Comparison · Research-based, not yet tested · Last checked October 26, 2026
SE Ranking vs. Semrush for AI visibility
Research-based, not yet tested
Verdict: Pick the Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit if you want a single-domain AI tracker at $99 a month, billed annually, for 25 prompts across ChatGPT, Google AI, Gemini, and Perplexity, and you do not need a full SEO suite in the same subscription. Pick SE Ranking Core if you want keyword tracking, audits, and a 100-prompt daily allowance from $103.20 a month on annual billing, and budget extra if you need the AI Search add-on for AI Overviews, AI Mode, and ChatGPT. We have not run a shared prompt set in both products, so this is not a claim that one tracks more accurately.
Side-by-side, from the pricing pages
Swipe sideways. Cells are published plan facts, not test measurements.
| Item | SE Ranking | Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit |
|---|---|---|
| Price we are comparing | Core $129/month, or $103.20/month billed annually. AI Search add-on +$89/month, or +$71.20 annual. | $99/month per domain, billed annually. No separate monthly price on the page. |
| Prompts | Core: 100 tracked daily. Growth: 250 daily. Add-on: a 200-prompt brand dashboard. Trial: 20 AI prompts a day. | 25 custom prompts, daily rankings. |
| Engines, as named | Core and Growth: 5 LLMs, names not listed. Add-on: AI Overviews, AI Mode, and ChatGPT. | ChatGPT, Google AI, Gemini, and Perplexity. |
| Other product in the price | Core includes 2,000 keywords a day, 10 projects, audits, backlink research, and 1 manager seat. Growth raises those limits. | The toolkit page lists AI reports, competitor and prompt research, and a site audit for AI readiness. It is not the full Semrush SEO toolkit. |
| Trial | 14 days. Up to 10 projects, 750 keywords a day, 20 AI prompts a day. | Not stated on the AI pricing page we read. |
| Cost per prompt slot | Core annual $1.03 ($103.20 ÷ 100). Add-on alone, monthly, $0.45 ($89 ÷ 200). Not combined. | $3.96 ($99 ÷ 25) |
| What we have not tested | Accuracy, run-to-run changes, setup time, and whether Core already includes the add-on's tracker. | Accuracy, run-to-run changes, setup time, and the cash due if annual billing is charged upfront. |
Prompt tracking
Semrush's page is specific: 25 custom prompts, updated daily, on one domain. That is a small list and a clear one. A store tracking its name, a few products, and a handful of category questions can fit. A catalog of dozens of SKUs will not, unless you drop most of them.
SE Ranking Core's 100 prompts a day is four times that allowance, and Growth's 250 is ten times the Semrush toolkit. The allowance is only useful if those prompts are the kind you meant to buy. Core's line item is "prompts to track daily" under GEO limits. The add-on's line item is a 200-prompt dashboard tied to AI Overviews, AI Mode, and ChatGPT. Until SE Ranking says those are the same counter, a buyer who needs AI Overviews should treat the add-on as possible extra spend: $89 a month on top of Core, or $71.20 a month on the annual rate.
The fair test, which we have not done, is to run one prompt list in both products for at least two weeks and compare the mentions to a manual check. This page will say so when that log exists. It does not say so now.
Engine coverage
Semrush names four sources: ChatGPT, Google AI, Gemini, and Perplexity. "Google AI" is Semrush's phrase. It might mean AI Overviews, AI Mode, or both. We will not narrow it without Semrush's words.
SE Ranking names engines only on the add-on: AI Overviews, AI Mode, and ChatGPT. The base plans say "5 LLMs" and stop there. Gemini, Perplexity, and Copilot are not in the SE Ranking pricing text we read. Missing from a pricing table is not proof the product lacks them. It is proof we will not claim them.
Competitor and citation reporting
Both pricing pages say they include competitor research. Semrush lists "AI competitor analysis and prompt research." SE Ranking lists AI competitive research domains (5 on Core, 15 on Growth) and, on the add-on, "unlimited competitor research" across AI Overviews, AI Mode, and ChatGPT, plus citations and sentiment on the 200-prompt dashboard. That is a feature list. We have not opened either report.
