Last updated: 11 July 2026
Changelog: 11 July 2026: expanded with a comparison matrix, price-per-feature table, per-persona picks and a “when to stay” section, Ahrefs pricing refreshed in UK GBP, Ubersuggest and Sitechecker plans re-read on vendor pages, and page moved from /semrush-alternatives/ to /seo-tools/semrush-alternatives/ (first published 5 July 2026).
Disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links. If you buy through one we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. We only recommend tools we would genuinely use.
The best Semrush alternative for most agencies is SE Ranking: it covers rank tracking, site audits, keyword research, competitor analysis and reporting from £76 per month billed annually, against $139 (about £102) per month for Semrush’s entry SEO plan, as of July 2026. If backlink data is what you actually pay for, Ahrefs (from £23 per month in the UK) is the strongest single-purpose swap. Below we compare nine Semrush alternatives on pricing verified in July 2026 and give straight recommendations by situation. We are Luckywebs, a London SEO and web agency, and we pay for SEO tools out of the same kind of budgets these decisions come from. More comparisons live on our SEO tools hub.
Why look for a Semrush alternative?
An agency or in-house team looks for a Semrush alternative for one of three reasons: price, seats, or focus. Semrush has overhauled its plan lineup: the entry SEO plan costs $139 (about £102) per month ($117.33, about £86, billed annually), Starter $199 (about £146), Pro+ $299 (about £220) and Advanced $549 (about £403) (USD, as of July 2026), each with one seat and extra seats from $45 (about £33) per user. Many roundups still quote the retired Pro, Guru and Business plans; our full Semrush pricing breakdown covers the current lineup. For a small agency running ten retainers, that maths gets uncomfortable fast. This page is not a hatchet job: Semrush is strong, but most agencies use perhaps a third of it, and several competitors sell that third for far less. The right question is which alternatives to Semrush cover the work you actually invoice for.
How do the 9 Semrush competitors compare at a glance?
The nine Semrush competitors on this page range from £23 per month at UK prices to enterprise-level spend, as of July 2026. The matrix shows each tool’s cheapest published plan, whether a genuinely free option exists, and our one-line verdict. Currencies appear exactly as each vendor showed them; nothing is converted. If billing currency is the deciding factor, our UK buyer’s guide to SEO software groups the field by who charges in pounds.
| # | Tool | Entry price (as of July 2026) | Free option | One-line verdict |
|---|
| 1 | SE Ranking | £95/mo, £76/mo billed annually (GBP, UK) | 14-day trial, no card | Closest all-round Semrush replacement at a lower entry price |
| 2 | Ahrefs | £23/mo Starter (limited), £99/mo Lite (GBP, UK) | Free plan for verified sites | The backlink benchmark; costs climb fast with seats |
| 3 | Moz Pro | $49/mo (about £36) entry plan, $99/mo (about £73) Standard (USD) | Limited free tools | Gentlest learning curve for beginners and in-house teams |
| 4 | SEO PowerSuite | $349/year (about £256) Professional (USD) | Free desktop edition | Unlimited projects for one flat annual licence; desktop only |
| 5 | Serpstat | $50/mo (about £37) Individual, billed annually (USD) | 7-day trial | Cheapest credible all-in-one; check its data for UK niches |
| 6 | Mangools | $49/mo (about £36) Basic, less on annual (USD) | Free account, daily limits | Nicest keyword research suite; no site audit at all |
| 7 | Ubersuggest | US$29/mo (about £21) Personal | 3 free searches per day | Lowest entry price plus a lifetime deal; shallow data |
| 8 | SpyFu | $39/mo (about £29) Basic, $29/mo (about £21) billed annually (USD) | Limited free lookups | The PPC intelligence specialist; weak on technical SEO |
| 9 | Sitechecker | $79/mo (about £58) Basic (USD, vendor page) | Free trial | Audit and monitoring led; pair with a research tool |
What are the 9 best Semrush alternatives in 2026?
