The SpyFu Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about SpyFu 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.
SpyFu
The Insider’s Guide
Competitor research for SEO and Google Ads keywords and ad history
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among SEO tools, read from SpyFu’s own pages.
Made by SpyFu, Inc. · 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 SpyFu’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on SpyFu’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
2.2
GPA, above 20 of the 64 other SEO tools we grade
SpyFu is a web-based research tool for seeing which keywords a competing site ranks for and buys on Google Ads, with ad copy and ranking history going back years. Paid plans add unlimited searches, weekly rank tracking, backlink research, branded reports and an AI site audit that writes fixes for on-page issues.
To get you started, here are 9 things to know about SpyFu, taken from its own pages and our grades.
- 1
Best for spying on rivals' Google Ads and SEO keywords
SpyFu shows the Google Ads keywords a rival buys, the ad tests they've run and the keywords they rank for, with years of history.
- 2
Paid plans start at $29 a month
As its pricing page puts it: $29 per month, billed yearly ($39 billed monthly).
- 3
There is a free plan
Free version with no time limit: search any domain or keyword and see a limited set of results. Full results, exports and keyword tracking need a paid plan.
- 4
It runs on Web
Web.
- 5
Competitor PPC research
See the Google Ads keywords a domain buys, estimated clicks and cost per keyword, and the ad tests it has run over time.
- 6
Competitor SEO research
List the keywords a site ranks for, its top pages and its ranking history, and compare several domains to find keywords you are missing.
- 7
Keyword research and grouping
Generate keyword ideas filtered by volume, CPC and difficulty, and paste in a list to have it grouped with volume and CPC added.
- 8
A 2.2 GPA, above 20 of 64
That is against the other SEO tools we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 9
Keep it
To replace SpyFu you would be making search volumes for millions of keywords, gathered and kept up to date. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
SpyFu at a glance
- Pricing
- Free plan, from $29 per month, billed yearly ($39 billed monthly)
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- None stated
- Runs on
- Web
- Made by
- SpyFu, Inc.
- Category
- SEO Tools
- Our grade
- 2.2 GPA, fair
The report card
Best for spying on rivals' Google Ads and SEO keywords
SpyFu shows the Google Ads keywords a rival buys, the ad tests they've run and the keywords they rank for, with years of history. Basic is $29 a month on yearly billing, but caps results at 10,000 rows and has one user and no API credit. There's no trial, rankings update weekly, Pro + AI's $59 first month becomes $119, and API use past the monthly credit goes on your card.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C | Basic is $29 a month billed yearly ($39 monthly), between the cheaper quarter of SEO tools at $21.75 and the middle at $39. It has 1 user and no API credit, and Pro + AI is $89 a month yearly or $119 monthly after a $59 first month. |
| Free plan and trial | C | A free version with no time limit: search any domain or keyword and you see a limited set of results. Full results, exports and tracking are paid. There's no trial, just a 30-day money-back guarantee, which isn't the same thing. |
| Features | C | Competitor PPC and SEO research, keyword ideas and grouping, rank tracking, backlinks, an AI site audit that writes fixes, and an API. Rankings update weekly, and Basic caps results and exports at 10,000 rows and its audit at 500 pages a crawl. |
| Ease of use | C | No rating on record. You start by typing in a competitor's domain, but there are a lot of reports, and projects to set up before the tracking side tells you much. |
| Platforms and integrations | B | Web only, with SpyFu GPT for ChatGPT, Google Sheets, Google Tag Manager and RivalFlow AI, plus an API from the Pro plans, billed by rows returned. No desktop or phone app. |
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 SpyFu is for
- Fits if you buy Google Ads and want to see what competitors bid on
- Works for agencies building branded competitor reports for clients
Who it is not for
- Not for you if you want to try before you pay, as there's no trial, only a 30-day money-back guarantee
- Skip it if you need daily rankings, since projects track weekly
- Tight if you're on Basic, with 1 user, 1 project, 10,000 rows per search and export, and site audits that stop at 500 pages a crawl
- Watch out: Pro + AI's $59 first month becomes $119 a month unless you pay $89 a month yearly, and extra users are $30
- Watch out: API use past the monthly credit, $40 on Pro + AI and $100 on Team/Agency, is charged to your card
Good to know
Good for
- Google Ads buyers who want to see what competitors bid on and how their ads changed
- Marketers researching a rival's SEO keywords and top pages
- Agencies building branded competitor reports for clients
Worth knowing
- Pro + AI is $59 for the first month only, then $119 a month on monthly billing; yearly billing is $89 a month.
