7 best Profound AI alternatives in 2026: self‑serve, free and cheaper picks
Profound dropped its self-serve brand plans in September 2026. Here are seven Profound AI alternatives with published prices, from $29 a month or free.
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The best Profound AI alternatives in 2026 are Peec AI and SE Visible for published, self-serve pricing under $100 a month, Ahrefs Brand Radar or Semrush if you already pay for an SEO suite, and AthenaHQ if you want a free plan. Otterly.AI is the cheapest paid option at $29 a month. Profound itself now sells brands only a free seven-day trial and a custom-priced Enterprise plan, going by its current price list.
That change is the main reason people are searching. In mid-September 2026, Profound dropped its $99 Starter and $399 Growth plans for brands, Eclincher reported (Eclincher sells a competing tool). I think that's a fair call for a company chasing enterprise deals, but it leaves small teams with no way in. Prices below were checked in late October 2026.
Key takeaways
- Profound's only priced option for brands is a free trial: 50 prompts run daily for seven days on ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews.
- Ongoing tracking needs a custom Enterprise contract, which third-party reviewers put at roughly $1,500 to $5,000 or more a month.
- Peec AI ($95 a month) and SE Visible ($89 a month) look like the closest self-serve swaps for most marketing teams.
- AthenaHQ is the only pick here with a free plan, and Otterly.AI is the cheapest paid tracker at $29 a month.
Reasons teams look for a Profound alternative
No published price after the trial
Profound's Enterprise tier is listed as "Custom", with up to nine answer engines, SSO/SAML and SOC 2 compliance. Dupple put it bluntly: you can't compare Profound's cost with a rival's "until you have talked to sales" (Dupple).
Eclincher cites third-party estimates of $1,500 to $5,000 or more a month; Rankability says $2,000 to $5,000 or more. Neither figure is confirmed.
A short, fixed trial
The free trial runs 50 prompts daily for seven days on three engines. Dupple adds that it uses a "recommended prompt set you cannot customize", with one language, one region and no history, exports or API (Dupple). That's enough to see the dashboard. It's probably not enough to judge your own priority prompts over a month.
Price is the top complaint
Users seem to like the product. Profound holds a 4.5/5 G2 rating from 1,128 reviews, according to Brand24, which checked on 28 September 2026 and sells a rival tool. The same review lists "Price is the most common complaint on G2" as a con, plus "More depth than most small teams will use".
Agencies still have a self-serve route at $399 a month per client workspace, per Eclincher. Fine for three clients. For twenty, that's nearly $8,000 a month.
Our ranking method
Nobody at The AI Future ran hands-on tests or took screenshots for this article. We compared each Profound alternative using official pricing pages, published third-party reviews and G2 ratings reported by Brand24, as of late October 2026. The criteria:
- Price transparency, meaning a published monthly price you can pay without a sales call.
- Engine coverage on the entry plan, and which engines cost extra.
- Volume per dollar: prompts and AI answers per month.
- Citation and source data.
- Action features such as recommendations, content agents or site audits.
- User ratings on G2.
The 7 best Profound AI alternatives at a glance
| # | Tool | Category | Best for | Free tier | Starts at |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peec AI | Dedicated AI visibility | Most marketing teams | No | $95/mo |
| 2 | SE Visible | Dedicated AI visibility | More prompts per dollar | No | $89/mo |
| 3 | Ahrefs Brand Radar | SEO suite add-on | Market-wide data from day one | No | $50/mo |
| 4 | Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit | SEO suite add-on | Existing Semrush users | No | $99/mo |
| 5 | AthenaHQ | Tracking and optimization | Starting free with 11 models | Yes (limited) | $295/mo |
| 6 | Otterly.AI | Dedicated AI visibility | Small budgets | No | $29/mo |
| 7 | Scrunch | AI site optimization | Site audits and AI bot traffic | No | $250/mo |
The best Profound AI alternatives in 2026, ranked
Peec AI – best for most marketing teams
Peec AI is an AI search analytics platform that tracks your visibility, position, sentiment and share of voice in AI answers, plus the domains and URLs the models cite.
