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Advanced Web Ranking vs Ahrefs

Advanced Web Ranking logo

Advanced Web Ranking

SEO

Rank tracking with SEO forecasting and market share modelling built in

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Ahrefs logo

Ahrefs

Marketing

Backlink and keyword research platform run on its own web crawler, metered by credits since 2024

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Ahrefs has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Advanced Web Ranking the entry Pro plan updates rankings on a schedule rather than continuously, so time-sensitive SERP volatility monitoring requires an upgrade to Agency or Enterprise.; Ahrefs the April 2024 move from unlimited usage to credits was a real downgrade for existing customers: Lite meters 1,000 credits per user per month and the data tools lock when they are gone, so heavy research on the entry plan now forces an upgrade to Standard at 249 USD.
  • They diverge on capability: Advanced Web Ranking covers SEO forecasting, Ahrefs covers Site Explorer.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Advanced Web Ranking and Ahrefs actually diverge.

Attributes where Advanced Web Ranking and Ahrefs differ
AttributeAdvanced Web RankingAhrefs
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelPer month by tracked keyword countPer month by credits and usage limits
Free tierNoYes
CategorySEOMarketing
FoundedUnknown2010

Identical on both: platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Advanced Web Ranking

  • SEO forecasting
  • Market share reports
  • AI visibility tracking
  • Local and mobile rank tracking
  • Custom dashboards and white-label reports
  • Looker Studio and BigQuery connectors

Only in Ahrefs

  • Site Explorer
  • Keywords Explorer
  • Site Audit
  • Rank Tracker
  • Content Explorer
  • Competitive analysis
  • Backlink checker
  • Keyword research

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Advanced Web Ranking

  • An agency that wants ranking forecasts to put in front of clients rather than raw position history alonenot Ahrefs
  • A consultant estimating market share against named competitors without buying a full SEO suitenot Ahrefs
  • A team with fluctuating headcount that wants unlimited seats rather than a per-user licencenot Ahrefs
  • A reporting workflow that needs BigQuery export and cross-project comparison at Enterprise tiernot Ahrefs

Ahrefs

  • SEO researchnot Advanced Web Ranking
  • Competitor analysisnot Advanced Web Ranking
  • Content planningnot Advanced Web Ranking
  • Backlink analysisnot Advanced Web Ranking
  • Rank trackingnot Advanced Web Ranking

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Advanced Web Ranking

  • The entry Pro plan updates rankings on a schedule rather than continuously, so time-sensitive SERP volatility monitoring requires an upgrade to Agency or Enterprise.
  • Like AccuRanker, it has no site crawler or backlink index of its own, so it needs to be paired with a separate technical SEO tool.
  • Forecasting and market share modelling are statistical projections from historical tracked data, not guarantees, and teams that oversell forecast numbers to clients as certainties are misrepresenting what the tool does.
  • Pricing tiers jump in large steps between 7,000, 14,500 and 35,500 keywords, so a team tracking, say, 8,000 keywords pays the full Agency-tier price for headroom it does not use.
  • Support and forecasting depth documentation is thinner than category leaders like Semrush, so teams new to the forecasting feature often need direct vendor onboarding to use it well.

Ahrefs

  • The April 2024 move from unlimited usage to credits was a real downgrade for existing customers: Lite meters 1,000 credits per user per month and the data tools lock when they are gone, so heavy research on the entry plan now forces an upgrade to Standard at 249 USD.
  • Pay-as-you-go credits are charged automatically once enabled, so a busy research month can produce an unbudgeted overage bill rather than a hard stop.
  • Every paid tier includes exactly one user, and additional seats cost 40, 60 or 80 USD a month by tier, so a three-person team on Standard pays 369 USD a month rather than 249.
  • Row caps bind before credit caps for many jobs: Lite returns at most 2,500 rows per report, which is not enough to export a mid-sized site backlink profile in one pass.
  • Ahrefs states plainly that it never runs discounts and offers no free trial of the paid plans, so evaluation means paying a full month or working from the ownership-verified free tier.
  • Rank Tracker updates weekly on every tier including Enterprise, so teams needing daily positions have to buy a separate tracker such as SE Ranking or Semrush.
  • A growing share of capability is sold as add-ons rather than included: Report Builder at 99 USD a month, Content Kit from 99 USD, Project Boost at 20 or 200 USD per project, and Brand Radar from 199 USD.