The nine best Semrush alternatives in 2026 are SE Ranking, Ahrefs, Moz Pro, SEO PowerSuite, Serpstat, Mangools, Ubersuggest, SpyFu and Sitechecker. Each entry below states what the tool replaces from Semrush, its verified price, what it lacks, and who should buy it.
1. SE Ranking (best price-to-feature ratio for agencies)
SE Ranking is the tool we recommend first because it replaces the Semrush core (rank tracking, site audit, keyword and competitor research, backlinks, reporting) at a lower entry price. As of July 2026 the Core plan costs £95 per month, or £76 billed annually with 20% off (GBP, per SE Ranking’s UK pricing page), including 10 projects, 2,000 keywords checked daily, 100 tracked AI prompts per day, a 250,000-page monthly audit allowance and API access. Our SE Ranking review and SE Ranking vs Semrush comparison go deeper.
What it lacks: Semrush’s advertising research and PR toolkits are deeper. For pure SEO delivery, a fair trade.
Best for: agencies and freelancers with 3 to 30 clients who want one login for tracking, audits and reports.
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2. Ahrefs (best for backlink and content research)
Ahrefs replaces Semrush’s backlink analytics, keyword research and content gap work, and many SEOs prefer its link data outright. On Ahrefs’ UK pricing as of July 2026, Starter costs £23 per month with tight limits and Lite costs £99 per month (GBP), with bigger tiers above. A free plan exists for websites you verify. Budgeting caveats: rank tracking updates weekly by default (daily updates are the paid Project Boost add-on), and API v3 access starts at Lite with 100,000 units per month. We compare the two head to head in Semrush vs Ahrefs.
What it lacks: white-label reporting is not the focus, and Starter is too limited for client work, so realistic agency spend starts at Lite.
Best for: agencies where links and content are the main billable services, or as a second tool beside a cheaper tracker.
3. Moz Pro (best for beginners and small in-house teams)
Moz Pro replaces Semrush’s keyword research, rank tracking and site crawl basics, wrapped around Domain Authority, the 0 to 100 score Moz invented to predict how well a domain is likely to rank. As of July 2026, Standard costs $99 (about £73) per month (roughly $79, about £58, billed annually), Medium $179 (about £132) and Large $299 (about £220), plus a $49 (about £36) entry plan often labelled Starter (USD; Moz’s site blocked our direct check this month, so these are cross-checked against current 2026 sources and worth confirming on its pricing page). A 7-day trial requires a card.
What it lacks: no PPC research to speak of, a smaller link index than Ahrefs or Semrush, and fewer agency workflow features.
Best for: in-house marketers at small firms, and anyone learning structured SEO on a modest budget.
4. SEO PowerSuite (best one-off annual licence)
SEO PowerSuite replaces rank tracking, technical audits, backlink analysis and outreach with four desktop applications (Rank Tracker, WebSite Auditor, SEO SpyGlass and LinkAssistant) rather than a browser platform. Read from the vendor’s own site in July 2026: Professional costs $349 (about £256) per year, Enterprise (which adds white-label reporting with scheduling) $599 (about £440), and Max+ $899 (about £661) (USD), with unlimited projects and keywords on all paid editions. A free edition exists (more below).
What it lacks: it is desktop software, so data lives on your machine, checks run while the app is open, and there is no shared cloud workspace.
Best for: consultants who want unlimited projects for one predictable yearly payment.
5. Serpstat (best budget all-in-one)
Serpstat replaces Semrush’s keyword research, rank tracking, site audit and competitor analysis in one browser platform at lower prices. Read from Serpstat’s own pricing page in July 2026: Individual costs $50 (about £37) per month billed annually (5 projects, 100 daily searches, 10,000 position checks a month) and Team costs $100 (about £73) per month billed annually with unlimited projects (USD). Annual billing saves $228 (about £168) a year on Individual against monthly rates, and there is a 7-day free trial.
