Getting your online business off the ground is not an easy feat. The hard work, however, does not stop there. Once you’re open for business, not only do you have to make sure things are running smoothly, but you also have to keep a close eye on what your competition’s up to. You can bet that your rivals are doing the same thing. So how do you stay ahead of the pack? This is where digital market intelligence tools like SEMRush and SimilarWeb come in. They’ll provide you with crucial competitive intel that you can use to your business’s advantage. The next question is, how do you pick between the two?
While both systems are popular in the world of internet marketing, it shouldn’t be forgotten that they have important differences. To help you choose the one that would be best for your business, here’s an in-depth comparison of SEMRush and SimilarWeb.
Contents
SEMRush vs SimilarWeb Comparison Chart
| Model | SEMRush | SimilarWeb |
 |  | |
| Keyword Analytics | Yes | Yes |
| Keyword Magic Tool | Yes | No |
| Site Audit Tool | Yes | No |
| Competitor Analysis | Yes | Yes |
| Social Media Analysis | Yes | Limited |
| Social Media Tracker | Yes | No |
| Pricing | Pro plan – $99.95 per month Guru plan – $199.95/month Business plan – $399.95/month | Enterprise package is customizable, allowing you to choose the features you want to use and negotiate on the price you have to pay for. |
Keyword Analysis
SEMRush has the upper hand over SimilarWeb when it comes to keyword research.
If you want to use SimilarWeb’s keyword analysis tool, you can access it via the dashboard’s main menu bar. Once you’ve entered a certain keyword, you can then set parameters such as country and time frame. The default presentation of data is a breakdown of organic traffic but you have the option to view top paid results as well. You can also view how popular a keyword is among internet users via the search volume metric. But the feature that really makes SimilarWeb useful is its ability to estimate traffic trends using various keywords. You can, for example, look at how the traffic of five competitor sites are likely to progress as they capitalize on a certain keyword.
SEMRush’s organic search feature is pretty similar to SimilarWeb’s keyword research function. The only difference is that the results are limited to organic keywords sans any information on paid keywords. Going beyond basic keyword research, what really makes SEMRush unique is its Keyword Magic Tool. It lets you arrange keywords based on subject, analyze the difficulty of keywords, and determine the different ranking parameters that are attached to these keywords. Not just that but you can even view the top search questions that contain specific keywords. SEMRush also has a site audit tool that crawls through your pages in search of mistakes you might have made with regards to keywords and other SEO components.
While both SimilarWeb and SEMRush are able to give users valuable information when it comes to keywords, it does seem as though SEMRush has the upper hand in this area. It’s able to go one step further with the help of its Keyword Magic tool and site audit tool.
Competitor Analysis
SEMRusn and SimilarWeb are tied when it comes to competitor analysis.
If you don’t know who your main competitors are, SimilarWeb will do the research for you. Using its standard search algorithm, you’ll be presented with domains that are similar to yours. After you’ve identified your rivals, it’s then time to learn about them. Again, SimilarWeb will help you out with this via its benchmarking feature. You’ll be able to see exactly how you fare against your competitor domains in terms of page views per visit, time spent on site, as well as bounce rate. To help you level up your current standing, SimilarWeb will then provide you with an analysis of both organic and inorganic keywords for any website you choose. You can even access details about your competitor’s individual web pages like which areas of their website are the most visited.
As for SEMRush, it has a Market Explore feature which gives you information on the top players, the demographics and interests of in-market audiences, as well as seasonal trends. It also has the Traffic Analytics tool which, similar to what SimilarWeb does, allows you to select five competitors and compare their website performances against each other. The most interesting feature, however, would have to be the Top Pages report which SimilarWeb doesn’t have. It lets you view your competitors’ best performing content, giving you a glimpse of their unique page views and unique visitors. SEMRush also lets you in on how your competitors are spending their ad money, including paid searches and PPC activities.
SimilarWeb and SEMRush are neck and neck when it comes to competitor analysis as both are able to provide information on competitors’ keywords, content marketing, ad spending, and SEO strategies. They even have the same benchmarking feature with similar parameters.
Social Media Analysis
SEMRush is more comprehensive when it comes to social media analysis.
Unfortunately, SimilarWeb isn’t the most thorough when it comes to social media analysis. The most you’ll get is a report on the traffic generated by your social media platforms. It isn’t too bad, however, as it will still let you in on the important information of a given time frame such as the total number of visits coming from social media sources, the referring social media platform, as well as traffic shares.
SEMRush is definitely more comprehensive in the area of social media analysis, able to give users exactly the kind of information they need to level up their social media campaigns and beat the competition. Not only will you get to see how much traffic your social media platforms are generating, but you’ll also be given access to detailed information on your competitors’ social media activities via the Social Media Tracker. You’ll get to see what kind of content they’re putting out there, how often they’re posting, as well as their most effective social media campaigns.
Pricing
SimilarWeb is more flexible than SEMRush when it comes to pricing.
The great thing about SimilarWeb is that you get to use it for free for 90 days. That’s more than enough time for you to determine if it’s the right choice for you and your online business. After the free trial, it’s then up to you if you’d like to sign up for its Enterprise package made up of custom plans. This means that you get to customize SimilarWeb’s features based on what you need, allowing you to potentially save money down the road. It’s a different kind of pricing scheme, one that’s a lot more flexible than being tied down to a plan with a fixed set of features.
Unfortunately, SEMRush’s trial period isn’t as extensive as SimilarWeb’s as you can only use it for free for fourteen days. Its plans are also more rigid and don’t allow for any customization. There are three plans to choose from, namely the Pro plan ($99.95/month) ideal for freelancers and start-ups, the Guru plan ($199.95/month) made for small to medium businesses, and the Business plan ($399.95/month) which is perfect for agencies, e-commerce projects, and businesses with a larger online presence.
If you’re a complete beginner to internet marketing tools, it would be best to go with SimilarWeb because of its 3-month long free trial period and its negotiable and highly flexible plans. You don’t have to bother with additional features that you don’t actually have any use for.
Verdict
Go for SEMRush if you want more advanced tools but choose SimilarWeb if you want to save on costs.
SEMRush and SimilarWeb are alike in many ways. They’re both able to provide valuable information on keywords as well as perform benchmarking to compare the traffic, bounce rates, and durations on site of your different competitors. That said, SEMRush does have a few advantages over SimilarWeb as it has unique features that provide more in-depth insights such as the Keyword Magic Tool, the site audit tool, and the Social Media Tracker. It can’t be forgotten, however, that SimilarWeb has a more flexible pricing scheme, allowing you to customize features and negotiate the amount you have to pay for. So how do you choose between the two? If you’re looking for advanced features, you’ll benefit more by using SEMRush. If saving on costs is your priority, however, SimilarWeb will be the better option for you.
