The Muck Rack Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about Muck Rack in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
Muck Rack
The Insider’s Guide
Media database, pitching and coverage monitoring for PR teams
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among link building tools, read from Muck Rack’s own pages.
Made by Muck Rack · checked Oct 23, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from Muck Rack’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Muck Rack’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 23, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
2.0
GPA, above 13 of the 50 other link building tools we grade
Muck Rack is a web platform for PR and communications teams at brands and agencies. It combines a database of journalists, creators and outlets with email pitching, alerts and reports on coverage, and on its top plan a tracker of how ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini talk about a brand. Journalists use it free; PR teams buy it on a quote from sales.
To get you started, here are 7 things to know about Muck Rack, taken from its own pages and our grades.
It's a big platform: you build media lists, set up alerts and learn the reports before it pays off, and getting in at all starts with sales.
- 1
Best for PR teams pitching journalists and tracking the coverage
Muck Rack is a database of journalists and outlets with pitching, coverage alerts and reports, sold to PR teams at brands and agencies.
- 2
It runs on Web
Web.
- 3
Media database
Search journalists, creators, outlets and their staff by beat, location and keywords. Muck Rack says over 100 people keep the listings up to date.
- 4
Pitching
Send or schedule pitches from Muck Rack and track opens, clicks and replies; coverage that follows is linked back to the pitch as a placement.
- 5
AI journalist recommendations
A Media List Agent builds lists from a description and suggests contacts to add or drop. Recommendations start on the Standard plan.
- 6
A 2.0 GPA, above 13 of 50
That is against the other link building tools we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 7
Keep it
To replace Muck Rack you would be making a network of journalists who post requests for sources. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
Muck Rack at a glance
- Pricing
- Paid
- Free plan
- No
- Free trial
- None stated
- Runs on
- Web
- Made by
- Muck Rack
- Category
- Backlinks & Link Building
- Our grade
- 2.0 GPA, fair
The report card
Best for PR teams pitching journalists and tracking the coverage
Muck Rack is a database of journalists and outlets with pitching, coverage alerts and reports, sold to PR teams at brands and agencies. No price is published, so you only find out what it costs on a sales call, nothing is free for the people who'd pay, and custom dashboards, the Inbound Media Manager and the API all wait on the top plan, Premier.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C | No price is published. Every plan is quoted by sales on the number of users and the add-ons you pick, so the price is only given on a sales call. Print and broadcast monitoring, social listening and press release distribution cost extra on every plan. |
| Free plan and trial | F | Nothing free on record for PR teams: no free plan and no trial. Journalists use it free, but they're the other side of the deal, not the people paying. |
| Features | B | A journalist and outlet database, pitching with open, click and reply tracking, coverage alerts, reports with sentiment, and tracking of how AI chatbots describe a brand. It covers the PR route to links end to end, though Starter limits exports and leaves out AI journalist picks and podcast monitoring. |
| Ease of use | C | No rating on record. It's a big platform: you build media lists, set up alerts and learn the reports before it pays off, and getting in at all starts with sales. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | Web only, with no desktop or phone app. Alerts go to email and Slack, Premier brings Google Analytics data into reports, and the API is an add-on only Premier customers can buy. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who Muck Rack is for
- Fits if you run PR at a mid-size or large company and pitch journalists every week
- Works for agencies pitching reporters for several clients and reporting the coverage back
Who it is not for
- Skip it if you want to see a price first, as every plan is quoted by sales on users and add-ons
- Not for you if you want to try it before talking to sales, as no free plan or trial is on record
- Tight if you're on Starter, which limits list exports and leaves out AI journalist recommendations and podcast monitoring
- Pricey if you want custom dashboards or the Inbound Media Manager, which need Premier, where the API is a further add-on
- Watch out: print and broadcast monitoring, social listening and press release distribution cost extra on every plan
Good to know
Good for
- In-house PR and communications teams at mid-size and large companies
- PR agencies pitching journalists for several clients
- Teams that want to see how AI chatbots describe their brand
Worth knowing
- No prices are published: each plan is quoted by sales, based on the number of users and the add-ons chosen.
- Starter limits media list exports and leaves out AI journalist recommendations and podcast monitoring.
- Inbound Media Manager, custom dashboards and Generative Pulse come with Premier; the API is an add-on only Premier customers can buy.
- Print and broadcast monitoring, social listening and press release distribution cost extra on every plan.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
Muck Rack's current pricing could not be confirmed from its own site.
Every plan is quoted by sales on the number of users and the add-ons you pick, so the price is only given on a sales call.
We could not confirm Muck Rack’s current prices from its own site, so this guide lists no plans. muckrack.com has them.
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
1
Place it runs: Web
Media database, pitching and coverage monitoring for PR teams. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: public API, AI features, reports, AI search visibility, link outreach, journalist requests.
It covers the PR route to links end to end, though Starter limits exports and leaves out AI journalist picks and podcast monitoring.
- Media database
- Search journalists, creators, outlets and their staff by beat, location and keywords. Muck Rack says over 100 people keep the listings up to date.