What it lacks: its databases are strongest in Eastern European markets, so sanity-check volumes for UK-only campaigns before committing.
Best for: small teams that want the all-in-one shape of Semrush at well under half the entry price.
6. Mangools (best for keyword-research-led freelancers)
Mangools replaces Semrush’s keyword research and SERP analysis with a five-tool suite (KWFinder, SERPChecker, SERPWatcher, LinkMiner and SiteProfiler) that is widely praised for how pleasant its interface is to use. Mangools loads prices dynamically, so we could not read them from its own page: third-party roundups in July 2026 list Basic at $49 (about £36) per month, about $29.90 (about £22) on annual billing (USD). Confirm on Mangools’ pricing page before buying. A free account and free mini SEO tools are available.
What it lacks: no site audit crawler and no serious technical SEO features, so it cannot be your only tool on a full-service retainer.
Best for: freelancers and content teams whose deliverables are keyword research and rank movement.
7. Ubersuggest (best entry price for solo site owners)
Ubersuggest, Neil Patel’s tool, replaces basic keyword research, rank tracking and site audits at one of the lowest subscription entry prices here. Read from its own pricing page in July 2026: Personal costs US$29 (about £21) per month and Business US$99 (about £73), with an Enterprise tier above. There is a one-time 7-day free trial on monthly plans and a free tier of 3 searches per day. Lifetime licences are heavily promoted (“90% off with lifetime access”) without static figures; current roundups list the entry lifetime at US$290 (about £213).
What it lacks: data depth. Keyword and backlink data are noticeably thinner than the premium tools, and agency features are minimal.
Best for: solo owners doing their own SEO, or as a sense-check beside client-grade software. Our Semrush for beginners guide covers the same ground from the other direction.
8. SpyFu (best for PPC and competitor intelligence)
SpyFu replaces Semrush’s advertising research: competitor Google Ads history, paid keyword buys, and SEO keyword overlap. This is where most cheap Semrush alternatives fall flat, and SpyFu makes it its whole business. As of July 2026: Basic $39 (about £29) per month ($29, about £21, billed annually), Pro + AI $119 (about £87) ($89, about £65, annually), Team/Agency $249 (about £183) ($187, about £137, annually), in USD. SpyFu’s own page timed out on our check this month, so those figures are cross-checked against multiple current 2026 pricing sources.
What it lacks: site audit and technical SEO tooling are not the point, and rank tracking updates weekly rather than daily.
Best for: agencies pitching against incumbents, and anyone running SEO and Google Ads for the same clients. Pair it with our competitor analysis walkthrough.
9. Sitechecker (best for monitoring-led client work)
Sitechecker replaces Semrush’s site audit, rank tracking and monitoring with an audit-first platform that watches client sites for changes and issues. Read from Sitechecker’s own plans page in July 2026: Basic $79 (about £58) per month, or $66 (about £49) billed annually (5 websites, 10,000 pages, 500 tracked keywords, 50 tracked AI prompts), Standard $189 (about £139) (15 websites, 50,000 pages, 2,000 keywords), Premium $349 (about £256) (USD). There is a free trial and a 48-hour money-back guarantee. Third-party roundups quote very different Sitechecker prices, so treat the vendor page as final.
What it lacks: keyword research and backlink analysis are shallow next to Ahrefs or SE Ranking, so it pairs with a research tool rather than replacing one.
Best for: agencies whose retainers centre on technical health, monitoring and audit reporting.
Which free Semrush alternative is genuinely free?
A genuinely free Semrush alternative is one you can keep using indefinitely without entering payment details, not a time-limited trial. If you are searching for a Semrush free alternative, four options passed that test in July 2026:
- Ahrefs Webmaster Tools: Ahrefs’ free tier for sites you verify, with site audit and your own domain’s link data. The catch: no competitor research at all.
- SEO PowerSuite free edition: $0 desktop software: one unsaved project, 500-URL audits, up to 1,100 backlinks analysed, and Google AI Overviews tracking.
