3AM Marketer
Digital Growth

Ahrefs vs Moz vs Semrush: Pricing and Database Limits

A direct comparison of Ahrefs, Semrush, and Moz across keyword database scale, monthly seat allotments, and subscription pricing tiers.

Ahrefs keywords28.7B
6 sources, checked 29 Oct 2026.
Byline
Growth Desk
Published
, 2 min read
Checked
6 sources, last on
Editorial direction
Antriksh Tewari, Publisher and Editor in Chief

For search teams choosing between Ahrefs, Moz, and Semrush, Semrush provides the lowest full-suite annual entry point at $117.33 per month, while Ahrefs delivers the broadest international coverage with 28.7 billion keywords across 217 locations starting at $129 per month. Moz serves as an alternative starting from $79 per month billed annually with higher tiers adding API access and multi-user functionality. Individual practitioners can validate workflows lower down through a $29 per month Ahrefs Starter plan or a $0 per month Semrush Free tier.12345

The true cost of SEO infrastructure

Selecting an SEO software tier requires accounting for the gap between monthly billing and annual contract commitments. According to our AI subscription prices data tracker, Semrush prices its entry SEO plan at $139 monthly versus $117.33 annually, representing a 16% discount for upfront payment. Semrush Starter costs $199 monthly or $165.17 on annual terms, and the Pro+ tier runs $299 monthly down to $248.17 annually, each offering a 17% savings.12

Ahrefs scales across four primary monthly tiers: Lite at $129 per month, Standard at $249 per month, Advanced at $449 per month, and Enterprise at $1499 per month. Moz offers an entry point at $79 per month billed annually focused on foundational SEO and local listing directory management, contrasting with Semrush's multi-channel marketing toolkit and Ahrefs' backlink profiling.24

  • Lite129
  • Standard249
  • Advanced449
  • Enterprise1,499
Ahrefs offers four primary service tiers ranging from Lite to Enterprise, priced monthly. ($ per month)36

Database scale: 28.7B vs 28.4B keywords

When comparing raw keyword data scale, Ahrefs claims a repository of 28.7 billion keywords covering 217 locations. Semrush reports a keyword database of 28.4 billion keywords across 142 geographic databases. While both provide massive global datasets, Ahrefs maintains coverage across a wider count of geographical locations.5

  • Ahrefs28.7
  • Semrush28.4
Ahrefs maintains a larger keyword index compared to Semrush. (B keywords)5

Operational limits per tier

A feature comparison and pricing table for Ahrefs' different subscription tiers.
Screenshot of ahrefs.com, captured 2026-10-29

Beyond raw index scale, team workflows depend on monthly usage quotas for site crawls, tracking limits, and multi-user seat allocations. Ahrefs includes a single user on Lite, Standard, and Advanced subscriptions, with multi-seat access starting at three included seats on Enterprise plans. Under Ahrefs Lite, users receive 750 tracked keywords and 100,000 monthly Site Audit credits, expanding to 2,000 tracked keywords and 500,000 credits on Standard, and 5,000 tracked keywords with 1.5M credits on Advanced.6

  • Lite100,000
  • Standard500,000
  • Advanced1,500,000
Ahrefs scales site audit credits significantly as tiers increase from Lite to Advanced. (credits)6