Ahrefs: pricing, free plan, features & alternatives (2026)

What is Ahrefs?

Ahrefs is a marketing platform built around its own large index of the web and search databases. Its core tools cover search marketing (keyword research, competitor analysis, rank tracking), AI search visibility (Brand Radar and Custom Prompts for tracking brand mentions and citations in AI chatbots), website performance (Site Audit, Web Analytics, Bot Analytics), content marketing, social media scheduling, reporting dashboards, and local SEO through GBP Monitor.

In practice, users enter a domain or keyword and get data on traffic, backlinks, ranking positions, and how competitors perform. The newer Letaido product adds AI agents that build reports and automate marketing workflows. Ahrefs also offers an API and MCP access on its plans, and a set of free tools such as an AI Visibility Checker and a Word Count tool.

Key features

Keyword research and search volume data in Keywords Explorer
Competitor website analysis in Site Explorer
Rank tracking in search engines and Google Search Console
Brand Radar for tracking brand mentions and citations in AI chatbots
Site Audit for finding and fixing website issues
Social Media Manager for scheduling posts across channels

Who is it for

SEO specialists and marketing consultants
In-house marketing teams
Content marketers
Small businesses and agencies

How to get started with Ahrefs

Click Start for Free on ahrefs.com
Pick a free tool, e.g. AI Visibility Checker or Word Count
Add your domain to see website data
Open Keywords Explorer to research keywords

Choose it if

You want to analyze competitor sites and their backlink profiles
You care about tracking brand mentions in AI answers
You run SEO for an agency or several clients at once

Skip it if

You need a fully free plan with full functionality
You have a very small budget and only need basic data

Pros and cons

Pros

Large proprietary web index and search databases
Covers both traditional search and AI search visibility in one platform

Cons

Paid plans start at 129 USD per month
Free access is limited to free tools and a few website performance features

Ahrefs pricing

Plan	Price	Includes
Lite	129 USD / month	5 projects, 750 tracked keywords, 5 tracked AI prompts, 100,000 crawl credits, 1 user included, API and MCP access; 2 extra users at 40 USD/mo each. Annual payment saves up to 17%.
Standard	249 USD / month	20 projects, 2,000 tracked keywords, 10 tracked AI prompts, 500,000 crawl credits, unlimited credits per user, 1 user included; 5 extra users at 60 USD/mo each. Annual payment saves up to 17%.
Advanced	449 USD / month	50 projects, 5,000 tracked keywords, 20 tracked AI prompts, 5 years of historical data, 1 user included, API and MCP access. Annual payment saves up to 17%.

Prices copied from Ahrefs pricing, checked October 12, 2026. Currency as shown by the vendor; taxes may apply.

Ahrefs pricing details →

Is Ahrefs free?

There is a free trial. The homepage offers a free sign-up option and free tools such as the AI Visibility Checker, AI Writing Tools, SEO Browser Extension and Word Count, plus free website health monitoring and Web Analytics. The pricing page lists paid plans only, so the scope of a free trial is not specified in the text.