- Ubersuggest free tier: 3 searches per day and a single project. Fine for one small site, unusable for client work.
- Google Search Console: free, first-party ranking and indexing data for your own site. Every option above should sit on top of it.
Mangools also offers a free account, and Semrush itself has a free $0 plan with daily limits. Fuller lists live in best free SEO tools and free keyword research tools.
How much does each alternative cost per core feature?
Comparing price per feature shows where each Semrush alternative genuinely saves money and where it quietly drops a capability. The table lines up each tool’s entry paid plan against the five features agencies buy these platforms for, as of July 2026; “light” means present but shallow.
| Tool | Entry paid plan | Rank tracking | Site audit | Backlinks | PPC research | AI visibility tracking |
|---|
| Semrush | $139/mo (about £102) ($117.33, about £86, annual) | Daily | 140+ checks, JS rendering | 43 trillion links (vendor claim) | Deep | Toolkit covers 5 engines |
| SE Ranking | £95/mo (£76 annual) | Daily | Included | Included | Light | Included (100 prompts/day) |
| Ahrefs | £23 Starter, £99 Lite | Weekly (daily = add-on) | Included | Benchmark quality | Light | Check vendor |
| Moz Pro | $49 (about £36) entry, $99 (about £73) Standard | Included | Included | Included | No | Check vendor |
| SEO PowerSuite | $349/yr (about £256) | Included (desktop) | Included | Included | No | Google AI Overviews |
| Serpstat | $50/mo (about £37) (annual) | Included | Included | Included | Light | Check vendor |
| Mangools | $49/mo (about £36) | Included | No | Prospecting only | No | Free AI Search Grader |
| Ubersuggest | US$29/mo (about £21) | Included | Included | Light | Light | Check vendor |
| SpyFu | $39/mo (about £29) ($29, about £21, annual) | Weekly | No | Light | Deep | Check vendor |
| Sitechecker | $79/mo (about £58) | Included | Included (audit-first) | Light | No | Included (50 prompts) |
“Check vendor” means we could not confirm the feature on the pricing sources we read in July 2026, not that it is absent. On reporting: Semrush sells My Reports as a $10 (about £7) or $20 (about £15) monthly add-on, while SE Ranking includes reporting on every plan. Our reporting tools roundup compares that layer, and our guide to tracking rankings in AI search covers the AI column.
When is staying with Semrush the right choice?
Staying with Semrush is the right choice when you genuinely use its breadth. If your team runs SEO, PPC research, content marketing and digital PR from one login, no alternative on this page replaces all four: you would be stitching together two or three subscriptions and might save little. Semrush’s backlink index (43 trillion links, vendor claim), its Site Audit with 140+ checks and JavaScript rendering, and its AI Visibility Toolkit covering ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews and Google AI Mode are also hard to match in one product, as of July 2026. Annual billing brings the entry SEO plan to $117.33 (about £86) per month, which narrows the gap on several rivals, and Semrush Local adds listings management from $30 (about £22) per location. Read our full Semrush review for where it earns the money, or test it yourself: there is a 7-day trial (card required) and a free $0 plan at semrush.com.
Which Semrush alternative fits your situation?
The right Semrush alternative depends on client count, the services you invoice for, and whether you need white-label reporting. The scenarios below cover the buying situations we hear most, with prices as verified in July 2026.
What is the cheapest alternative for an agency with 10 clients?
SE Ranking Core is the cheapest credible option for an agency with 10 clients: it allows exactly 10 projects with 2,000 daily-checked keywords for £76 per month billed annually as of July 2026. Serpstat Individual ($50, about £37, per month billed annually) and Sitechecker Basic both cap you at 5 projects, so neither covers ten clients on their entry plans.
What should a freelancer with two or three clients buy?
A freelancer with two or three clients should look at Mangools (from about $29.90, about £22, per month on annual billing, per 2026 roundups) if the work is keyword and content led, or SpyFu Basic ($29, about £21, per month billed annually) if it leans PPC. If you prefer paying once a year, SEO PowerSuite Professional at $349 (about £256) gives unlimited projects.
