2026 Best Software Awards are here!See the list

Compare Ahrefs and Surfer

At a Glance
Ahrefs
Ahrefs
Star Rating
(671)4.5 out of 5
Market Segments
Small-Business (64.0% of reviews)
Information
Pros & Cons
Entry-Level Pricing
Starting at $29.00
Free Trial is available
Browse all 6 pricing plans
Surfer
Surfer
Star Rating
(539)4.8 out of 5
Market Segments
Small-Business (93.5% of reviews)
Information
Pros & Cons
Entry-Level Pricing
Starting at $99.00
Browse all 5 pricing plans
AI Generated Summary
AI-generated. Powered by real user reviews.
  • G2 reviewers report that Ahrefs excels in backlink analysis, with users praising its extensive database and up-to-date information. One user mentioned, "Ahrefs is the tool I trust most when it comes to backlinks," highlighting its effectiveness in finding links that other tools might miss.
  • Users say that Surfer stands out for its user-friendly interface and excellent customer support. Reviewers appreciate how easy it is to navigate, with one stating, "Surfer is very easy to use, it's accurate and they have EXCELLENT customer support," making it a great choice for those new to SEO tools.
  • According to verified reviews, Ahrefs combines multiple SEO functionalities, such as keyword research and site health monitoring, into one platform. Users find this integration saves time and helps them focus on what truly impacts rankings, with one reviewer noting, "I like how Ahrefs combines keyword research, backlink analysis, and site health monitoring in one tool."
  • Reviewers mention that Surfer's ability to generate content ideas automatically is a significant advantage, especially for those looking to optimize on-page keywords. This feature has been highlighted as a game-changer for users transitioning from other tools, with one user stating, "Ease of use and the ability to have ideas generated for you automatically."
  • G2 reviewers highlight that while Ahrefs has a slightly lower ease of use score, it still provides robust features for technical SEO and link building, with users noting its strength in these areas. One user remarked, "I really like how Ahrefs provides insights on backlinks and helps us with ranking for specific search engines like Google and Bing."
  • Users report that Surfer's focus on content optimization and auditing is impressive, with many praising its SEO auditing capabilities. One reviewer mentioned, "Surfer is a lot better and provides better results," indicating its effectiveness in improving on-page SEO strategies.
Pricing
Entry-Level Pricing
Ahrefs
Starter
Starting at $29.00
Browse all 6 pricing plans
Surfer
Standard
Starting at $99.00
Browse all 5 pricing plans
Free Trial
Ahrefs
Free Trial is available
Surfer
No trial information available
Ratings
Meets Requirements
9.0
520
9.3
314
Ease of Use
8.8
527
9.3
320
Ease of Setup
9.0
264
9.4
150
Ease of Admin
8.8
190
9.4
123
Quality of Support
8.4
436
9.4
277
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
8.7
183
9.6
118
Product Direction (% positive)
8.9
496
9.3
275
Features by Category
Not enough data
Not enough data
Content Creation
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Optimization
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Logistics
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Grammar
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Formatting
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Content
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Product Type
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Generative AI
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
9.3
12
Not enough data
Local Search Optimization
10.0
7
Not enough data
10.0
7
Not enough data
9.0
7
Not enough data
8.9
6
Not enough data
8.0
5
Not enough data
9.8
7
Not enough data
Competitive IntelligenceHide 9 FeaturesShow 9 Features
8.0
122
Not enough data
Platform Basics
8.4
99
Not enough data
8.4
108
Not enough data
Agentic AI - Competitive Intelligence
7.3
5
Not enough data
Platform Data
Feature Not Available
Not enough data
Feature Not Available
Not enough data
7.9
90
Not enough data
Platform Content
Feature Not Available
Not enough data
Platform Reporting
7.7
100
Not enough data
8.4
101
Not enough data
SEO Auditing & Monitoring
8.4
202
7.6
164
8.8
198
9.2
196
8.7
187
8.0
162
8.6
192
8.1
166
Agentic AI - SEO Tools
7.3
