Keyword Tool API vs Semrush (2026): which should you pick?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Semrush grades higher than Keyword Tool API: 2.2 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA
Keyword Tool API grades higher on value for money. Semrush grades higher on the free plan and features. They get the same grade on ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Keyword Tool API
Keyword suggestion and search volume API across 17 search platforms
Semrush
SEO suite for keyword research, rank tracking and AI search visibility
Which one is for you
Pick Keyword Tool API if
- Fits if you want Google and Bing search volumes pulled into your own tools or warehouse
- Works for long-tail research on YouTube, Amazon and TikTok as well as Google
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want to try it first, as there's no trial, only a 30-day money-back guarantee
- Tight if you run many jobs, since Starter's 50 requests a day are shared with the web app and MCP
- Watch out: volumes for platforms other than Google and Bing are modeled estimates, not planner data
- Pricey if you pay monthly, at $88 against $68 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
| 1.8GPAKeyword Tool APIWeak | 2.2GPASemrushFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CStarter is $68 a month on yearly billing ($88 monthly) for 50 requests a day, above this category's dearer quarter but short of its dearest tenth. The same plan also covers the web app and MCP. | 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 | FNothing free for the API: no trial, only a 30-day money-back guarantee, which isn't a trial. A free Guest MCP gives suggestions with volume on the first 5 keywords, but no API access. | 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 | CSearch volume for up to 1,000 keywords a request, suggestions from 17 platforms, competitor keywords and a sandbox. The listing's own gap: only Google and Bing volumes come from the ad planners, and the rest are modeled estimates. | 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 | CJudged on how fast a developer gets a first result: a sandbox base URL and a public OpenAPI 3.1 file for Postman or generated clients. No rating on record, and one daily request pool is shared with the web app and MCP. | 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, with an API, an MCP server for Claude, ChatGPT and Cursor, and an OpenAPI file for Postman. No desktop or phone app, so B is the top. | 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 | keyword volumes from Google, YouTube and Amazon | 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 Tool API and Semrush. How we grade
Where they differ
- Semrush also covers reports, rank tracking, site audit and backlink analysis.
At a glance
| Keyword Tool API | Semrush | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free plan |
| Starts at | $68 per month for 50 requests a day, billed annually ($88 billed monthly) | $117.33 per month, billed annually ($139 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | 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 | Essential Apps LLC and Key Tools Limited | Semrush Holdings |
| Price read from | keywordtool.io | semrush.com |
| Checked | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Keyword Tool API
- The API needs a Keyword Tool Pro plan; there is no free trial, but every plan has a 30-day money-back guarantee.
- One daily request pool, from 50 on Starter to 400 on Agency, is shared by the web app, the API and MCP, and resets every 24 hours.
- Only Google and Bing volumes come from the ad planners; the other platforms' volumes are modeled estimates from clickstream data.
- A free Guest MCP gives Google and Bing suggestions with volume on the first 5 keywords, but no API access.
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 Tool API
- Search volume endpoint
- Send 1 to 1,000 keywords per request for monthly volume, a monthly breakdown, cost per click and competition, for one location and language.
- Keyword suggestions from 17 sources
- Autocomplete suggestions, related keywords, questions and prepositions from Google, YouTube, Bing, Copilot, Perplexity, Amazon, TikTok, Reddit and more.
- Competitor keywords
- Pass one URL to get up to 2,000+ keywords Google associates with it, with volume, cost per click and low and high top-of-page bids.
- Deep localization
- Google data for 190+ countries, 68,000+ locations and 50+ languages; Bing planner data for 6 countries, or device data for 32.
- Sandbox and OpenAPI spec
- A sandbox base URL for testing without using quota, and a public OpenAPI 3.1 file for Postman collections or generated clients.
- MCP server
- Connect Claude, Cursor or ChatGPT to the same data through MCP, drawing on the plan's shared daily request pool.
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 Tool API
Starter$68
per month for 50 requests a day, billed annually ($88 monthly)
Search volume for up to 50,000 keywords a day, 12 months of history, all 17 platforms, web app, API and MCP.
Growth$148
per month for 100 requests a day, billed annually ($188 monthly)
Search volume for up to 100,000 keywords a day and 24 months of history.
Scale$308
per month for 200 requests a day, billed annually ($388 monthly)
Search volume for up to 200,000 keywords a day and 48 months of history.
Agency$628
per month for 400 requests a day, billed annually ($788 monthly)
Search volume for up to 400,000 keywords a day and 48 months of history.
Enterprise & CustomCustom
Higher daily request and keyword limits, custom API and MCP usage, procurement paperwork and bank-transfer payment, after a demo.
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 Tool API
- Annual discount
Save over 20% with annual billing
Keyword Tool's pricing lists annual billing at over 20% less: Starter is $68 a month billed annually instead of $88 billed monthly.
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 Tool API or Semrush?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Keyword Tool API is cheaper to start with: $68 a month, against $117.33 a month for Semrush. Keyword Tool API starts at $68 per month for 50 requests a day, billed annually ($88 billed monthly), and Semrush starts at $117.33 per month, billed annually ($139 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Keyword Tool API or Semrush?
As of Oct 23, 2026, only Semrush has a free plan. Keyword Tool API does not.
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.