Moz Pro and Semrush: side-by-side
A side-by-side comparison of Moz Pro and Semrush — features, pricing, strengths, and where each tool falls short.
Moz Pro and Semrush are both full-stack SEO suites that have been around long enough to accumulate serious feature depth — but they've grown in different directions. Moz built its identity around Domain Authority and a focused keyword/link/audit workflow, recently layering in AI visibility dashboards on Medium and Large plans. Semrush expanded into a 20-plus-tool marketing platform covering SEO, PPC, content, social, and now AI search tracking. The decision between them is less about which is 'better' and more about how much platform surface area your team will realistically use.
Pricing is the first concrete fork. Moz Pro starts at $49/month for a single site or $99/month for three sites on the Standard plan, with annual discounts dropping Standard to $79/month. Semrush's entry-level SEO plan runs $117.33/month billed annually ($139/month month-to-month) and covers five websites with 500 keywords tracked daily. Adding a second seat on Semrush costs an extra $45/month; Moz's Starter plan includes one user as well. Neither tool offers a bring-your-own-key option, and both rely on third-party estimated data rather than surfacing your live Google Search Console truth as a primary workflow.
The realistic buyer choosing between these two is usually an established SEO practitioner or agency team that already has an opinion on Domain Authority's usefulness or already pays for one platform and is evaluating whether to switch. Semrush suits teams that want a single login for competitor PPC research, content optimization, and social alongside SEO. Moz Pro suits teams running a tighter SEO program who value DA as a reference metric and may not need the full breadth Semrush offers — or the price tag that comes with it.
What each tool is
Moz Pro
Moz Pro is a long-running SEO platform offering keyword research, rank tracking, site crawling, link analysis, and the well-known Domain Authority metric. Newer plans add AI visibility dashboards and prompt tracking across LLMs.
Semrush
Semrush is one of the largest SEO and digital marketing platforms, offering domain analytics, position tracking, site audit, keyword research, backlink analysis, and a growing set of AI visibility and content tools. It is widely adopted by agencies and enterprise marketing teams.
At a glance
Moz Pro
Full-stack SEO Suite
Veteran SEO platform with Domain Authority, link research, and audit workflows.
Moz Pro Standard
- •Starter $49/mo — single website
- •Standard $99/mo ($79/mo annual) — 3 sites, 300 kws
- •Medium $179/mo ($143/mo annual) — 10 sites, 1,500 kws + AI tools
- •Large $299/mo ($239/mo annual) — 25 sites, 3,000 kws + 4 AI dashboards
Semrush
Full-stack SEO Suite
A full-stack SEO and marketing suite with broad coverage of search, ads, content, and AI visibility.
SEO (formerly Pro)
- •SEO plan $117.33/mo billed annually ($139/mo monthly) — 5 websites, 500 keywords tracked daily, basic keyword research & competitor analysis
- •Starter SEO + AI Search $165.17/mo billed annually ($199/mo) — 5 websites, 500 keywords, 50 AI prompts tracked daily, 1 domain AI brand performance
- •Pro+ SEO + AI Search $248.17/mo billed annually ($299/mo) — 15 websites, 1,500 keywords, historical data, content optimization, 100 AI prompts/day
- •Advanced SEO + AI Search $455.67/mo billed annually ($549/mo) — 40 websites, 5,000 keywords, API access, SEO share of voice, 200 AI prompts/day
- •Enterprise available with custom pricing, unlimited projects, and dedicated support
Feature comparison
Side-by-side feature breakdown across pricing, data, workflows, and collaboration.
| Feature | Moz Pro | Semrush |
|---|---|---|
| Data & coverage | ||
| Native Google Search Console integration | GSC import available | GSC import (Position Tracking) |
| Keyword research database | Moz proprietary KW database | Proprietary, very large |
| Backlink index | true (Link Explorer) | Yes |
| AI search visibility | AI Visibility Dashboards (Medium+) | — |
| Workflows built for you | ||
| Quick wins (pages 1 click from page 1) | No | Manual via Position Tracking |
| Content decay detection | No | No |
| Weak & dead URL identification | No | No |
| AI content briefs | 2-50 briefs/mo by plan | Add-on (SEO Writing Assistant) |
| Content groups & cohort analysis | — | No |
| Collaboration & sharing | ||
| Magic-link read-only sharing | No | No |
| Seats included on entry plan | 1 user | 1 user (additional $45/mo) |
| Pricing & value | ||
| Entry plan price | $49 Starter / $99 Standard | $117.33/mo billed annually ($139/mo month-to-month) |
| Free tier | free Moz Community account | Free account with strict limits |
| BYOK option | No | No |
The differences that actually matter
Entry Price and Plan Structure
Moz Pro's cheapest paid option is $49/month (Starter, one site), with the more practical Standard plan at $99/month or $79/month annually for three sites and 300 keywords. Semrush's lowest tier is $117.33/month billed annually ($139/month month-to-month) for five sites and 500 daily keywords. That's a meaningful gap at the bottom: a solo SEO practitioner or small team pays roughly 40–67% less to get started with Moz. However, Semrush's entry plan covers more sites and more daily keyword positions than Moz Standard for roughly $38/month more on annual billing.