Pricing, plan by plan

Advanced Web Ranking

On request
  • Pro$139/month
    • 7,000 tracked keywords
    • Unlimited projects and users
    • One SEO forecast per project
  • Agency$279/month
    • 14,500 tracked keywords
    • Unlimited SEO forecasts
    • 1-hour on-demand updates
  • Enterprise$699/month
    • 35,500 tracked keywords
    • Unlimited scheduled reports and cross-project reporting
    • BigQuery connector and automated CSV exports

Ahrefs

Free
  • Ahrefs FreeFree
    • Limited Site Explorer and Site Audit for sites you verify ownership of
    • No access to competitor data
    • Where paid subscriptions land after cancellation
  • Starter$29/month
    • Search and competitor data with reduced row limits
    • No projects tier of the main plan ladder
    • Sits below Lite on the published pricing page
  • Lite$129/month
    • 1 user included, up to 2 more at 40 USD each per month
    • 1,000 credits per user per month, the only tier with a credit cap
    • 5 projects, 750 tracked keywords, 6 months of historical data
  • Standard$249/month
    • 1 user included, up to 5 more at 60 USD each per month
    • Unlimited report credits under fair use
    • 20 projects, 2,000 tracked keywords, 2 years of historical data

Which should you pick?

Choose Advanced Web Ranking if

  • You need seo forecasting.
  • You also want market share reports.
Advanced Web Ranking review

Choose Ahrefs if

  • You need site explorer.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want keywords explorer.
Ahrefs review

Questions people ask

Is Advanced Web Ranking or Ahrefs better?
Neither clearly leads. Advanced Web Ranking starts at On request and Ahrefs at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Advanced Web Ranking or Ahrefs?
Ahrefs has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Advanced Web Ranking and Free for Ahrefs.
Does Advanced Web Ranking or Ahrefs run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Ahrefs for free?
Yes. Ahrefs has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Advanced Web Ranking starts at On request.
What is Advanced Web Ranking best used for?
Advanced Web Ranking is most often used for an agency that wants ranking forecasts to put in front of clients rather than raw position history alone, a consultant estimating market share against named competitors without buying a full seo suite, a team with fluctuating headcount that wants unlimited seats rather than a per-user licence, a reporting workflow that needs bigquery export and cross-project comparison at enterprise tier. Of those, an agency that wants ranking forecasts to put in front of clients rather than raw position history alone and a consultant estimating market share against named competitors without buying a full seo suite are not what Ahrefs is typically brought in for.
What can Advanced Web Ranking do that Ahrefs cannot?
Advanced Web Ranking covers SEO forecasting, Market share reports, AI visibility tracking, Local and mobile rank tracking. Ahrefs covers Site Explorer, Keywords Explorer, Site Audit, Rank Tracker.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Advanced Web Ranking: What is the SEO forecast feature actually predicting?

Projected ranking and traffic movement extrapolated from a project's historical tracked data, refreshed as new tracking data comes in; it is a trend projection, not a guarantee.

Ahrefs: How much does Ahrefs cost?

Starter is 29 USD a month, Lite 129, Standard 249, Advanced 449 and Enterprise 1,499 with an annual commitment. Paying annually saves up to 17 percent, which Ahrefs describes as two months free, and it is arranged through support rather than on the site.

Advanced Web Ranking: Is pricing per user?

No. Every plan includes unlimited projects and users; price scales only with the number of tracked keywords.

Ahrefs: What are Ahrefs credits and when did they start?

Ahrefs replaced unlimited report usage with credits in April 2024. It meters report credits, crawl credits and API units. Lite includes 1,000 credits per user per month; Standard and above are unlimited under a fair use policy. Purchased pay-as-you-go credits last three billing months.

Advanced Web Ranking: Does it track AI-generated search answers?

Yes, it reports on domain visibility inside AI-generated answers alongside standard organic rankings.

Ahrefs: Is Ahrefs or Moz better?

Ahrefs has the deeper and fresher link index and stronger competitive research, and it is the default for link work. Moz is cheaper at entry, owns Domain Authority as a reportable metric, and has a real local listings product. If you report DA to clients or manage multi-location listings, Moz earns its place; otherwise Ahrefs wins on data.

Ahrefs: Is there a free version or a trial?

There is Ahrefs Free, limited to Site Explorer and Site Audit on sites you verify you own, so it gives you no competitor data. Ahrefs states it never runs discounts and does not offer a trial of the paid plans.

Ahrefs: How many users are included?

One, on every paid tier up to Advanced. Extra seats cost 40 USD a month on Lite, 60 on Standard, 80 on Advanced and 100 on Enterprise, and unpaid additional users are billed automatically as pay-as-you-go.

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