Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Ahrefs VS PageSpeed Insights

Compare Ahrefs VS PageSpeed Insights and see what are their differences

Ahrefs logo Ahrefs

Ahrefs is a toolset for SEO and marketing. We have tools for backlink research, organic traffic research, keyword research, content marketing & more. Give Ahrefs a try!

PageSpeed Insights logo PageSpeed Insights

PageSpeed is addon for ...
  • Ahrefs Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-11

Ahrefs is trusted by SEOs and marketing professionals worldwide as the ultimate toolset for SEO, powered by industry-leading data. Ahrefs crawls the web, stores tons of data and makes it easily accessible via a simple user interface. The data can be used to aid keyword research, link building, content marketing and SEO strategies. Ultimately, the tool helps to accelerate the growth of organic search traffic to a website.

  • PageSpeed Insights Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-01-02

Ahrefs features and specs

  • Comprehensive Data
    Ahrefs offers extensive data on backlinks, keywords, and site audits, allowing users to make well-informed decisions on their SEO strategies.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    The platform has an intuitive and easy-to-navigate interface, making it accessible for both beginners and experienced SEO professionals.
  • Accurate Backlink Analysis
    Ahrefs is known for its accurate and up-to-date backlink data, which is crucial for comprehensive SEO analysis and strategy development.
  • Robust Keyword Research
    The keyword research tools in Ahrefs provide detailed information and insights, helping users to identify valuable keywords for their content.
  • Site Audit Capabilities
    Ahrefs' site audit feature helps identify and fix on-site SEO issues, improving overall website health and performance.
  • Continuous Updates
    Ahrefs frequently updates its database and introduces new features, ensuring users have access to the latest SEO tools and data.
  • Competitive Analysis
    The platform allows users to analyze competitor websites in-depth, giving insights into their strategies and helping to identify opportunities.

Possible disadvantages of Ahrefs

  • High Cost
    Ahrefs is relatively expensive compared to other SEO tools, which may be a barrier for small businesses or individual users with limited budgets.
  • Learning Curve
    Despite its user-friendly interface, the vast array of features and data can initially be overwhelming for new users, requiring time to master.
  • Limited Access in Basic Plan
    The lower-tier plans limit access to certain data and features, potentially necessitating an upgrade to higher-cost plans for full functionality.
  • No Free Trial
    Ahrefs does not offer a free trial, which can make it challenging for potential users to fully assess its value before committing to a subscription.
  • API Limitations
    Access to the API is restricted and may not be comprehensive enough for advanced users requiring extensive data integration capabilities.
  • Occasional Data Gaps
    Despite frequent updates, there may occasionally be gaps or delays in data, particularly for niche or emerging markets.
  • Limited Customer Support Options
    Customer support is mainly provided via email, which might not be sufficient for urgent issues or users preferring instant support options like live chat.

PageSpeed Insights features and specs

  • Comprehensive Analysis
    PageSpeed Insights provides a thorough analysis of both mobile and desktop versions of your website, offering insights into performance, accessibility, best practices, and SEO metrics.
  • Actionable Recommendations
    The tool offers specific, actionable recommendations to improve page load times and overall site performance, making it easier for developers to implement necessary changes.
  • Integration with Other Google Tools
    PageSpeed Insights seamlessly integrates with other Google tools such as Google Analytics and Search Console, providing a more holistic view of your website's performance.
  • User Experience Metrics
    It measures Core Web Vitals, which are essential for understanding user experience metrics like loading time, interactivity, and visual stability.
  • Free to Use
    The tool is completely free, making it accessible for developers, businesses, and individuals without any associated cost.

Possible disadvantages of PageSpeed Insights

  • Limited Historical Data
    PageSpeed Insights doesn't maintain historical data or trends, making it difficult to track progress over time directly within the tool.
  • Lack of Advanced Features
    While it's excellent for basic to intermediate analysis, it lacks some advanced features and customization options found in paid tools like GTmetrix or WebPageTest.
  • Potential for Misinterpretation
    The results and recommendations can sometimes be technical and difficult for non-developers to understand, leading to potential misinterpretation or incorrect implementation.
  • Server Dependency
    The tool's performance score can be influenced by server locations and current network conditions, which may not always provide a consistent assessment.
  • Lag in Updates
    There can be a lag in updates to reflect the most recent changes in web development practices and Googleโ€™s own algorithms, meaning the tool might not always offer the latest best practices.

Analysis of PageSpeed Insights

Overall verdict

  • Yes, PageSpeed Insights is considered to be a good and effective tool for assessing and optimizing web page performance.

Why this product is good

  • PageSpeed Insights, provided by Google, is a valuable tool for analyzing the performance of web pages. It offers specific suggestions to improve page load times, which is crucial for both user experience and search engine optimization. It evaluates both mobile and desktop versions of a website and provides actionable insights tailored for each. The tool is also easy to use and integrates easily into the workflow of developers and site owners.

Recommended for

  • Web developers looking to optimize their sites for better performance.
  • SEO specialists who want to ensure that their pages load quickly and efficiently.
  • Site owners eager to improve user experience by understanding how their sites perform on different devices.
  • Anyone interested in identifying and resolving issues that can slow down their web pages.

