Resources / Comparison
Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit and Ahrefs Brand Radar
What Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit and Ahrefs Brand Radar actually sell, what they cost, and when a dedicated checker is the better buy.
What Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit actually sells
Toolkit Base is $99 a month. That gets you 25 prompts a day in ChatGPT, Google AI, Gemini, and Perplexity. Semrush puts that on the AI pricing page and in their Toolkit docs.
There is no free trial. Semrush One raises prompt caps (Starter 50, Pro+ 100, Advanced 200) if you already want the bundled SEO + AI plan. Scheduled reports are add-ons: Base Report is $10/mo, Pro Report is $20/mo. We include the shareable report. You do not pay extra to send someone the scan.
If your team already opens Semrush every morning, this is a clean add-on. If you do not, you are buying a suite to get a tracker.
What Ahrefs Brand Radar actually sells
Ahrefs Lite is $129/mo on their pricing page. That plan includes Brand Radar and 5 tracked AI prompts. Standard is $249/mo with 10 prompts. Advanced is $449/mo with 20.
The free AI visibility checker is a preview across ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot, AI Overviews, and AI Mode. No signup. Useful. It is not a playbook and it is not recurring tracking of your prompt set.
If you already pay Ahrefs for backlinks and keywords, Brand Radar is the least awkward AI add. If you do not, $129/mo Lite is a lot for a side door into their index.
Semrush, Ahrefs, and CompeteScan side by side
| Capability | CompeteScan | Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit | Ahrefs Brand Radar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry price | Free, then $49/mo Starter | $99/mo Base | $129/mo Lite |
| Billing note | Free is one scan. Starter and Pro are monthly. | Base Report is $10/mo and Pro Report is $20/mo. CompeteScan includes the report. | Lite includes Brand Radar and 5 tracked AI prompts. |
| Engines on entry | ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity on Free and Starter | Mentions ChatGPT, Google AI, Gemini, and Perplexity | ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot, AI Overviews, AI Mode, plus Claude. |
| Prompt cap | 5 on Free, 20 on Starter, 50 on Pro | 25 custom prompts daily. Semrush One Starter 50 / Pro+ 100 / Advanced 200. | 5 tracked AI prompts on Lite. 10 on Standard, 20 on Advanced. |
| Cadence | One-shot on Free, weekly on Starter, daily on Pro | Daily prompt tracking | Daily on paid plans |
| Playbook | Ranked playbook of on-site, content, and citation fixes. Shareable report included. | Site audit for AI readiness. Scheduled reports are paid add-ons. | Mentions, citations, and cited pages. Built for people already in Ahrefs. |
| Free path | First scan free, no credit card | No free trial on the AI Visibility Toolkit | Free AI visibility checker preview. |
When I would add CompeteScan instead of stretching the suite
Keep Semrush or Ahrefs for Google. I mean that. We do not replace rank tracking, site audit, or backlink graphs.
Add CompeteScan when the question in the room is “does AI recommend us, and what do we ship this week.” You get ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity on the free scan. Starter is $49/mo with a ranked playbook. That is the gap the suites still treat as a report, not a punch list.
Look at a Linear scan if you want to see the output before you compare invoices.