# vidIQ review (2026): is the free plan enough?

> YouTube keyword research, video ideas and AI coaching for creators

Checked Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA.

vidIQ is a growth toolkit for YouTube creators, with a web app, a browser extension that adds stats and SEO scores to YouTube pages, and mobile apps. It suggests video ideas, researches keywords, scores titles, tags and thumbnails, and clips long videos into Shorts. Paid plans add more AI credits, and separate coaching plans pair a creator with a human coach.

- **Category:** YouTube SEO Tools
- **Made by:** vidIQ
- **Website:** https://vidiq.com
- **Runs on:** Web, Browser extension, iOS, Android
- **Who should skip it:** Tight if you lean on the AI tools, since Free has 150 credits a month and every thumbnail, clip and MCP call spends them.
- **Facts last checked:** Oct 23, 2026

## Pricing

As of Oct 23, 2026, vidIQ has a free plan, and paid plans start at $16.58 per month for 1 channel, billed annually ($19 billed monthly).

- **Pricing model:** Free plan
- **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.
- **Free trial:** None listed.

| Plan | Price | What you get |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 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. |
| Enterprise | Custom | For brands, agencies and networks: every channel, roles and permissions, cross-channel reporting and priority onboarding. Sold after a demo. |

Read from https://vidiq.com/plans/ on Oct 23, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with vidIQ before buying.

## Ways to pay less

- **Save up to 20% with yearly billing** (Annual discount): 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). Source: https://vidiq.com/plans/

## Key features

- **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.

## Good for

- YouTube creators who want keyword data and video ideas in one place
- Creators who post to both YouTube and Instagram Reels
- Small channels that want a human coach as well as software

## Worth knowing

- 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.

## ToolGPA grades

**GPA: 2.8 out of 4**, graded Oct 23, 2026. vidIQ puts keyword scores, video ideas and upload suggestions into a web app, a browser extension and phone apps, with a free plan to start. The catch is credits: every AI tool spends them, Free gets 150 a month, and the bigger allowances on Boost and MAX have no price on the page. More than 3 channels or a second person means Enterprise, sold after a demo.

- **Value for money: C.** Boost 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: C.** Free 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: B.** Keyword 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: A.** 4.8 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: B.** Web, 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.

These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from vidIQ's own pages on 23 October 2026, and its App Store rating. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews.

## Where it stands among YouTube SEO tools

- vidIQ's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 24 of the 28 other YouTube SEO tools we grade, and level with 2.
- It stands best on ease of use (A, above 28 of 28) and worst on value for money (C, above 3).
- Its paid plans start at $16.58 a month, against a middle price of $17.79 for the category: 11 of the 23 others that charge start lower.
- On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 3.3 out of 4, and no tool on the category's chart scores higher without costing more.

The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/youtube-seo

## Keep it, or make your own?

**Keep it.** To replace vidIQ 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. It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 2.8 is higher than 24 of the 28 other YouTube SEO tools we grade. It costs $198.96 a year.

- You could not: Search volumes for millions of keywords, gathered and kept up to date.
- You could not: An image model, which you can rent by the picture but not make.
- You could not: Search data for YouTube topics and channels.
- You could not: A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.
- You could not: It plugs into other products, YouTube, YouTube Studio and Instagram among them.
- You could not: AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
- You could not: People on the other end: coaches. No app builder makes those.
- You could not: The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job.

A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it.

## Works with

YouTube, YouTube Studio, Instagram, Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, Perplexity, Slack

**Tags:** YouTube SEO, Keyword research, AI features, Image generation

## Alternatives

- [TubeBuddy](https://toolgpa.com/tools/tubebuddy): YouTube browser extension for keyword research, SEO and A/B tests. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/tubebuddy-vs-vidiq)
- [Morningfame](https://toolgpa.com/tools/morningfame): Invite-only YouTube analytics and keyword research for small channels. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/morningfame-vs-vidiq)
- [1of10](https://toolgpa.com/tools/1of10): YouTube outlier finder with AI thumbnails, titles and video ideas. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/1of10-vs-vidiq)
- [Viewstats](https://toolgpa.com/tools/viewstats): YouTube channel statistics, outlier videos and thumbnail research. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/vidiq-vs-viewstats)
- [OutlierKit](https://toolgpa.com/tools/outlierkit): YouTube outlier and competitor research for expert-led channels. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/outlierkit-vs-vidiq)

## Sources

The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 23, 2026:

- https://vidiq.com/plans/
- https://vidiq.com/
- https://vidiq.com/features/
- https://vidiq.com/extension/
- https://vidiq.com/mobile-app/
- https://vidiq.com/coaching/
- https://enterprise.vidiq.com/

Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/vidiq
Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).