A free Semrush alternative for small business websites
Semrush is a large paid marketing suite built around its own keyword and competitor databases. If what you mostly need is to audit your own website, see the searches you already appear for and fix what is holding pages back, Make It Flow covers that for free, using your own Google Search Console and Bing data.
What Semrush is
Semrush is an all-in-one SEO and marketing platform. Its strengths are a very large keyword database, competitor traffic estimates, position tracking, a backlink database, content and PPC research. A free account exists with tight daily limits; the full product is a paid subscription.
Make It Flow vs Semrush, feature by feature
On-page SEO audit
Make It Flow Free, with plain-English fixes
Semrush Yes, site audit on paid plans (limited free)
Keywords you already rank for
Make It Flow From your own Search Console, free
Semrush Estimated from its database
Keyword opportunities
Make It Flow Striking-distance, low-CTR and question lists (Starter)
Semrush Yes, plus keyword research for any topic
Backlinks
Make It Flow Links to your pages from Bing's index (Pro)
Semrush Yes, its own large backlink database
Competitor comparison
Make It Flow Audit two sites side by side (Pro)
Semrush Yes, with traffic and keyword estimates
Email deliverability (SPF, DKIM, DMARC)
Make It Flow Free checkers and generators
Semrush Not a focus
AI search readiness
Make It Flow AI crawler, llms.txt and AI visibility checks, free
Semrush AI visibility features on paid plans
Based on each product's public website at the time of writing. Features and plans change, so check Semrush's own site for current details.
Choose Semrush if
- You need keyword research for topics you do not rank for yet, with search volumes for many countries.
- You want estimates of a competitor's traffic, top pages and paid ads.
- You run PPC, content marketing and social media from one paid dashboard.
Choose Make It Flow if
- You want to fix your own site first: SEO, speed, security and email in one free audit.
- You would rather work from your real Google and Bing data than from estimates.
- You are a small business or agency and do not want a monthly bill before you know what to fix.
Using both
Many teams use both: a paid suite for market research, and Make It Flow for free day-to-day checks of their own sites, email setup and security, and for branded audits they can send to clients.
Questions
Is Make It Flow really free?
The audit, the Search Console dashboard and the 148 website tools are free with a free account. Keyword opportunities, monitoring, backlinks, site crawls and white-label reports are on paid plans.
Does Make It Flow have a keyword database like Semrush?
No. Keyword data comes from your own Google Search Console and from free sources such as Bing, so it shows real searches for your site rather than estimates for the whole web.
Can I import my Semrush data?
Not directly. Connect Search Console and run an audit; most of what you need to fix on your own site will show up within minutes.
More comparisons
Semrush is a trademark of its owner. Make It Flow is not affiliated with or endorsed by Semrush.