Local Viking vs Merchynt (2026): which should you pick?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Local Viking and Merchynt share a 1.8 GPA, neither has a free plan, and Local Viking starts cheaper, at $39 a month against $99 a month.
Checked Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA
Local Viking grades higher on value for money. Merchynt grades higher on the free plan. 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.
Local Viking
Google Business Profile manager for agencies, with posts and geogrids
Merchynt
Paige, an AI agent that runs a Google Business Profile for you
Which one is for you
Pick Local Viking if
- Fits if you're an agency posting to dozens of Google Business Profiles every week
- Works for spotting unwanted edits to client listings, including Google's own
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want to try it first, as no free plan or trial is listed
- Watch out: rank checks and geogrid scans spend credits, and keyword credits don't roll over
- Tight if you want white-label reports or the geogrid widget, which start at Pro ($99)
- Skip it if you need listings kept right beyond Google, as it manages Google Business Profiles
- Watch out: the site still says Local Viking, but sign-up, pricing and help run under the LocalOptics name
Pick Merchynt if
- Fits if you own a local business and want your Google profile run for you with little input
- Works for agencies reselling profile management under their own name and domain
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you have several locations, at $99 a month each, with custom quotes only from 10 profiles
- Tight if you want time to try it, as the free trial lasts 3 days and there's no free plan
- Watch out: citations are a $40 add-on per location, offered only in the US and Canada
- Watch out: agencies also pay $100 a month for the Agency Program, so one client starts at $199
How we grade them
| 1.8GPALocal VikingWeak | 1.8GPAMerchyntWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CSingle is $39 a month for one listing, with 1,600 keyword credits and 7,500 geogrid credits, between this category's middle ($31) and dearer quarter ($59). Up to 10 listings is $59, which is where agencies start. | D$99 a month per Google Business Profile, right where this category's dearest tenth starts ($99), while its listed alternatives start between $16 and $39. Ten or more profiles get a custom quote, and agencies add $100 a month for the partner program. |
| Free plan and trial | FNothing free. The pricing page lists no free plan and no trial, so you pay before you see your own profiles in it. | DNo free plan. The trial lasts 3 days and you're charged unless you cancel before day 3 ends. The free profile audit and heatmap report are one-off tools. |
| Features | CBulk post and photo scheduling, profile edits with a change log and alerts, local and organic rank tracking, geogrids, review replies and white-label reports. It does Google Business Profile work fully, but that's one platform: no other directories or review requests. | CProfile tuning against nearby leaders, Google posts, review requests and replies, AI answer reports, social posts and short videos, a website and Maps heatmaps. The gap is citations: a $40-per-location add-on, offered only in the US and Canada. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record. You connect Google accounts and budget keyword and geogrid credits, where each rank type and each grid point uses one. | CNo rating on record. Merchynt says setup takes about 20 minutes, and you still connect the profile and choose between autopilot and approving each post and reply. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with no desktop or phone app. It links to Google Business Profile, Search Console, GA4, Looker Studio, ServiceTitan, CompanyCam and Zapier, with a public API, webhooks and MCP. | BWeb only, with no desktop or phone app. It publishes to Google Business Profile, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube and TikTok. |
| Best for | posting to many Google Business Profiles | having AI run your Google Business Profile |
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: Local Viking and Merchynt. How we grade
Price against what you get
Local Viking starts at $39 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Merchynt starts at $99 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and Local Viking starts $60 a month lower. Of the other local SEO tools on the chart, 6 score higher than Local Viking for less, and 9 score higher than Merchynt 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
- Merchynt also covers review collection and AI search visibility.
At a glance
| Local Viking | Merchynt | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free trial |
| Starts at | $39 per month for 1 listing | $99 per Google Business Profile / month |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 3-day free trial; cancel before the end of day 3 and nothing is charged |
| Web | ||
| Made by | LocalViking | Merchynt |
| Price read from | app.localoptics.com | merchynt.com |
| Checked | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 23, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Local Viking
- No free trial or free plan is listed on the pricing page.
