SE Ranking vs Ahrefs 2025: Which SEO Tool is Best for You? An Honest Comparison

SEO tools are essential for anyone looking to grow their traffic and sales from Google.

When it comes to popular choices, SE Ranking and Ahrefs always come on top.  

I’ve used both the tools extensively including their features, usability, and effectiveness.

“While SE Ranking is generally more affordable and offers essential SEO tools whereas Ahrefs is more expensive but offers precise metrics and massive data.”

In this comparison review, you’ll discover their features, pros, cons, pricing, who should go for either SE Ranking or Ahrefs, and much more. 

My goal with this comparison is to provide an unbiased and personal experience of how these tools work in real life. That way, you can decide which tool works best for your needs.

Let’s begin!

SE Ranking vs Ahrefs – Summary:

Each SEO tool caters to different users. Knowing your website needs is essential while choosing SE Ranking or Ahrefs. 

SE Ranking’s key features include website audits, keyword research, local marketing, rank tracking, competitor analysis, etc.

Ahrefs key features include keyword explorer, link explorer, site audit, content explorer, rank tracker, web explorer, etc.

Ahrefs is known for its massive backlink index and in-depth keyword research data, whereas SE Ranking is known for its affordability. SE Ranking is easy to use, whereas Ahrefs has some learning curve. SE Ranking offers a free trial which Ahrefs lacks.

In my opinion, out of two tools, SE Ranking offers the best value for money, as it is more affordable and offers me all the core SEO tools I need for my website. But Ahrefs’ comprehensive features and big databases are hard to ignore. Ultimately, your choice should depend on your budget.

The problem with Ahrefs is high pricing and it lacks white-label reporting. On the other hand, SE Ranking has a smaller backlink database and doesn’t offer in-depth keyword analysis. 

SE Ranking Pros	SE Ranking Cons
SE Ranking is cheaper than other SEO tools like Ahrefs and Semrush.	SE Ranking has less data than Ahrefs, especially for keywords.
Its user interface is simple and easy to use for beginners.	SE Ranking’s backlink database is way smaller than Ahrefs.
Offers a wide range of SEO tools at an affordable price.
Gives access to more users with high-end plans without extra costs.
Its site audit feature is powerful and offers in-depth suggestions.
It allows users to add more projects.
Offers white-label reporting

Claim SE Ranking 14-Day Free Trial!

Ahrefs Pros	Ahrefs Cons
Access to over 28 billion keywords globally	Ahrefs is more expensive than SE Ranking.
It has the second-biggest active web crawlers after Google.	Ahrefs does NOT offer free trials.
Ahrefs’ backlink database contains over 35 trillion links!	Ahrefs uses a credit system where every click costs a credit.
Its keyword metrics, including difficulty, traffic potential, etc are accurate compared to others.	Unlike SE Ranking, it doesn’t offer rank tracking for multiple search engines.
I can research keywords for multiple search engines, including Google, Amazon and YouTube
Offers in-depth domain and SERP analysis

Try Ahrefs Now!

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SE Ranking vs Ahrefs: A Head-to-Head Look Comparison

Here’s a comparison table of SE Ranking and Ahrefs based on key features and pricing;

Features	SE Ranking	Ahrefs
Keyword Index	Over 5.3 billion keywords	Over 28.7 billion keywords
Backlink Index	Over 2.9 trillion links	Over 35 trillion links
Projects	Add up to 5 projects (basic plan)	Add up to 5 projects (basic plan)
Ease of Use	Beginner-friendly interface	Easy to use
Content Marketing Tools	Yes (Content Editor, AI tools)	Yes (Content Explorer)
PPC Analysis	Yes	No
Rank Tracker	Up to 500 keywords (basic plan)	Up to 750 keywords (basic plan)
Historical Data	Not included in the basic plan	Included in ALL plans
Site Audits	Up to 100,000 pages (basic plan)	Up to 100,000 pages (basic plan)
Pricing	Affordable (starts at $52/mo)	Expensive (starts at $108/mo)
Free Trial	Yes, 14 days free trial	No

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Interface Comparison:

Winner: Tie

SE Ranking has the most simple interface, making it easier for beginners to understand the tool. 

Here’s what its interface looks like;

As shown above, SE Ranking’s interface is extremely easy and I can find all its tools in one place. Even for beginners, it’s intuitive and simple to go through its features.

Ahrefs also has an intuitive interface but there’s some learning curve for beginners due to its extensive features.

Here’s what its interface looks like;

While I find Ahrefs’ interface easy enough, SE Ranking’s is significantly more simple. I can navigate SE Ranking much more easily and quickly.

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Keyword Research Module:

Winner: Ahrefs

SE Ranking and Ahrefs offer solid keyword research tools, but Ahrefs has the BIGGEST keyword database with over 28 billion keywords. 

