Moz Pro and Semrush both cover the core SEO pillars of keyword research, rank tracking, and site auditing, but they are built for different jobs. Moz Pro is…
| Moz Pro | Semrush | |
|---|---|---|
| Primary category | SEO | SEO |
| Rating | Not documented | Not documented |
| Pricing model | Subscription | Tiered subscription, billed monthly or annually |
| Starting price | $39/month (billed annually) or $49/month billed monthly | $139.95 per month for the Pro plan billed monthly, or about $117.33 per month billed annually |
| Free plan | Not documented | Not documented |
| Free trial | Yes | Not documented |
| Platforms | Web | Not documented |
| Team collaboration | Not documented | Not documented |
| AI features | Not documented | Yes |
| Public API | Yes | Not documented |
Entry-level pricing
Moz Pro: Moz Pro Standard starts at $49 per month, billed annually.
Semrush: Semrush's entry SEO plan starts at $117.33 per month, billed annually, more than double Moz's starting price.
Budget-conscious teams and solo marketers face very different up-front costs before they see any capability difference.
Core product philosophy
Moz Pro: Built as an SEO-focused suite centered on Domain Authority and Page Authority for evaluating site and link strength.
Semrush: Positioned as a broader digital marketing platform combining SEO with competitive intelligence and AI search visibility.
Buyers looking specifically at SEO fundamentals versus those wanting adjacent marketing and competitive intelligence functions need different scopes of tool.
AI answer engine visibility
Moz Pro: Not documented as offering AI-generated-answer visibility tracking.
Semrush: Tracks how a brand appears in AI-generated answers through AI search visibility tracking across paid tiers.
As more searches happen through AI assistants, tracking presence in AI-generated answers is becoming a meaningful differentiator.
Backlink and authority data
Moz Pro: Link Explorer plus proprietary Domain Authority, Page Authority, and Spam Score metrics.
Semrush: Not documented in the provided feature set.
Link analysis and authority scoring are core to backlink strategy and to prioritizing outreach and link building work.
Free browser extension
Moz Pro: MozBar, a free browser extension that shows Domain Authority, Page Authority, and on-page elements while browsing.
Semrush: Not documented.
A free always-on companion tool lets users do lightweight research without logging into the main platform.
Developer and API access
Moz Pro: Moz Links API for programmatic link and authority data access, with tiered API limits by plan.
Semrush: Not documented.
Teams building internal dashboards or custom reporting need reliable API access to pull SEO data at scale.
Plan structure and add-ons
Moz Pro: Four tiers, Standard, Medium, Large, and Premium, that bundle increasing keyword, campaign, and crawl allowances.
Semrush: Four tiers, SEO, Starter, Pro plus, and Advanced, with additional seats, lead generation, and reporting sold as separate modular add-ons.
Buyers need to know whether advanced needs are bundled or billed separately, which affects true total cost.
Free trial availability
Moz Pro: Offers a free trial of the full Pro suite rather than a permanent free tier.
Semrush: No free tier, and no free trial is confirmed in the documented facts.
The ability to test a tool before paying reduces purchase risk, especially for smaller budgets.
Reporting delivery
Moz Pro: Custom Reporting and Dashboards is bundled into the core product for campaign-based stakeholder reports.
Semrush: Reporting is listed as a separate add-on module rather than a built-in core feature.
Whether reporting is included changes both cost and setup complexity for agencies delivering client reports.
Founding and company background
Moz Pro: Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington.
Semrush: Founding year and headquarters are not documented in the provided facts.
Some buyers weigh company longevity and location for support and reliability considerations.
| Feature | Moz Pro | Semrush |
|---|---|---|
| Keyword research tools | Available | Not documented |
| Rank and position tracking | Available | Available |
| Technical site audit | Available | Available |
| Feature | Moz Pro | Semrush |
|---|---|---|
| Backlink and link index analysis | Available | Not documented |
| Proprietary authority scoring | Available | Not documented |
| Feature | Moz Pro | Semrush |
|---|---|---|
| Free browser extension | Available | Not documented |
| Per-page on-page optimization grading | Available | Not documented |
| Feature | Moz Pro | Semrush |
|---|---|---|
| AI-generated answer visibility tracking | Not documented | Available |
| Combined AI plus traditional rank tracking in one plan | Not documented | Available |
| Feature | Moz Pro | Semrush |
|---|---|---|
| Custom branded stakeholder or client reporting | Available | Limited |
| Additional user seats and team collaboration | Limited | Limited |
| Feature | Moz Pro | Semrush |
|---|---|---|
| Programmatic API access to core data | Available | Not documented |
| Tiered advanced API access limits | Available | Not documented |
| Feature | Moz Pro | Semrush |
|---|---|---|
| Permanent free plan | Unavailable | Unavailable |
| Free trial | Available | Not documented |
Starting price reflects the lowest paid tier, not the full cost for every team size or usage level.
Pros
Cons
Pros
Cons
Moz Pro is cheaper at the entry level, starting at $49 per month for the Standard plan billed annually, while Semrush's entry SEO plan starts at $117.33 per month billed annually, more than double Moz's starting price.
Semrush documents AI search visibility tracking, monitoring how a brand appears in AI-generated answers across its paid tiers, while the provided facts for Moz Pro do not document any AI answer engine visibility feature.
Yes, Moz Pro is positioned as beginner-friendly, with Site Crawl reports that pair issues with prioritized fixes and educational content like the Moz blog and Whiteboard Friday supporting its learning curve.
Semrush has no free tier, with its entry SEO plan starting at over $100 per month even with annual billing, and the provided facts do not confirm whether a free trial is offered.
Moz Pro documents dedicated backlink analysis through Link Explorer, including Domain Authority, Page Authority, and Spam Score metrics, while the provided facts for Semrush do not document a specific backlink analysis feature.
Yes, Moz Pro offers the Moz Links API for pulling link and authority data programmatically into custom tools or dashboards, a capability not documented in the provided Semrush facts.