SE Ranking vs Ahrefs
Zero of fourteen models named SE Ranking first on the direct prompt; one named Ahrefs. Both were named by all fourteen models and SE Ranking carries 24 labels and Ahrefs 42, so the shares are not directly comparable.
United States, founded 2012. Named in five categories this edition.
Singapore, Singapore, founded 2010. Named in seven categories this edition.
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the SEO and content optimization platforms page.
By framing
SE RankingFirst choices, of fourteen modelsAhrefs
Across every category in the October 2026 Edition, SE Ranking and Ahrefs were named in the same answer forty times, of the 102 answers naming SE Ranking and the 205 naming Ahrefs. In those answers Ahrefs took the first choice three times and SE Ranking fourteen.
Every model, every framing
| Model | Direct | Paraphrase | Comparative | Budget-constrained | Scale-constrained | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | | | | | ||
| GPT-5.4 mini | | | ||||
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | | | | | ||
| Perplexity Sonar | | | ||||
| Grok 4.20 | | | | | | |
| Mistral Small | | | ||||
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | | | | | ||
| Llama 4 Maverick | | |||||
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | | | | |||
| Kimi K2 | | |||||
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | | | | | ||
| MiniMax M2.5 | | | | | ||
| GPT-6 Luna | | |||||
| Muse Glimmer 30B | | |
SE Ranking Ahrefs first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, SE Ranking on the left and Ahrefs on the right.The direct prompt
Ahrefs first, SE Ranking not the choice
1 of 14 modelsSE Ranking was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Neither was the first choice, one was named
6 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.Neither was named
7 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.
By buyer segment
SE Ranking18%#2 of 11Ahrefs3%#9 of 11SE Ranking10%#4 of 12Ahrefs3%#7 of 12SE Ranking0%#– of 11Ahrefs0%#8 of 11What the models said about SE Ranking
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Three of three in this category shown.
“those can cost considerably more. For example, SE Ranking’s Core plan is listed at $103.20/month with annual billing” GPT-6 Luna · budget prompt · soft negative
“For an all-in-one budget platform: Ubersuggest ($12–29/mo) or SE Ranking ($44/mo)” DeepSeek V4 Flash · budget prompt · first choice
“Highly recommended for small businesses due to its affordability and comprehensive features” Mistral Small · budget prompt · first choice
What the models said about Ahrefs
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of seven in this category shown.
“Ahrefs now offers AI content surfaces... they raise quality, originality, and brand-voice risks if teams over-rely on them.” GPT-5.4 mini · negative prompt · soft negative
“is expensive for multiple team members ($40-80 per month each) and lacks native keyword research capabilities” Claude Haiku 4.5 · negative prompt · soft negative
“highly critical of pricing models used by platforms like Ahrefs, where standard tasks...consume "credits"” Gemini 3.5 Flash · negative prompt · soft negative
“Prioritize: Ahrefs, SE Ranking, KWFinder (low complaint records), Frase, Clearscope for content optimization.” Grok 4.20 · negative prompt · first choice
“Unmatched backlink analysis and a highly regarded "Content Explorer"... the most accurate backlink index.” Gemini 3.5 Flash · comparative prompt · first choice
“top picks like SEMrush (all-in-one), Surfer (content focus), Ahrefs (backlinks/research)” Grok 4.20 · scale prompt · first choice
Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.