SE Ranking for Keyword Research

SE Ranking’s keyword research tool is good enough for most website owners.

I got keyword metrics like difficulty, search volume and CPC values.

However, I didn’t find their keyword metrics (especially keyword difficulty) not so accurate.

But it generated thousands of keyword ideas for my target keyword in the form of similar and related keywords;

The best part is it helped me discover the popular PPC ads for my target keyword which tells me how long an ad was used by the domain over the last 12 months.

One unique feature I found is a ranking graph, which allows me to see whether the rankings of the URL/domain have jumped or dropped.

Here’s an informative video from SE Ranking on how you can use their keyword research tool;

Ahrefs for Keyword Research: 

Ahrefs offers an accurate keyword tool called “Keyword Explorer” which I find really powerful. It gives me an overview of keyword difficulty, search volume and traffic potential.

I’ll also get literally thousands of relevant keywords in the form of;

• Terms match keywords
• Question keywords
• Also rank for keywords

I can get a comprehensive SERP overview for my target keyword;

I can also use filters like DR (Domain Rating under 50) to quickly find easy to rank keywords.

All in all, Ahrefs is a powerful tool that gives me accurate data and lots of hidden keyword ideas which I wouldn’t have discovered otherwise.

Here’s a helpful tutorial from Ahrefs on how you can use their keyword explorer tool;

Feature Comparison of Keyword Research Capabilities:

Feature	SE Ranking	Ahrefs
Keyword Database Size	5.3 billion keywords	28.7 billion keywords
Locations	180 geo databases	217 locations
Keyword Difficulty Score	Available, based on domain authority	Available, based on referred backlinks
Traffic Potential	Not available	Available

If you want to find hidden keywords and accurate data, you should choose Ahrefs over SE Ranking. However, SE Ranking is an excellent choice for those new and medium traffic sites where “huge quantity” of keywords does not matter.

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Rank Tracking:

Winner: SE Ranking

I often use rank tracking tools to monitor my website’s traffic in Google for my target keywords. 

This is really important because it helps me identify which keywords are generating more search traffic and which need improvement.

Both SE Ranking and Ahrefs offer exclusive tools for rank tracking. Let’s see how they differ.

SE Ranking for Rank Tracking 

I find SE Ranking’s Rank Tracker tool gives me 100% accurate results on both desktop top and mobile results.

Here’s what the ranking overview looks like;

As shown above, I can see keywords ranking in the top 1, top 3, 5, 10, 30 and 100.

With SE Ranking, I can create keyword groups, making it easy to track specific sets of keywords based on topics. 

It helps me better organize my SEO strategy and analyze performance without going through a long list of unrelated keywords. It also provides important metrics like;

• Search volume
• SERP features
• Content score
• Ranking data (for data range)

I can also view a detailed chart that shows keyword ranking changes over time. This helps me track progress, identify new trends, and adjust my SEO strategy accordingly.

Ahrefs for Rank Tracking

Ahrefs Rank Tracker allows me to track my site’s keyword rankings on both desktop and mobile.

As shown above, it gives me an overview that includes;

• Share of voice (shows me the share of my target’s organic search traffic compared to the total organic search traffic for all tracked keywords)
• Average position of my keywords
• Estimated traffic for those keywords
• Number of tracked keywords (by my target site’s top position)

If I’m tracking keywords in multiple areas, I can narrow down the list using the “Location” filter.

I can filter for keywords that rank in particular positions, or those that have recently improved or declined.

Feature Comparison of Rank Tracking Capabilities:

Feature	SE Ranking	Ahrefs
Rank Tracking	Accurate	Good
Desktop and Mobile	Yes	Yes
Ranking Updates	Daily	Weekly

If I want 100% accurate rank tracking with frequent updates on my keyword positions, I’ll choose SE Ranking over Ahrefs. Overall, SE Ranking should be your go to tool if you are looking for a dedicated SEO rank tracking tool. The comprehensive Rank Tracking functionality is the primary strength here.

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Competitor Analysis:

Winner: SE Ranking

I use competitor analysis to understand what my competitor websites are doing in Google. I find and analyze their top-performing keywords, content, backlinks, etc to find better opportunities.

SE Ranking for Competitor Analysis 

SE Ranking offers a dedicated tool called “Competitor Research,” which helps me identify and analyze my competitors’ SEO and PPC campaigns.

Once I enter any domain into the tool, it will instantly give me an overview of their website.

As shown above, I’ll get an in-depth view of a domain, including;

• Domain trust, which considers the number and the quality of a website’s referring domains
• Organic and paid traffic
• Organic and PPC keywords
• Total traffic cost
• Referring domains and overall backlinks

I can also see a full list of organic keywords that drive the most traffic to a site from Google;

I can see and analyze their PPC keywords that drive the most traffic from paid search along with key metrics like search volume, current position, CPC value, etc.

