Smart SEO vs Yoast SEO for Shopify (2026): which should you pick?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Smart SEO and Yoast SEO for Shopify share a 2.4 GPA, and only Smart SEO has a free plan.
Checked Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA
Smart SEO grades higher on features. Yoast SEO for Shopify grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Smart SEO
Shopify SEO app for AI meta tags, image optimization and JSON-LD
Yoast SEO for Shopify
Yoast's Shopify app for live SEO analysis, AI meta tags and schema
Which one is for you
Pick Smart SEO if
- Fits if you want meta tags and alt text written in bulk across a Shopify store
- Works for small stores wanting JSON-LD and IndexNow from $14.99 a month
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free, with 20 AI generations, 50 images and 100 pages checked
- Watch out: the 7-day trial keeps the free plan's quotas, and full quotas start only once billing does
- Pricey if you go past your quota, as Pro bills 10¢ per AI generation and 1¢ per image or page
- Watch out: bulk AI tags, file names and other languages need Business; automatic broken-link fixes need Premium
- Skip it if your store isn't on Shopify, as it runs nowhere else
Pick Yoast SEO for Shopify if
- Fits if your team writes a lot of product and blog copy and wants tips while it types
- Works for merchants who already know Yoast from WordPress
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you're not on Shopify, as it installs and bills only through Shopify
- Not for you if you want a free plan, since the trial ends at $19 every 30 days plus VAT
- Pricey if you want to see how AI assistants describe you: that's AI+ at $45 a month, in a separate MyYoast account
- Watch out: star ratings in Google need a supported reviews app installed alongside it
- Too light for fixing broken links or redirects, which the listing doesn't mention
How we grade them
| 2.4GPASmart SEOFair | 2.4GPAYoast SEO for ShopifyFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPro is $14.99 a month, above this category's $10.99 middle, or $149.90 a year. Use beyond the quota is billed on top: on Pro, 10¢ an AI generation and 1¢ an image or page. | C$19 every 30 days before VAT, or $190 a year, about $15.83 a month. That's above this category's $10.99 middle and under its $19.99 dearer quarter. AI Brand Insights needs AI+ at $45 a month, in the dearest tenth. |
| Free plan and trial | CMeta and alt tags and sitemap and noindex controls, with 20 AI generations, 50 images, 100 link-checked pages and a 20-page audit. Caps you'll reach quickly. | CNo free plan, but a 14-day trial you can cancel at any time. The listing doesn't say a card is needed. |
| Features | BAI meta, alt text and descriptions, image compression, JSON-LD, speed options, sitemap and noindex controls, IndexNow, broken-link checks with 404 logs, backlinks, llms.txt and MCP. It covers the whole job across four plans. | CLive SEO and readability tips in 20+ languages, AI titles and descriptions, product schema, llms.txt, templates, bulk import and export, and migration from other apps. The listing names no redirects, broken-link checks, sitemaps or image tools. |
| Ease of use | CNo rating on record. It installs from the Shopify App Store, but every plan is a set of quotas to keep an eye on, and bulk AI writing waits on Business. | BNo store rating on record, but the checks show up in the product editor you already use, and schema and llms.txt are added without setup. Templates are optional. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, inside Shopify. It connects to Search Console, Shopify Sidekick, ChatGPT, Claude and IndexNow, and works with Judge.me and Loox. | BWeb, inside the Shopify admin, with Judge.me, Loox, Opinew, Langify, Weglot and Semrush. Brand Insights runs in a separate MyYoast web account. No phone or desktop app. |
| Best for | AI meta tags and alt text for Shopify | Yoast's writing checks inside the Shopify editor |
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: Smart SEO and Yoast SEO for Shopify. How we grade
Price against what you get
Smart SEO starts at $14.99 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Yoast SEO for Shopify starts at $19 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and Smart SEO starts $4.01 a month lower. Of the other SEO plugins and apps on the chart, 1 scores higher than Smart SEO for less, and 1 scores higher than Yoast SEO for Shopify 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
- Smart SEO also covers site audit, backlink analysis and page speed.
- Yoast SEO for Shopify also covers content optimization.
At a glance
| Smart SEO | Yoast SEO for Shopify | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $14.99 per month, billed every 30 days | $19 per month, billed every 30 days, ex VAT |
| Free plan | Meta and alt tag optimization, sitemap and noindex controls, 20 AI generations, 50 images optimized, 100 pages link-checked and a 20-page SEO audit. | None |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of paid plans, limited to the free plan's quotas until billing starts | 14-day free trial, cancel anytime |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Sherpas Design | Yoast BV |
| Price read from | apps.shopify.com | yoast.com |
| Checked | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 23, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Smart SEO
- Works only on Shopify stores; it is installed from the Shopify App Store.
- The 7-day trial keeps the free plan's quotas (20 AI generations, 50 images, 100 pages); full quotas start once billing begins.