Keyword and Site Scale by Tier
Semrush tracks keywords daily — 500 on the SEO plan, 1,500 on Pro+, 5,000 on Advanced. Moz Pro tracks 300 on Standard, 1,500 on Medium ($179/month), and 3,000 on Large ($299/month). For high-volume enterprise tracking, Semrush's Advanced at $455.67/month annual reaches 5,000 keywords across 40 sites. Moz's Large plan covers 25 sites and 3,000 keywords at $239/month annual, making it meaningfully cheaper if your keyword count stays under 3,000 but site count is high.
Domain Authority vs. Competitive Intelligence Breadth
Moz Pro's most recognized differentiator is Domain Authority — a metric embedded deeply in how SEOs qualify link prospects and benchmark competitors. Semrush doesn't offer DA but provides Authority Score, Traffic Analytics, and a broad Domain Overview that incorporates estimated paid and organic traffic. If your workflow or client reporting is already structured around DA, switching to Semrush means recalibrating every benchmark. If you need paid search competitor data or estimated display ad spend, Moz simply doesn't offer that.
AI Visibility Tracking
Both platforms have moved into AI search visibility. Moz adds AI Visibility Dashboards on Medium ($179/month) and Large ($299/month) plans, with 4 dashboards on Large and extra dashboards available at $20 each. Semrush offers AI prompt tracking on its Starter SEO + AI Search bundle at $165.17/month annually, scaling to 50 prompts/day at that tier and 200/day on Advanced. The tracking granularity and prompt volume differ, but neither is included on the absolute cheapest tier of either platform.
Workflow Automation and Built-In Action Items
Neither Moz Pro nor Semrush automatically identifies quick-win pages one click from page-one ranking or flags content decay using your real GSC data. Semrush requires manual filtering in Position Tracking to approximate quick wins; Moz has no equivalent workflow at all. Neither platform offers magic-link read-only sharing for clients or stakeholders. Both tools require an analyst to interpret data and build workflows manually — they're research platforms, not automated recommendation engines.
Where each tool wins and falls short
Moz Pro
Strengths
- Long-running brand and rich educational ecosystem
- Domain Authority is widely recognized
- Newer AI visibility dashboards on Medium+ plans
Weaknesses
- Third-party estimated data, not your real GSC
- Higher-tier features (AI dashboards, prompt tracking) gated
- No GSC-grounded quick wins / decay / weak-URL workflows
- Add-on costs stack quickly (extra dashboards $20 each, etc.)
Semrush
Strengths
- Vast tool coverage — SEO, PPC, content, social, AI visibility
- Mature competitor analysis (Traffic Analytics, Domain Overview)
- Strong brand and integrations ecosystem
Weaknesses
- Expensive — Pro $139.95/mo, Business $499.95/mo
- Steep learning curve; many features go unused
- Data is third-party estimated, not your real GSC truth
- Most useful workflows gated behind higher tiers (Guru, Business)
Who each tool fits
Moz Pro
Best for
- •Teams that rely on Domain Authority as a core metric
- •Established SEO programs comfortable with Moz workflows
- •Buyers who want a stable, mid-market full-stack suite
Not ideal for
- •Founders who want first-party GSC action workflows
- •Teams priced out of $99-$299/mo monthly tiers
- •Anyone whose Moz value is mostly DA scoring
Semrush
Best for
- •Large agencies and enterprise teams needing breadth across SEO/PPC/social
- •Power users comfortable with a complex 20+ tool platform
- •Teams using Semrush as their central marketing data platform
Not ideal for
- •Founders and small teams who want a focused GSC workflow
- •Buyers priced out of $117+/mo entry pricing
- •Anyone who only opens 2-3 tools regularly
Which should you choose?