Strengths
Peec is what Profound's old Starter plan should have been. On Peec's plans, $95 a month buys 50 prompts tracked daily on three models, 4,500 AI answers a month, one project and unlimited users.
It rates well with users: 4.8/5 on G2 from 21 reviews, per Brand24. The catch is engines. Claude and Perplexity sit on Enterprise, and Brand24 said Peec "shows the data but offers little guidance on what to do next".
Key features
- Self-serve models: pick three from ChatGPT, AI Mode, AI Overviews, Copilot, Gemini and Naver AI.
- Source analytics show cited domains, URLs and citation share.
- Competitors and team seats are unlimited on every plan.
- Enterprise tracks up to 13 models, with API access and SSO.
Pros
- Published prices with no sales call
- Unlimited users from the entry plan
- Strong G2 rating, though from a small sample
Cons
- Only three models on self-serve plans
- One project and one country on Starter
- No historical data before you start tracking
Peec AI pricing: No free plan; paid plans from $95/month, with Pro at $245 and Advanced at $495 (checked October 2026). See pricing
Related: Best Peec AI alternatives Best AI visibility tracking tools
SE Visible – best for more prompts per dollar
SE Visible is SE Ranking's standalone AI visibility tracker, with daily tracking, share of voice, net sentiment and citation analysis.
Strengths
Volume is the draw. Looking at SE Visible's prices, the $89 Basic plan ($71 billed yearly) includes 75 tracked prompts, about 11,250 AI answers a month and five projects, with API and MCP access. That's roughly 2.5 times Peec's monthly answers for slightly less money.
It's a monitor more than an advisor. Brand24's reviewer wrote: "You'll see the gaps, but you won't find any recommendations." It had no G2 rating yet when Brand24 checked (Brand24).
Key features
- Tracks ChatGPT, AI Overviews, AI Mode, Gemini and Copilot.
- Citation analytics cover cited domains, pages and citation gaps.
- Prompt research shows where you appear and where competitors do.
- A Data Studio connector is included from Basic.
Pros
- Lots of AI answers for the price
- Five projects and unlimited seats on Basic
- API and MCP access included
Cons
- No G2 rating yet
- Few built-in recommendations
- One location per project on Basic
SE Visible pricing: No free plan (10-day trial), then paid plans from $89/month, or $71/month billed annually (checked October 2026). See pricing
Related: Best AI rank tracking tools Best AI brand visibility analysis tools
Ahrefs Brand Radar – best for market-wide data from day one
Ahrefs Brand Radar measures AI visibility from a pre-built index of AI answers and also tracks your own custom prompts.
Strengths
Brand Radar works differently from Profound. Its AI Visibility Index covers 525 million prompts across AI Overviews, AI Mode, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Copilot, so you see your share of voice without setting anything up (Ahrefs). Prompt Tracking comes free with paid Ahrefs Lite plans and above.
Brand24's reviewer called it "great for 'where do we stand?', but less helpful for 'what should we do next?'" Ahrefs holds 4.5/5 on G2 from 714 reviews, though that's for the whole suite (Brand24).
Key features
- The index gives instant visibility data for any brand.
- Custom prompts can run daily, weekly or monthly.
- Fan-out queries show what AI searches for behind the scenes.
- Claude tracking is available, at eight checks per update.
Pros
- Historical, market-wide data with no setup
- Cheap if you already pay for Ahrefs
- Covers Perplexity and Copilot
Cons
- Index coverage is thinner for little-known brands
- Descriptive more than prescriptive
- Costs add up on top of a full Ahrefs plan
Ahrefs Brand Radar pricing: No free plan; a small number of custom prompts comes with paid Ahrefs plans, extra tracking starts at $50/month and the full index starts at $199/month (checked October 2026). See pricing
Related: Best AI visibility checking tools Best AI rank tracking tools
Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit – best for existing Semrush users
The Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit adds AI search reports, prompt research and daily prompt tracking to the Semrush SEO suite.
