Keyword Hero vs Semrush (2026): which should you pick?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Keyword Hero and Semrush share a 2.2 GPA, both have a free plan, and Keyword Hero starts cheaper, at $8 a month against $117.33 a month.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA
Keyword Hero grades higher on value for money. Semrush grades higher on features. They get the same grade on the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Keyword Hero
Restores the keywords behind organic traffic in Google Analytics
Semrush
SEO suite for keyword research, rank tracking and AI search visibility
Which one is for you
Pick Keyword Hero if
- Fits if you want to know which searches end in a sale or sign-up, not only a visit
- Works for reporting brand and non-brand search growth to a boss or a client
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you're hunting for new keywords, since it only reads traffic you already get
- Not for you if you don't run Google Analytics 4 and Search Console
- Pricey if your site is big, as plans rise with sessions and 250,000 a month is $134 on yearly billing
- Watch out: keywords are matched statistically, not read from Google, and land in a separate Analytics property
- Tight if you want search intent or MCP, which start at Giant for $44 a month on yearly billing
Pick Semrush if
- Fits if you want research, rank tracking and audits in one account and can pay $117.33 a month or more
- Works for agencies that need keyword data for many countries and compare client sites with competitors
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you're one person with one site, at $117.33 a month even yearly, and the trial checks your card with a small charge
- Tight if your team is more than just you, since every extra user is from $45 a month
- Skip it if AI answer tracking is the point, as the SEO plan leaves it out and Starter is $165.17 a month
- Watch out: the API and share of voice need the custom-priced Advanced plan, and scheduled PDF reports are $10 to $20 a month extra
- Watch out: local, content, social and ad tools are separate toolkits with their own prices, and the free plan allows 10 reports a day
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAKeyword HeroFair | 2.2GPASemrushFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BBig is $8 a month on yearly billing ($9 monthly) for 10,000 organic sessions, inside the cheaper quarter of this category. It climbs with your traffic, though: 50,000 sessions is Giant at $44, and that's where search intent and the MCP server start. | DThe SEO plan, the one Semrush aims at freelancers and small businesses, is $117.33 a month billed yearly ($139 monthly). That's in this category's dearest tenth, for one user. AI search tracking needs Starter at $165.17, and each extra person is from $45 a month. |
| Free plan and trial | CThe Little plan is free for good with no card, up to 2,000 organic sessions a month. But it keeps no history and tracks no key events, so seeing which keyword led to a sale, the whole point, needs Big. | CA free account with no card: 1 project, 10 reports a day and 10 tracked keywords. Fine for a look around, but you'll hit the wall in an afternoon. The 7-day trial of the paid plans checks your card with a small charge that's refunded at once. |
| Features | DIt does one thing: match Search Console queries to Analytics sessions, 93% of them on average by its FAQ, plus AI assistant traffic and intent labels. It needs both Google products to work at all, and gives no keyword ideas, volumes or difficulty. | BKeyword research from a database it puts at 29 billion keywords across 142 countries, competitor and backlink analysis, daily rank tracking and Site Audit. It covers the whole job, though the SEO plan only gets the basic research tools and no AI visibility. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record. You connect Google Analytics 4 and Search Console, and it writes the keywords to a separate Analytics property, so there's setup before you see anything. | CNo rating on record. It's a big suite with a lot of reports, and there are projects to set up and plenty to learn before it all makes sense. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, wired into Google Analytics, Search Console and BigQuery, with an MCP server from Giant so Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor or VS Code can ask for the numbers. No desktop or phone app. | BWeb only, with no desktop or phone app. It connects to Google Analytics, Search Console, Wix, Yoast, AIOSEO, Supermetrics and Monday.com, has MCP from Starter, and the API comes with the custom-priced Advanced plan. |
| Best for | seeing which Google searches lead to sales | all-in-one SEO research for teams with a budget |
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: Keyword Hero and Semrush. How we grade
Where they differ
- Keyword Hero also covers web analytics and AI search visibility.
- Semrush also covers rank tracking, site audit and backlink analysis.
At a glance
| Keyword Hero | Semrush | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $8 per month, billed annually ($9 billed monthly) | $117.33 per month, billed annually ($139 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | Little plan, free for good: up to 2,000 organic sessions a month with keyword performance and comparison and the Google Analytics upload. No history or key-event tracking. No card needed. | Free account: 1 project, 10 analytics reports a day across the main tools and 10 keywords in Position Tracking. No credit card needed. |
| Free trial | None listed | 7-day free trial of paid plans; a card is checked with a small charge that is refunded at once |
| Web | ||
| Made by | cross platform solutions GmbH | Semrush Holdings |
| Price read from | keyword-hero.com | semrush.com |
| Checked | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Keyword Hero
- It needs Google Analytics 4 and Search Console, and writes its keywords to a separate Analytics property; the keywords are matched statistically, not read from Google.
