Surfer SEO Review: Features, Pricing and More

6 Steps to Get AI to Recommend Your Brand

This is my complete review of the on-page optimization tool Surfer SEO.

In fact, I’ve personally tested EVERY feature Surfer has to offer.

Specifically, you’ll learn:

So, without further ado, let’s get started.

What Is Surfer SEO and What Does It Do?

Surfer is a content optimization and analysis platform that helps you create high-ranking blog posts and articles.

It works by analyzing the content of a page against 500+ [on-page signals](/content/on-page-seo "On-Page SEO: The Definitive Guide + FREE Template"/index.html), like content relevance and topic coverage.

And provides data-driven recommendations to improve your content.

Some of its best tools include:

It also has a built-in keyword research tool.

Content Editor: Real-Time Writing Assistant

The Surfer Content Editor is a real-time writing assistant that helps you outline and write optimized content based on what’s already ranking in the SERPs.

But is it worth your time (and money)?

Well, right off the bat, I found something I really like:

You can choose which top-ranking pages you want to analyze.

So, I like that you can focus on the top 3, 5, or 10 results.

Other than that, the Content Editor is pretty straightforward.

You can write your article directly within the editor or copy and paste your content into it.

Another option is to select "Write with AI" to get an AI-generated article based on your target keyword.

But it’s a solid starting point if you’re staring at a blank page.

Just know it’ll need heavy editing to get it publish-worthy.

OK, back to the Content Editor’s features.

You provide a target keyword, and the tool returns an outline.

It also has a “Topics and Questions” section pulled from Google’s “ [People also ask](/content/tools/people-also-ask "FREE "/index.html)…” box.

This tells you what people want to know about in relation to your target keyword.

Another helpful feature?

The tool tells you the exact [LSI keywords](/content/hub/seo/lsi "What are LSI Keywords? And Do They Help With SEO?"/index.html) you need to add.

You’ll also get a Content Score for every article, which is graded from zero to 100.

This will be more than enough to create high-ranking content.

Auto-Optimize is another Content Editor feature worth mentioning.

The tool automatically adds NLP terms to your content to help boost your Content Score.

Overall, reviewing the suggestions took longer than if I had just manually added the terms myself.

OK—now, let’s talk about one of my favorite features.

The ability to share the Content Editor with anyone, even those not on your Surfer account.

Surfer also offers a handy Chrome extension, so you or your team can write and optimize drafts in Google Docs.

Topical Map: Identify Content Gaps

Next up: Surfer’s Topical Map tool.

Here’s how it works:

Connect your Google Search Console account to Surfer.

The tool then analyzes your existing content and identifies topics you’re missing.

If you find a topic you want to write about, you can send it directly to the Content Editor.

Content Audit: Optimize Existing Content

Now, let’s take a look at Surfer’s Content Audit tool.

Just plug in your domain, and you’ll get a detailed analysis of your content’s [SEO performance](/content/hub/seo/seo-results "How to Measure SEO Performance & Results"/index.html).

Select the “ Recommendations” tab to see which pages the tool thinks you should update.

Click “ Optimize” on any recommendation to be taken to the Content Editor, where you’ll get suggestions on how to improve the article’s Content Score.

Keyword Research: Find New Keywords to Target

Next, I wanted to try Surfer’s keyword research tool.

Type in a seed keyword.

And you’ll see metrics like [monthly search volume](/content/tools/keyword "Free Keyword Research Tool by Backlinko"/index.html) and keyword difficulty.

So: how is this feature overall?

It’s definitely helpful but not as comprehensive as other keyword research tools.

SERP Analyzer: Detailed Breakdown of Google’s First Page

This is an interesting tool.

It’s basically a VERY in-depth breakdown of the SERPs for a given keyword.

In this breakdown, you get data on:

Overall, I think the SERP Analyzer is pretty cool.

Surfer SEO Support

So at this point, I tested out all of the key features in Surfer SEO.

And it was time to see how their support stacked up.

Fortunately, asking a question to their support is easy: they have a little Intercom chat button at the bottom of every page.

Surfer SEO Pricing

Here’s a breakdown of Surfer’s pricing:

If you go with monthly billing, you’ll pay:

Surfer SEO vs. Clearscope

A lot of people ask me: “Which tool do you prefer? Surfer SEO or Clearscope?”
So, I thought I’d quickly compare and contrast the two tools.

Overall, I prefer Clearscope. But it’s close.

Things I Liked About Surfer SEO

Things That Surfer SEO Should Improve

Surfer SEO Review: Is This Tool Worth It?

Overall, I think that Surfer SEO is worth a try.

It’s definitely not perfect. And could use some UI work.

Want to explore other options? Check out my review of the top 41 SEO tools.