Moz Pro is the right call for SEO-focused teams who rely on Domain Authority, want a more affordable entry point, and don't need cross-channel marketing data. Semrush earns its higher price tag for agencies and enterprise teams who actively use competitive intelligence across SEO, PPC, and content inside one platform. Neither tool automatically surfaces GSC-grounded quick-win workflows, so both require hands-on analyst time to extract action items.
Choose Moz Pro if…
- Your team uses Domain Authority as a standard metric for vetting link prospects or reporting to clients — Moz invented it, and it's baked into every workflow.
- Your budget ceiling is $99–$179/month and you need at least 3–10 sites covered without jumping to a $117+ entry plan.
- You want AI visibility dashboards included in a mid-market plan — Moz's Medium plan at $179/month adds AI tools that Semrush gates behind higher-tier bundles.
- Your team runs a focused keyword + rank tracking + site audit workflow and doesn't need PPC, social, or display advertising data cluttering the interface.
Choose Semrush if…
- Your agency needs competitor PPC intelligence, Traffic Analytics, and domain overviews alongside SEO — Semrush covers all of these natively in a way Moz Pro does not.
- You're tracking 500+ keywords daily across 5 sites at entry level and expect to scale to 1,500–5,000 keywords as your program grows, which Semrush's tier ladder accommodates.
- Your team needs historical data and API access — both are available on Semrush's Pro+ ($248.17/month annual) and Advanced ($455.67/month annual) plans.
- You run content optimization workflows that benefit from Semrush's SEO Writing Assistant and Topic Research, even as add-ons, within one login.
Frequently asked questions
What buyers ask when weighing Moz Pro and Semrush.
Yes, materially so at entry level. Moz Pro's Standard plan is $99/month ($79/month annually) for three sites and 300 keywords. Semrush's cheapest plan is $117.33/month annually ($139/month month-to-month) for five sites and 500 daily keywords. Moz also has a $49/month Starter plan with no Semrush equivalent. At higher tiers the gap narrows, but Moz remains cheaper plan-for-plan through its Large tier at $239/month annual vs. Semrush Advanced at $455.67/month annual.
No. Semrush's proprietary keyword database is widely regarded as one of the largest in the industry, a key reason agencies use it for discovery across diverse markets. Moz Pro has its own proprietary keyword database, but Semrush's coverage — particularly for international markets and long-tail queries — is deeper. If raw keyword database breadth drives your research quality, Semrush has the edge.
Both have native backlink indexes — Moz through Link Explorer and Semrush through its Backlink Analytics tool. Moz's Link Explorer is built around Domain Authority and Page Authority, making it useful if those metrics anchor your link-building qualification process. Semrush's backlink tool integrates with its broader domain analysis suite. Neither is definitively superior for all use cases; the better choice depends on whether your team already uses DA as a benchmark.
Both tools now offer AI visibility tracking. Moz includes AI Visibility Dashboards on its Medium plan ($179/month) and above, with up to 4 dashboards on Large and add-ons at $20 each. Semrush offers AI prompt tracking starting on its Starter SEO + AI Search bundle at $165.17/month annually, scaling from 50 to 200 prompts per day across higher tiers. Neither includes AI tracking on their absolute cheapest plan.
Both tools offer GSC import. Semrush connects GSC to its Position Tracking module. Moz Pro also imports GSC data. However, neither platform builds its primary workflows around your actual GSC data — both lean on their own third-party estimated databases as the core data layer. GSC integration in both cases is supplementary rather than foundational.
Moz Pro's Starter plan includes 1 user, as does Semrush's entry SEO plan. Adding seats on Semrush costs $45/month per additional user. Moz Pro's seat pricing varies by plan, and additional users can be added, but neither platform is generous with included seats at entry level. Teams needing multi-user access should factor in per-seat costs when comparing total price.
For agencies that actively use competitor PPC data, Traffic Analytics, social monitoring, and content tools alongside SEO — yes, Semrush's breadth justifies the premium. If your agency's core deliverables are SEO audits, rank tracking, and link building reports structured around Domain Authority, Moz Pro covers those workflows at a lower monthly cost. The honest test is auditing how many Semrush tools your team opens in a given month.
Neither tool offers automated content decay detection. Both Moz Pro and Semrush flag content decay as absent in their current feature sets. Identifying decaying pages requires manual filtering in both platforms — for example, cross-referencing rank history in Semrush's Position Tracking or Moz's rank tracker against historical performance. This is a gap shared by both products.