Essentials $89 for 50, and Professional $349 for 100 with exports. Each tracks 10 platforms, including Google AI Overviews, AI Mode, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Copilot and Claude. The trial is 7 days with no card, but it covers only ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews.

Not for: classic SEO; it does no keyword research, rank tracking or site audits.

Google Search Console is free and shows the actual queries, clicks, impressions and positions for your own site, straight from Google. It does not show competitors, and it is limited to sites you verify. Before paying for any suite, connect it; many small sites find Search Console plus Ahrefs Free answers most of their questions.

• You want Semrush without Semrush: Ahrefs. It is the most complete match, at a lower entry price.
• The bill is the problem: SE Ranking for the most tracked keywords per dollar, or Mangools if you can live with weekly tracking.
• You run a small site and want a known brand: Moz Pro Standard at $79 a month on yearly billing.
• You study competitors' ads and keywords: SpyFu.
• You mostly write content: Surfer, paired with a cheaper tracker.
• You care about ChatGPT and AI Overviews: OmniSEO, or the AI-visibility features already in SE Ranking, Moz Pro and Mangools.
• You do not want to do SEO yourself: Ranked AI.
• You are starting out: Google Search Console and Ahrefs Free, both free.

What is the best alternative to Semrush?

Ahrefs is the closest like-for-like replacement, with Lite at $129 a month ($108 on annual billing). SE Ranking is the best value full suite: its $129 Core plan tracks 2,000 keywords daily, against 500 on Semrush's $139 SEO plan.

Is there a cheaper alternative to Semrush?

Yes. Ubersuggest starts at $29 a month, Mangools at $37.70 a month billed yearly, SpyFu at $39, and Moz Pro at $99 ($79 billed yearly). Semrush's cheapest paid plan, SEO, is $139 a month or $117.33 billed annually.

Is there a free alternative to Semrush?

For your own site, Google Search Console and Ahrefs Free (formerly Ahrefs Webmaster Tools) are both free. Ahrefs Free audits verified sites and shows up to 1,000 backlinks and keywords. Neither shows full competitor data.

Does Semrush still have a Pro plan?

No. As of November 9, 2026, Semrush's pricing page lists SEO ($139 a month), Starter ($199), Pro+ ($299), and custom-priced Advanced and Enterprise plans.