Ahrefs videos

Ahrefs Review and Tutorial: Is This The Only SEO Tool You Need?

More videos:

  • Review - Ahrefs Review | FatRank Ahref Testimonial
  • Tutorial - How to Use Ahrefs Tool - Best Premium SEO Tools [2019]

PageSpeed Insights videos

The New Google PageSpeed Insights & How To Use It

More videos:

  • Review - Ezoic Site Speed Accelerator Review โ€” 100 Google PageSpeed Insights Scores on Mobile and Desktop?

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Ahrefs and PageSpeed Insights)
SEO Tools
96 96%
4% 4
Website Monitoring
0 0%
100% 100
SEO
100 100%
0% 0
Performance Monitoring
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using Ahrefs and PageSpeed Insights. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Ahrefs and PageSpeed Insights

Ahrefs Reviews

  1. Cyra Brown
    ยท Owner at Beginu ยท
    Excellent for discovering low competition keywords

    I've enjoyed using Ahrefs to inform content creation due to their keyword explorer being so useful for finding low difficulty keywords. I do prefer the legacy version of their site explorer in comparison to the new format so I hope that they do not retire certain elements of the platform.

    ๐Ÿ Competitors: SEMRush

The 16 Best Moz Alternatives for Every Budgetย 
Unlike competitors, Ahrefs doesnโ€™t offer a free trial. To start using Ahrefs, you must purchase the Lite plan for $129.
10 SE Ranking Alternatives in 2025 [Free and Paid]
Users appreciate Moz Pro for its user-friendly design and accurate rank tracking, making it accessible to both beginners and experienced marketers. However, some users feel it lacks the depth in backlink analysis offered by tools like Ahrefs, which may limit its appeal for those focusing on link-building.
10 Moz Pro Alternatives in 2025 [Free and Paid]
Starting at $129/month, Ahrefs is slightly more expensive than Moz Pro but offers advanced features that justify the investment. For users who require detailed backlink data and in-depth SEO analysis, Ahrefs is a top choice.
The best alternatives to SE Ranking in 2024
But all this comes at a price. Ahrefs is quite expensive, especially considering that even with a subscription, its use is not unlimited. At the beginning of each month, you are allocated a number of credits, which varies depending on the plan, and these credits are depleted as you use many of its features. And believe me, the credits run out faster than you realize.
Source: dinorank.com
Top 6 Moz Competitors In 2024: A Detailed Review
Furthermore, Ahrefs excels in providing users with in-depth backlink data. It helps to uncover new link-building opportunities and analyze competitorsโ€™ backlink strategies. Its user-friendly interface and accurate data make it a favorite among SEO professionals.

PageSpeed Insights Reviews

We have no reviews of PageSpeed Insights yet.
Be the first one to post

Social recommendations and mentions

Ahrefs might be a bit more popular than PageSpeed Insights. We know about 121 links to it since March 2021 and only 112 links to PageSpeed Insights. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Ahrefs mentions (121)

  • Domain Rating vs Domain Authority: What's the Difference? (2025 Guide)
    Domain Rating is a proprietary metric developed by Ahrefs that measures the strength of your website's backlink profile. - Source: dev.to / 2 months ago
  • AI-Generated Content That Ranks: Anatomy of a Page That Works
    Iโ€™ve manually reviewed dozens of these winners using Ahrefs, SERP screenshots, and side-by-side structure comparisons. And patterns started to emerge โ€” repeatable markers of content that works, even if it was AI-assisted. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • Generating Content with ChatGPT
    Iโ€™ve been using the most excellent ARefs site to get information about how good the on-page SEO is for many of my sites. Every couple of weeks, ARefs crawls the site and will give me a list of suggestions of things I can improve. And for a long time, I had been putting off dealing with one of the biggest issues โ€“ because it seemed so difficult. - Source: dev.to / 4 months ago
  • How We Marketed a Niche SaaS Product with Zero Budget: 9 Strategies That Actually Worked
    Pro tip: Use Ahrefs or Ubersuggest to find long-tail gold. - Source: dev.to / 4 months ago
  • Ask HN: How to Get Good at SEO?
    I recently "launched" my product by mentioning it across Twitter and Discord which led some traffic to it. However, that is not a long-term strategy. I have heard about Ahrefs: https://ahrefs.com/, but I don't want to spend $129 right now since I'm not sure whether the ROI on it would be worth it. Are there any strategies or tips you might be able to share? - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
View more

PageSpeed Insights mentions (112)

View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Ahrefs and PageSpeed Insights, you can also consider the following products

SEMRush - All-in-one Marketing Toolkit for digital marketing professionals.

GTmetrix - GTmetrix is a free tool that analyzes your page's speed performance. Using PageSpeed and YSlow, GTmetrix generates scores for your pages and offers actionable recommendations on how to fix them.

Moz - Backed by industry-leading data and the largest community of SEOs on the planet, Moz builds tools that make inbound marketing easy.

WebPagetest - Run a free website speed test from multiple locations around the globe using real browsers...

SE Ranking - All-in-One cloud-based SEO software for agencies, marketing teams and webmasters

Google Lighthouse - Lighthouse is an open-source, automated tool for improving the quality of web pages.