The strongest pick for backlink research and competitor link analysis, with a big keyword database and long history, but the cheapest full plan rations reports with credits and every extra user is billed on top.
What it is
Ahrefs covers Site Explorer (backlinks, organic keywords and traffic estimates for any site), Keywords Explorer, Site Audit, Rank Tracker and Brand Radar for AI search visibility, with API and MCP access on paid plans. Plans: Starter $29 a month (basic keyword and competitor lookups); Lite $129 a month with 1,000 credits per user, 6 months of history, 5 non-verified projects and 1 user (up to 2 more at $40 a month each); Standard $249 with unlimited credits, 2 years of history and up to 5 extra users at $60 each; Advanced $449 with 5 years of history and up to 10 extra users at $80 each; Enterprise through sales. Ahrefs Free (Ahrefs Webmaster Tools) gives site owners audits and backlink data for their own verified sites. Add-ons include Brand Radar custom prompts from $50 a month, Content Kit from $99 and Report Builder $99. Checked on ahrefs.com/pricing November 14, 2026.
Best for
- Backlink research and link building
- Competitor content and keyword gap analysis
- SEOs who need long historical data
What we like
- One of the largest backlink indexes, built by what Ahrefs calls the second-most active web crawler
- Unlimited credits from Standard ($249) up
- Free Webmaster Tools for your own verified sites
What to watch
- Lite ($129) caps each user at 1,000 credits a month, and big reports burn credits fast
- Per-user pricing: each extra seat is $40 to $80 a month on top of the plan
- Only 6 months of history on Lite; 2 years needs Standard at $249
- No free trial; the $29 Starter plan is a light lookup tool, not the full suite
Where Ahrefs ranks
Alternatives and head-to-heads
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