Ahrefs vs SEO PowerSuite
We give Ahrefs a 2.0 GPA and SEO PowerSuite a 2.4, out of 4.0. Ahrefs grades higher on platforms. SEO PowerSuite grades higher on value for money and features. They get the same grade on the free plan and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Ahrefs
SEO toolset for backlinks, keyword research, audits and rank tracking
SEO PowerSuite
Four desktop SEO apps for rankings, audits, backlinks and outreach
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAAhrefsFair | 2.4GPASEO PowerSuiteFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DLite, the plan Ahrefs aims at small businesses, is $129 a month, or $1,290 a year (about $107.50 a month) with the yearly saving. That's nearly three times this category's middle, for one user. Starter is $29, but it's monthly only with 200 credits. | BGraded against its alternatives. Professional is $349 for a year, about $29.10 a month, or $19.95 a month if you pay $717 for three years. That's about a quarter of what Semrush or Ahrefs charge, with no caps on keywords, crawls or backlinks. |
| Free plan and trial | CAhrefs Free gives you Site Explorer, Site Audit and Web Analytics for sites you can prove are yours, with 5,000 crawl credits a month. Handy for your own site, but there's no keyword research or rank tracking, and no trial of the paid plans. | CA free version with no time limit, but it saves nothing: 1 project, 500 URLs audited, 1,100 backlinks and 1 competitor. Good for a look, not for ongoing work, and there's no trial of the paid plans. |
| Features | CIts own link index, Site Explorer for any domain, keyword research, audits for 170+ issues, AI prompt tracking, and API and MCP access from Lite. The gap is rank tracking: the listing says it updates weekly on every plan, and Lite caps reports at 1,000 credits a month. | BRank tracking with 20+ keyword tools, full site audits with a content editor, backlink analysis with a disavow file generator, and link outreach from a built-in email client. The whole job, with nothing capped on paid plans. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record. The reports are clean, but credits, projects and crawl budgets take some learning before you know what each click costs you. | CNo rating on record. Four separate desktop apps, each with plenty of settings, is a lot to learn before you're quick. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb plus a browser toolbar, linked to Search Console, Looker Studio and Google Business Profile, with an API and an MCP server from Lite. No desktop or phone app. | CPrograms for Windows, Mac and Linux, linked to Search Console, Google Analytics and Dropbox, with cloud storage for 20 projects on Professional. Computers only, with no web or phone version. |
| Best for | backlink and competitor research | uncapped SEO on your own computer |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Ahrefs and SEO PowerSuite. How we grade
Price against what you get
Ahrefs starts at $29 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. SEO PowerSuite starts at $19.92 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and SEO PowerSuite starts $9.08 a month lower. Of the other SEO tools on the chart, 4 score higher than Ahrefs for less, and 3 score higher than SEO PowerSuite for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Ahrefs starts at $29 per month, billed monthly. SEO PowerSuite starts at $19.95 per month, billed $717 every 3 years ($349 a year on a 1-year plan).
- Only Ahrefs lists a web app.
- Only Ahrefs lists a browser extension.
- Only SEO PowerSuite lists Windows, macOS and Linux apps.
- SEO PowerSuite also covers reports.
At a glance
| Ahrefs | SEO PowerSuite | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $29 per month, billed monthly | $19.95 per month, billed $717 every 3 years ($349 a year on a 1-year plan) |
| Free plan | Ahrefs Free: Site Explorer, Site Audit (5,000 crawl credits a month per project) and Web Analytics for verified sites, plus the SEO Toolbar and 1 AI Content Helper doc a month. | Free version with no time limit: 1 project and ranking checks with no saving, 500 URLs audited, 1,100 backlinks and 1 competitor per project. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Ahrefs Pte. Ltd. | Link-Assistant.Com |
| Price read from | ahrefs.com | link-assistant.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Ahrefs
- SEOs who spend most of their time on backlinks and competitor research
- Site owners who want free audits and ranking data for their own sites
- Freelancers and consultants who can work within one included user
SEO PowerSuite
- SEO specialists who prefer desktop software without keyword or crawl caps
- Agencies producing white-label SEO reports
- Link builders who want prospecting and outreach in one place
Worth knowing
Ahrefs
- Rank Tracker updates rankings weekly on every plan the pricing page lists.
- Lite caps each user at 1,000 credits a month for reports; Starter has 200 and cannot add users or add-ons.
- Each plan includes one user; extra users cost $40, $60 or $80 a month and are capped at 2, 5 or 10.
- AI writing tools (Content Kit) start at $99 a month, and Project Boosts cost $20 or $200 a month per project.
