Top Paid Keyword Planning Tools

In our previous post, we explored popular free keyword research tools and their benefits for optimizing your website's search engine rankings and targeting your audience.

However, as any professional digital marketer or copywriter knows, sometimes free tools are not enough. To get more detailed and in-depth analysis, one may need to invest in a paid keyword research tool.

In this post, we will continue our exploration of keyword research by comparing some of the most popular paid keyword research tools.

We will be taking a look at their features and pricing to help you determine which one is the best fit for your needs and budget.

Whether you're looking to improve your website's search engine rankings or better understand your target audience, we hope this post will provide valuable information to help you make a better informed decision.

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. So we may earn a commission when you make a purchase through links on our site, at no additional cost to you. You can read our full affiliate disclosure here.

Blog Content:

• SEMrush

• SERPstat

• Ahrefs

• Moz Explorer

1. SEMrush

SEMrush is a comprehensive digital marketing tool that offers a wide range of features, including keyword research, site audit, backlink analysis, keyword grouping, and more. It's a great option for those who are looking for a tool that does a bit of everything, and it's particularly useful for advanced users who want detailed analysis and advanced reporting.

Well-regarded by many experts and users, it has over 40,000 reviews on Capterra & G2 with a high rating of 4.5 stars.

One of the standout features of SEMrush is its ability to analyze your competitors' keywords, top organic search results, and search engine rankings. This feature is really helpful when you're trying to understand what your competitors are doing and how you can improve your own website.

Additionally, it provides a lot of data on search volume, CPC, and competition, which can be really helpful when you're trying to decide which keywords to target in your content. You can see how popular a keyword is, how much it costs to bid on it in Google Ads, and how much competition there is for it.

Another great feature of this tool is the site audit feature, it analyzes the technical SEO issues on your website and recommends ways to fix them. This can help to improve the performance of your website and improve your search engine rankings.

The backlink analysis feature is also a valuable tool that can help you understand how many backlinks your website has, and what the quality of those backlinks is.

SEMrush has a few different pricing plans, which start at $99.95/month for the Pro Plan and go up to $399.95/month for the Business Plan (Save up to 17% if you choose to be billed annually). You can read up more details on their site here!

2. SERPstat

SERPstat is considered a budget-friendly alternative to some of the more expensive tools out there. On Capterra and G2, it has over 2,100 reviews with a high rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars on average. SERPstat offers a variety of features that are similar to that of SEMrush; the ability to garner data on search volume, CPC, a competitive analysis of your competitors, a Site audit feature that analyzes your website for technical SEO issues and offers suggestions on how to fix them, and more.

What's the difference?

While SEMrush and SERPstat are both comprehensive SEO and digital marketing tools, they have some differences in their features and functionalities.

One of the main differences between the two is that SEMrush has a wider range of features and more in-depth analysis capabilities. It focuses more on detailed keyword research, site audit, backlink analysis, and keyword grouping.

On the other hand, SERPstat is more affordable and it is more focused on SEO and PPC management. It offers similar features, however, the data it provides is not as detailed as SEMrush.

SERPstat offers a 7-day trial for new users to test the features and decide whether it's right for them. They also have several different pricing plans, which start at $69/month for the Lite Plan and go up to $449/month for the Enterprise Plan (Save up to 20% if you choose to be billed annually). You can read up more details on their site here!

3. Ahrefs

Ahrefs is another widely used and well-known digital marketing tool. On Capterra and G2, Ahrefs has almost 10,000 reviews, with a high rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars and it's considered as one of the top product in the SEO software category.

What's the difference?

When comparing Ahrefs with SEMrush and SERPstat, one of the standout features of Ahrefs is its backlink analysis, which is considered one of the best in the industry. They have a large link index which is updated very frequently, with over 17 billion known links. They also offer a wide range of features to analyze links, such as the number of linking domains, the top linking pages, and the anchor text used.

