Ahrefs review
Updated September 28, 2026 · ForgeCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 26, 2026
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Our verdict
Ahrefs suits small businesses and enterprise teams who want an SEO toolkit with a free plan alongside paid tiers from $29. You can start free, and the listed price is close to the category median of €25.43.
Key facts
- Best for
- Small businesses and enterprise teams wanting an SEO toolkit with a free plan and a mid-range entry price.
- Price from
- $29 (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Free plan
- Yes (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Usage limits
- 500 credits per month (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Tool type
- SEO (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Founded
- 2010 (Source, checked September 26, 2026)
- Audience
- Small business, Enterprise
- Official website
- ahrefs.com
Pros and cons
Pros
- There is a free plan, so you can look around before paying
- Entry price is $29, near the €25.43 median for SEO tools
- Usage on the free tier is listed as 500 credits per month
- Listed for both small businesses and enterprise teams
Cons
- Usage is capped at 500 credits per month on the tier that carries it
- A free plan exists, but the listed price to get beyond it is $29
- The listed entry price is above the €15.44 for the category
Who it suits
- Small businesses that want an SEO toolkit before committing to a paid tier
- Enterprise teams already looking for seo tooling
- Anyone who will use the full 500 credits per month allowance each month
Who should look elsewhere
- Vantage, if you would rather start at $30
- myGreekTax, if a different category fits your work better
- Novo, which starts at $0
How Ahrefs compares
- 9.1 vs 9.3
- 9.1 vs 9.1
9.1 vs 8.7- 9.1 vs 9.2
- 9.1 vs 9.3
9.1 vs 9.4
9.1 vs 8.5
- 9.1 vs 9.2
- 9.1 vs 8.7
- 9.1 vs 8.0
- 9.1 vs 9.5
9.1 vs 9.4
9.1 vs 9.4- 9.1 vs 9.3
9.1 vs 9.1
9.1 vs 9.1
9.1 vs 9.1- 9.1 vs 9.0
9.1 vs 9.0- 9.1 vs 8.9
9.1 vs 8.99.1 vs 8.8
- 9.1 vs 8.7
9.1 vs 8.5
9.1 vs 8.5
9.1 vs 8.59.1 vs 8.5
9.1 vs 8.5
9.1 vs 8.0
9.1 vs 8.09.1 vs 8.0
Frequently asked questions
Does Ahrefs have a free plan?+
Yes, a free plan is listed for Ahrefs. On it you can work through a limited allowance of 500 credits per month. That makes it a reasonable place to size up the toolkit before you spend anything on a paid tier.
How much does Ahrefs cost to start?+
Ahrefs lists an entry price of $29. The median price from across SEO tools in the same group is €25.43, so the starting figure sits close to the middle of the field rather than at either end.
Is Ahrefs cheaper or dearer than other SEO tools?+
The listed $29 is above the lower quartile of €15.44 for the group, and well under the upper quartile of €48.49. So it is a mid-priced option: not the cheapest to begin with, not the priciest either.
Who is Ahrefs built for?+
Ahrefs is listed for both small businesses and enterprise teams, with small business and enterprise as the named audience. Whether that suits you depends on how many people will use the tooling and how much of 500 credits per month a month you will actually use.
What kind of tool is Ahrefs?+
Ahrefs is an SEO tool, listed under seo. It is aimed at search work rather than accounting, payments or other business admin, so if you need one tool across several departments, it will not cover the whole job.
How long has Ahrefs been around?+
Ahrefs was founded in 2010. That is a useful signal when you are weighing a subscription against rivals, though the deciding factor for most buyers is what $29 buys you month to month.
Is there a cheaper way to try SEO tooling?+
Novo lists an entry price of $0 and myGreekTax lists €69, so both sit at different points on price. Vantage at $30 is the closest of the three to Ahrefs on entry price.
Sources
- ahrefs.com checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Audience
- ahrefs.com checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Tool type
“Site Explorer Study your competitors websites”
- ahrefs.com/blog/ahrefs-pricing checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Free plan, Price from
“Ahrefs offers 5 paid subscription plans”
- ecommerceparadise.com/semrush-vs-ahrefs checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Usage limits
“Lite plan at $129/month monthly for 5 projects, 750 tracked keywords, 500 credits/month”
- findstack.com/products/ahrefs/reviews checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Founded
“Ahrefs launched in 2010 as a backlink index”
Compiled from 5 source pages, checked September 26, 2026. We did not open an account.
Related by the facts
Ahrefs
Small businesses and enterprise teams wanting an SEO toolkit with a free plan and a mid-range entry price.