Ahrefs alternatives
Top SEO Tools like Ahrefs
The most popular alternative to Ahrefs is Otterly.AI. Other great alternatives to Ahrefs are Semrush, Screaming Frog SEO Spider, Moz Pro, and SE Ranking.
Most alternatives to Ahrefs are in the SEO Tools category, compared here by price, platform and features.
All Ahrefs alternatives
- Featured · made by the publisher of this site
Mentioned tracks your brand across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and other assistants with versioned prompt panels and traceable answer evidence.
7 Mentioned alternativesPros
- Versioned prompt panels keep tracking consistent over time
- Each result is backed by traceable evidence from the AI answer
- Benchmarks your brand against competitors across assistants
Cons
- No free plan, paid subscription only
- AI answers fluctuate, so single results need careful reading
Cost / LicensePaidProprietaryCategoriesPlatforms Otterly.AI monitors brand mentions and website citations in ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews, with automated reports.
7 Otterly.AI alternativesPros
- Covers ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews
- Tracks both brand mentions and website citations
- Automated reports reduce manual checking
Cons
- No free plan beyond the trial
- Tracked prompts only approximate what real users ask
Cost / LicenseFree trialProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsFeaturesSemrush covers SEO, content marketing, competitor research, advertising and social media, with an AI toolkit for search visibility.
17 Semrush alternativesPros
- Covers SEO, content, ads and social in one platform
- In-depth competitor research on keywords, traffic and ads
- AI toolkit to monitor visibility in search
Cons
- Expensive, especially with extra users and add-ons
- The breadth of tools makes the interface overwhelming at first
- The free account allows only a few searches per day
Cost / LicenseFreemiumProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsScreaming Frog SEO Spider is a desktop crawler that scans a website the way a search engine bot does and reports technical SEO issues such as broken links, redirects, duplicate titles, missing meta data and canonical problems. It can render JavaScript, check spelling and grammar, generate XML sitemaps and connect to Google Analytics, Search Console and PageSpeed Insights. The free version crawls up to 500 URLs.
6 Screaming Frog SEO Spider alternativesPros
- Thorough crawl that finds broken links, redirects and duplicates
- Renders JavaScript and connects to Analytics, Search Console and PageSpeed
- Runs locally on Windows, Mac and Linux
Cons
- The free version is capped at a small number of URLs
- Dense, technical interface for non-specialists
- Large crawls consume a lot of memory
Cost / LicenseFreemiumProprietaryCategoriesMoz Pro is the SEO software suite from Moz, the company behind the Domain Authority metric. It provides keyword research, rank tracking, site crawls with issue reports, backlink analysis through Link Explorer and competitor comparisons. The free MozBar browser extension shows link metrics on any page, and the suite suits marketers who want established SEO metrics and learning resources.
10 Moz Pro alternativesPros
- Domain Authority is a widely recognized SEO metric
- The free MozBar extension shows link metrics on any page
- Extensive learning resources for SEO beginners
Cons
- Link and keyword data are less extensive than in Ahrefs or Semrush
- Tracking and crawl limits are tight on entry plans
Cost / LicenseFree trialProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsSE Ranking is an SEO platform covering rank tracking, keyword research, competitor analysis, backlink monitoring, website audits and on-page content tools. It also tracks brand visibility in AI search results and offers white-label reports and client portals for agencies. Agencies and in-house marketers use it to bring these tools together under one subscription.
10 SE Ranking alternativesPros
- Broad toolset for rank tracking, audits, keywords and backlinks
- White-label reports and client portals for agencies
- Tracks brand visibility in AI search results
Cons
- Keyword and backlink data are less extensive than market leaders
- No free plan beyond the trial
Cost / LicenseFree trialProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsUbersuggest is an SEO tool from Neil Patel's agency that offers keyword ideas with search volume and difficulty, content ideas, site audits, rank tracking and basic backlink data. Its interface is aimed at small business owners and bloggers rather than SEO specialists, and a Chrome extension shows keyword data on search results. A limited number of free searches is available before upgrading.
8 Ubersuggest alternativesPros
- Simple interface aimed at small businesses and bloggers
- Keyword ideas with volume, difficulty and content suggestions
- Chrome extension shows keyword data on search results
Cons
- Free searches are capped at a few per day
- Data is less precise than in professional SEO suites
Cost / LicenseFreemiumProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsSurfer is a content optimization platform that analyzes the pages ranking for a keyword and turns them into guidelines for length, headings and terms to include, with a live content score as you write. It also offers topic and keyword research, an AI article writer and audits of existing pages. Writers can work in Surfer itself or in Google Docs and WordPress through integrations.
7 Surfer alternativesPros
- Live content score guides length, headings and terms to include
- Works inside Google Docs and WordPress
- Audits existing pages against top-ranking competitors
Cons
- No free plan, paid subscriptions only
- Following term suggestions too closely can make text sound unnatural
- Based on patterns in top pages, with no guarantee of rankings
Cost / LicensePaidProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsMangools is a Slovak suite of five SEO tools: KWFinder for keyword research, SERPChecker for search result analysis, SERPWatcher for rank tracking, LinkMiner for backlinks and SiteProfiler for domain metrics. The tools share one account and a clean interface aimed at bloggers, small businesses and freelancers who find enterprise SEO suites too complex. A browser extension gives quick access to metrics.
