PromoPilot vs Semrush: which SEO jobs you can do without a subscription
PromoPilot does not replace Semrush as a whole, and we will not pretend it does. But if what you need is a site audit, keywords and rankings rather than a competitor database, those jobs can be done on a pay-per-use basis. Below, task by task: who has what and what a month costs.
- Semrush: from $139 a month; Site Audit free for 100 pages a month
- PromoPilot: audit $5, SERP data $0.005 per keyword, rank check $0.01
- A small site: about $11.79 a month, no subscription
The short answer
The deciding factor is not price but whether you need competitor data.
- Semrush if you need competitor keywords, links, traffic and ads every week, or daily tracking of hundreds of keywords.
- PromoPilot if you need an audit of your own site, keywords with Google volumes and weekly rankings, with no reason to pay a subscription.
- Both if your agency has Semrush and pay-per-use is handier for one-off client jobs.
Task by task
Semrush from its official pricing page and help centre (October 2026). PromoPilot from the live service settings.
| PromoPilot | Semrush | |
|---|---|---|
| How you pay | No subscription: pay per action from a balance, price shown before charging | Subscription from $139 a month; 7-day trial |
| Site audit | $5 up to 5,000 pages, $25 up to 50,000; AI report; 100 pages free | Site Audit in the subscription; 100 pages a month free |
| Keyword research | Collection and Google Keyword Planner volumes free; SERP data and difficulty $0.005 per keyword | Own keyword database, competitor keywords and gaps |
| Rank tracking | $0.01 per check; manual, weekly or daily; Google only, 10 countries | Daily tracking in the subscription |
| Backlinks | No backlink database | Backlink database for any site |
| Competitor traffic | No | Organic traffic and keyword estimates for competitors |
| PPC, content, mentions | No; only an AI brief and content plan at $0.02 each | Ad research, content marketing, media monitoring |
| Pushing pages up | A link building cascade for a page from the same balance; only live, verified links count | — |
Semrush prices change; check the official site.
What a month costs
One country, one device, rank checks down to the top 30.
| PromoPilot | Semrush | Better value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small site: audit, 500 new keywords, 100 rankings weekly | $5 + $2.50 + $4.29 ≈ $11.79 | from $139 | PromoPilot |
| Quarterly audit only | $5 per audit | from $139 a month | PromoPilot |
| 100 keywords daily, no audit | $30 | from $139 | PromoPilot (SerpRobot is cheaper still) |
| 500 keywords daily + monthly audit | $155 | from $139 | Semrush |
| Competitor keywords, links and traffic | Not available | from $139 | Semrush |
The Semrush entry plan includes far more than the jobs in this table; compare only what you actually use.
What only Semrush does here
- A backlink database: who links to any site.
- Competitor traffic and keywords, gap analysis.
- Ad research, content marketing, media monitoring.
- Daily tracking at volume costs less than our $0.01 per check.
When PromoPilot is enough
- You need an audit of your own or a client site, not a competitor database.
- Keyword research with Google volumes and no Ads account of your own.
- Rankings weekly or before and after a change.
- Work comes in waves and you do not want to pay for idle months.
How we calculated
A small site per month: one full audit ($5), SERP snapshots for 500 new keywords ($2.50) and 100 keywords checked weekly (about $4.29). Keyword Planner volumes in Keyword Studio are free. PromoPilot prices come from the live service settings, Semrush prices from its official page in October 2026.
One account, the whole SEO loop
Shared balance and single sign-on: a project moves from one service to the next with the domain already filled in.
FAQ
Can PromoPilot replace Semrush?
Only partly. PromoPilot covers three jobs without a subscription: a technical site audit, keyword collection with search volumes, and Google rank checks. We have no backlink database, no competitor traffic estimates and no PPC or content marketing tools; if you need those, you need Semrush or a similar suite.
How much does Semrush cost in 2026?
According to the official pricing page in October 2026, Semrush plans start at $139 a month. Site Audit is free for 100 pages a month, and there is a 7-day trial. Prices change, so check the Semrush site.
What is cheaper for a small site?
If you need a monthly audit, SERP data for 500 new keywords and weekly rankings for 100 keywords, PromoPilot costs about $11.79 a month with no subscription. If you track hundreds of keywords daily or research competitors regularly, a subscription is cheaper.
Does PromoPilot have a backlink database like Semrush?
No. You cannot see who links to any site in PromoPilot. Our free tool shows a domain's Domain Rating and Open PageRank, and you can review links to your own site in Google Search Console or the free Ahrefs Webmaster Tools.
When is a Semrush subscription the better deal?
When you work on competitors every week: their keywords, links, traffic and ads. And when you track hundreds of keywords daily: 500 keywords a day in PromoPilot plus a monthly audit cost about $155 a month, more than the Semrush entry plan.
Related free tools and guides
- Domain authority checkerDomain Rating and Open PageRank
- Google rank checkerone-off check, no sign-up
- PromoPilot SEO Audit vs Screaming Frogpay-per-audit cloud crawl or a yearly licence
- Keyword Studio vs Google Keyword PlannerGoogle volumes without an Ads account
Related blog articles
Start with the free tier
A 100-page express audit, keyword collection with volumes and 50 rank checks are free with an account. Pay only when you need more.