- The free plan stops at 2,000 organic sessions a month and keeps no history.
- Search intent and MCP access start at Giant, $49 a month; the BigQuery table starts at Ultimate.
- Plans are priced by organic sessions a month; above 250,000 is a custom contract.
Semrush
- Each plan includes one user; extra users start at $45 a month each, priced by plan level.
- Scheduled PDF reports are an add-on at $10 a month, or $20 with white-labeling; Advanced includes reporting.
- API access and share of voice come only with the custom-priced Advanced plan.
- Local, content, social, advertising, AI PR and traffic tools are separate toolkits with their own prices.
Key features
Keyword Hero
- Keywords restored in Analytics
- Matches Search Console queries to Google Analytics sessions, so sessions, bounce rate, page views and conversions show by keyword. The FAQ puts the average match at 93%.
- AI assistant traffic
- Shows how much traffic ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude and Gemini send to the site, next to classic organic search.
- Search intent
- Labels keywords as transactional, commercial, navigational or informational, from the Giant plan up.
- Performance reports
- Compare keyword performance over time, and from Big up use custom segments and brand, device and country reports.
- MCP server
- From Giant up, AI clients such as Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and VS Code can query sessions, conversions and revenue by keyword, page, country, device or intent.
- BigQuery export
- Ultimate and Ultimate Pro deliver the keyword data as a BigQuery table for your own analysis.
Semrush
- Keyword research
- Look up search volume, difficulty and intent from a database Semrush puts at 29 billion keywords across 142 country databases.
- Competitor and backlink analysis
- See which keywords and pages bring a rival site its traffic, and inspect any domain's backlink profile.
- Position Tracking
- Track daily rankings for 500 to 5,000+ keywords depending on the plan; Pro+ adds tracking by location and device.
- Site Audit
- Crawl your sites for technical SEO problems. From the Starter plan the audit also checks how ready a site is for AI search.
- AI visibility tracking
- Starter and above track daily whether set prompts in AI chat tools mention your brand, with sentiment monitoring. The SEO plan has none of this.
- MCP and API access
- Starter and above can query Semrush data from AI assistants through MCP; the API itself comes with the Advanced plan.
Plans
Keyword Hero
Little$0
Up to 2,000 organic sessions a month, keyword performance and comparison, and the Google Analytics upload.
Big$8
per month for 10,000 sessions, billed annually ($9 billed monthly)
1 key event, 1 month of history, custom segments, and brand, device and country reports.
Giant$44
per month for 50,000 sessions, billed annually ($49 billed monthly)
3 key events, 6 months of history, keyword search intent and MCP server access.
Ultimate$134
per month for 250,000 sessions, billed annually ($149 billed monthly)
10 key events, 16 months of history and keyword data as a BigQuery table.
Ultimate ProCustom
More than 250,000 sessions and 10 key events on a custom contract, with dedicated support.
Semrush
Free$0
1 project, 10 analytics reports a day and 10 tracked keywords, for trying the tools.
SEO$117.33
per month, billed annually ($139 billed monthly)
1 user, 5 websites, 500 keywords tracked daily, basic keyword and competitor research, and Site Audit. No AI search tracking.
Starter$165.17
per month, billed annually ($199 billed monthly)
5 websites and 500 keywords, full keyword research tools, MCP access, 50 AI prompts tracked daily and 300 AI visibility reports a day.
Pro+$248.17
per month, billed annually ($299 billed monthly)
15 websites, 1,500 keywords, historical data, content optimization, cannibalization checks, multi-location tracking and 100 AI prompts.
AdvancedCustom
40+ websites, 5,000+ keywords, share of voice, API access, team users, reporting and unlimited AI prompts. Sold after a demo.
Ways to pay less
Keyword Hero
- Annual discount
Save 10% with annual billing
Keyword Hero's pricing page lists annual billing at 10% off: Big is $8 a month billed annually instead of $9, and Giant $44 instead of $49.
Semrush
- Annual discount
Save up to 17% with annual billing
Semrush's pricing page lists annual billing at up to 17% less: Starter is $165.17 a month billed annually instead of $199 billed monthly.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Keyword Hero or Semrush?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Keyword Hero is cheaper to start with: $8 a month, against $117.33 a month for Semrush. Keyword Hero starts at $8 per month, billed annually ($9 billed monthly), and Semrush starts at $117.33 per month, billed annually ($139 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Keyword Hero or Semrush?
As of Oct 23, 2026, both Keyword Hero and Semrush have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.