Top 10 Surfer SEO Alternatives
Content creators crave high search engine rankings, but achieving them requires top-notch SEO tools. These tools play a vital role in researching topics, auditing your content, and finding effective keywords for creating or optimizing content. They are especially valuable for agencies that manage content-related SEO processes at scale.
One such tool is Surfer SEO, which analyzes top-ranking content and provides insights into creating competitive content. However, some users are unimpressed by Surfer SEO’s pricing, steep learning curve, and lack of advanced features.
In this article, we’ll review the top alternatives to Surfer SEO and how they stack up against it.
We want to hear from you! Rate the tools you’ve used and let us know which Surfer SEO alternative works best for you!
How we selected the best Surfer SEO alternatives
Before investing in any tool or software, it pays (sometimes literally) to compare your options. We took five key areas into account when assessing different options, including:
- Functionality: What features does the tool offer? Does it cover the same core tasks as Surfer?
- Interface: How easy is it to use?
- User reviews: We referred to G2 for insights from users.
- Flexibility of pricing policy: Does the cost align with the features that the tool offers? We considered factors such as value for money, scalability, and the availability of free trials or demos.
- Agency-specific features: How suitable is each tool for agencies? Does it offer integration capabilities with other services and additional features for SEO agencies?
We also considered the target audience for these tools, whether it is freelancers, small agencies, or enterprise companies. From there, we examined the developmental trajectory of the products and looked for evidence of ongoing support and improvement.
10 Best Surfer SEO alternatives that deserve a try
We carefully reviewed numerous Surfer SEO competitors and handpicked the ones we believe are the top contenders. Here’s a list of highly valuable tools similar to Surfer SEO:
- SE Ranking
- Clearscope
- Frase
- MarketMuse
- Content Harmony
- Scalenut
- WriterZen
- Semrush Writing Assistant
- Copywritely
- Topic
The content tools on our list are comparable to Surfer SEO in terms of functionality, as they are all full-cycle content marketing solutions.
For those of you, who prefer to compare tools side by side, we’ve also compiled a table that highlights each tool’s capabilities.
Surfer
SE Ranking
Winner!
Clearscope
Frase
MarketMuse
Content Harmony
Semrush Writing Assistant
Copywritely
Scalenut
WriterZen
Topic
Surfer
SE Ranking
Winner!
Clearscope
Frase
MarketMuse
Content Harmony
Semrush Writing Assistant
Copywritely
Scalenut
WriterZen
Topic
Surfer
SE Ranking
Winner!
Clearscope
Frase
MarketMuse
Content Harmony
–
Semrush Writing Assistant
Copywritely
Scalenut
WriterZen
–
Topic
Surfer
SE Ranking
Winner!
Clearscope
Frase
MarketMuse
Content Harmony
Semrush Writing Assistant
Copywritely
Scalenut
WriterZen
Topic
Surfer
10-90
SE Ranking
Winner!
15-120
Clearscope
From 10, custom pricing and limits for higher tier subscriptions
Frase
4-Unlimited
MarketMuse
100-Unlimited
Content Harmony
5-200+
Semrush Writing Assistant
800-2000, shared between three tools
Copywritely
50-5000
Scalenut
5-75, or custom
WriterZen
0-100
Topic
10-50
Surfer
2-Unlimited
SE Ranking
Winner!
1-5, $20/month per extra seat
Clearscope
1-Unlimited
Frase
1-Unlimited
MarketMuse
1-3
Content Harmony
Unlimited
Semrush Writing Assistant
1
Copywritely
1
Scalenut
1-5, or custom
WriterZen
0-2
Topic
1-5
Surfer
- Traditional keyword research
- Keyword clustering
SE Ranking
Winner!
- Traditional keyword research
- Keyword gap analysis
- Competitive keyword research
- Keyword clustering
Clearscope
- Traditional keyword research
Frase
- Basic keyword metrics of the target keyword
MarketMuse
- Traditional keyword research
- Keyword gap analysis
- Competitive keyword research
- Keyword clustering
Content Harmony
- Basic keyword metrics of the target keyword
Semrush Writing Assistant
- Traditional keyword research
- Keyword gap analysis
- Competitive keyword research
- Keyword clustering
Copywritely
⛔
Scalenut
- NLP-powered keyword research
- AI-powered keyword planner
- Competitive keyword research
WriterZen
- Traditional keyword research
- Competitive keyword research
- Keyword clustering
Topic
- Traditional keyword research
- Competitive keyword research
Surfer
✅
SE Ranking
Winner!
✅
Clearscope
✅
Frase
✅
MarketMuse
✅
Content Harmony
✅
Semrush Writing Assistant
⛔
Copywritely
✅
Scalenut
✅
WriterZen
⛔
Topic
✅
Surfer
✅
SE Ranking
Winner!
✅
Clearscope
✅
Frase
✅
MarketMuse
✅
Content Harmony
✅
Semrush Writing Assistant
✅
Copywritely
✅
Scalenut
✅
WriterZen
⛔
Topic
✅
Surfer
- Wordcount
- Headings
- Images
- Keywords to use
SE Ranking
Winner!
- Wordcount
- Headings
- Images
- Keywords and links to use
Clearscope
- Wordcount
- Keywords to use
Frase
- Keywords and links to use
MarketMuse
- Wordcount
- Headings
- Keywords and links to use
Content Harmony
- Wordcount
- Keywords to use
Semrush Writing Assistant
- Wordcount
- Keywords to use
- Broken links
- Missing alt tags
- Keyword stuffing
- Tone of voice
Copywritely
- No recommendations, only checks
Scalenut
- Word count
- Keywords and links to use
- Keyword stuffing
- Missing meta tags
- Featured snippet suggestions