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Marketing · head to head

Ahrefs vs Medallia

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
Medallia logo

Medallia

Surveys

Enterprise experience management platform for customer, employee and contact centre feedback

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.; Medallia there is no published pricing and no self-serve tier, so evaluating cost requires a sales process before any real budgeting can happen.
  • They diverge on capability: Ahrefs covers Site Explorer, Medallia covers Multi-channel feedback capture.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Ahrefs and Medallia actually diverge.

Attributes where Ahrefs and Medallia differ
AttributeAhrefsMedallia
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelPer month by credits and usage limitsquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, iOS, Android
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 Medallia

  • Multi-channel feedback capture
  • AI text and sentiment analysis
  • Role-based reporting
  • Contact centre analytics
  • Experience orchestration
  • Market research tools

What people use each for

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

Ahrefs

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

Medallia

  • A retail or hospitality chain that wants customer feedback, digital behaviour and call transcripts unified in one platformnot Ahrefs
  • An enterprise with a dedicated CX team needing role-based dashboards from frontline staff to the executive teamnot Ahrefs
  • A contact centre wanting agent coaching and quality management driven by the same data as customer satisfaction scoresnot Ahrefs
  • A company running employee and customer experience programmes and wanting one vendor across bothnot 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.

Medallia

  • There is no published pricing and no self-serve tier, so evaluating cost requires a sales process before any real budgeting can happen.
  • Implementation is a project, not a signup, and typically involves data integration and consulting work before the platform produces usable dashboards.
  • The breadth of modules means a buyer who only needs a simple survey tool is paying for enterprise infrastructure they will not use.
  • Switching away later means re-architecting how feedback is collected across the organisation, which creates real vendor lock-in once rolled out.
  • Smaller teams and mid-market companies are effectively priced out, since the platform and its go-to-market are built for large enterprise accounts.

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

Medallia

On request
  • Medallia Experience Cloud$undefined/year
    • No published pricing, sold as a multi-year enterprise contract
    • Pricing depends on modules (CX, EX, contact centre, market research)
    • Implementation and integration typically charged separately

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 Medallia if

  • You need multi-channel feedback capture.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want ai text and sentiment analysis.
Medallia review

Questions people ask

Is Ahrefs or Medallia better?
Neither clearly leads. Ahrefs starts at Free and Medallia at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Ahrefs or Medallia?
Ahrefs has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Ahrefs and On request for Medallia.
Does Ahrefs or Medallia run on more platforms?
Ahrefs runs on Web. Medallia runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Ahrefs for free?
Yes. Ahrefs has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Medallia 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 Medallia is typically brought in for.
What can Ahrefs do that Medallia cannot?
Ahrefs covers Site Explorer, Keywords Explorer, Site Audit, Rank Tracker. Medallia covers Multi-channel feedback capture, AI text and sentiment analysis, Role-based reporting, Contact centre analytics.

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.

Medallia: Is there a self-serve or free version?

No. Medallia sells only through direct sales with quoted enterprise contracts; there is no published price list.

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.

Medallia: Can a mid-sized company buy Medallia?

Technically yes, but the sales motion, implementation cost and contract structure are built for large enterprise deployments, not smaller teams.

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.

Medallia: Does it replace a standalone survey tool?

It can collect surveys, but its value is in unifying multiple feedback channels; a company only needing surveys is better served by a cheaper dedicated tool.

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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