HEAD-TO-HEAD COMPARISON
Two of the oldest names in SEO, two very different bets in 2026: should you use Semrush or Moz? The short answer — pick Semrush if you want the broader platform, daily rank tracking, and AI-search visibility bundled in; pick Moz if you want core SEO — keyword research, link analysis, site audits, and rank tracking — in a simpler tool that starts at $49 instead of $139. One important warning first: most comparison articles still list Semrush’s old Pro, Guru, and Business plans. Those plans are gone. The current ladder, verified on Semrush’s official pricing page in October 2026, is SEO, Starter, Pro+, and Advanced.
Updated October 2026 · Editorial comparison
SEO + AI SEARCH PLATFORM
Semrush at a Glance
Semrush
BEST FOR
Teams that want SEO alongside wider marketing — keyword and competitor research, daily position tracking, site audits, content optimization, and AI-search visibility in one platform.
CORE SEO PLATFORM
Moz Pro at a Glance
Moz
BEST FOR
Small teams, freelancers, and local-focused SEOs who want the core toolkit — and Moz’s long-standing Domain Authority metrics — without paying for a broader marketing suite.
Verdict · Features · Pricing · FAQ
Semrush in Detail
Semrush now sells itself, in its own words, as a way to “build and measure brand visibility, everywhere search happens.” Its current pricing page is titled “SEO & AI Search,” and that framing is the story of 2026: the classic SEO toolkit — keyword research, competitor analysis, Position Tracking, and Site Audit — is now sold alongside AI-search tracking, AI sentiment monitoring, and AI visibility reports. The entry SEO plan covers 5 websites and 500 keywords tracked daily. The Starter plan layers AI Visibility on top: 50 prompts tracked daily and AI brand performance for 1 domain. Pro+ raises the limits to 15 websites and 1,500 keywords, and adds historical data and content optimization. Advanced goes to 40 websites and 5,000 keywords, with Share of Voice and API access. Beyond SEO, Semrush remains the broader marketing platform of the two, with toolkits that extend into areas such as PPC, social, and content marketing. If you are reading an older review that quotes Pro at $139.95, Guru at $249.95, or Business at $499.95, you are reading the retired ladder — the SEO plan has effectively taken the old entry slot, at $139 a month.
Visit Semrush’s official site →
Moz in Detail
Moz is one of the founding names in SEO software, and Moz Pro stays deliberately focused on the core job: keyword research, link analysis through Link Explorer, site crawl audits, rank tracking, and on-page recommendations, presented through campaigns for each tracked site. Moz is also the home of Domain Authority and Page Authority, the authority metrics many marketers still use as a quick shorthand for a site’s or a page’s ranking strength — if a client or a boss already reports in DA, that alone can be a practical reason to choose Moz. The pricing ladder is simpler to read than Semrush’s: an entry-level plan at $49 a month for individuals managing a single website, then Standard with 3 tracked sites and 300 tracked keywords a month, Medium — labelled Moz’s most popular plan — with 10 sites and 1,500 keywords, and Large with 25 sites and 3,000 keywords. Seats are included in the plan price on the main tiers (1, 2, and 3 users respectively), and annual billing saves 20%, a slightly deeper discount than Semrush’s up-to-17%. What Moz does not try to be is a general marketing suite — and in 2026 it also does not bundle the same prompt-tracking AI-visibility layer that Semrush now leads with.
Our Verdict
An honest editorial take — not sponsored, not influenced by affiliate relationships.
OUR VERDICT
Editorial opinion based on publicly available information.
Semrush wins on breadth, depth, and AI-search visibility; Moz wins on simplicity and price. If SEO is one channel among several, or you need daily rank tracking across many keywords and a view of how your brand appears in AI search, Semrush is the stronger platform — and you will pay for it, starting at $139 a month. If your work is core SEO for one site or a handful of clients, Moz covers the essentials from $49, includes seats in its main plans, and is easier to learn and to budget for.
Choose Semrush if you want daily tracking, higher keyword limits, historical data and content optimization on higher tiers, and AI prompts tracked alongside traditional rankings.
Choose Moz if you want a focused, lower-cost SEO toolkit, you value Domain Authority reporting, or you need a second and third seat included without an add-on fee.
Why the verdict holds
Start with the entry price, because it frames everything else. Moz’s entry plan is $49 a month; Semrush’s is $139. That is not a rounding difference — it is a statement about who each tool is for in 2026. Moz is pricing for a solo operator or a small team buying SEO software. Semrush is pricing for a team buying a visibility platform.