- Use beyond a plan's quota is billed: on Pro, 10¢ per AI generation, 1¢ per page checked and 1¢ per image, with lower rates on higher plans.
- Bulk AI tags, image file names, backlinks and multi-language need Business; automatic broken-link fixes and your own AI key need Premium.
Yoast SEO for Shopify
- Works only on Shopify stores; it is installed from the Shopify App Store and billed through Shopify.
- There is no free plan: the 14-day trial leads to $19 per 30 days, and Yoast's site quotes prices before VAT.
- AI Brand Insights needs AI+ at $45 a month and is used in a MyYoast web account, not inside the Shopify app.
- Star ratings in search results need a supported reviews app installed alongside it.
Key features
Smart SEO
- AI meta tags, alt text and descriptions
- Writes titles, meta descriptions, alt text and product descriptions with AI: 20 generations free, then 200, 500 or 1,200 by plan. Bulk AI writing starts at Business.
- Image optimization
- Compresses images, 50 on the free plan and 1,000 to 5,000 on paid plans, with bulk optimization from Pro and SEO-friendly file names from Business.
- JSON-LD and page speed
- From Pro, adds JSON-LD structured data for Google and AI tools and page speed options; it can also strip a theme's old microdata.
- Indexing controls
- Sitemap and noindex tag controls on every plan, with IndexNow submissions from Pro to tell search engines about new and changed pages.
- Broken links and backlinks
- Checks pages for broken links, logs 404 hits from Pro, adds a backlinks report from Business and fixes broken links automatically on Premium.
- LLM catalog and MCP
- Pro publishes llms.txt and Agents.md catalogs of a store's products, and connects Google Search Console data to AI agents over MCP and Shopify Sidekick.
Yoast SEO for Shopify
- Real-time SEO and readability analysis
- Color-coded tips on keyword placement, structure and clarity while editing products, collections and blog posts, in more than 20 languages.
- AI titles and meta descriptions
- Suggests search and social titles and descriptions with AI for any product or collection, from inside the product editor.
- Automatic product schema
- Adds JSON-LD for price, brand and stock to every product, and star ratings when a supported reviews app such as Judge.me, Loox or Opinew is installed.
- Templates and bulk editing
- SEO templates apply the same title and description rules across the catalog, and a bulk editor imports and exports SEO data.
- llms.txt and SEO data migration
- Generates an llms.txt file for AI systems, and imports existing SEO data from another SEO app through a migration setting.
- AI Brand Insights
- On AI+, scans how ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity describe the brand, tracks sentiment and cited sources, and benchmarks against competitors.
Plans
Smart SEO
Free$0
Meta and alt tags, sitemap, noindex tags, 20 AI generations, 50 images, 100 pages link-checked and a 20-page automatic audit.
Pro$14.99
per month, billed every 30 days
200 AI generations, 1,000 images and 1,000 link-check pages, JSON-LD, IndexNow, page speed, llms.txt, bulk editing and Search Console with MCP.
Business$24.99
per month, billed every 30 days
500 AI generations, 3,000 images, 2,500 pages, AI bulk meta and alt tags, image file names, backlinks, multiple languages and 500-page audits.
Premium$49.99
per month, billed every 30 days
1,200 AI generations, 5,000 images, 6,000 pages, unlimited audits, automatic broken-link fixes, a choice of AI model or your own key, premium support.
Yoast SEO for Shopify
Yoast SEO for Shopify$19
per month, billed every 30 days, ex VAT
SEO and readability analysis, AI title and meta suggestions, automatic schema, llms.txt, templates, bulk import and export, and 24/7 support.
Yoast SEO AI+ for Shopify$45
per month, billed every 30 days, ex VAT
Adds AI Brand Insights: an AI visibility score, sentiment tracking, competitor benchmarks and the sources AI tools cite about the brand.
Ways to pay less
Smart SEO
- Annual discount
Save 17% with yearly billing
The listing offers Pro at $149.90 a year, Business at $249.90 and Premium at $499.90, which it says saves 17% against monthly billing.
Yoast SEO for Shopify
- Annual discount
12 months for the price of 10 with yearly billing
Yoast's FAQ gives 12 months for the price of 10 on an annual plan; the Shopify listing shows $190 a year for the base plan and $450 for AI+.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Smart SEO or Yoast SEO for Shopify?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Smart SEO is cheaper to start with: $14.99 a month, against $19 a month for Yoast SEO for Shopify. Smart SEO starts at $14.99 per month, billed every 30 days, and Yoast SEO for Shopify starts at $19 per month, billed every 30 days, ex VAT.
Which has a free plan, Smart SEO or Yoast SEO for Shopify?
As of Oct 23, 2026, only Smart SEO has a free plan. Yoast SEO for Shopify does not, though it 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.