SE Ranking vs Semrush
Pick SE Ranking if you want rank tracking, site audits and white-label client reporting at a lower entry price, with basic AI-search tracking included in SE Visible. Pick Semrush if you need larger published databases, AI-visibility tracking built into the suite and wider toolkits, and can budget for add-ons.
Who each is for
SE Ranking. Small marketing teams, freelancers and agencies that want rank tracking, audits and competitor research in one subscription, with entry-level AI-search tracking included in SE Visible. It suits agencies best when they want clients to see their own brand, because SE Ranking can white-label the platform itself, not only the reports. SE Ranking on Workstak
Semrush. Marketers, founders and agencies who want the deepest keyword, competitor and backlink research plus AI-visibility tracking in one tool, with separate toolkits for areas like local and content when they need them. It fits teams that will use that depth and can budget for extra users and paid add-ons. Semrush on Workstak
Use cases
SE Ranking
Track your Google rankings against competitors and email clients a monthly report
Core plan and up; white-label branding needs the Agency Pack add-on
Freelancers and small agencies reporting SEO progress to clients. 1) Create a project with the client's site, pick Google and a location, and paste in the keywords to track. 2) Add up to 20 competitor domains so their positions are checked for the same keywords. 3) In Report Builder, pick the project, turn on scheduling (monthly, day and time) and add up to 5 recipient emails.
Find and fix the technical SEO issues holding your site back
Core plan and up
Site owners and marketers without a dedicated technical SEO. 1) Open Website Audit, choose to crawl from the homepage or your XML sitemap, and set a weekly re-crawl. 2) In the Issue Report, start with errors (red), then warnings; click an issue for fix instructions and the number in Pages for affected URLs. 3) After shipping fixes, re-run the audit and compare it with the previous crawl to confirm they cleared.
See whether ChatGPT and AI Overviews recommend you or a competitor
Core or Growth (SE Visible, 25 prompts a day included)
Brands and agencies starting to track AI-search visibility on a budget. 1) Open SE Visible and create a project from your domain; confirm what you offer, who buys it and where. 2) Review the suggested competitors and prompts, keeping your most important ones within the 25 prompts a day included with Core and Growth. 3) Use Competitors to find prompts where a rival is recommended and you aren't, then check Sources for the sites those answers cite.
Semrush
Find the keywords your competitors rank for and you don't
SEO plan and up (free accounts get 10 reports a day)
Marketers and founders planning content against established competitors. 1) Open Keyword Gap, enter your domain plus up to four competitors, choose Organic keywords and your country, then click Compare. 2) Open the Missing tab for keywords every competitor ranks for but you don't, and Weak for ones where they all outrank you. 3) Filter to competitor top-10 positions and a low KD range, then export the list as your content plan.
Track whether ChatGPT, Google AI Mode and Gemini mention your brand
Starter and up (not on the SEO plan)
Brands and agencies that want daily AI-search visibility next to their Google rankings. 1) Go to AI Visibility > Prompt Tracking, click Add new target and pick ChatGPT, Google AI Mode or Gemini plus a location. 2) Add the prompts your buyers ask, one per line or from a CSV, and click Start Tracking (Starter covers 50 prompts). 3) Check Sources for the pages AI answers cite, and schedule a weekly export to your inbox.
Ask Claude or ChatGPT for live Semrush keyword and competitor data
Starter or Pro+ (50,000 API units); SEO plan unclear, confirm first
Marketers who already work in an AI assistant and want Semrush data without opening the app. 1) Connect the Semrush app in ChatGPT or Claude, or in Claude Code run: claude mcp add semrush https://mcp.semrush.com/v2/mcp -t http. 2) Approve access, then tag @Semrush and ask for something specific, such as the top 50 US keywords for a competitor. 3) Name the database and result count in each prompt, as every query spends API units.