Additionally, the Ahrefs team is constantly updating the feature and adding new functionalities, which demonstrates the tool's capability to provide valuable insights. With that being said, whether or not it is considered the best is a subjective matter and depends on user preference. Some experts and users might have different opinions on which tool provides the best backlink analysis.

When comparing Ahrefs to SEMrush, Ahrefs is slightly more focused on backlink analysis, whereas SEMrush offers a wider range of features with more in-depth analysis capabilities. In comparison to SERPstat, despite Ahrefs being more costly, it provides more detailed data, and more advanced features.

Ahrefs offers a 7-day trial for new users to test their features. They also has different tiered pricing plans, which start at $99/month for the Lite Plan and go up to $999/month for the Agency Plan (Get 2 months of free subscription if you choose to be billed annually). You can read up more on their site here!

4. Moz Keyword Explorer

Moz Explorer, also known as Moz Pro, is yet another tool that offers similar features to the tools mentioned above. On Capterra & G2, it has over 1,000 reviews with a high rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars.

What's the difference?

Moz Explorer is not as popular as some of the other tools like SEMrush and Ahrefs, but it still has a good user base and reputation. It's considered a more affordable alternative to some of the more expensive tools, and it's well-regarded for its user-friendly interface and its Domain Analysis feature.

One of the standout features of Moz Explorer as mentioned, is its Domain Analysis feature. It is not available in the other tools and provides detailed information on the domain authority and page authority of any website, including your own and your competitors'. This feature allows you to understand the strength of a website's backlink profile and how it can affect the website's search engine ranking.

When comparing Moz Explorer to Ahrefs, SEMrush, and SERPstat, Moz Explorer is considered to have a more user-friendly interface. It's also more affordable than Ahrefs. That said, it might not have as much data and detailed analysis capabilities as SEMrush or SERPstat.

Moz Keyword Explorer's offers a 30-day free trial for new users and their pricing plans start at $99/month for the Standard Plan and go up to $599/month for the Premium Plan. You can read up more on their site here!

Bonus: Keywords Everywhere

Keywords Everywhere is a browser extension and a keyword research tool that offers a wide range of features, including keyword research, search volume, CPC, and competition data.

In terms of popularity, Keywords Everywhere is considered less popular than the other tools mentioned in this list, but it's still well-regarded by many users for its simplicity and budget-friendly pricing. It is still a good option for those who are looking for an easy-to-use tool for keyword research.

What's the difference?

One of the standout features of Keywords Everywhere is its integration with various websites such as Google, YouTube, Bing, and more. This feature allows you to see the search volume, CPC, and competition data directly on the website's search results page, which can save you a lot of time and effort.

When comparing Keywords Everywhere to the other tools, Keywords Everywhere is considered to be a more budget-friendly alternative. While the other tools have a subscription-based pricing, Keywords Everywhere's pricing is based on purchasing credits for generating data.

Additionally, it has a much simpler interface and it's focused solely on providing search volume, CPC, and competition data, while the other tools have a wider range of features, such as site audit and backlink analysis.

Keywords Everywhere also offers a free version of the tool. Though it's functions are limited, you may choose to purchase more credits, starting from $10 for 1,000 credits. You can read up more on their site here!

Conclusion

In conclusion, there are a variety of paid keyword research tools available that can help you improve your website's performance and search engine ranking. Each tool has its own strengths and weaknesses, and the best tool for you will depend on your specific needs and budget.

Ultimately, it's important to evaluate the features of each tool and determine which one will best meet your needs. Consider trying out a few different tools with the free trials before committing to a paid subscription to see which one works best for you!

Tip:

SEMrush is a great option for E-commerce businesses and is considered to have the most in-depth analysis capabilities and advanced reporting.

Ahrefs is considered good for agencies and is considered the best for backlink analysis.

Moz Explorer is great for small and local businesses and is considered more user-friendly and affordable alternative.

SERPstat and Keywords Everywhere are good options for startups, bloggers and content creators as they're more budget-friendly.

If you're looking for a comprehensive digital marketing tool with a wide range of features, SEMrush, Ahrefs, and Moz Explorer might be the best options for you.