- There is no free trial; SpyFu offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, and refunds are requested through chat or email.
- Basic caps search results and exports at 10,000 rows, and its site audit stops at 500 pages a crawl.
- API use beyond the monthly credit ($40 on Pro + AI, $100 on Team/Agency) is charged to the card on file.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
$29
A month to start. There is a free plan too
SpyFu has a free plan. Paid plans start at $29 per month, billed yearly ($39 billed monthly).
A free version with no time limit: search any domain or keyword and you see a limited set of results.
Basic
$29
per month, billed yearly ($39 billed monthly)
10,000 rows per search and export, 1 tracking project, 5,000 weekly tracked rankings, 50,000 audit pages a month, 1 user. No API credit included.
Pro + AI
$89
per month, billed yearly ($119 monthly after a $59 first month)
Unlimited results and exports, 10 projects, 15,000 tracked rankings, 500,000 audit pages, RivalFlow for 1 site, $40 of API credit. Extra users $30.
Team/Agency
$187
per month, billed yearly ($249 billed monthly)
5 users, unlimited projects, 50,000 tracked rankings, 2 million audit pages, daily audits, RivalFlow for 5 sites and $100 of API credit.
The free plan
Free version with no time limit: search any domain or keyword and see a limited set of results. Full results, exports and keyword tracking need a paid plan.
Read from spyfu.com on Oct 23, 2026.
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
Competitor research for SEO and Google Ads keywords and ad history. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: public API, AI features, reports, keyword research, rank tracking, site audit, backlink analysis.
Competitor PPC and SEO research, keyword ideas and grouping, rank tracking, backlinks, an AI site audit that writes fixes, and an API.
- Competitor PPC research
- See the Google Ads keywords a domain buys, estimated clicks and cost per keyword, and the ad tests it has run over time.
- Competitor SEO research
- List the keywords a site ranks for, its top pages and its ranking history, and compare several domains to find keywords you are missing.
- Keyword research and grouping
- Generate keyword ideas filtered by volume, CPC and difficulty, and paste in a list to have it grouped with volume and CPC added.
- Rank tracking and projects
- Save keywords to a project per site to track rankings weekly, with labels, keyword groups and a daily summary dashboard.
- AI site audit
- Crawls a site for technical, metadata, content and linking issues and writes fixes for titles, descriptions and headings; plans include monthly AI credits.
- API and SpyFu GPT
- Pro plans and up include API access billed per rows returned, with a monthly credit; SpyFu GPT brings its data into ChatGPT.
Where it runs
- Web
What it works with
- ChatGPT
- Google Sheets
- Google Tag Manager
- RivalFlow AI
SpyFu is made by SpyFu, Inc.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
20/64
Other SEO tools it is graded above
SpyFu's GPA of 2.2 is higher than 20 of the 64 other SEO tools we grade, and level with 21.
It stands best on platforms and integrations (B, above 15 of 64) and worst on features (C, above 0).
Its paid plans start at $29 a month, against a middle price of $39 for the category: 16 of the 56 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.3 out of 4. 6 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 65 SEO tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. SpyFu’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 11 of 64
- CFree plan and trialAbove 14 of 64
- CFeaturesAbove 0 of 64
- CEase of useAbove 0 of 64
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 15 of 64
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 57 SEO tools. Further left costs less; higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. SpyFu is the marked dot.
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
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 SpyFu you would be making search volumes for millions of keywords, gathered and kept up to date. 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: 23 of the 64 other SEO tools grade higher. It costs $348 a year.
What you could make
- Reports: an app builder makes this well.
What you could not
- Search volumes for millions of keywords, gathered and kept up to date.
- An index of the links between billions of web pages.
- Daily checks of where your pages rank in search results.
- A crawler that checks every page of a site.
- It plugs into other products, ChatGPT, Google Sheets and Google Tag Manager among them, and has an API.
- AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
What this rests on. SpyFu’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, Ahrefs, Serpstat, SE Ranking and Similarweb
The 5 tools SpyFu is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 2.2GPA
Semrush
Free plan · from $117.33/mo
SEO suite for keyword research, rank tracking and AI search visibility.
