SE Ranking vs Semrush
Written by Connor Blake ·
Edited by Sebastiaan Smits ·
Fact-checked by Mateus Rocha ·
Published September 30, 2026 · Updated September 30, 2026
SE Ranking sells the core of a suite, meaning keyword research, audits, backlinks and daily rank tracking, at an entry price around $100 a month or less on annual billing. Semrush costs more and gives bigger databases plus paid search, traffic and content research. Small teams and agencies watching cost pick SE Ranking; marketing departments wanting everything in one place pick Semrush.
Side by side
 SE Ranking |  Semrush | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | All-in-one SEO platform priced below the big two | Broad search and digital marketing suite, now owned by Adobe |
| Best for | Small businesses and agencies | Marketing teams wanting breadth |
| Headquarters | United Kingdom | United States |
| Pricing model | Tiered monthly | Tiered monthly + add-ons |
| Pricing | Published monthly tiers by projects, tracked keywords and seats, with Core listed at €109 a month or €87.20 billed annually, and add-ons for AI search visibility, the agency white-label pack and extra seats. | Published monthly tiers, with the SEO plan listed at €134 a month or €112.52 billed annually for one user, extra charges per additional user and separately sold toolkits for advertising, traffic and local; a limited free account and a 7-day trial are available. |
| Free option | Free trial | Free plan |
| Place in our SEO software ranking | #1 of 12 | #4 of 12 |
| Website | seranking.com | semrush.com |
Both are reviewed in full in Best SEO Software in 2026. Position in that ranking can be paid for; the wording of a review or of this comparison cannot. Placement disclosure.
Which one to choose
Choose SE Ranking if
you need keyword research, audits, backlink checks and daily local rank tracking for a handful of sites or clients, and the monthly fee has to stay sustainable.
SE Ranking, #1 in the ranking · Visit SE Ranking →
Choose Semrush if
you research niche or non-English markets where database size shows, or you want PPC research and competitor traffic estimates next to SEO and have budget for extra seats.
Semrush, #4 in the ranking · Visit Semrush →
Where they differ
Database size in niche and non-English research
SE Ranking's keyword and backlink databases are smaller than Semrush's, and the gap shows most in niche topics and non-English research. Semrush's keyword database is very large and multinational. For mainstream terms in big markets SE Ranking is useful across many countries, but if research quality is what you are buying, Semrush has more to look at.
Edge: Semrush
What a small team actually pays
SE Ranking's entry tier sits around $100 a month or less when billed annually, and its limits rarely pinch early. Semrush starts above $100, caps users, projects and reports on the base plan, and charges for each extra seat. Both sell AI visibility as an extra. For two or three people doing core SEO, SE Ranking costs less.
Edge: SE Ranking
Rank tracking for local businesses
SE Ranking updates positions daily on standard plans, can target a city or ZIP code, and tracks Google, Bing and mobile results. Semrush's position tracking is dependable, but its local SEO features are sold as a separate toolkit. For an agency reporting local rankings to clients, SE Ranking includes more of the job in the base subscription.
Edge: SE Ranking
Paid search and competitor intelligence
Semrush reaches past SEO into paid search research, competitor traffic estimates and content marketing tools. SE Ranking does competitor research, but our data describes it as an SEO suite, not a wider marketing one. If the same people plan ads and organic search, Semrush saves a second subscription; if not, that breadth goes unused.
Edge: Semrush
Tally: SE Ranking 2, Semrush 2, even 0.
When neither fits
If the real job is fixing your own site and not researching competitors, neither suite is the best spend. Screaming Frog SEO Spider is the most capable technical crawler for a small annual license, and Google Search Console gives free first-party data on how Google sees your pages.
See Screaming Frog SEO Spider and Google Search Console among the 12 products in Best SEO Software in 2026.
Questions and answers
Is SE Ranking's data as good as Semrush's?
Not in size. SE Ranking's keyword and backlink databases are smaller, which matters for niche and non-English research. Its backlink index has become a credible option for day-to-day checks, and the keyword data is useful across many countries. Test both on keywords you already know.
Do SE Ranking and Semrush both track AI search visibility?
Both offer it, and both charge extra. SE Ranking sells AI search visibility as an add-on, alongside API access and the agency white-label pack. Semrush sells an AI visibility toolkit separately from the SEO toolkit. Include it in the quote if you need it.
Which is better for an agency, SE Ranking or Semrush?
For a small agency, SE Ranking: white-label reports and client seats come at a modest add-on price, and there is a Looker Studio connector. Semrush charges separately per additional user. Heavy agency use does eventually push SE Ranking into its higher tiers.