- Rank checks and geogrid scans spend credits: 1 keyword credit per rank type per check, 1 geogrid credit per grid point. Keyword credits do not roll over.
- White-label reporting and the geogrid widget start at the Pro plan.
- The marketing site still says Local Viking, but sign-up, pricing and the help center use the LocalOptics name.
Merchynt
- Each Google Business Profile costs $99 a month; 10 or more profiles get a custom quote.
- The free trial lasts only 3 days, and there is no free plan; the free GBP audit and heatmap report are one-off tools.
- Citations are an add-on at $40 per location, offered only in the US and Canada.
- The Agency Partner Program is a separate $100 a month membership, so an agency with one client starts at $199 a month.
Key features
Local Viking
- Post scheduling
- Schedules standard, offer, event and alert posts to many profiles at once, with recurring posts, Spintax and location variables, and CSV bulk upload.
- Listing management and protection
- Edits profile details in one place, keeps a change log that includes Google's own edits, and alerts by email or SMS when anything changes.
- Rank tracking and geogrids
- Tracks keywords in the local pack, organic desktop and organic mobile, and runs live or scheduled geogrid scans with competitors at every point.
- Photo scheduling
- A media library that drip-schedules photos to profiles over weeks, with control over image metadata and file names.
- Reviews, audits and reports
- Reply to Google reviews across locations, run competitive audits against up to five rivals and send scheduled white-label reports.
- API, webhooks and MCP
- A public API, webhooks for new reviews and finished scans, a Looker Studio connector, and MCP connections for ChatGPT and Claude.
Merchynt
- Profile optimization and Google posts
- Tunes the Google Business Profile against top-ranked businesses nearby, writes and publishes Google posts and adds geotagged photos.
- Review requests and replies
- Asks happy customers for reviews automatically and replies to every new review, on full autopilot or after you approve each one.
- AI search visibility
- Reports each month whether ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude, Grok and Llama recommend the business, and keeps its details consistent across the web.
- Social posts and short videos
- Turns your photos into posts for Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn and into short videos published to YouTube and TikTok.
- Website builder or fix list
- Builds a multi-page website that can go live on your own domain, or scans your current site and lists what to change.
- Heatmaps, reports and white label
- Google Maps rank heatmaps, AI rankings and a monthly report; agencies can rename Paige and send it from their own domain, logo and inbox.
Plans
Local Viking
Single$39
per month for 1 listing
Unlimited posts and Google accounts, 1,600 keyword credits and 7,500 geogrid credits a month.
Starter$59
per month for up to 10 listings
3,200 keyword credits and 8,100 geogrid credits a month.
Pro$99
per month for up to 20 listings
5,600 keyword credits and 16,200 geogrid credits a month, white-label reporting and the geogrid widget.
Agency$149
per month for up to 40 listings
17,700 keyword credits and 24,300 geogrid credits a month, white-label reporting and the geogrid widget.
Enterprise$200
per month for up to 70 listings
26,600 keyword credits and 32,400 geogrid credits a month. Custom pricing for more than 70 locations.
Merchynt
Paige$99
per Google Business Profile / month
Profile optimization, posts, review requests and replies, social and video posts, a website, Maps heatmaps, AI rankings and monthly reports.
Custom pricingCustom
For 10 or more profiles, with discounts as the count grows; the pricing page asks anyone managing more than 3 to get in touch.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Local Viking or Merchynt?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Local Viking is cheaper to start with: $39 a month, against $99 a month for Merchynt. Local Viking starts at $39 per month for 1 listing, and Merchynt starts at $99 per Google Business Profile / month.
Which has a free plan, Local Viking or Merchynt?
As of Oct 23, 2026, neither Local Viking nor Merchynt has a free plan. Merchynt has a free trial.
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.