Ahrefs is an SEO and marketing platform that runs its own crawler and sells access to the resulting index of the web. Its core tools are Site Explorer for backlinks and competitor traffic, Keywords Explorer, Site Audit, Rank Tracker and Content Explorer. Brand Radar tracks how a brand appears in AI chatbots. The vendor says its backlink index is wholly its own.
What agencies use Ahrefs for
The vendor’s FAQ describes an onboarding routine for a client. Create a project on the client’s domain and connect Google Search Console. Schedule weekly site audits, tag keywords by theme, add competitors in Rank Tracker and set a recurring branded report. Report Builder can email reports to up to 50 recipients, who do not need an Ahrefs account.
It describes backlink data as its strongest area, and says keyword volumes are useful for comparing terms but less precise on long-tail queries. Ahrefs also runs a directory of agencies that use it; listing there is a feature of the Advanced plan.
Ahrefs pricing
Pricing is by plan, and every plan includes one user. The vendor’s pricing page shows these monthly prices, and says annual billing means paying for ten months and getting twelve.
| Plan | Price | Billing | Main limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $29 a month | Monthly | Details on a separate page |
| Lite | $129 a month | Monthly or annual | 5 projects, 750 tracked keywords, 1,000 credits per user |
| Standard | $249 a month | Monthly or annual | 20 projects, 2,000 tracked keywords, unlimited credits |
| Advanced | $449 a month | Monthly or annual | 50 projects, 5,000 tracked keywords, 5 years of history |
| Enterprise | $1,499 a month | Annual commitment | Uncapped API access, SSO, unlimited history |
Extra users cost $40 a month on Lite, $60 on Standard and $80 on Advanced. Add-ons are priced separately: Brand Radar AI from $199 a month, the Content Kit from $99 a month, and Project Boost Pro at $20 a month per project. The vendor says it never runs discounts and offers no free trial.
Ahrefs Free is a separate free account. It needs proof of ownership of the site and gives limited access to Site Explorer and Site Audit for that site only.
What it connects to
The vendor lists a Looker Studio integration from the Advanced plan, Google Search Console, and Report Builder data from HubSpot, Google Analytics and Fathom. An API and an MCP server are included from Lite, drawing on a separate allowance, and Tableau and Power BI have no native connector.
Limits to know before you buy
Credits apply on Starter and Lite only. A report costs one credit to open and one more for each filter, date change or SERP view, so heavy research uses the allowance quickly. Standard and above use a fair-use model instead.
Competitor research needs a paid plan, because the free account covers only sites you own. Payment is by card on Lite, Standard and Advanced, with invoice and wire transfer on Enterprise only. The vendor generally does not refund; a monthly subscriber can ask if the account was not used.
Plans and prices as published on the vendor’s own pricing page on 3 October 2026; check there before you buy. This is not a paid listing and Online Agency Network is not affiliated with the vendor.