Side by side
 SE Ranking |  Semrush | |
|---|---|---|
| Entry plan | Core: $129 per month monthly, $103.20 billed annually (USD) | SEO: $139.95 per month monthly, $117.33 billed annually (USD) |
| Main paid plan | Growth: $279 / $223.20 | Starter: $199 / $165.17 |
| What the entry plan includes | 10 projects, 1 manager seat, 2,000 keywords, 25K API credits and MCP access. | 5 websites, 500 tracked keywords, 3,000 reports a day, site audit. No AI visibility tracking. |
| Backlink index (vendor-stated) | About 2.7T backlinks (vendor-stated) | Semrush says 43T+ backlinks, 808M domain profiles (KB 997; Backlink Analytics page says 390M referring domains) |
| AI-search tracking | SE Visible (separate app) included with every new subscription: 25 prompts a day across 5 AI engines, Core and Growth alike. More via SE Visible plans: Basic $89/mo or $71/mo billed annually, 75 prompts. Pre-29 Oct 2026 accounts keep the AI Results Tracker / $89 AI Search add-on | Not on SEO. Starter 50, Pro+ 100 prompts daily, Advanced "unlimited" (card) / 200 (table). Standalone AI Visibility $99/mo per domain annual (25 prompts) |
| Client reporting and white-label | Agency Pack add-on, +$69/mo, annual billing only: white-label platform + reports, view-only client seats (count not stated: SE Ranking's pages disagree) | Pro report add-on $20/mo per report: branding, white-labeling, custom domain. Base report $10. 3 base reports on all plans |
| Users | Core 1 manager seat, Growth 3; extra seats from $16/mo | 1 user on all plans; extra users $45 (SEO, Starter), $80 (Pro+), $100 (Advanced) per month |
| Free trial / free plan | Free plan: no; Free trial: yes (14 days, no card) | Free plan: yes (10 reports a day, 1 project, 10 tracked keywords); Free trial: yes (7 days, card required) |
| Integrations | Looker Studio (Data Studio), Matomo, Google Analytics 4, Google Search Console, n8n, Make | Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Looker Studio (Pro+ and up), Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor |
| MCP | official. https://api.seranking.com/mcp; OAuth or API key; all plans; Core 25K/Growth 100K api.seranking.com/mcp | official. OAuth or API key; 50K API units on Starter/Pro+; Advanced needs a units pack mcp.semrush.com/v2/mcp |
| API | Yes. Data API + Project API, credit-based; in every plan (Core 25K, Growth 100K) seranking.com/api.html | Yes. API on Advanced, units bought separately; MCP uses the same API units developer.semrush.com/api |
Both vendors also sell higher or agency tiers (SE Ranking Enterprise and its Agency Pack add-on; Semrush Pro+ and Advanced), so check those if you manage many sites or clients.
Pricing checked / · page checked · last reviewed . Sources: seranking.com/subscription.html, semrush.com/prices
Key differences
Which has the bigger backlink database, SE Ranking or Semrush?
Semrush publishes a much larger backlink index than SE Ranking, and it says its own crawler adds new links continuously. SE Ranking's published figure is about 2.7T (vendor-stated). Both numbers are the vendors' own claims and are not independently audited, so test your own domain and a competitor's in both trials before you decide on backlink depth alone.
Sources: semrush.com/kb/997-semrush-data, semrush.com/features/backlink-analysis, seranking.com/our-data.html, help.seranking.com/hc/en-us/articles/3020… · checked
Which tracks ChatGPT and Google AI answers, SE Ranking or Semrush?
Both do, in different ways. New SE Ranking subscriptions, Core and Growth alike, include a small daily prompt allowance in SE Visible, a separate AI-visibility app that covers engines including ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews; more prompts mean a paid SE Visible plan. Accounts bought before 29 October 2026 keep the older AI Results Tracker instead. Semrush leaves AI visibility out of its entry SEO plan; it starts on Starter, inside the main suite, or as a standalone AI Visibility toolkit, and its reports cover ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, AI Mode, Gemini and Perplexity.
Sources: seranking.com/subscription.html, help.seranking.com/hc/en-us/articles/2226…, help.seranking.com/hc/en-us/articles/1633…, visible.seranking.com/pricing, semrush.com/prices, semrush.com/pricing/ai, semrush.com/kb/1607-semrush-ai-visibility… · checked
Can I white-label client reports in SE Ranking or Semrush?
Yes, both, but in different ways. SE Ranking's Agency Pack add-on (annual billing only) white-labels the platform itself, with your domain and interface, plus unlimited branded scheduled reports and view-only client seats (SE Ranking's pages disagree on how many, so confirm the count before you buy). Semrush white-labels reports through Pro reports in My Reports, which are paid per report and add branding, custom domain and link sharing.
Sources: seranking.com/subscription.html, seranking.com/agency-pack.html, help.seranking.com/hc/en-us/articles/1633…, semrush.com/kb/34-my-reports, semrush.com/kb/1546-agency-growth-kit-sun… · checked
Which is cheaper as my team and client list grow?
SE Ranking's entry plan costs less than Semrush's, and SE Ranking's higher plan adds more projects, tracked keywords and manager seats in one step. Semrush charges for each extra user on every self-serve plan, and white-label reports, AI visibility on the entry plan, API access and third-party migration all cost extra or sit on higher tiers. Check both pricing tables against your real seat count and client count.
Sources: seranking.com/subscription.html, seranking.com/faq.html, semrush.com/prices · checked
Which gives me API access on a self-serve plan?
SE Ranking includes API credits and MCP access on every plan, Core and Growth alike. Semrush: MCP on Starter and Pro+ (50K API units); the SEO plan is unclear, so confirm before buying it for MCP. Its API is only on Advanced, units bought separately; MCP uses the same API units.
Sources: seranking.com/api.html, seranking.com/mcp.html, seranking.com/subscription.html, semrush.com/prices, developer.semrush.com/api/v4/introduction…, semrush.com/kb/1618-mcp, semrush.com/mcp, semrush.com/kb/5-api · checked
The catches
SE Ranking
- No free plan once the trial ends, and payments are non-refundable except where the service wasn't delivered as promised.
Source: seranking.com/subscription.html · checked
- The Agency Pack (white-label platform and reports) is annual billing only.