Strengths
For teams already in Semrush, it's the easy option. The toolkit includes a Visibility Overview score, Competitor Research, Prompt Research and a Brand Performance report covering share of voice, sentiment and the narratives AI models use about you.
It's tight on volume, though. Brand24 counted 25 tracked prompts a day on the entry plan, with no Claude or Copilot. Semrush itself rates 4.4/5 on G2 from 4,034 reviews for the full suite (Brand24).
Key features
- AI Visibility Score benchmarks any brand worldwide or by region.
- Brand Performance gives AI-generated recommendations.
- An AI site audit checks for issues that block AI crawlers.
Pros
- AI data next to your keyword and backlink data
- Prompt research is genuinely useful for planning
- Large, well-reviewed parent product
Cons
- Small prompt allowance on the entry plan
- No Claude or Copilot tracking
- Extra prompts cost more
Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit pricing: No free plan; $99/month for the toolkit, with 50 extra prompts at $60/month (checked October 2026). See pricing
Related: Best AI rank tracking tools Best AI visibility checking tools
AthenaHQ – best for starting free with 11 models
AthenaHQ tracks brand visibility across 11 AI models and pairs it with content recommendations and an optimization agent.
Strengths
AthenaHQ is the only pick here with a real free tier. The Essential plan includes 300 credits (one credit is one AI response), unlimited users and content recommendations, per its plans. Starter, at $295 a month, gives 3,600 credits, 11 models and unlimited topics and prompts.
It has the best G2 score in this list: 4.9/5 from 44 reviews, according to Brand24. Brand24 also flagged that BI integrations and white-label reports are Enterprise-only, and that the API is a paid add-on.
Key features
- Monitors ChatGPT, Perplexity, AI Overviews, AI Mode, Gemini, Claude, Copilot and Grok.
- A content optimization agent suggests on-page and off-page actions.
- GA4 and Search Console integration ties visibility to site traffic.
Pros
- Free plan to test on your own brand
- Wide model coverage from Starter
- Highest G2 rating of the seven
Cons
- Big jump from free to $295
- API and extra credits cost more
- Single region and language on Starter
AthenaHQ pricing: Free Essential plan; paid plans from $295/month (checked October 2026). See pricing
Related: Best AI brand visibility analysis tools
Otterly.AI – best for small budgets
Otterly.AI is a low-cost AI search monitor with a Brand Visibility Index, domain citation rankings and sentiment analysis.
Strengths
Otterly is the cheapest way to start, at $29 a month for Lite. Brand24 called it "the cheapest credible way to start" and noted a keyword-to-prompt feature that turns your SEO keywords into AI prompts (Brand24).
Lite covers only 15 prompts, though, on ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot and AI Overviews, with Gemini, AI Mode and Claude sold as add-ons. Otterly rates 4.7/5 on G2 from 54 reviews, and Brand24 says G2 reviewers mention a big price jump from Lite ($29) to Standard ($189).
Key features
- Brand Visibility Index scores how often AI answers mention you.
- Domain citation ranking shows which sites AI engines cite.
- Lite includes 1,000 GEO URL audits a month.
Pros
- Lowest entry price here
- Easy setup from existing keywords
- Good G2 rating
Cons
- Only 15 prompts on Lite
- Several engines cost extra
- Sentiment is sometimes misclassified, per G2 reviewers cited by Brand24
Otterly.AI pricing: No free plan; Lite from $29/month, Standard $189/month and Premium $489/month, according to Dupple (checked October 2026). See pricing
Related: Best AI visibility tracking tools
Scrunch – best for site audits and AI bot traffic
Scrunch tracks how AI answers mention your brand and checks whether AI agents can read your site, with page audits and bot-traffic data.
