vidIQ vs YTCockpit (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 1.6.
Checked Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA
vidIQ grades higher on the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
vidIQ
YouTube keyword research, video ideas and AI coaching for creators
YTCockpit
YouTube keyword research with competition data and rank tracking
Which one is for you
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
Pick YTCockpit if
- Fits if you plan videos around keywords people already search for and want to see the top 20 first
- Works for marketers who want keyword research and daily YouTube rank checks in one account
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want to try it first, as there's no free plan or trial, only a 30-day refund
- Watch out: monthly search figures come from Google's Keyword Planner, since YouTube doesn't publish search counts
- Tight if you stay on Personal, which has 10 searches a day, no rank tracker and no Google Suggest ideas
- Pricey if you want branded PDF reports, which are on Agency only at $99 a month or $799 a year
- Watch out: VAT is added for billing addresses in Switzerland and the EU unless an EU company gives a VAT ID
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAvidIQGood | 1.6GPAYTCockpitWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | 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). | CPersonal is $19 a month, or $199 a year (about $16.58 a month), right on this category's $19 middle, for 10 searches a day. Rank tracking needs Pro at $39 a month or $299 a year, and branded reports need Agency at $99. |
| Free plan and trial | 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. | FNothing free: no free plan and no trial. New accounts get a 30-day money-back guarantee instead, which isn't a trial. |
| Features | 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. | CKeyword ideas from YouTube Suggest and Google's ad data, top-20 competition numbers, a keyword score and a daily rank tracker on Pro. It does keyword research fully, but that's a smaller job, with no title writing, upload help or channel analytics on record. |
| Ease of use | A4.8 from about 20,000 App Store ratings for its phone app. The extension puts its scores straight onto YouTube's own pages. | CNo rating on record. It runs in the browser with nothing to install, but each search comes back as sortable tables of views, likes, durations and scores to read through. |
| Platforms and integrations | 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. | CWeb only, with no integrations, app, extension or API on record. The tracker checks rankings by country and language. |
| Best for | YouTube keyword research and video ideas | YouTube keyword research with competition scores |
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: vidIQ and YTCockpit. How we grade
Price against what you get
vidIQ starts at $16.58 a month and scores 3.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. YTCockpit starts at $19 a month and scores 2.0.
vidIQ scores higher and starts $2.42 a month lower. Of the other YouTube SEO tools on the chart, none scores higher than vidIQ for less, and 11 score higher than YTCockpit 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
- vidIQ also covers image generation.
- YTCockpit also covers reports and rank tracking.
At a glance
| vidIQ | YTCockpit | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Paid |
| Starts at | $16.58 per month for 1 channel, billed annually ($19 billed monthly) | $19 per month for 10 keyword searches a day, billed monthly |
| Free plan | 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. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | vidIQ | SwissMadeMarketing GmbH |
| Price read from | vidiq.com | ytcockpit.com |
| Checked | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 23, 2026 |
Worth knowing
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.
YTCockpit
- There is no free plan or trial; new accounts get a 30-day money-back guarantee instead.
- Monthly search figures come from Google's AdWords Keyword Planner, as its help center says YouTube does not publish search counts.
- The Personal plan has no rank tracker and no Google Suggest ideas; branded PDF reports are on Agency only.
- VAT is added for billing addresses in Switzerland and the EU, unless an EU company gives a valid VAT ID.
Key features
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.
YTCockpit
- Keyword ideas from several sources
- Expands a seed keyword through YouTube Suggest by adding letters and numbers, and on higher plans through Google AdWords, Google Suggest and related searches.
- Top 20 competition data
- For every idea it collects the top 20 ranking videos with their views, duration, likes and comments, and how many are in HD.
- Keyword score
- Sorts ideas by a score that weighs monthly searches against how strong the ranking videos are, with every column open to sorting and filtering.
- Compare your own video
- Enter a video URL to set it beside the top results for each keyword found.
- YTCockpitTracker
- Pro and Agency include a tracker that checks your videos' YouTube positions for chosen keywords daily, by country and language: 50 keywords on Pro, 100 on Agency.
Plans
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.
YTCockpit
Personal$19
per month for 10 keyword searches a day, billed monthly
100 results per search, ideas from YouTube Suggest and Google AdWords. No rank tracker. $199 billed yearly.
Pro$39
per month for 50 keyword searches a day, billed monthly
1,000 results per search, adds Google Suggest and related searches, and YTCockpitTracker for 50 keywords daily. $299 billed yearly.
Agency$99
per month for unlimited keyword searches, billed monthly
10,000 results per search, branded PDF reports and 100 tracked keywords daily. $799 billed yearly.
Ways to pay less
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).
YTCockpit
- Annual discount
Save up to 40% with yearly billing
YTCockpit's pricing table lists Personal at $199 a year instead of $228, Pro at $299 instead of $468 and Agency at $799 instead of $1,188.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, vidIQ or YTCockpit?
As of Oct 23, 2026, vidIQ is cheaper to start with: $16.58 a month, against $19 a month for YTCockpit. vidIQ starts at $16.58 per month for 1 channel, billed annually ($19 billed monthly), and YTCockpit starts at $19 per month for 10 keyword searches a day, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, vidIQ or YTCockpit?
As of Oct 23, 2026, only vidIQ has a free plan. YTCockpit does not.
Which platforms do vidIQ and YTCockpit 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.