17
Not enough data
7.4
17
Not enough data
7.8
17
Not enough data
7.2
18
Not enough data
7.2
17
Not enough data
7.6
17
Not enough data
8.0
19
Not enough data
SEO Content & Rankings
9.2
409
7.0
173
8.8
400
8.5
235
8.5
369
8.8
40
7.8
188
8.1
178
8.2
175
9.2
208
SEO Reporting
9.1
400
8.9
225
8.2
206
8.6
203
7.9
187
7.9
161
Feature Not Available
7.5
121
Generative AI
6.3
69
8.1
57
6.3
68
7.6
55
8.2
34
Not enough data
Media Channels
Feature Not Available
Not enough data
Feature Not Available
Not enough data
8.5
31
Not enough data
Geographic Coverage
8.1
27
Not enough data
7.6
26
Not enough data
7.7
27
Not enough data
Reporting
9.0
32
Not enough data
8.7
30
Not enough data
8.2
12
Not enough data
8.2
12
Not enough data
Agentic AI - Media Monitoring
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Generative AI
7.3
11
Not enough data
6.7
11
Not enough data
Paid Search IntelligenceHide 8 FeaturesShow 8 Features
9.1
5
Not enough data
Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)Hide 10 FeaturesShow 10 Features
Not enough data
Not enough data
AI Visibility & Tracking
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Sentiment & Brand Analysis
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Competitive Benchmarking
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
AI Content Optimization
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Reporting & Alerts
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
8.1
109
Not enough data
Tools
Feature Not Available
Not enough data
8.4
92
Not enough data
Feature Not Available
Not enough data
Metrics
Feature Not Available
Not enough data
8.2
87
Not enough data
Feature Not Available
Not enough data
7.1
75
Not enough data
Feature Not Available
Not enough data
9.0
98
Not enough data
Agentic AI - Content Analytics
7.5
6
Not enough data
7.8
6
Not enough data
8.6
6
Not enough data
8.1
6
Not enough data
8.6
6
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Platform
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
Categories
Categories
Shared Categories
Ahrefs
Ahrefs
Surfer
Surfer
Ahrefs and Surfer are categorized as SEO Tools
Reviews
Reviewers' Company Size
Ahrefs
Ahrefs
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
64.0%
Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.)
30.6%
Enterprise(> 1000 emp.)
5.4%
Surfer
Surfer
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
93.5%
Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.)
5.9%
Enterprise(> 1000 emp.)
0.6%
Reviewers' Industry
Ahrefs
Ahrefs
Marketing and Advertising
37.2%
Computer Software
11.7%
Information Technology and Services
9.5%
Internet
7.3%
Financial Services
2.6%
Other
31.6%
Surfer
Surfer
Marketing and Advertising
36.6%
Health, Wellness and Fitness
4.3%
Information Technology and Services
4.0%
Computer Software
4.0%
Writing and Editing
3.8%
Other
47.4%
Alternatives
Ahrefs
Ahrefs Alternatives
Semrush
Semrush
Add Semrush
SE Ranking
SE Ranking
Add SE Ranking
Similarweb
Similarweb
Add Similarweb
Serpstat
Serpstat
Add Serpstat
Surfer
Surfer Alternatives
Semrush
Semrush
Add Semrush
SE Ranking
SE Ranking
Add SE Ranking
RankIQ
RankIQ
Add RankIQ
Frase.io
Frase.io
Add Frase.io
Discussions
Ahrefs
Ahrefs Discussions
Ahrefs KD is different from Moz
6 Comments
Abhishek P.
AP
Go for Ahrefs. Ahrefs is a far better tool than Moz. Ahrefs has better crawlers and shows more accurate results.Read more
Can I use Ahrefs for free?
6 Comments
Qamar M.
QM
For the basic level information of your desire website you can use it you'll have some sort of idea about it. Read more
Is Ahrefs worth the money?
5 Comments
Rajashekar L.
RL
Definitely. It'll give valuable data necessary for a executing successful SEO.Read more
Surfer
Surfer Discussions
Can NLP be more clearly incorporated into the content editor?
2 Comments
Tomasz N.
TN
Hello Nikolai! Great question :-) Traditional audit is based on the frequency and commonness of keywords among competitors. With NLP we pass the content to...Read more
how to write content
2 Comments
Taxi W.
TW
Surfer make it so easy to use and improves content 100% Thanks Surfer, Pro Cars Woking www.procarswoking.comRead more
How to measure ROI?
1 Comment
Brian S.
BS
1. Track visitor click-through rates: The first step in measuring ROI on SurferSEO is to track the number of visitors that click through to your website from...Read more