Strengths
Scrunch overlaps with Profound's Agent Analytics more than most rivals do. On Scrunch's plans, the entry tier covers 125 unique prompts, 5,000 responses a month, five site audits, AI agent and bot traffic, and five user licences, on ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews and Copilot.
It holds 4.5/5 on G2 from 73 reviews. One G2 reviewer quoted by Brand24 wrote: "The control it gives us over how we're tracking our clients' AI visibility is second-to-none." Brand24 also notes limited exports (Brand24).
Key features
- AI agent and bot traffic tracking shows which crawlers visit.
- Site audits and page optimizations are included each month.
- Enterprise adds nine LLMs, API access and SAML SSO.
Pros
- Checks site readiness for AI agents
- Five user licences from the start
- Good G2 rating from a mid-sized sample
Cons
- High entry price for four engines
- Limited exports, per G2 reviewers
- No API access below Enterprise
Scrunch pricing: No free plan (free site audit), then paid plans from $250/month billed annually, or $300 month to month, according to Brand24 (checked October 2026). See pricing
Choosing the right Profound AI alternative
Match engines to where your buyers ask
Engine coverage varies more than price. Peec's self-serve plans skip Claude and Perplexity, Semrush skips Claude and Copilot, and AthenaHQ covers 11 models from Starter. If your buyers research in Perplexity, check that before anything else.
Count AI answers, not just prompts
SE Visible's $89 plan returns about 11,250 answers a month. Peec's $95 plan returns 4,500.
Use your SEO suite first if you have one
Already paying for Ahrefs or Semrush? Start there, since the first test costs little or nothing extra. I'd only add a dedicated tracker once those limits start to pinch.
Book the Profound demo if you need enterprise controls
Profound still makes sense for large brands that need SSO, SOC 2, nine engines and all-time history in one contract. Our AI brand visibility analysis tools roundup ranks it second for that reason.
Verdict
For most teams, I'd start with Peec AI. It's the closest thing to the Profound Starter plan that disappeared in September, it publishes its prices, and its users rate it highly. If you need more volume, SE Visible gives more answers for less.
Profound is probably still the deepest product here, judging by Dupple's and Brand24's reviews. But a quote that may run into thousands a month is hard to justify just to learn whether ChatGPT mentions you. Honestly, I'd only call Profound's sales team once a cheaper tracker has shown AI search actually drives pipeline for you. For a wider shortlist, see our AI visibility tracking tools and free AI visibility checkers.
FAQ
Does Profound have a free plan?
No, only a free trial. Brands get 50 prompts run daily for seven days on ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews. After that, you need a custom-priced Enterprise plan. AthenaHQ is the closest alternative with an ongoing free tier.
How much does Profound cost in 2026?
Profound doesn't publish Enterprise prices. It dropped its $99 Starter and $399 Growth brand plans in September 2026, and third-party reviewers estimate contracts at roughly $1,500 to $5,000 or more a month. Agencies can still sign up on their own at $399 a month per client workspace, Eclincher reported.
What is the cheapest Profound alternative?
Otterly.AI, with Lite from $29 a month for 15 prompts. AthenaHQ's free Essential plan includes 300 credits. If you already pay for Ahrefs, some prompt tracking is included at no extra cost.
Which Profound alternative tracks the most AI engines?
Among the self-serve picks, AthenaHQ covers the most, with 11 models on its $295 Starter plan, including Claude, Perplexity, Copilot and Grok. Peec AI's Enterprise tier tracks up to 13 models and Scrunch's Enterprise covers nine. Both, though, need a custom contract much like Profound's, so they don't solve the pricing problem that sends most people looking in the first place.
Is Profound worth it for small businesses?
Probably not right now. Since the September 2026 change, there's no self-serve brand plan, and Brand24 lists "More depth than most small teams will use" as a con. A small business can get daily tracking from Peec AI at $95 a month or Otterly.AI at $29, then decide later whether enterprise depth is worth paying for.
