Semrush review: a strong second tool, or enough on its own?

Semrush can work well as a supplement to other SEO data sources. This matters because Semrush and Ahrefs are often presented as direct alternatives even though they prioritise different jobs.

What Semrush is best at

Position tracking. Semrush follows the movement of selected keywords over time and presents the trend clearly. The feature is particularly relevant for ongoing reporting.

On-page and content optimization. Semrush has some strong built-in tools for judging whether a specific page is optimized well enough for a given keyword, with concrete suggestions for improvement. It is more action-oriented than Ahrefs on that front.

Breadth beyond SEO. Semrush also covers PPC, social media and content marketing in the same platform, which can be valuable if you want several disciplines gathered in one place instead of subscribing to multiple separate tools.

What Ahrefs still does better

The backlink database is an area where Ahrefs is often chosen for deeper competitor analysis. For technical audits, either platform’s automatic report should be supplemented with manual checks and a dedicated crawler when the site is complex.

Do you need both?

For an established agency or a consultant working with many different clients, having access to both often makes sense, because they fill each other’s gaps. For a single site on a tight budget it is rarely necessary to pay for both at once. Choose based on what drives the most value for your task: backlink-heavy competitor work points to Ahrefs, ongoing content optimization and reporting point to Semrush.

My conclusion

This need not be an either-or decision. Semrush is strong for position tracking and content work, while other tools may be better suited to a specific backlink or crawling task.

If you want help choosing the right tool setup for your own situation, or with the SEO work itself regardless of tool, book a no-strings meeting and we will look at what makes the most sense for you.