CompareHead to head
Surfer vs Writesonic
Surfer starts at $82/mo billed yearly. Writesonic starts at $79/mo billed annually. Engines included in tiers (paid add-ons excluded): 5 for Surfer, 7 for Writesonic. Prices verified on 2026-11-12 (Surfer) and 2026-11-10 (Writesonic).
| Fact | Surfer | Writesonic |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest GEO-ready tier | $82/mo billed annually | $79/mo billed annually |
| Engines at entry tier | 5 | 3 |
| First paid tier | $82/mo billed yearly | $79/mo billed annually |
| Engines across tiers | 5 | 7 |
| Paid add-on engines | None | None |
| Built to | Optimize | Optimize |
| Free option | Trial only | Trial only |
| Methodology | real user-facing answers | undisclosed |
| Refresh cadence | daily | undisclosed |
| Prices verified | 2026-11-12 | 2026-11-10 |
Choose Surfer if…
Content and SEO teams who want AI visibility tracking wired directly into content optimization.
- Scrapes real AI interfaces instead of sanitized APIs
- One prompt tracked across all 5 models per credit
- Full SEO content suite bundled in
Watch out: Discovery tier tracks zero AI prompts and Standard tracks ChatGPT only — full 5-engine coverage starts at Pro ($182/mo)
Writesonic logoChoose Writesonic if…
Teams already drafting in Writesonic who want visibility next to production.
- Drafting plus tracking
- Familiar content workflow
- GEO tracking on Starter
Watch out: Directory buyers may only need the tracking slice
Engine coverage
| Engine | Surfer | Writesonic |
|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | Included | Included |
| Perplexity | Included | Included |
| Google AI Mode | Included | Included |
| Google AI Overviews | Included | Included |
| Gemini | Included | Included |
| Claude | — | Included |
| Grok | — | Included |
Surfer pricing tiers
| Tier | List price | Volume | Engines |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI Search Analytics | $82/mo billed yearly (annual) | 50 prompts (daily refresh) | ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Mode, Google AI Overviews, Gemini |
| Discovery | $49/mo billed yearly (annual) | 0 AI prompts (no AI tracking) | |
| Standard | $99/mo billed yearly (annual) | 25 prompts (weekly refresh) | ChatGPT |
| Pro | $182/mo billed yearly (annual) | 50 prompts (daily refresh) | ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Mode, Google AI Overviews, Gemini |
| Peace of Mind | $299/mo billed yearly (annual) | 100 prompts (daily refresh) | ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Mode, Google AI Overviews, Gemini |
| Enterprise | Custom | custom prompt quota | ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Mode, Google AI Overviews, Gemini |
Writesonic pricing tiers
| Tier | List price | Volume | Engines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $79/mo billed annually (annual) | 50 prompts, 50 answers tracked daily | ChatGPT, Gemini, Google AI Overviews |
| Basic | $199/mo billed annually (annual) | 100 prompts, 300 answers tracked daily | ChatGPT, Gemini, Google AI Overviews |
| Growth | $399/mo billed annually (annual) | 200 prompts, 600 answers tracked daily | ChatGPT, Gemini, Google AI Overviews |
| Enterprise | Custom | undisclosed; exact vendor roster of 8 AI platforms: ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Gemini, Grok, Google AI Mode, Google AI Overviews, Muse Spark (Muse Spark not in the engines table - directory taxonomy limit) | ChatGPT, Gemini, Google AI Overviews, Perplexity, Claude, Grok, Google AI Mode |
Every number on this page comes from the verified Surfer and Writesonic listings. Prices verified on 2026-11-12 (Surfer) and 2026-11-10 (Writesonic). Something changed? Tell us and we re-verify.