8 Mangools alternativesPros
- Clean, beginner-friendly interface across all five tools
- KWFinder makes keyword difficulty easy to read
- One account for keywords, SERP analysis, rank tracking and backlinks
Cons
- Backlink data is less extensive than in larger SEO suites
- Daily lookup limits can be restrictive
- No technical site audit tool
Cost / LicenseFree trialProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsSerpstat is a Ukrainian SEO platform that combines keyword research, competitor and PPC analysis, rank tracking, backlink analysis and site audits. It also includes AI-based content tools and an API for pulling data into reports and dashboards. It targets agencies and in-house teams that need a broad SEO toolset with API access.
8 Serpstat alternativesPros
- Combines keyword, competitor, PPC, backlink and audit tools
- API access to feed reports and dashboards
- Includes AI-based content tools
Cons
- Data accuracy and coverage vary by country
- The interface is less polished than larger competitors
Cost / LicenseFree trialProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsGoogle Search Console is a free service from Google that shows how a website appears in Google Search: the queries that bring clicks and impressions, average positions, the indexing status of pages and Core Web Vitals. Site owners use it to submit sitemaps, inspect URLs, fix crawl and structured data issues and get alerts about security problems or manual actions. Its data can be exported through an API.
7 Google Search Console alternativesPros
- Free, first-party data on queries, clicks and impressions
- URL inspection and indexing reports straight from Google
- Alerts for security issues and manual actions
Cons
- Covers only Google Search, not other search engines
- Performance history is limited, so long-term data must be exported
- Some queries are hidden for privacy reasons
Cost / LicenseFreeProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsFeaturesSpyFu is a competitive intelligence tool focused on search: enter a competitor's domain to see the organic keywords it ranks for and the Google Ads keywords it has bought, along with historical ad copy and estimated budgets. It also offers keyword research, rank tracking, backlink prospecting and reports. It suits marketers and PPC specialists who want to learn from competitors' search strategies.
7 SpyFu alternativesPros
- Reveals the organic and Google Ads keywords of competitors
- Historical ad copy shows how campaigns evolved
- Straightforward reports suited to PPC specialists
Cons
- Traffic and ad budget estimates can be inaccurate
- Data coverage is strongest for the US and UK
Cost / LicenseFreemiumProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsPeec AI tracks visibility, position and sentiment of brands in AI search engines, with source analysis and competitor comparisons.
8 Peec AI alternativesPros
- Tracks brand visibility, position and sentiment in AI search
- Source analysis shows which sites shape AI answers
- Side-by-side comparison with competitors
Cons
- No free plan, paid access only
- Results depend heavily on the prompts you choose to track
Cost / LicensePaidProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsProfound helps enterprise marketing teams measure and improve how their brand appears in AI-generated answers.
8 Profound alternativesPros
- Built for enterprise marketing teams and their reporting needs
- Prompt tracking shows where your brand appears in AI answers
- Competitor benchmarking across AI assistants
Cons
- Enterprise focus puts it out of reach for small teams
- No free plan to evaluate it before buying
Cost / LicensePaidProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsAthenaHQ is a generative engine optimization (GEO) platform for marketing teams. It monitors how brands appear in answers from ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, Gemini, Claude and other assistants, shows which sources get cited, benchmarks share of voice against competitors and recommends content changes to improve visibility. It is a paid, web-based service.
8 AthenaHQ alternativesPros
- Tracks brand presence in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and more
- Shows which sources AI answers cite about your brand
- Recommends content changes to improve AI visibility
Cons
- No free plan, paid access only
- AI answers shift between runs, so scores are directional
Cost / LicensePaidProprietaryCategoriesPlatformsScrunch AI helps brands understand and shape how they appear in AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude and Google AI Overviews. It tracks prompts, mentions, citations and sentiment, compares results with competitors, and flags content gaps or inaccurate information. Its Agent Experience Platform serves an AI-friendly version of a website to AI crawlers. It is a paid web service for marketing teams.
8 Scrunch AI alternativesPros
- Flags content gaps and inaccurate information in AI answers
- Tracks mentions, citations and sentiment across major assistants
- Agent Experience Platform serves an AI-friendly site to crawlers
Cons
- No free plan, paid access only
- Serving a separate version to AI crawlers adds technical overhead
- AI answers vary, so metrics are best read as trends
Cost / LicensePaidProprietaryCategoriesPlatforms
Ahrefs vs its alternatives at a glance
Pricing, platforms and the key features of Ahrefs, compared with its most popular alternatives.
| App | Pricing | Platforms | API access | Backlink analysis | Competitor benchmarking | Keyword research |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Ahrefs | Freemium | Web | ||||
 Otterly.AI | Free trial | Web | ||||
 Semrush | Freemium | Web | ||||
 Screaming Frog SEO Spider | Freemium | Windows, Mac, Linux | ||||
 Moz Pro | Free trial | Web, Browser extension | ||||
 SE Ranking | Free trial | Web |
Ahrefs alternatives: frequently asked questions
What is the best alternative to Ahrefs?
The most popular alternative to Ahrefs is Otterly.AI: Monitor your brand and content in AI search. Other great alternatives are Semrush, Screaming Frog SEO Spider, Moz Pro, and SE Ranking.
Is there a free alternative to Ahrefs?
Yes, 5 alternatives are free or have a free plan, including Semrush, Screaming Frog SEO Spider, Ubersuggest, and Google Search Console.
Is there an open source alternative to Ahrefs?
No open source alternative to Ahrefs is listed yet.
Is Ahrefs free?
Ahrefs has a free plan, with paid plans that unlock more features.
Compare Ahrefs with its alternatives
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