BACKLINK DATA
PROVIDERS COMPARED
SEO PowerSuite vs. Ahrefs vs. SEMRush vs.
Majestic
What backlink API provider to choose?
We've run a huge data comparison study to see which solution provides deeper backlink analytics
and
the best value for money.
1) The biggest comparison to date. For this study, we'd purchased the API
keys
from each of the compared providers ($6,200 worth in total) and tested their data on 1
million
web's largest domains.
2) Data transparency. The raw data files are available for anyone to re-run
the
comparison. To verify that the data hasn't been modified
in any way, you can reach out to the mentioned companies and purchase the similar stats from
them.
How do the providers compare in pricing?
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|---|---|---|---|
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The total cost of checking 1 million domains for the comparison
These are the API subscriptions we had to purchase to run the comparison.
|
|||
| $899 | $800 | $2,000 | $2,500 |
|
The minimal available API plan
To use Semrush API, you need to activate the Semrush Business subscription for
$449.95/mo and purchase extra API units on top of it.
The rest of the providers let you purchase the API as a standalone solution. |
|||
| $149/mo | $399/mo | $500/mo | $499.95/mo |
|
Cost comparison
Pricing models with each data provider differ a lot, same as their pricing
tiers. So the two tiers below are just to give you a basic idea of what your
costs with each of the provider will be.
|
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| Plans up to $500/mo | |||
| $17.5 for 1M backlink | $20 for 1M backlink | $250 for 1M backlink | Allows only 250K backlinks |
| PLANS UP TO $2,000/MO | |||
| $5 for 1M backlink | $8 for 1M backlink | $80 for 1M backlink | Allows only 750K backlinks |
The number of unique referring domains is considered one of the most objective ways
to measure the indexes' coverage, because backlink providers seem to calculate
referring domains with more uniformity than backlinks or IPs. Jump here for full methodology.
Winner by the number
of referring domains:
SEO PowerSuite
How often did each of the vendors occupy the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th position in the comparison?
Winner by the number of backlinks:
Semrush
The number of backlinks is the second most important dataset to analyze. However,
this type of data is prone to inconsistences between different indexes, because
links are counted differently. For instance, you may calculate duplicate links on a
page as a single link or as multiple links. The same's true for redirects,
canonicals, etc. Jump here for
full methodology.
How often did each of the vendors occupy the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th position in the comparison?
How did the indexes perform on websites of different size?
How did indexes perform compared one to one?
How did indexes perform compared one to one?
Links and contacts:
- The comparison data was obtained via the official API endpoints of Ahrefs, Semrush, Majestic and SEO PowerSuite;
- To read on about the methodology please jump here
- The raw data files are available for download here
- If you’d like to talk to us about the comparison, have any questions or partnership ideas, please email us at api@seranking.com