What should an in-house team with one site and no budget use?
An in-house team with one website and no budget should combine Google Search Console, Ahrefs Webmaster Tools on the verified domain, and Ubersuggest’s 3 free daily searches. That stack costs nothing; it only fails you when you need competitor research at scale. Our DIY SEO guide shows how to run it.
What if we run both SEO and PPC competitor research?
An agency running both SEO and PPC competitor research should shortlist SpyFu Team/Agency at $249 (about £183) per month against Semrush Pro+ at $299 (about £220) per month (both USD, as of July 2026). At broadly similar prices, Semrush is broader across SEO, while SpyFu goes deeper on advertising history and paid keyword data.
We chose the nine Semrush alternatives above by checking, in July 2026, that each one exists, publishes current pricing, and replaces a meaningful slice of Semrush for agency work. Every price was read from the vendor’s own pricing page where possible (SEO PowerSuite, Serpstat, Sitechecker and Ubersuggest were re-read directly this month), or cross-checked against multiple current 2026 sources where vendors hide prices behind scripts or blocked our automated checks (Mangools, Moz, SpyFu), and is quoted in the currency the source displayed; nothing was converted or rounded. Our testing methodology explains the process. Luckywebs is a London SEO and web agency rated 4.7 stars from 60 Google reviews; Mo Rafi leads technical SEO, Katy Mironenko is Head of SEO, Robert Malnieks is Client Strategy Director, and the same team delivered a 40% rise in enquiries for Circa London and 60% more leads for RAKLaw. The ranking above would not change if the commission disappeared tomorrow.
What else do people ask about Semrush alternatives?
People comparing Semrush alternatives ask the same remaining questions, answered here with the July 2026 pricing used across this page.
Which sites like Semrush are most similar overall?
SE Ranking is the site most similar to Semrush overall, because it mirrors the all-in-one shape: rank tracking, site audit, keyword and competitor research, backlinks and reporting in one platform. Serpstat is next closest in structure. Ahrefs overlaps heavily on research but is not trying to match Semrush feature for feature.
Yes, two routes avoid a monthly fee entirely as of July 2026. SEO PowerSuite sells annual licences ($349, about £256, Professional, $599, about £440, Enterprise, USD), and Ubersuggest advertises lifetime licences, listed at US$290 (about £213) for the entry tier in current roundups. Both trade some data depth for that pricing model.
How much cheaper than Semrush are the alternatives?
Comparing like-for-like in USD as of July 2026: Semrush’s entry SEO plan is $139 (about £102) per month, while Moz Pro Standard is $99 (about £73), Serpstat Individual is $50 (about £37) on annual billing and Ubersuggest is US$29 (about £21). SE Ranking starts at £95 per month (£76 billed annually), quoted in GBP as sourced rather than converted. Savings of roughly 30% to 80% at entry level are realistic, with fewer features in the bargain.
Do alternatives to Semrush include backlink data?
Most alternatives to Semrush include backlink data, but depth varies widely. Ahrefs is the reference point many agencies trust most. SE Ranking, Moz, Serpstat and SEO PowerSuite all include backlink checking, Mangools has LinkMiner for prospecting, and Sitechecker and Ubersuggest treat links as secondary. To see who links to you now, start with our backlink check walkthrough.
Is switching away from Semrush painful?
Switching away from Semrush is less painful than most teams expect, because keyword lists, tracking targets and audit configurations rebuild quickly in any alternative. What you genuinely lose is history: your position tracking archive stays behind unless the new platform offers an import. Export keyword lists and positions as CSV before cancelling, and run both tools in parallel for one billing cycle.
Where should we start?
Start with the free trial of the tool that matches your biggest cost problem. If that problem is “Semrush does everything but costs too much for the seats we need”, SE Ranking’s 14-day trial requires no card and covers every feature discussed above.
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