One more thing I like about SE Ranking is it gives me a list of subdomains with the largest volume of paid traffic from Google.

It allows me to see where my competitors are focusing their ad budget and what paid keywords they are likely targeting, helping me craft a better PPC strategy. 

Ahrefs for Competitor Analysis

For analyzing my competitors, Ahrefs offers a tool called “Competitive Analysis”.

Although this tool is not as comprehensive as SE Ranking’s competitor analysis tool, it gives me enough data.

This tool primarily helps me identify how my competitors’ websites are performing in comparison to mine.

I can use its Content Gap feature to see what keywords I have in common with my competitors where at least one of them ranks in the Top 10, but my site isn’t ranking anywhere in the Top 100.

Here’s what it looks like;

Using this tool, I can also find my competitors’ featured snippets and other SERP features;

Using its “Link Intersect” tool, I can quickly identify all the referring pages that link to any of my competitors’ homepages but not mine.

Feature Comparison of Competitor Analysis Capabilities:

Feature	SE Ranking	Ahrefs
SERP Feature Analysis	Yes	Yes
Referring Domains & Total Backlinks	Available	Available
AI Overviews Tracker	Available	Not Available
In-Depth PPC Data	Available	Not Available
Local SEO Tools	Available	Not Available

I must tell you that Ahrefs offers me massive data for analyzing my competitors’ backlinks and keyword data, it misses out on other things like local SEO. Here’s where SE Ranking excels and comes at an affordable price tag.

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Site Audit:

Winner: SE Ranking

I regularly perform site audits to evaluate my website’s health. I use them to find technical SEO issues that might be preventing my search traffic, like broken links, slow loading speeds, or crawling issues.

SE Ranking for Site Audit 

Site Audit from SE Ranking is an in-depth tool that gives me detailed analysis of my issues along with suggestions for fixing them.

Once my site is crawled, here’s what it’s overview looks like;

As shown above, SE Ranking shows me;

• Pages crawled and URLs found
• Health score which is calculated based on the number and priority of issues found during the audit
• Core web vitals score which assesses a page’s overall responsiveness to user interactions (on desktop and mobile)

I can click on the “Errors” tab to see the severe issues along with suggestions on how to fix each one of them.

I can also see my page indexability issues along with HTTP status codes;

And, overall issues with my link attributes and robots meta tags;

Ahrefs for Site Audit

Ahrefs site audit detects over 100 technical issues.

Here’s what it looks like;

As shown above, Ahrefs shows me a health score based on the issues it found during the crawl. I can prioritize the issues by errors, warnings, and notices.

I can also discover “Top Issues” to see major errors causing my site from getting more traffic.

And… that’s pretty much about it! 

Feature Comparison of Site Audit Capabilities:

Feature	SE Ranking	Ahrefs
Site Audit Depth	Detailed	Average
Detailed Suggestions?	Available	Limited
Health Score	Available	Available

Based on my findings, It looks like SE Ranking offers the most in-depth and practical recommendations on how to fix my site’s technical issues. Ahrefs is great and gives me FASTER crawling results compared to SE Ranking. If you want faster and quick fixes, Ahrefs is a great tool. If you prefer in-depth site audit analysis, then go with SE Ranking.

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Backlink Analysis:

Winner: Ahrefs

I use backlink analysis to identify the number of quality links pointing to my website. I know high-quality and relevant backlinks help me with better rankings. 

With proper link analysis of my site,I can also identify toxic backlinks that might be hurting my rankings and work to disavow them. 

Both SE Ranking and Ahrefs offer excellent features for analyzing my site’s link profile.

SE Ranking for Backlink Analysis

SE Ranking offers a powerful tool called Backlink Gap Analyzer. With the Backlink Gap Analyzer, I can identify domains that are linking to my competitors but not to my site.

Once I run analysis by comparing my site with a competitor, it will show me missing backlinks.

It also shows me the backlinks that my competitors and I have in common.

However, I find the tool sometimes doesn’t accurately show me the exact backlink sources or commonly shared backlinks.

Ahrefs for Backlink Analysis

I can use Ahrefs Site Explorer for in-depth backlink analysis.

Once I enter my competitors’ domain, it will give me a detailed overview.

I can click on the “Backlinks” option to see the total number of links from other websites pointing to my competitors.

As shown above, I can filter only dofollow links and identify the exact backlink sources along with the anchor and target URL.

I can filter results by DR (Domain Rating) to quickly identify high-authority websites that are linking to my competitors.

Overall, Ahrefs Site Explorer is more powerful than SE Ranking’s backlink analysis tool.

