Ahrefs Brand Radar vs. Semrush AI Toolkit

September 2026 fact check: both products now support exact prompt tracking. The old shorthand that either tool is “domain-based only” is out of date. This comparison uses current vendor documentation; the scores on our review pages come from a July 2026 panel that has not been rerun.

The central difference

Ahrefs separates two jobs. Its AI Visibility Index lets you research brand mentions, cited pages and outside sources across a large search-backed dataset. Custom prompts track the exact questions you choose on a daily, weekly or monthly schedule. Ahrefs currently lists custom prompts from $50 per month and index access from $199 per month. See Ahrefs’ product page and its Brand Radar guide .

Semrush pairs broad AI visibility research with daily Prompt Tracking. Its base AI Visibility plan advertises 25 custom prompts at $99 per month when billed annually. The selectable prompt-tracking surfaces are ChatGPT Search, Google AI Mode and Gemini; other AI surfaces appear in its broader reports. See Semrush pricing and the Prompt Tracking guide .

Do not compare the caps as if they are the same unit

Ahrefs’ $50 custom tier includes 2,500 checks per month, not 2,500 distinct prompts. Platform, location and cadence choices consume checks; Claude custom checks currently use eight checks each. Ahrefs also says its chatbot index data refresh monthly, while custom checks follow the schedule you select. Read the limits and cadence notes .

Semrush’s 25-prompt base limit is a count of custom tracked questions. Its broader research and exact Prompt Tracking use different datasets and update schedules, so a number in one report should not be treated as the same observation as a daily prompt result. Semrush explains its AI visibility data .

Which one fits?

Start with Ahrefs if your main job is discovering cited publishers, competitor sources and possible overlap with your search and link research. Price the index and custom prompts separately. Start with Semrush if your team already works there and needs a defined daily panel of exact buyer questions alongside its other site and competitor reports. Neither plan’s entry price alone tells you the cost of the workflow you will use.

A fair trial

Bring ten real questions spanning discovery and purchase intent. Ask both products for the saved answer, cited URL, timestamp, platform and location on each question. Repeat enough checks to see whether the observation is stable, export the underlying records, and note which finding led to a concrete page or outreach decision. Read the buying guide .

For more detail, read the Ahrefs Brand Radar review and Semrush AI Toolkit review . Their 7.0 and 7.2 scores and No. 8 and No. 7 placements are from July 2026, not a fresh comparison test. See how the scores were produced .