A Semrush alternative built for UK small businesses
Looking for a Semrush alternative? RnkRocket is a cheaper, simpler SEO tool for UK small businesses: a full site audit with fixes in plain English, weekly rank tracking and Google Business Profile checks, from £9.95 a month. Semrush is the bigger tool. Its entry SEO plan is £113 a month (checked 23 September 2026).
It suits sole traders, local services and small teams with one website who want to know what to fix next. If you need backlinks, ads data or an API, stay on Semrush. We say which is which below.
Our Basic plan against Semrush’s entry SEO plan, the one Semrush pitches at freelancers and small businesses. Crosses mark what RnkRocket does not do.
RnkRocket Basic compared with the Semrush SEO plan
Feature
RnkRocket
Semrush
Entry plan, paid monthly
£9.95/mo (Basic)
£113/mo (SEO plan)
Paid annually
£99.50 a year (Basic)
£95.07/mo, billed annually (SEO plan)
Try it first
14-day free trial, no card
7-day free trial, or a Free plan (1 demo project, 10 reports a day)
Websites
1 project on Basic, 3 on Pro
5 websites to monitor
Rank tracking
25 keywords, checked weekly, across the UK
500 keywords, updated every day
Site audit
Full audit, fixes ranked by priority, in plain English
Site Audit included
Google Business Profile
Checks included: completeness, reviews, what to improve
Local Toolkit, sold separately and priced per location
Local rank tracking (by town or postcode)
No. Positions are for the UK as a whole
Multi-location tracking on Pro+ (£242/mo); Map Rank Tracker in the Local Toolkit
AI search visibility
25 GEO credits a month on Basic
AI search tracking and AI visibility reports
Keyword research
Ideas from your own seed words, with volume and difficulty on paid plans
Over 28 billion keywords across 142 country databases
Backlink database
None
Yes
PPC and ads research
None
Advertising Toolkit (separate subscription)
API
None
API data integration on Advanced (£444/mo)
Client or white-label reports
None
Report add-ons: Base £8.10/mo, Pro £16.21/mo (white-label)
Setup
Under 10 minutes (typical)
No figure published
Cancelling
Cancel in settings; access runs to the end of the paid period
Cancel, upgrade or downgrade at any time
Prices checked 23 September 2026 on semrush.com/prices, as published in pounds for UK visitors. Semrush’s other plans that day: Starter £161/mo, Pro+ £242/mo, Advanced £444/mo (paid monthly). RnkRocket prices include every core tool; trial users get a limited number of AI fixes.
What you give up by leaving Semrush
RnkRocket costs less because it does less. Before you switch, check none of these matter to you:
A backlink database. RnkRocket has none, so it cannot show who links to you or to a competitor.
PPC and advertising data. RnkRocket does no ad research.
An API. You cannot pull RnkRocket data into your own tools.
Keyword research at Semrush's scale. RnkRocket suggests keywords from your own seed words; it is not a database of billions of keywords.
Day-by-day rank data. RnkRocket checks weekly, and for the UK as a whole rather than by town.
Headroom. 25 tracked keywords on Basic against 500 on the Semrush SEO plan.
Who should stay on Semrush
Semrush is the better tool for these jobs. If one of them is yours, keep it.
Agencies with many client sites
Semrush plans cover 5 to 40 websites and sell report add-ons, including white-label reports. RnkRocket has no client logins or white-label reports.
Anyone who builds links
If you need to see who links to you or to a competitor, you need a backlink index. Semrush has one. RnkRocket does not.
PPC and ads teams
Semrush sells an Advertising Toolkit with ad and product-listing research. RnkRocket does no paid-search work at all.
Teams that need an API or day-by-day data
Semrush Advanced includes API data integration, and Semrush’s paid plans update rankings every day. RnkRocket has no API and checks weekly.
Who RnkRocket suits instead
A business with one website that wants a short list of what to fix, not a research platform. A plumber, a salon, a local shop, a consultant. On Basic at £9.95 a month you get:
A full site audit, with fixes ranked by priority and written in plain English
25 keywords tracked weekly, with positions for the UK
Google Business Profile checks: completeness, reviews and what to improve
Competitor comparison: your site against your rivals
25 GEO credits a month to check where you appear in Google results and Google's AI Overviews
Keyword ideas and AI content tools
Most sites are set up, with a first audit, in under ten minutes. Need more keywords or sites? Pro is £19.95 a month for 100 keywords and 3 projects. Every plan is on the pricing page.
Semrush alternative: questions
Is there a free alternative to Semrush?
Not a like-for-like one. The closest free options are Google Search Console (Google's own data about your site), Semrush's own Free plan (1 demo project and 10 reports a day) and Ahrefs Free (limited Site Explorer and Site Audit for your own site). RnkRocket is not free: it has a 14-day free trial with no card, then plans start at £9.95 a month.
Who are Semrush's biggest competitors?
Its best-known competitors include Ahrefs, SE Ranking, Moz, Mangools, SpyFu and Ubersuggest. If you want another big research database, compare those. If you run one small-business website and want to know what to fix, that is the gap RnkRocket fills. It is narrower than Semrush on purpose.
Which is the best free SEO tool?
For your own website, Google Search Console. It is free and the clicks, impressions and positions come from Google itself. It will not turn problems into a plain-English to-do list or track competitors, which is what paid tools like RnkRocket add.
Is RnkRocket a free Semrush alternative?
No. There is a 14-day free trial with no card, and trial users get a limited number of AI fixes. After that, plans start at £9.95 a month (£99.50 a year if you pay annually).
What does Semrush cost in the UK?
On 23 September 2026, Semrush's UK pricing page listed the SEO plan at £113 a month, or £95.07 a month billed annually. Starter (SEO + AI Search) was £161 a month, Pro+ £242 and Advanced £444, with extra users from £36 a month. Local and advertising tools are separate toolkits.
Does RnkRocket do rank tracking?
Yes, weekly. Basic tracks 25 keywords, Pro 100, Pro+ 250 and Agency 500. Positions are for the UK as a whole, not a town or postcode. Semrush updates positions every day, so if you need day-by-day movement, Semrush does that and RnkRocket does not.
Can I cancel?
Yes. Cancel from your account settings and you keep access until the end of the period you have paid for. Monthly plans have no minimum term.
Is RnkRocket UK-only?
It is built and priced for UK businesses: plans are in pounds, and rank tracking reports your position across the UK. It does not track rankings by town or postcode.
Keep comparing
Weighing up the options? Here is how RnkRocket lines up against the other tools, and what you would actually pay.