Tool comparisons
The Best SEO Tools for Indie Hackers and Small SaaS, Compared
Most indie hackers should start with free tools: Google Search Console, Bing Webmaster Tools and Ahrefs' free plan cover your own rankings, indexing and backlinks. Add Keywords Everywhere at $84 a year for keyword volumes. Pay for a suite like SE Ranking, Semrush or Ahrefs only once you are publishing every week and need competitor data.
Last updated October 2026
The comparison table
SEO tools sell three different things, and it helps to know which one you need before comparing prices. First, data about your own site: which queries you appear for, which pages are indexed, which sites link to you. That data is free from the search engines themselves. Second, data about everyone else: keyword volumes, competitor rankings and competitor backlinks. That is what the paid suites are for. Third, help producing pages: audits, briefs and AI writing. A small SaaS with a handful of pages needs the first kind every week and the second kind once a month.
Several vendors showed us prices in euros because the check ran from Europe. We give the price as shown and say so; the US dollar price may be slightly different.
Pricing checked on each tool’s own pricing, feature or help pages. Prices change; confirm on the vendor’s page before you buy.
| # | Tool | Best for | Free plan | Paid from | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Google Search Console | Your real Google queries, clicks and indexing | Free, no paid plan | Free | Only sites you verify; no keyword volumes or competitor data |
| 2 | Bing Webmaster Tools | Bing data, which also feeds other search products | Free | Free | Can import sites from Search Console; has a documented API |
| 3 | Ahrefs | Backlink data and a free site audit | Ahrefs Free: site audit and backlinks for your own verified sites | Lite at €119 per month; a Starter tier is listed at €27 | No free trial for paid plans; free plan cannot look at competitors |
| 4 | Keywords Everywhere | Cheap keyword volumes in your browser | Free metrics without volumes; volumes need credits | $84 per year (Bronze, 100,000 credits) | Annual only; credits expire after 12 months |
| 5 | SE Ranking | A full suite at a lower price | None; 14-day trial, no card | €109 per month, or €87.20 billed yearly (Core) | Core: 10 projects, 2,000 keywords tracked daily |
| 6 | Screaming Frog SEO Spider | Technical audits of your own site | Free up to 500 URLs per crawl | $279 per licence per year | Desktop crawler; no keyword or backlink data |
| 7 | Semrush | The broadest all-in-one suite | Free account: 10 reports a day; 7-day trial on paid plans | €134 per month, or €112.52 billed yearly (SEO) | Entry plan: 5 websites, 500 tracked keywords |
| 8 | Moz Pro | Domain Authority and AI prompt tracking together | Free trial; free Moz account with limited Keyword and Link Explorer | $99 per month, or $79 billed yearly (Standard) | Standard: 3 sites, 300 tracked keywords, 150 AI prompts weekly |
| 9 | TimeToPost | Founders who want articles published, not just data | Free SEO and GEO audit and keyword snapshot; paid plans have a 14-day trial, card required | AutoSEO on Growth at $99 per month | Keyword research, rank tracking, outreach and an AI blog engine, bundled with a scheduler |
Which one to pick
- You have no budget: Google Search Console, Bing Webmaster Tools and Ahrefs Free. Your own rankings, indexing and backlinks for nothing.
- You need keyword volumes cheaply: Keywords Everywhere. $84 a year for volumes in your browser.
- Your site has technical problems: Screaming Frog. Free for up to 500 URLs.
- You publish weekly and need competitor data: SE Ranking. A full suite at a lower price than the two biggest names.
- You want the deepest data and can pay for it: Ahrefs or Semrush. Best backlink data, or the broadest suite.
- You want articles published for you: TimeToPost. AutoSEO drafts and publishes after your approval, as long as you review what it writes.
Two tools we checked and left out: Ubersuggest and Mangools both render their prices in the browser or block automated requests, so we could not read and cite a price on 10 October 2026. Both are popular with indie hackers and worth checking yourself.
A warning that applies to every AI writing feature in this list: Google's spam policies treat many low-value pages produced at scale as a problem, whatever made them. A small site does better with a few pages that answer real questions than with dozens that repeat each other.
Every tool, one by one
Each entry links to the tool’s own site, the primary source for every price above. How we source facts is on the methodology page.
1. Google Search Console
Search Console is the one SEO tool every site should have. It shows the actual queries you get impressions and clicks for, which pages Google has indexed and why others are excluded, and alerts for indexing and spam problems. It is first-hand data, not an estimate. It knows nothing about competitors or keyword volumes.
Pros
- Free, with data straight from Google
- Real queries, clicks and impressions for your pages
- Indexing reports and re-indexing requests
Cons
- No keyword volumes, difficulty or competitor data
- Only for sites you own and verify, and only Google
2. Bing Webmaster Tools
Bing Webmaster Tools is the Bing equivalent of Search Console, with search performance, indexing and backlink reports, and a documented API. Setting it up takes minutes if you import your verified sites from Google. Bing's index is used by other search and assistant products, which makes it worth the five minutes even though Bing's own share is small.
Pros
- Free, quick to set up by importing from Search Console
- Covers Bing, which Search Console does not
- Documented API for pulling the data
Cons
- Bing data only
- Its marketing pages are a script-only app, so quotas are hard to confirm before you sign in
3. Ahrefs
Ahrefs has the best known backlink index, and its free plan, formerly Ahrefs Webmaster Tools, gives you a full site audit plus your own backlinks and keywords for any site you verify. The paid Lite plan adds competitor research, Keywords Explorer and rank tracking for 750 keywords. Ahrefs does not run trials or discounts, and the paid plans are priced for businesses with revenue.