SEO PowerSuite
- It is desktop software for Windows, macOS and Linux, not a web app; cloud storage holds 20 projects on Professional and 400 on Enterprise.
- Licences are paid up front for 1, 2 or 3 years, and cancelling gives no refund for unused time.
- The free version saves nothing and audits 500 URLs; Professional prints reports with watermarks, and white-label reports need Enterprise.
- Each of the four apps is also sold on its own, from $149 a year for WebSite Auditor Professional.
Key features
Ahrefs
- Site Explorer
- See the backlinks, organic keywords and top pages of any website, with history going back 6 months to 5 years by plan.
- Keywords Explorer
- Find keyword ideas with volume and difficulty; Standard and above add AI suggestions, clusters, search intents and translations.
- Site Audit
- Crawl your sites for 170+ technical and on-page SEO issues, using 100,000 to 1.5 million crawl credits a month by plan.
- Rank Tracker
- Track 750 to 5,000 keywords on the self-serve plans, with rankings updated weekly.
- Brand Radar and AI prompts
- Plans track 5 to 20 of your own prompts in AI chat tools daily. Brand Radar AI, for researching any brand's AI mentions, starts at $199 a month.
- API and MCP server
- Every plan from Lite includes API and MCP access, capped at 100 to 500 rows per request below Enterprise.
SEO PowerSuite
- Rank Tracker
- Tracks rankings in hundreds of search engines, including local and mobile results and Google AI Overviews, with 20+ keyword research tools.
- WebSite Auditor
- Crawls and audits whole sites, generates sitemaps and robots.txt files, and has a content editor with recommendations as you type.
- SEO SpyGlass
- Backlink analysis from its own link index plus Search Console and Analytics, with a penalty risk audit and a disavow file generator.
- LinkAssistant
- Finds link prospects with 10 methods, sends outreach from a built-in email client with templates, and verifies links you have won.
- Reports
- Customizable reports in every paid plan; white-label, emailed, scheduled and shareable reports need Enterprise or Max.
- No caps on paid plans
- Paid licences allow unlimited projects, tracked keywords, crawled pages and backlinks, with competitor tracking capped by plan.
Plans
Ahrefs
Ahrefs Free$0
Limited Site Explorer and Site Audit for websites you verify as yours. No Keywords Explorer or Rank Tracker.
Starter$29
per month, billed monthly
200 report credits a month, with Keywords Explorer, Rank Tracker and Site Audit. Monthly only; no extra users or add-ons.
Lite$129
per month, billed monthly
1 user, 5 projects, 750 tracked keywords, 6 months of history, 1,000 credits a month, 100,000 crawl credits, API and MCP access.
Standard$249
per month, billed monthly
1 user, 20 projects, 2,000 tracked keywords, 2 years of history, unlimited credits, Content Explorer and keyword clusters.
Advanced$449
per month, billed monthly
1 user, 50 projects, 5,000 tracked keywords, 5 years of history, 1.5 million crawl credits and Looker Studio integration.
Enterprise$1,499
per month, annual commitment required
From 3 users, 100 projects, unlimited history, uncapped API, SSO and audit log. Sold through sales.
SEO PowerSuite
Free$0
1 project with no saving, 500 URLs crawled, 1,100 backlinks per project and 1 competitor.
Professional, 1 year$29.10
per month, billed $349 every year
Unlimited projects, keywords, crawls and backlinks, 5 competitors per project, 1 year of history. Shown beside a crossed-out $60 a month.
Professional, 2 years$23.25
per month, billed $558 every 2 years
Professional paid for two years at a time, listed as a 20% saving on the 1-year plan.
Professional, 3 years$19.95
per month, billed $717 every 3 years
Professional paid for three years at a time, listed as a 34% saving on the 1-year plan.
Enterprise, 3 years$38.25
per month, billed $1,377 every 3 years
Adds white-label, saved, emailed and scheduled reports, CSV and SQL exports, 40 competitors and priority support. $599 for 1 year.
Max, 3 years$54.10
per month, billed $1,947 every 3 years
Enterprise plus live onboarding, a customer success manager, partner listing and a free first year of RankDots Starter. $899 for 1 year.
Ways to pay less
Ahrefs
- Annual discount
Save up to 17% by paying annually
Ahrefs' pricing page offers up to 17% off for annual billing on Lite, Standard and Advanced. Existing monthly customers switch by contacting support.
SEO PowerSuite
- Other savings
Up to 34% off with a 2- or 3-year plan
The pricing page lists 20% off for paying two years ahead and 34% off for three; Professional falls from $29.10 to $19.95 a month.