Semrush’s advantage is scope with daily data. Every current Semrush plan tracks keywords daily — 500 on the entry plans, rising to 5,000 on Advanced — and the Starter tier and above add daily AI prompt tracking (50, 100, and 200 prompts). If rankings move fast in your niche, or clients ask how they show up in AI answers as well as in the ten blue links, that combination is the reason to pay Semrush money. The trade-off is cost stacking: the base price is higher, and extra users start at $45 a month each.
Moz’s advantage is focus at a lower total cost. Standard at $99 a month (or $79 billed yearly) covers 3 sites and 300 tracked keywords; Medium at $179 ($143 yearly) covers 10 sites, 1,500 keywords, and 2 included users. A small agency can put two people on Medium for the headline price, where a comparable Semrush setup means a higher plan plus per-user add-ons. Moz also wins the simplicity argument: fewer toolkits, a gentler learning curve, and authority metrics many stakeholders already understand.
Who should pick which
- Solo site owners and freelancers: Moz — the $49 entry plan and $99 Standard tier cover core SEO without a $139 floor.
- Agencies and growing teams: Semrush Pro+ if you need 15 websites, 1,500 daily-tracked keywords, and historical data; Moz Medium or Large if your client work is core SEO and included seats matter.
- Teams tracking AI search: Semrush Starter and above — AI prompt tracking and brand-performance reporting are built into the ladder.
- Anyone reporting in Domain Authority: Moz — DA and Page Authority are Moz’s own metrics, so the source tool is the natural home for them.
- Budget-first buyers: start with Semrush’s free plan or Moz’s free trial (below), then pay only when the limits actually bite.
Feature Snapshot
Side-by-side facts drawn from publicly available product information.
| FEATURE | Semrush | Moz Pro |
|---|---|---|
| CORE PURPOSE | SEO + AI search platform Keyword and competitor research, position tracking, site audit, content optimization, and AI visibility, inside a broader marketing platform. |
Core SEO platform Keyword research, link analysis, site crawl audits, rank tracking, and on-page recommendations, organised by campaign. |
| ENTRY PLAN | SEO — $139/mo 5 websites, 500 keywords tracked daily. |
Entry plan — $49/mo For individuals managing a single website, per Moz’s pricing page. |
| RANK TRACKING | Daily 500 to 5,000 keywords tracked daily, depending on plan. |
Campaign-based 300 to 3,000 tracked keywords per month on Standard to Large. |
| AI SEARCH VISIBILITY | Yes, bundled Starter and above: 50–200 prompts tracked daily, AI brand performance and visibility reports. |
Not the headline offer Moz Pro’s pricing page leads with core SEO; no equivalent prompt-tracking ladder is listed there. |
| LINK ANALYSIS | Yes Backlink analysis sits inside the wider competitor-research toolkit. |
Yes — Link Explorer Link analysis plus Moz’s Domain Authority and Page Authority metrics. |
| SITE AUDIT / CRAWL | Yes — Site Audit Included from the entry SEO plan; AI-ready audit on Starter and above. |
Yes — Site Crawl 400K pages crawled per month on Standard, rising to 5M on Large. |
| SEATS | Add-on Additional users from $45/mo each. |
Included on main tiers 1 user on Standard, 2 on Medium, 3 on Large; extra seats $49/mo each. |
| FREE OPTION | Free plan, $0 1 demo project, 10 reports per day, no credit card required; paid plans offer a seven-day free trial. |
Free trial Trial offered on the pricing page (duration not stated there); no free $0 plan is listed on that page. |
Pricing & Free Options
Plans change often — always confirm on the official site before buying. Prices verified on the official pricing pages in October 2026.
Semrush
FREE PLAN · PAID PLANS
Annual billing saves up to 17%
✓ Free ($0): 1 demo project, 10 reports per day across the main tools, no credit card required
✓ SEO ($139/mo, or $117.33/mo billed annually): 5 websites, 500 keywords tracked daily, keyword research, competitor analysis, Position Tracking, Site Audit, basic AI-search tracking
✓ Starter ($199/mo, or $165.17/mo annually): everything in SEO plus AI Visibility — 50 prompts tracked daily, 1 domain for AI brand performance, MCP access
✓ Pro+ ($299/mo, or $248.17/mo annually): 15 websites, 1,500 keywords daily, 100 AI prompts daily, historical data, content optimization
✓ Advanced (custom pricing): 40 websites, 5,000 keywords daily, 200 AI prompts daily, Share of Voice, API access. Enterprise is custom-priced
− Extra users start at $45/mo each, and add-ons such as Lead Generation ($90/mo) and Pro Report ($20/mo) sit on top of the plan price. Paid plans offer a seven-day free trial.
