Alternatives · Profound
Profound alternatives: 7 options for 2026
The best Profound alternatives are Peec AI and Otterly.AI for self-serve tracking, Semrush and Ahrefs if you already use their suites, AthenaHQ for 11 engines on a published plan, Scrunch for a trial before Enterprise, and Cited if you want a team to do the work. Profound’s own pricing shows only a free trial and Enterprise.
Updated · By the Cited team · Facts about other vendors checked
Why teams look for Profound alternatives
Profound is a strong AI visibility platform, and one of the best funded. But its pricing page shows two options: a free 7-day trial with 50 prompts on three engines, and an Enterprise plan with a custom price. Teams that want a published monthly price, a smaller commitment, or someone to do the work for them often look elsewhere. Here are seven options, each described from its own site.
The alternatives at a glance
| Alternative | What it is | Entry price | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cited | AI visibility platform plus strategists and copywriters | Quoted for your business on a Strategy Call | Teams that want the work done for them |
| Peec AI | Self-serve AI search analytics | $95 a month (Starter, 50 prompts) | Marketing teams that want unlimited users |
| Otterly.AI | Self-serve tracking with GEO audits | $29 a month (15 prompts) | Small budgets |
| Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit | AI tracking inside the Semrush suite | $99 a month (25 prompts) | Teams already on Semrush |
| Ahrefs Brand Radar | AI, YouTube and Reddit mention tracking | From $50 a month standalone, per its FAQ | Teams already on Ahrefs |
| Scrunch (a Sitecore company) | Tracking with site audits and page optimisations | $250 a month (Core, 125 prompts) | Teams evaluating before an enterprise plan |
| AthenaHQ | Tracking with a content optimisation agent | Free plan, then $295 a month | A free start on five engines |
1. Cited: if you want results, not another dashboard
Cited is the alternative for teams that don’t want to run the platform themselves. We track your prompts across ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Google AI Mode, Perplexity, Gemini, Microsoft Copilot and Claude, plus Google Search, then our strategists and copywriters write the content, fix your listings and technical SEO, and report every week on what moved. We measure lift against untouched control prompts, so you can see what the work changed. It runs three months to start, then month to month, at a price quoted for your business. There is no self-serve plan or public API. See Profound AI vs Cited for the head-to-head.
2. Peec AI: self-serve analytics for marketing teams
Peec AI tracks 50, 150 or 350 prompts for $95, $245 or $495 a month, on any three of ChatGPT, AI Mode, AI Overviews, Copilot, Gemini and Naver AI, with more engines as paid add-ons and unlimited users and daily tracking on every plan. It lists source analytics, gap analysis, Local GEO, a visibility lift analysis, MCP and an API. More in Peec AI vs Cited.
3. Otterly.AI: the low-cost start
Otterly.AI starts at $29 a month for 15 prompts on ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Perplexity and Copilot. Its $189 Standard plan adds 100 prompts, a Looker Studio connector and API and MCP requests. It also runs GEO audits of your pages. More in Otterly AI vs Cited.
4. Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit: if you live in Semrush
Semrush (an Adobe company) sells its AI Visibility Toolkit for $99 a month with 25 prompts, plus prompt research with volume and difficulty. Its help centre doesn’t offer a free trial for the toolkit. More in Semrush AI Toolkit vs Cited.
5. Ahrefs Brand Radar: AI plus YouTube and Reddit
Ahrefs Brand Radar tracks six AI engines and also YouTube, TikTok and Reddit, and includes custom prompts with paid Ahrefs plans. Its AI Visibility Index gives you a ready-made prompt database built from Ahrefs’ keyword data. More in Ahrefs Brand Radar vs Cited.
6. Scrunch: a trial on four engines, then Enterprise
Scrunch (a Sitecore company) starts at $250 a month for 125 prompts on ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews and Copilot, with site audits, page optimisations and a 7-day free trial. Its Enterprise plan covers nine engines, including Claude, Gemini, AI Mode, Meta AI and Grok, and adds API access, SAML single sign-on and a dedicated account team.
7. AthenaHQ: a free plan to start
AthenaHQ has a free Essential plan with 300 credits on ChatGPT, Perplexity, AI Overviews, Gemini and Copilot, and a $295 Starter plan on 11 engines with CSV export and a content optimisation agent. Enterprise adds a certified GEO and SEO specialist.
How to pick a Profound alternative
- If you have writers and SEO time, buy a tool. Pick the one whose engines and price fit; the best AI visibility tools roundup compares eleven.
- If you don’t, buy the work. A dashboard that nobody acts on doesn’t move a single answer.
- Check the engines on your plan, not the top plan. Several tools cover three engines at the entry price.
- Ask how you will know it worked. Our guide to measuring AI visibility explains target and control prompts.
Questions
What is the cheapest Profound alternative?
Among the tools here, AthenaHQ has a free plan with 300 credits and Otterly.AI starts at $29 a month. Outside this list, the open-source Elmo is free to self-host. Each tracks fewer prompts or engines at that price than its higher plans.
Which Profound alternative writes content for you?
Cited is a done-for-you service: our copywriters and strategists write and publish the content and fix listings. Tools such as Searchable, Goodie and AthenaHQ draft or optimise content inside their software for your team to use.
Does Profound have a monthly plan?
Profound’s own pricing page, checked on 15 October 2026, shows a free trial and an Enterprise plan with a custom price. Monthly prices quoted on other sites come from third parties.