The Best Ahrefs Alternatives in 2026 (Cheaper SEO Tools)
Tolodora Editorial Team
Tolodora's editorial team — we research, compile and regularly update these software guides from public sources and product documentation.
Ahrefs is a favorite for backlink analysis and competitive research, but it's premium-priced and has no meaningful free tier. Whether you want an all-in-one at a better price, strong backlink data for less, or something free to start, there are excellent alternatives.
These all cover the core SEO jobs — keywords, backlinks, rank tracking, audits — at different price points.
We rated every pick on four things — pricing and value, functionality, ease of use, and support. Here's the rundown.
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Semrush
- Pricing
- 6.2/10
- Functionality
- 9.6/10
- Ease of use
- 8.4/10
- Support
- 8.6/10
What I like
The most complete all-in-one — keywords, backlinks, rank tracking, audits, plus content, PPC and social tools in one platform.
Best for
Marketers who want the widest toolkit and don't mind a premium price.
Semrush is the closest like-for-like Ahrefs rival, arguably broader thanks to its content, advertising and social modules. Its keyword and competitive data are excellent. It's priced similarly to Ahrefs, so you switch for the wider toolset rather than to save money.
SE Ranking
- Pricing
- 9.0/10
- Functionality
- 8.8/10
- Ease of use
- 8.8/10
- Support
- 8.8/10
What I like
A full SEO suite at roughly a third of Ahrefs' price, with a flexible pay-for-what-you-track model and a great rank tracker.
Best for
Small agencies and businesses who want the full toolkit affordably.
SE Ranking matches Ahrefs on the essentials — keyword research, rank tracking, backlinks and audits — for far less, with white-label reporting for agencies. The best value all-rounder for teams leaving Ahrefs over price.
Moz Pro
- Pricing
- 7.4/10
- Functionality
- 8.4/10
- Ease of use
- 8.8/10
- Support
- 8.6/10
What I like
The Domain Authority metric clients recognize, plus a mature, approachable toolset and excellent SEO learning resources.
Best for
Teams that value an established brand and clean, approachable tools.
Moz Pro handles keywords, rank tracking, audits and link analysis competently, and its Domain Authority remains an industry shorthand. Not the deepest index, but reliable and beginner-friendly, with a free trial — a solid Ahrefs alternative.
Majestic
- Pricing
- 8.4/10
- Functionality
- 8.6/10
- Ease of use
- 7.8/10
- Support
- 8.0/10
What I like
A backlink specialist with one of the largest link indexes and unique metrics (Trust Flow, Citation Flow) built purely for link analysis.
Best for
SEOs focused specifically on backlinks and link intelligence.
Majestic does one thing exceptionally: backlinks. If your main reason for using Ahrefs is link analysis, Majestic offers a huge index and trusted link metrics at a lower price. It lacks the all-in-one features, but for pure link data it's a specialist's favorite.
Mangools
- Pricing
- 9.0/10
- Functionality
- 7.8/10
- Ease of use
- 9.5/10
- Support
- 8.4/10
What I like
The friendliest SEO suite — KWFinder makes low-competition keywords easy, and the whole bundle is clean, fast and cheap.
Best for
Beginners and content creators who find Ahrefs overwhelming.
Mangools (KWFinder, SERPWatcher, LinkMiner) is beautiful and beginner-friendly, focused on keyword research and rank tracking at a fraction of Ahrefs' cost. You lose deep technical features, but for the jobs most people actually do, it's a delightful, affordable alternative.
Ubersuggest
- Pricing
- 9.2/10
- Functionality
- 7.4/10
- Ease of use
- 9.0/10
- Support
- 7.0/10
What I like
A free tier plus an affordable lifetime plan — great for keyword ideas, basic tracking and quick audits without a big bill.
Best for
Solo founders and bloggers who want most features cheaply or free.
Ubersuggest is the budget pick: a usable free tier and one of the industry's few lifetime plans. Data depth trails Ahrefs, but for keyword research, content ideas and light tracking it's more than enough — and the price is unbeatable.
The verdict
Want the closest all-in-one rival? Semrush. Best value all-rounder? SE Ranking. Backlink specialist for less? Majestic. Beginner-friendly and cheap? Mangools or Ubersuggest.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free Ahrefs alternative?
Ahrefs Webmaster Tools is free for your own site, and Google Search Console (free) plus Ubersuggest's free tier cover a lot. For competitor data, most strong tools are paid, but SE Ranking and Serpstat are cheaper than Ahrefs.
Which alternative has the best backlink data?
Semrush and Majestic have large backlink indexes. Majestic specializes in link data (with its Trust Flow metric), while Semrush offers backlinks plus the full SEO toolkit.
What's the cheapest Ahrefs alternative?
Ubersuggest, Mangools and Serpstat are the most affordable paid options, and SE Ranking's pay-for-what-you-track model keeps costs down.
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