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Ahrefs vs Artifact

Ahrefs logo

Ahrefs

Software

Everything you need to rank higher & get more traffic

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
A

Artifact

Software

AI-powered personalized news discovery

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Artifact has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Ahrefs the entry Lite plan is $129 a month and caps projects at 5 and tracked keywords at 750; Artifact wound down in early April 2024. Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger closed it, saying the market opportunity was not large enough to keep investing
  • They diverge on capability: Ahrefs covers Site Explorer, Artifact covers AI recommendations.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Ahrefs and Artifact actually diverge.

Attributes where Ahrefs and Artifact differ
AttributeAhrefsArtifact
Starting price$29/monthFree
Pricing modelUnknownfree
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebIos, Android
Founded20102022

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 Ahrefs

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

Only in Artifact

  • AI recommendations
  • Article summaries
  • Clickbait detection
  • Social sharing
  • Topic following
  • Social sharing
  • Ios support
  • Android support

What people use each for

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

Ahrefs

  • SEO researchnot Artifact
  • Competitor analysisnot Artifact
  • Content planningnot Artifact
  • Backlink analysisnot Artifact
  • Rank trackingnot Artifact

Artifact

  • News consumptionnot Ahrefs
  • Content discoverynot Ahrefs
  • Staying informednot Ahrefs

Where each one falls short

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

Ahrefs

  • The entry Lite plan is $129 a month and caps projects at 5 and tracked keywords at 750
  • Crawl credits are metered by tier, from 100,000 on Lite to 1,500,000 on Advanced
  • Enterprise at $1,499 a month requires an annual commitment
  • Brand Radar AI, custom prompts and Content Kit are separate add-ons starting at $199, $50 and $99 a month
  • The $29 Starter plan covers search and competitive research basics rather than the full toolset

Artifact

  • Wound down in early April 2024. Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger closed it, saying the market opportunity was not large enough to keep investing
  • Yahoo acquired the personalisation technology and folded it into Yahoo News, so the app itself is not coming back
  • The founders stayed only in an advisory capacity through the transition

Pricing, plan by plan

Ahrefs

$29/month
  • Starter$29/month
    • Core keyword research
    • Backlink analysis
    • Competitor research
  • Lite$129/month
  • Standard$249/month
  • Advanced$449/month

Artifact

Free
  • FreeFree
    • AI-powered recommendations
    • Article summaries
    • Social features

Which should you pick?

Choose Ahrefs if

  • You need site explorer.
  • You also want keywords explorer.
Ahrefs review

Choose Artifact if

  • You need ai recommendations.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Ios, Android.
  • You also want article summaries.
Artifact review

Questions people ask

Is Ahrefs or Artifact better?
Neither clearly leads. Ahrefs starts at $29/month and Artifact at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Ahrefs or Artifact?
Artifact has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $29/month for Ahrefs and Free for Artifact.
Does Ahrefs or Artifact run on more platforms?
Ahrefs runs on Web. Artifact runs on Ios, Android.
Can I use Artifact for free?
Yes. Artifact has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Ahrefs starts at $29/month.
What is Ahrefs best used for?
Ahrefs is most often used for seo research, competitor analysis, content planning, backlink analysis. Of those, seo research and competitor analysis are not what Artifact is typically brought in for.
What can Ahrefs do that Artifact cannot?
Ahrefs covers Site Explorer, Keywords Explorer, Site Audit, Rank Tracker. Artifact covers AI recommendations, Article summaries, Clickbait detection, Social sharing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Ahrefs: What are Ahrefs' main features?

Ahrefs' three main features are Site Explorer (for organic performance), Keywords Explorer (for keyword research), and Content Explorer (for content discovery). The platform includes backlink analysis, competitor research, technical SEO audits, rank tracking, and content workflows.

Source
Ahrefs: What is the size of Ahrefs' backlink database?

Ahrefs maintains a database of 28 trillion internal backlinks and 35 trillion external backlinks that are updated frequently, providing the depth and freshness of link data that differentiates it from competitors.

Source
Ahrefs: What is Ahrefs' pricing?

Ahrefs pricing starts at $29/month for Starter plan, $129/month for Lite, $249/month for Standard, $449/month for Advanced, and $1,499/month for Enterprise, with annual discounts available.

Source
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