Moz Pro
FREE TRIAL · PAID PLANS
Annual billing saves 20%
✓ Entry plan ($49/mo): Moz’s starter solution for individuals managing a single website
✓ Standard ($99/mo, or $79/mo billed yearly): 1 user included, 3 tracked sites, 300 tracked keywords per month, 400K pages crawled per month
✓ Medium ($179/mo, or $143/mo yearly): Moz’s most popular plan — 2 users included, 10 tracked sites, 1,500 tracked keywords, 2M pages crawled per month
✓ Large ($299/mo, or $239/mo yearly): 3 users included, 25 tracked sites, 3,000 tracked keywords, 5M pages crawled per month. Enterprise is available on request, with no price listed
− Extra seats cost $49/mo each. A free trial is offered, but the pricing page does not state its duration, and no free $0 plan is listed on that page — check before you rely on either.
Strengths & Trade-offs
Our editorial assessment of where each tool shines — and where it doesn’t.
Semrush
THE BROADER VISIBILITY PLATFORM
Moz Pro
THE FOCUSED SEO TOOLKIT
Bottom Line
This is a price-versus-scope decision, and in 2026 the gap is wider than most older comparisons admit. If you need core SEO and only core SEO — keyword research, link analysis, audits, and rank tracking for one site or a few clients — Moz does that job from $49 a month, includes seats on its main plans, and will feel calmer to use. If you need SEO plus the surrounding marketing picture — daily tracking at scale, historical data, content optimization, and a tracked view of your brand in AI search — Semrush is the platform built for it, and its $139 floor and per-user add-ons are simply the cost of that scope. Ignore any article still quoting Semrush Pro, Guru, and Business: that ladder is retired, and a comparison built on it is comparing a tool that no longer exists. Start with Semrush’s free plan or Moz’s free trial, run your real site through both, and let your actual keyword count — not a feature checklist — make the final call.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better: Semrush or Moz?
Semrush is better if you want breadth — daily rank tracking, higher limits, content optimization, historical data on higher tiers, and AI-search visibility bundled in. Moz is better if you want focused core SEO at a lower price, with seats included and Domain Authority reporting. Neither is better in the abstract; they are priced and built for different buyers.
What happened to Semrush Pro, Guru, and Business?
They are no longer listed on Semrush’s official pricing page. The current ladder, verified in October 2026, is SEO ($139/mo), Starter ($199/mo), Pro+ ($299/mo), and Advanced (custom-priced), plus a custom Enterprise tier. The SEO plan covers a similar entry slot to the old Pro plan — 5 websites and 500 keywords tracked daily — while Starter and above bundle AI Visibility.
Is Moz cheaper than Semrush?
Yes, at every comparable step. Moz starts at $49/mo for a single website, with Standard at $99/mo ($79 billed yearly). Semrush starts at $139/mo ($117.33 billed annually). Moz also includes seats on its main tiers, while Semrush charges from $45/mo for each additional user. Annual billing saves 20% at Moz and up to 17% at Semrush.
Does Semrush or Moz have a free plan?
Semrush has a free $0 plan with 1 demo project and 10 reports per day, no credit card required, and its paid plans offer a seven-day free trial. Moz’s pricing page offers a free trial but does not state its duration there, and no free $0 plan is listed on that page.
Which tool is better for AI search visibility?
On the published pricing pages, Semrush. Its Starter plan and above include AI Visibility — 50 to 200 prompts tracked daily and AI brand-performance reporting for your domain. Moz Pro’s pricing page leads with core SEO and does not list an equivalent prompt-tracking ladder, so if AI answers are part of your reporting, Semrush is the clearer fit today.
Can I use Semrush and Moz together?
Some teams do — Semrush for daily tracking, competitor research, and AI visibility, and Moz specifically for Domain Authority reporting to stakeholders who already use it. For most small teams, though, the overlap in keyword research, audits, and rank tracking means one subscription is enough; pick the one whose price and scope match your actual workload.
Is Moz or Semrush better?
For most people, Semrush — it covers more in one subscription: keyword research, backlink analysis, content tools, PPC data and AI search visibility. Moz Pro is the better pick if you want a simpler, cheaper core SEO toolkit and like Domain Authority as your headline metric. The full breakdown is in the verdict above.
Keep comparing
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How we compare
Both tools are evaluated against the same criteria — capabilities, ease of use, pricing and value, and limitations — using official documentation, pricing pages, and published product information. If we test a tool ourselves in the future, the review will say so and include our screenshots, test tasks, and observations. This verdict is editorial opinion based on publicly available information, not sponsored, and not influenced by affiliate relationships. SmartRiseHQ currently uses no affiliate or referral links.
A note on pricing
SEO-tool pricing, plan names, and limits change frequently — Semrush’s retirement of its Pro, Guru, and Business plans is the latest example. Prices above were verified on the official pricing pages in October 2026; always confirm current plans on the vendor’s official pricing page before buying.