Feature Comparison of Backlink Analysis Capabilities:

Feature	SE Ranking	Ahrefs
Backlink Database Size	3 trillion links	35 trillion links
Backlink Index	Regular	Frequent, as it gives fresh data every 15–30 minutes
Dofollow and Nofollow Links	Available	Available
Backlink Quality Analysis	Domain Trust score, which considers the quality of a website’s referring domains and backlinks.	Domain Rating (DR) score, which shows the strength of a website’s backlink profile compared to the others.

If I want a massive database with the largest index of live backlinks, updated with fresh data every 15 minutes, I’ll go with Ahrefs. SE Ranking is smaller in size for link analysis and only suits beginners or new websites.

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SE Ranking & Ahrefs Pricing

SE Ranking is much cheaper than Ahrefs, as SE Ranking’s plans start at $52 per month, whereas Ahrefs plans start at $108 per month.

SE Ranking is an excellent choice if you’re looking for an affordable toolkit. If you want massive keyword and backlink databases, Ahrefs is perfect.

Here’s a concise comparison of the pricing plans for SE Ranking and Ahrefs;

SE Ranking Plan	Pricing	Ahrefs Plan	Pricing
Essential	$65/mo or $52/month (if billed annually)	Lite	$129/mo or $108/month (if billed annually)
Pro	$119/mo or $95.20/month (if billed annually)	Standard	$249/mo or $208/month (if billed annually)
Business	$259/mo or $207.20/month (if billed annually)	Advanced	$449/mo or $374/month (if billed annually)
–	–	Enterprise	$14,990/yr

Both tools offer a massive discount on their annual plans. SE Ranking offers a 20% discount on yearly subscriptions, while Ahrefs provides around 16% discount on annual plans (effectively giving two months free per year).

Here’s a breakdown of their individual plans and which plan works best for different user needs/budgets/business sizes/etc.

SE Ranking Pricing Plans:

SE Ranking offers three pricing plans;

1. SE Ranking Essential Plan: This is best for beginners. It costs you $65/mo or $52/mo when billed annually and offers 1 user, 5 projects, 500 keywords to track, and 100,000 site crawl pages. This is the most valued plan from SE Ranking.
2. SE Ranking Pro Plan: This plan is suited for agencies and small teams. It costs you $119/mo or $95.20/mo when billed annually and offers 3 users, 30 projects, 2000 keywords to track, and 250,000 site crawl pages.
3. SE Ranking Business Plan: This plan is excellent for large agencies and enterprises. It costs you $259/mo or $207.20/mo when billed annually and offers 5 users, unlimited projects, 5000 keywords to track, and 700,000 site crawl pages.

SE Ranking also offers a 14-day free trial to ALL new users.

Try SE Ranking Free for 14 Days

Ahrefs Pricing Plans:

Ahrefs offers four pricing plans;

1. Ahrefs Lite Plan: This plan is best suited for individual SEO professionals. It costs you $129 per month or $108/mo (if billed annually), where you get 500 monthly credits, access to 1 user, up to 5 unverified projects, 6 months of historical data, tracks up to 750 keywords, and 100,000 site audit crawl credits. This is the most valued plan from Ahrefs.
2. Ahrefs Standard Plan: This plan is best suited for website owners and small teams. It costs you $249 per month or $208/mo (if billed annually), where you get 500 monthly credits, access to 1 user, up to 20 unverified projects, 2 years of historical data, tracks up to 2000 keywords, and 500,000 site audit crawl credits. 
3. Ahrefs Advanced Plan: This plan is best suited for mid-sized agencies. It costs you $449 per month or $374/mo (if billed annually), where you get 500 monthly credits, access to 1 user, up to 50 unverified projects, 2 years of historical data, tracks up to 5000 keywords, and 1.5 million site audit crawl credits. 
4. Ahrefs Enterprise Plan: This plan is best suited for large agencies and enterprises. It costs you $14,990 per year, where you get 500 monthly credits, access to 3 users, up to 100 unverified projects, unlimited historical data, tracks up to 10,000 keywords, and 5 million site audit crawl credits. 

Ahrefs does NOT offer free trials on any of their plans.

Try Ahrefs Tools

On pricing factor, SE Ranking is the winner due to its more affordable pricing. Starting at just $52 per month when billed annually, SE Ranking’s plans are less expensive than Ahrefs.

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FAQs

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Final thoughts 

If I’m looking for a budget-friendly toolkit that gives me access to all the essential SEO tools, I’d prefer SE Ranking. For beginners, it’s the best tool.

If I’m working on complex projects and need accurate and extensive data for keyword and backlink analysis, I’d go with Ahrefs. For experienced users and agencies, Ahrefs is a great choice.

If I need an all-in-one SEO tool with a rank tracker, Ahrefs is great, but for 100% accurate rank tracking at a better price, SE Ranking wins.

So what are you going to pick? Did you find this unbiased comparison of Ahrefs and SE Ranking helpful? Have any more questions? Let me know in the comments.