Outlyo vs vidIQ (2026): which should you pick?
As of Oct 24, 2026, we pick vidIQ: it is first in our ranking of YouTube SEO tools, and it grades higher too, 2.8 against 2.0.
Checked Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA
vidIQ grades higher on features, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money and the free plan.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Outlyo
Outlier video ideas and Claude-written scripts in your channel's voice
vidIQ
YouTube keyword research, video ideas and AI coaching for creators
Which one is for you
Pick Outlyo if
- Fits if you want ideas and a first script draft from the same tool
- Works for faceless and talking-head channels, from Shorts to long videos
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you're staying free, as 1,000 credits a month is about one 8-minute script plus a batch of ideas
- Pricey if you want Claude Opus scripts, which start on Automation at $62 a month
- Watch out: Thumbnail Studio and Viral Remixer need a paid plan
- Watch out: refunds only come within 7 days of a charge, and only if you've used under 20% of that period's credits
- Skip it if you need the API now, as on Scale it's still listed as coming soon
Pick vidIQ if
- Fits if you want keyword scores and upload suggestions for one channel at under $20 a month
- Works for creators who turn the same ideas into YouTube videos and Instagram Reels
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you lean on the AI tools, since Free has 150 credits a month and every thumbnail, clip and MCP call spends them
- Watch out: bigger credit allowances on Boost and MAX, and the Chat Coaching plan, are offered with no price shown
- Skip it if you run more than 3 channels or share it with a team, as that means the custom-priced Enterprise plan
- Pricey if you want a coach: VIP Coaching is $3,830 a year, paid upfront, non-refundable and for one English-speaking channel
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAOutlyoFair | 2.8GPAvidIQGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CCreator is $24 a month, or $240 a year ($20 a month), between this category's cheaper and dearer quarters, for 6,000 credits and 2 channels. Claude Opus scripts start on Automation at $62 a month. | CBoost is $16.58 a month on yearly billing ($19 monthly) for one channel, just above the $15 that marks this category's cheaper quarter, so it sits in the ordinary middle. MAX is $39 a month yearly ($49 monthly). |
| Free plan and trial | CFree for good with no card: 1 channel and 1,000 credits a month. A typical 8-minute script is about 720, so that's roughly one script and a batch of ideas a month. | CFree for good, with niche trends, content ideas, AI Coach tips and MCP. But the main tools are only partly open, and 150 AI credits a month won't go far once thumbnails, clips and MCP calls start spending them. |
| Features | CWeekly outlier scoring, about 10 ideas a batch, a voice profile from your last 30 videos, scripts from Shorts to long-form and 21 free tools. The gaps: thumbnails need a paid plan, and the listing shows no rank checks or private channel analytics. | BKeyword research with volume and competition scores, daily ideas and outliers, title, tag and description suggestions inside the upload page, AI thumbnails, Shorts clipping, an AI Coach and Instagram tools. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core job. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record. You paste a channel handle instead of granting access, but every action spends credits you have to watch: 200 for a batch of ideas, about 600 per 1,000 words of script. | A4.8 from about 20,000 App Store ratings for its phone app. The extension puts its scores straight onto YouTube's own pages. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, reading public YouTube data. No app, extension or integrations on record, and the API is still listed as coming soon. | BWeb, a browser extension, iPhone and Android, with MCP for Claude, ChatGPT and Cursor, plus Slack and Perplexity. There's no desktop app, which keeps it off an A. |
| Best for | outlier ideas turned into scripts | YouTube keyword research and video ideas |
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: Outlyo and vidIQ. How we grade
Price against what you get
Outlyo starts at $24 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. vidIQ starts at $16.58 a month and scores 3.3.
vidIQ scores higher and starts $7.42 a month lower. Of the other YouTube SEO tools on the chart, 12 score higher than Outlyo for less, and none scores higher than vidIQ 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
- Outlyo also covers long-form writing.
- vidIQ also covers keyword research.
At a glance
| Outlyo | vidIQ | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $24 per month for 6,000 credits, billed monthly | $16.58 per month for 1 channel, billed annually ($19 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | 1 connected channel and 1,000 credits a month for outlier ideas, scripts, the Script Editor and light research. No card required. | 150 AI credits a month, niche trends, data-backed content ideas, growth tips from the AI Coach and vidIQ MCP, with limited access to the main tools. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Outlyo | vidIQ |
| Price read from | outlyo.com | vidiq.com |
| Checked | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 23, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Outlyo
- A typical 8-minute script costs about 720 credits, so the free 1,000 a month covers roughly one script plus a batch of ideas.
- Thumbnail Studio and Viral Remixer need a paid plan, and Claude Opus scripts start on Automation at $62 a month.
- Refunds are offered within 7 days of a charge only if under 20% of that period's credits were used.