- Pitching
- Send or schedule pitches from Muck Rack and track opens, clicks and replies; coverage that follows is linked back to the pitch as a placement.
- AI journalist recommendations
- A Media List Agent builds lists from a description and suggests contacts to add or drop. Recommendations start on the Standard plan.
- Monitoring and alerts
- Alerts on online coverage by email and Slack on every plan; podcast monitoring from Standard, and print, broadcast and social listening as add-ons.
- Reports and dashboards
- Coverage reports with sentiment analysis on every plan; custom dashboards, a PR hit score and Google Analytics data come with Premier.
- Generative Pulse
- Shows how ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini describe a brand and which sources shape those answers. Included in Premier and also sold as an add-on.
Where it runs
- Web
What it works with
- Slack
- Google Analytics
Muck Rack is made by Muck Rack.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
13/50
Other link building tools it is graded above
Muck Rack's GPA of 2.0 is higher than 13 of the 50 other link building tools we grade, and level with 12.
It stands best on features (B, above 39 of 50) and worst on free plan and trial (F, above 0).
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 51 link building tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. Muck Rack’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 8 of 50
- FFree plan and trialAbove 0 of 50
- BFeaturesAbove 39 of 50
- CEase of useAbove 0 of 50
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 28 of 50
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
To replace Muck Rack you would be making a network of journalists who post requests for sources. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 25 of the 50 other link building tools grade higher.
What you could make
- Link outreach and reports: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- A network of journalists who post requests for sources.
- The same prompts asked of ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google's AI answers every day, and the answers kept.
- It plugs into other products, Slack and Google Analytics among them, and has an API.
- AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
- The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job.
What this rests on. Muck Rack’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
Semrush AI PR Toolkit, Roxhill, Prezly, JournoFinder and Anewstip
The 5 tools Muck Rack is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 1.8GPA
Semrush AI PR Toolkit
Free trial · from $149/mo
Media database, pitching and monitoring, formerly Prowly.
- Muck Rack also covers AI search visibility and journalist requests.
- 1.8GPA
Roxhill
Paid
Media database and monitoring platform for PR teams, sold by quote.
- Muck Rack also covers AI search visibility and link outreach.
- Roxhill also covers email campaigns.
- 2.0GPA
Prezly
Free trial · from $120/mo
PR software for newsrooms, media contacts and email pitches.
- Muck Rack also covers AI search visibility, link outreach and journalist requests.
- Prezly also covers email campaigns.
- 2.4GPA
JournoFinder
Free plan · from $119/mo
Journalist database with an AI list builder, news search and pitching.
- JournoFinder has a free plan. Muck Rack does not.
- Muck Rack also covers reports and AI search visibility.
- JournoFinder also covers AI agents.
- 1.8GPA
Anewstip
Free plan · from $160/mo
Journalist database searched by what reporters write and tweet.
- Anewstip has a free plan. Muck Rack does not.
- Muck Rack also covers reports, AI search visibility and journalist requests.
- Anewstip also covers email campaigns.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
11
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is Muck Rack free?
No. Muck Rack is a paid product.
What platforms does Muck Rack work on?
Muck Rack is available on Web.
Does Muck Rack have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 23, 2026. Muck Rack is listed for Web.
Does Muck Rack have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 23, 2026. Muck Rack is listed for Web.
Is Muck Rack open source?
Muck Rack is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 23, 2026.
Does Muck Rack have an API?
Yes. Muck Rack offers a public API, according to its own site.
What does Muck Rack integrate with?
Muck Rack's listing names Slack and Google Analytics. A listing names up to eight integrations, so it may connect to more.
Who makes Muck Rack?
Muck Rack is made by a company of the same name.
What are the alternatives to Muck Rack?
The closest alternatives to Muck Rack in our directory are Semrush AI PR Toolkit, Roxhill, Prezly, JournoFinder and Anewstip.
How does Muck Rack compare with other link building tools?
Muck Rack's GPA of 2.0 is higher than 13 of the 50 other link building tools we grade, and level with 12.
Could I make my own version of Muck Rack?
To replace Muck Rack you would be making a network of journalists who post requests for sources.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from Muck Rack’s own pages on Oct 23, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 23, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Muck Rack's own pages on 23 October 2026. Its pricing page turned our reader away when we checked it again later that day. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Muck Rack. Prices change, so check muckrack.com before you buy.
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
3,189
Tools graded, in 94 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
3,189
tools graded
94
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- Muck Rack, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/muck-rack
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "Muck Rack: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 23, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/muck-rack
Know someone choosing between link building tools?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/muck-rack/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded link building tools after Muck Rack, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- Backlinks & Link Building Insider's GuideEvery one of the 51 link building tools we grade, compared
- LinkCheck Insider's GuideFree backlink monitor for up to 5,000 links you import3.0 GPA
- HARO Insider's GuideFree email digest of journalist requests for expert sources2.8 GPA
- Internal Link Juicer Insider's GuideWordPress plugin that builds internal links from your keywords2.8 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what Muck Rack’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Muck Rack is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Muck Rack. Prices and plans change: check muckrack.com before you buy.