- 2.0GPA
Ahrefs
Free plan · from $29/mo
SEO toolset for backlinks, keyword research, audits and rank tracking.
- Only Ahrefs lists a browser extension.
- SpyFu also covers reports.
- 2.0GPA
Serpstat
Free trial · from $50/mo
All-in-one SEO platform for research, rank tracking and site audits.
- SpyFu has a free plan. Serpstat does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Serpstat lists a browser extension.
- 2.2GPA
SE Ranking
Free trial · from $103.20/mo
SEO platform for rank tracking, audits, research and AI visibility.
- SpyFu has a free plan. SE Ranking does not, though it has a free trial.
- 2.0GPA
Similarweb
Free plan · from $125/mo
Traffic estimates, keyword research and competitor data for any site.
- Only Similarweb lists a browser extension.
- SpyFu also covers reports.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
13
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 SpyFu free?
SpyFu has a free plan. Free version with no time limit: search any domain or keyword and see a limited set of results.
How much does SpyFu cost?
SpyFu lists 3 plans. Basic: $29 per month, billed yearly ($39 billed monthly).
What platforms does SpyFu work on?
SpyFu is available on Web.
Does SpyFu have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 23, 2026. SpyFu is listed for Web.
Does SpyFu have an iPhone app?
No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 23, 2026. SpyFu is listed for Web.
Is SpyFu open source?
SpyFu is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 23, 2026.
Does SpyFu have an API?
Yes. SpyFu offers a public API, according to its own site.
What does SpyFu integrate with?
SpyFu's listing names ChatGPT, Google Sheets, Google Tag Manager and RivalFlow AI.
Who makes SpyFu?
SpyFu is made by SpyFu, Inc.
What are the alternatives to SpyFu?
The closest alternatives to SpyFu in our directory are Semrush, Ahrefs, Serpstat, SE Ranking and Similarweb.
How does SpyFu compare with other SEO tools?
SpyFu's GPA of 2.2 is higher than 20 of the 64 other SEO tools we grade, and level with 21.
Is SpyFu good value for money?
ToolGPA grades SpyFu C for value for money. Its paid plans start at $29 a month, against a middle price of $39 for the category: 16 of the 56 others that charge start lower.
Could I make my own version of SpyFu?
To replace SpyFu you would be making search volumes for millions of keywords, gathered and kept up to date.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from SpyFu’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 SpyFu's own pages on 23 October 2026, with its prices read from its pricing page in a browser on 24 October 2026. 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 SpyFu, Inc. Prices change, so check spyfu.com before you buy.
- spyfu.com/pricing
- spyfu.com/
- spyfu.com/semrush-alternative
- help.spyfu.com/en/articles/5569689-more-answers-about-our-pricing-and-plans
- help.spyfu.com/en/articles/3047918-is-there-a-free-trial-for-spyfu
- help.spyfu.com/en/articles/2968669-quick-introduction-to-spyfu
- help.spyfu.com/en/articles/2968627-how-does-the-30-day-money-back-guarantee-work
- help.spyfu.com/en/articles/13016108-how-are-api-charges-calculated
- help.spyfu.com/en/articles/16112706-spyfu-site-audit-overview
- help.spyfu.com/en/articles/16379930-what-are-ai-credits-for-in-a-site-audit
- help.spyfu.com/en/articles/5640863-what-s-new-on-spyfu
- help.spyfu.com/en/articles/11473287-what-is-rivalflow-ai
- help.spyfu.com/en/collections/19702339-spyfu-site-audit
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
- SpyFu, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/spyfu
- 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, "SpyFu: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 23, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/spyfu
Know someone choosing between SEO tools?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/spyfu/guide
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See our other guides
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- SEO Tools Insider's GuideEvery one of the 65 SEO tools we grade, compared
- Rank Math Insider's GuideWordPress SEO plugin for meta tags, schema, sitemaps and rank tracking3.0 GPA
- Keywords Everywhere Insider's GuideBrowser extension that shows search volume on the sites you browse2.8 GPA
- NeuronWriter Insider's GuideContent editor that scores drafts against the pages already ranking2.8 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 SpyFu’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. SpyFu is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by SpyFu, Inc. Prices and plans change: check spyfu.com before you buy.