- API access on Scale is listed as coming soon, not available yet.
vidIQ
- Prices are for one channel; more than 3 channels or several team members need the custom-priced Enterprise plan.
- AI tools and MCP calls spend credits: 150 a month on Free. Larger credit allowances can be chosen on Boost and MAX, but the page shows no price for them.
- Coaching covers one English-speaking channel, and annual coaching plans are paid upfront and non-refundable.
- The Chat Coaching plan's price is not shown in the coaching page's text; only VIP Coaching's is.
Key features
Outlyo
- Outlier engine
- Scores niche videos against their own channel's baseline, refreshed every Monday, and sorts them into 2-5x, 5-10x and 10x-plus tiers.
- Ideas rewritten for your channel
- Turns the top outliers into about 10 ideas for your channel, each with an outlier score, a hook angle and a thumbnail concept. 200 credits a batch.
- Channel Voice
- Builds a voice profile from your last 30 videos' transcripts, or from five pasted writing samples, and filters out stock AI phrases. Training is free.
- Script Bot
- Writes scripts from Shorts to long-form with templates such as documentary, listicle and review; about 600 credits per 1,000 words.
- Thumbnail Studio
- From Creator up, rebuilds a winning thumbnail from another creator with you in the frame, alongside the Viral Remixer.
- Free tools
- 21 browser tools with no signup, including hook, title and tag generators, a tag extractor, a channel audit and a transcript generator.
vidIQ
- Keyword research
- Look up YouTube keywords with search volume and competition scores, alongside AI-suggested keywords for a channel.
- Video ideas and outliers
- Daily ideas tuned to a channel and niche, trend alerts, and outlier videos that are doing far better than their channel's usual.
- Upload optimization
- Suggested titles, descriptions and tags, a video score, and a best time to post, shown inside the YouTube upload flow by the extension.
- Thumbnails and clipping
- An AI thumbnail maker, and a clipping tool that cuts long videos into Shorts and TikToks. Both draw on the plan's AI credits.
- AI Coach and vidIQ MCP
- An AI Coach reads a channel and suggests a growth plan; vidIQ MCP brings vidIQ data into Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor on every plan, Free included.
- Instagram tools
- The same subscription covers Reel ideas, hook and hashtag analysis on any public Reel, and clips cut for Reels.
Plans
Outlyo
Free$0
1 connected channel and 1,000 credits a month: ideas, scripts, the Script Editor, Intel and light research.
Creator$24
per month for 6,000 credits, billed monthly
2 connected channels, Thumbnail Studio and Viral Remixer; scripts written with Claude Sonnet. $240 billed yearly.
Automation$62
per month for 18,000 credits, billed monthly
5 connected channels, Claude Opus for scripts, a weekly competitor digest and the research assistant. $620 billed yearly.
Scale$99
per month for 50,000 credits, billed monthly
Unlimited channels, the top model with a priority queue, competitor digest and research assistant. API access is listed as coming soon. $990 billed yearly.
vidIQ
Free$0
150 AI credits a month, niche trends, content ideas, AI Coach tips and vidIQ MCP for Claude or ChatGPT.
Boost$16.58
per month for 1 channel, billed annually ($19 billed monthly)
2,000 AI credits a month (2,500 or 3,000 can be chosen), AI thumbnails, unlimited trends research and subscriber insights, and masterclasses.
MAX$39
per month for 1 channel, billed annually ($49 billed monthly)
Everything in Boost with 6,000 AI credits a month (up to 10,000), up to 3x the AI Coach conversations and up to 11 hours of clipping.
VIP Coaching$319
per month, billed annually ($3,830 a year)
A dedicated 1-on-1 coach with recurring live calls and unlimited messaging, plus vidIQ Max and 6,000 AI credits a month, for one channel.
EnterpriseCustom
For brands, agencies and networks: every channel, roles and permissions, cross-channel reporting and priority onboarding. Sold after a demo.
Ways to pay less
Outlyo
- Annual discount
Save about 17% with yearly billing
Outlyo's pricing page lists Creator at $240 a year, Automation at $620 and Scale at $990, saving $48, $124 and $198 against monthly billing.
vidIQ
- Annual discount
Save up to 20% with yearly billing
vidIQ lists Boost at $199 a year instead of $19 a month ($228), and MAX at $468 a year instead of $49 a month ($588).
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Outlyo or vidIQ?
As of Oct 23, 2026, vidIQ is cheaper to start with: $16.58 a month, against $24 a month for Outlyo. Outlyo starts at $24 per month for 6,000 credits, billed monthly, and vidIQ starts at $16.58 per month for 1 channel, billed annually ($19 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Outlyo or vidIQ?
As of Oct 23, 2026, both Outlyo and vidIQ have a free plan.
Which platforms do Outlyo and vidIQ run on?
As of Oct 23, 2026, only vidIQ lists iOS and Android apps and a browser extension. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
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.