Bundled classic SEO
This is the main reason the sticker prices are easy to misread. SE Ranking Core is an SEO platform that also lists GEO limits: 2,000 keywords, site audits (250,000 pages a month on Core), backlink research, and a manager seat. Semrush's $99 toolkit is priced per domain for AI visibility. Semrush's larger SEO plans are a different product and were not the page we used. Comparing $99 with $103.20 as if both bills buy the same job overstates how close they are. If you already pay for another SEO suite, the Semrush toolkit is the narrower add. If you have no SEO tool yet, SE Ranking Core is doing two jobs in one subscription, and the AI add-on may be a third line.
Pricing at a small store's scale
For one domain and a short prompt list, Semrush's published entry is $99 a month, billed annually. SE Ranking Core's annual per-month price is $103.20, close on the headline, with a much larger prompt allowance and the SEO tools above. Add the AI Search add-on and the SE Ranking stack is $103.20 + $71.20 = $174.40 a month on annual rates, or $129 + $89 = $218 a month on monthly rates. Those sums are arithmetic from the two line items. They are the right budget only if you end up needing both lines.
Semrush's affiliate page lists a base commission of $100 for the AI Visibility Toolkit and $10 for a trial activation, with a 120-day cookie and last-click attribution, paid through Impact. SE Ranking's own pages say 30% of payments including rebills, a 120-day cookie, and payouts every 14 days. Both facts are about our business, not about which product is better. They are here so the commercial relationship is on the page, not hidden in a footer.
Which to pick
- You want the smallest clear AI plan and you can pay annually. Semrush's toolkit, 25 prompts, four named engines, $99 per domain.
- You want SEO tracking in the same login, and 100 prompts a day of headroom. SE Ranking Core. Use the 14-day trial (20 AI prompts a day) to see what those prompts actually cover before you add $89.
- You specifically need AI Overviews, AI Mode, and ChatGPT named in the contract. SE Ranking's add-on says that in writing. Semrush says "Google AI," which you should confirm in the product.
- You need Perplexity or Gemini named in the contract. Semrush's toolkit page names both. SE Ranking's pricing page, in the text we read, does not.
- You want a monthly price under $30. Neither of these two. See OtterlyAI Lite on the pricing index.
SE Ranking pricing Affiliate link: we get a commission if you buy. Tracking ID not connected yet.
Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit pricing Affiliate link: we get a commission if you buy. Tracking ID not connected yet.
Frequently asked questions about SE Ranking vs. Semrush
Is SE Ranking or Semrush better for AI visibility?
We have not run the same prompts in both tools, so we are not calling a winner on data quality. On published plans, Semrush's AI Visibility Toolkit is a per-domain AI product at $99 a month billed annually for 25 prompts. SE Ranking Core is an SEO suite from $103.20 a month annually with 100 daily prompts, and its AI Results Tracker for AI Overviews, AI Mode, and ChatGPT is a separate add-on.
Does SE Ranking Core include the AI Results Tracker?
SE Ranking's pricing page lists GEO prompt limits on Core and also sells an AI Search add-on for the AI Results Tracker. The page does not say the add-on is already inside Core. Confirm that in the trial or with SE Ranking before you rely on Core alone for AI Overviews, AI Mode, and ChatGPT.
How many prompts does the Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit include?
The Semrush pricing page says 25 custom prompts, tracked daily, at $99 per month per domain, billed annually. It names ChatGPT, Google AI, Gemini, and Perplexity.
Do affiliate commissions change this comparison?
No. Both companies have affiliate programs, and both buttons on this page are placeholders without tracking IDs. The comparison uses published plan limits. See the methodology page.
Changelog
- October 26, 2026: First publication from SE Ranking's pricing page and Semrush's AI Visibility Toolkit pricing page. No hands-on prompt test. The add-on overlap is left unresolved on purpose.