Pros
- Generous free plan for your own sites, unlimited verified sites
- Strong backlink and keyword data on paid plans
- API and MCP access from Lite
Cons
- Lite is €119 a month, shown to us in euros
- No free trial and no discounts, per its pricing FAQ
- The free plan cannot analyse competitor sites
4. Keywords Everywhere
Keywords Everywhere is a browser extension that adds search volume, CPC, competition and trend data next to Google results and on other sites, paid for with credits. At $84 a year it is the cheapest way to see keyword volumes while you research. It is a data layer, not a suite: no rank tracking of your own site and no crawler.
Pros
- Cheapest paid keyword data here at $84 a year
- Works where you already search: Google, YouTube, Amazon and more
- API and MCP server included
Cons
- Annual billing only
- Credits expire after 12 months
- No site audit or backlink index of its own
5. SE Ranking
SE Ranking covers keyword research, rank tracking, site audits and backlinks at a lower price than Semrush or Ahrefs, and its trial needs no card. Core tracks 2,000 keywords daily across 10 projects, which is more than enough for a small SaaS. Annual plans are paid upfront and are not refundable except for non-delivery.
Pros
- Full suite for less than the two best known names
- 2,000 daily tracked keywords on Core
- 14-day trial without a card
Cons
- No free plan after the trial
- Annual billing is upfront and non-refundable
- Core has one seat and limited historical data
6. Screaming Frog SEO Spider
Screaming Frog is a desktop crawler that finds broken links, redirect chains, missing titles and duplicate pages. The free version crawls up to 500 URLs, which covers most indie sites completely. The paid licence adds JavaScript rendering, scheduled crawls and integrations with Search Console and Analytics.
Pros
- Free version covers sites up to 500 URLs
- Thorough technical audit, run on your own machine
- Flat yearly price with no project or keyword caps
Cons
- No keyword research, rank tracking or backlinks
- Desktop software, no cloud monitoring
- Licence renews every year at $279
7. Semrush
Semrush is the broadest suite here: keyword research, competitor analysis, rank tracking, site audit, backlinks and now AI visibility reports in one account. The free account allows 10 reports a day, enough for occasional research. The paid entry plan is the most expensive monthly price in this list and limits you to 500 tracked keywords.
Pros
- Everything in one account, including AI visibility reports
- Free account with no card, plus a 7-day trial
- Strong competitor research
Cons
- €134 a month on monthly billing
- Only 5 websites and 500 keywords on the entry plan
- Extra user seats cost €43 a month each
8. Moz Pro
Moz Pro is the home of the Domain Authority metric and includes keyword and link research, site crawls and, on Standard, 150 tracked AI prompts across four models each week. The entry plan is tight for anyone with several projects, at three sites and 300 tracked keywords. Its pricing page showed a sale banner on the day we checked, so prices may move.
Pros
- Domain Authority, the metric many partners still quote
- AI prompt tracking included on Standard
- Free Moz account for light keyword and link lookups
Cons
- Only 3 sites and 300 tracked keywords on Standard
- $99 a month on monthly billing
- Trial terms are not stated on the pricing page
9. TimeToPost
TimeToPost belongs here only for one kind of founder: someone who wants pages published on their own site and would rather not stitch a keyword tool, a writer and a publishing pipeline together. Its AutoSEO engine picks keywords, drafts articles with short answers and FAQ markup, and publishes them to WordPress or any site that accepts a post, after your approval by default. It also has keyword research, rank tracking and backlink outreach. It is not a backlink index or a large keyword database.
Pros
- Takes a topic all the way to a published article on your own domain
- Approval before publishing by default
- Free SEO and GEO audit and keyword snapshot to try first
Cons
- Not a replacement for a research suite: no large keyword or backlink index
- AI articles still need your review; publishing many thin pages can hurt you in Google
- AutoSEO needs the $99 Growth plan, and trials need a card
Common questions
What SEO tools are free?
Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools are free. Ahrefs Free gives a site audit and your own backlinks and keywords for verified sites. Screaming Frog crawls up to 500 URLs free. Semrush's free account allows 10 reports a day, and Keywords Everywhere shows some metrics free but charges credits for volumes.
Do I need Ahrefs or Semrush for a small SaaS?
Not at the start. Free tools cover your own site, and cheap keyword data covers research. A paid suite earns its price once you publish regularly and need to study competitors' rankings and backlinks, usually after the product has paying customers.
What is the cheapest paid SEO tool?
Of the tools we checked on 10 October 2026, Keywords Everywhere at $84 a year was the cheapest paid option, followed by Screaming Frog at $279 a year. Among full suites, SE Ranking Core was the lowest at about €87 a month billed yearly.
Are AI SEO writers safe to use?
They are tools, not strategies. An AI draft that you edit, fact check and publish because it answers a real question is fine. Many near-identical pages published to chase keywords is what search engines penalise. Keep a human approval step and publish less.
How often should I check SEO data?
Weekly is enough for a small site: Search Console for queries and indexing, and a rank tracker if you have one. Run a technical crawl after big site changes, and do keyword research when you plan new pages rather than every day.
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