Sources: seranking.com/subscription.html, seranking.com/agency-pack.html · checked
- AI tracking changed recently: accounts bought from 29 October 2026 track AI visibility in SE Visible, and the older AI Results Tracker and AI Search add-on are kept for earlier accounts. Check which one your plan gets.
Sources: help.seranking.com/hc/en-us/articles/1633…, help.seranking.com/hc/en-us/articles/2212… · checked
- Its own pages disagree on how many view-only client seats the Agency Pack includes, so confirm the count with SE Ranking before you buy.
Sources: seranking.com/agency-pack.html, seranking.com/subscription.html, seranking.com/faq.html · checked
Semrush
- The free trial needs a card and converts to paid automatically, and month-to-month plans are not refundable; the money-back guarantee covers only a first annual purchase or add-on.
Sources: semrush.com/company/legal/refund-policy, semrush.com/prices · checked
- Each extra user is a separate monthly charge on every self-serve plan.
Source: semrush.com/prices · checked
- The entry SEO plan has no AI-visibility tracking.
Source: semrush.com/prices · checked
- White-label reports, API access and migration from third-party tools cost extra or sit on the custom-priced Advanced plan.
Sources: semrush.com/prices, semrush.com/kb/34-my-reports · checked
Switching notes
- Semrush → SE Ranking: SE Ranking documents an import of Semrush Position Tracking history: export the Extended file from Semrush's Overview tab one search engine at a time, then import it as "CSV/XLSX from Semrush". Assisted migration is free on annual plans; monthly plans use the self-serve import.
Sources: help.seranking.com/hc/en-us/articles/1633…, seranking.com/subscription.html · checked
- What doesn't move (into SE Ranking): SE Ranking says custom report layouts, tool-specific dashboards and some integrations need rebuilding by hand.
Source: seranking.com/migrate-to-se-ranking.html · checked
- SE Ranking → Semrush: Semrush lists migration from third-party tools only on Advanced. On self-serve plans, plan to rebuild projects and recreate reports from My Reports templates.
Sources: semrush.com/prices, semrush.com/kb/1207-transfer-reporting · checked
- Timing: neither vendor refunds a monthly plan, so switch at your renewal date, and run SE Ranking's no-card trial before you cancel Semrush.
Sources: seranking.com/subscription.html, semrush.com/company/legal/refund-policy · checked
FAQ
Is SE Ranking cheaper than Semrush?
For most small teams, yes. SE Ranking's entry plan costs less than Semrush's entry SEO plan, and it bundles basic AI-search tracking (through SE Visible) that Semrush keeps off its entry plan. Semrush also charges for each extra user on every self-serve plan.
Sources: seranking.com/subscription.html, semrush.com/prices · checked
Do SE Ranking and Semrush track brand mentions in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews?
Yes. SE Ranking bundles a small daily prompt allowance in its separate SE Visible app with new Core and Growth plans, and sells more through SE Visible's own plans. Semrush tracks ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, AI Mode, Gemini and Perplexity from its Starter plan or a standalone AI Visibility toolkit.
Sources: seranking.com/subscription.html, help.seranking.com/hc/en-us/articles/2226…, visible.seranking.com/pricing, semrush.com/prices, semrush.com/kb/1607-semrush-ai-visibility… · checked
Can agencies white-label SE Ranking or Semrush?
Both offer white-label reporting as paid add-ons. SE Ranking's Agency Pack, on annual billing, can also rebrand the platform on your own domain and adds view-only client seats. Semrush white-labels reports through Pro reports in My Reports, paid per report.
Sources: seranking.com/agency-pack.html, help.seranking.com/hc/en-us/articles/1633…, semrush.com/kb/34-my-reports · checked
Can I move my Semrush rank tracking history to SE Ranking?
Yes. SE Ranking imports Semrush's Extended Position Tracking export, one search engine at a time, and offers free assisted migration on annual plans. Custom report layouts and dashboards have to be rebuilt.
Sources: help.seranking.com/hc/en-us/articles/1633…, seranking.com/migrate-to-se-ranking.html · checked
Is Semrush's bigger backlink database worth paying more for?
Only if backlink research is central to your work. Semrush publishes a much larger backlink index than SE Ranking, but both sizes are vendor claims. Run the same domains through both trials and compare what you actually get.
Sources: semrush.com/kb/997-semrush-data, seranking.com/our-data.html · checked
Verdict
Pick SE Ranking if you're a small team, freelancer or agency that needs daily rank tracking and audits at a lower price with basic AI-search tracking bundled in, gets more manager seats included as it moves up a plan, or wants clients to log in to a platform carrying your brand.
Pick Semrush if backlink and keyword depth drives your work, you want higher-volume AI-visibility tracking inside the same suite, Perplexity in those reports or toolkits beyond SEO, and you're comfortable paying per extra user and per white-label report for that depth.
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- SE Ranking: affiliate link.
- Semrush: not an affiliate link.
- There's no paid placement on Workstak. Neither tool paid to appear here or to change this verdict.