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Marketing · head to head

Ahrefs vs Device Magic

Ahrefs logo

Ahrefs

Marketing

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

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Device Magic logo

Device Magic

Surveys

Offline mobile forms for field crews, quote-only with a three user minimum, now under GoCanvas

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Ahrefs has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Device Magic neither plan publishes a price and both carry a three user minimum billed annually, so a two-person business cannot buy it at all and a small firm cannot benchmark the quote against published competitors
  • They diverge on capability: Ahrefs covers Site Explorer, Device Magic covers Fully offline capture.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Ahrefs and Device Magic actually diverge.

Attributes where Ahrefs and Device Magic differ
AttributeAhrefsDevice Magic
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelPer month by credits and usage limitsquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebiOS, Android, Web
CategoryMarketingSurveys
Founded2010Unknown

Identical on both: 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 Ahrefs

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

Only in Device Magic

  • Fully offline capture
  • Formatted PDF output
  • Destinations
  • Dispatch and scheduling
  • Resource data
  • Conditional logic
  • White labelling

What people use each for

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

Ahrefs

  • SEO researchnot Device Magic
  • Competitor analysisnot Device Magic
  • Content planningnot Device Magic
  • Backlink analysisnot Device Magic
  • Rank trackingnot Device Magic

Device Magic

  • A mechanical contractor whose service certificates must reach the customer as a specific PDF layout immediately after the visitnot Ahrefs
  • An inspection crew working in basements and rural sites where there is no signal for most of the working daynot Ahrefs
  • A utility that needs the day's jobs dispatched to named engineers with the right form attached to each onenot Ahrefs
  • A business replacing carbon-copy job sheets where the office currently re-keys every sheet into an accounting systemnot Ahrefs

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Device Magic

  • Neither plan publishes a price and both carry a three user minimum billed annually, so a two-person business cannot buy it at all and a small firm cannot benchmark the quote against published competitors
  • Device Magic is now part of GoCanvas, which sells an overlapping mobile forms product, so buyers should ask directly about long-term investment in Device Magic before signing a multi-year term
  • Per user per month pricing means seasonal and occasional field staff consume full seats, and businesses with a large casual crew pay for licences that are used a few weeks a year
  • It captures and delivers data but does not manage the work itself, so there is no job costing, no scheduling depth and no invoicing, and it usually sits alongside a field service management system rather than replacing one
  • PDF layout control is the main reason to buy it and is also the most fiddly part of the product; complex certificate layouts take real configuration effort and are not something a field supervisor will maintain

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Device Magic

On request
  • Max$undefined/month
    • Per user per month, billed annually
    • Three user minimum
    • Unlimited forms and submissions
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Per user per month, billed annually
    • Three user minimum
    • Everything in Max

Which should you pick?

Choose Ahrefs if

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

Choose Device Magic if

  • You need fully offline capture.
  • You work on iOS, Android, Web.
  • You also want formatted pdf output.
Device Magic review

Questions people ask

Is Ahrefs or Device Magic better?
Neither clearly leads. Ahrefs starts at Free and Device Magic at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Ahrefs or Device Magic?
Ahrefs has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Ahrefs and On request for Device Magic.
Does Ahrefs or Device Magic run on more platforms?
Ahrefs runs on Web. Device Magic runs on iOS, Android, Web.
Can I use Ahrefs for free?
Yes. Ahrefs has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Device Magic starts at On request.
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 Device Magic is typically brought in for.
What can Ahrefs do that Device Magic cannot?
Ahrefs covers Site Explorer, Keywords Explorer, Site Audit, Rank Tracker. Device Magic covers Fully offline capture, Formatted PDF output, Destinations, Dispatch and scheduling.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Device Magic: What does Device Magic cost?

It does not publish prices. Both the Max and Enterprise plans are per user per month billed annually with a three user minimum, and you get a figure from sales.

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.

Device Magic: Who owns Device Magic?

It is part of GoCanvas, which also sells a competing mobile forms product.

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.

Device Magic: Does it work with no signal?

Yes, that is the main use case. Forms and reference data are held on the device and submissions sync when connectivity returns.

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.

Device Magic: Is there a submission limit?

No. Both plans list unlimited forms, unlimited submissions and unlimited lifetime data storage, so the cost variable is seats.

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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