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ToolGPA

Ahrefs vs Serpstat

We give Ahrefs and Serpstat the same GPA: 2.0 out of 4.0. Ahrefs grades higher on the free plan. Serpstat grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.

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

Free plan · from $29/mo
Full detailsahrefs.com

Serpstat

All-in-one SEO platform for research, rank tracking and site audits

Free trial · from $50/mo
Full detailsserpstat.com

How we grade them

2.0GPAAhrefsFair2.0GPASerpstatFair
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.
CIndividual is $50 a month on yearly billing ($69 monthly), at the top of this category's middle range, for 1 user, 100 searches a day and 10,000 position checks a month. Team, with 3 users and the API, is $100.
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.
DNo free plan. The 7-day trial of Individual or Team checks your card with a $1 charge that comes back, then renews into a paid plan unless you cancel.
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.
CKeyword and site research with organic and paid rankings, backlinks, daily rank tracking and audits. The gaps are on Individual: no API, AI tools, keyword lists, batch analysis or JavaScript rendering, and one pool of daily searches for everything.
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. Daily search credits shared across site, keyword and backlink lookups take some planning, and the reports have a learning curve.
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.
BWeb plus a browser extension, with an API and an MCP connection for ChatGPT and Claude from the Team plan. No desktop or phone app.
Best forbacklink and competitor researcha cheaper all-in-one SEO suite

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 Serpstat. 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. Serpstat starts at $50 a month and scores 2.3.

They score the same, and Ahrefs starts $21 a month lower. Of the other SEO tools on the chart, 4 score higher than Ahrefs for less, and 7 score higher than Serpstat for less.

Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged

C2.0B3.0A4.0$5$10$20$50$100$200More for lessCosts more, scores moreCosts less, scores lessCosts more, scores lessAhrefsSerpstat

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
The full chart of SEO tools, and the best at every price

Where they differ

  • Ahrefs starts at $29 per month, billed monthly. Serpstat starts at $50 per month, billed annually ($69 billed monthly).
  • Ahrefs has a free plan. Serpstat does not, though it has a free trial.
  • Serpstat also covers reports.
In commonWebBrowser extensionPublic APIAI featuresKeyword researchRank trackingSite auditBacklink analysis

At a glance

AhrefsSerpstat
PricingFree planFree trial
Starts at$29 per month, billed monthly$50 per month, billed annually ($69 billed monthly)
Free planAhrefs 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.None
Free trialNone listed7-day free trial of Individual or Team; card verified with a $1 charge that is returned
Web
Browser extension
Made byAhrefs Pte. Ltd.Serpstat (part of Fractal)
Price read fromahrefs.comserpstat.com
CheckedOct 17, 2026Oct 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

Serpstat

  • Freelancers who want research, tracking and audits at a lower price
  • Small agencies that need several users and an API on one plan
  • Teams that track paid and organic rankings together

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.

Serpstat

  • Individual is for one user and has no API, AI tools, keyword lists, batch analysis or JavaScript rendering.
  • The trial renews into a paid plan automatically after 7 days unless cancelled.
  • White-label reports are only on the Agency plan.
  • Daily search credits are shared across site, keyword and backlink lookups.

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.

Serpstat

Keyword and site analysis
Research keywords and see a domain's organic and paid rankings, with 2,000 to 100,000 results per report by plan.
Backlink analysis
Look up a site's backlinks, with the same daily search credits shared across site, keyword and link lookups.
Rank Tracker
Daily updates of organic and paid rankings on desktop and mobile, including competitors, from 10,000 checks a month.
Site Audit
Audit 30,000 to 1.5 million pages a month; JavaScript rendering starts on the Team plan.
API and MCP
Team and above include API credits for search, backlink, rank tracking and audit data, and an MCP link for ChatGPT and Claude.
LLM Brand Monitor
See how ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and other AI models talk about your brand and competitors, with trends over time.

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.

Serpstat

  • Individual$50

    per month, billed annually ($69 billed monthly)

    1 user, 5 projects, 100 searches a day, 10,000 position checks and 30,000 audit pages a month, 50,000 export rows.

  • Team$100

    per month, billed annually ($129 billed monthly)

    3 users, unlimited projects, 500 searches a day, 50,000 position checks, API, MCP, AI tools, batch analysis and scheduled reports.

  • Team x2$169

    per month, billed annually ($209 billed monthly)

    6 users, 1,000 searches a day, 100,000 position checks, 300,000 audit pages and 500,000 export rows.

  • Agency$410

    per month, billed annually ($499 billed monthly)

    30 users, 5,000 searches a day, 500,000 position checks, 1.5 million audit pages, white-label reports and phone support.

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.

Serpstat

  • Annual discount

    Save up to 27% with annual billing

    Serpstat's pricing page lists Individual at $50 a month billed annually instead of $69, a $228 saving a year, and Agency at $410 instead of $499.

  • Nonprofit

    Discounts for nonprofits on request

    Serpstat's pricing FAQ says it offers discounts for nonprofits, enterprises and longer contracts, arranged through its sales team.

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