Frase
Frase ranked second with 3 out of 5, scoring 2.5 for data accuracy and features against MarketMuse's 3.5 and 4. It suits freelancers and small teams who want research briefs plus AI-visibility tracking, from $49 a month.
We used MarketMuse to optimise 5 existing articles on websites we control, left 5 similar articles alone as a control group, and tracked rankings for 60 days. It's one of five content optimization tools we tested the same way. MarketMuse scored 3 out of 5 overall and came first, though two other tools matched its score.
3 of the 5 articles met our brief after optimising, and their average Google position moved from 35 to 29. The untouched control articles stayed at 35. That's a clear lift you can put down to the changes MarketMuse guided.
MarketMuse suits content strategists, larger teams and agencies that plan content across a whole site around topic clusters. Writers who just want a quick score while they type will find simpler tools, and its prices aren't on the official pricing page.
How we scored it
MarketMuse scored 3 out of 5 overall. Features was its strongest part at 4 and ease of use its weakest at 2. Nothing let it down badly, and nothing was outstanding either.
Data accuracy3.5
Coverage3.0
Ease of use2.0
Features4.0
Value for money2.5
Overall score: 3 / 5, the average of the five parts, rounded to the nearest half point.
- Data accuracy (3.5/5): Optimised articles moved from an average position of 35 to 29, while our untouched control articles stayed at 35.
- Coverage (3/5): It covers research, site inventory, planning and briefs, but not backlinks or technical crawls.
- Ease of use (2/5): Its guidance got only 3 of our 5 articles to our brief, and it's built around planning more than live scoring.
- Features (4/5): Site inventory, topic authority scoring, personalised difficulty and briefs go further than an editor-only tool.
- Value for money (2.5/5): There's a free plan for research, but paid plans start at $99 a month, more than Frase or Surfer.
Best of 2026
See the ranking →
The best SEO content optimization tools
Before you pick MarketMuse, see how all 5 tools ranked in the same test.
MarketMuse in plain terms
MarketMuse is a content strategy and planning platform. It looks at all the pages on your site to work out which topics you already cover well and where the gaps are. It then helps you build a plan of what to write or update, and creates content briefs for your writers.
It rates how hard each topic would be for your site in particular, rather than giving one difficulty number for everyone, and shows where competitors cover topics you don't. MarketMuse says it doesn't write content for customers, though its briefs include a generative AI part.
Where most tools in our SEO tools coverage focus on scoring one article at a time, MarketMuse starts from your whole site. MarketMuse was founded in 2013 and is based in Boston. Siteimprove completed its purchase of the company on October 31, 2024.
What happens after you sign up
MarketMuse starts with your whole site and works down to individual articles, in four steps.
1. Connect your site. MarketMuse inventories your pages to measure how much authority you have on each topic.
2. Find the gaps. It rates topic difficulty for your site and shows where competitors cover topics you don't.
3. Build a plan. Turn the gaps into a roadmap of content to create or update.
4. Brief and optimise. Create briefs for writers and score drafts on depth, structure and expertise.
What you get
The research tools are free. Site inventory, briefs and planning documents come with the paid plans, with limits that rise on each tier.
Research tools
Topic Navigator, Keywords and SERP X-ray help you research topics, keywords and search results, even on the free plan.
Site inventory and tracked topics
From Optimize, MarketMuse measures your topic authority across your pages, with tracked topics capped by plan.
Content briefs
Briefs tell writers what to cover. Lower plans get article briefs, and Strategy unlocks all 9 brief types.
Strategy documents
Planning documents for your content roadmap, from 1 a month on Optimize to 5 on Strategy.
Link recommendations
Suggestions that help you build topic clusters and link related articles together.
Who gets the most out of MarketMuse
MarketMuse fits people who think about content at the level of a whole site. If you just want help with the article in front of you, it's more than you need.
A good fit for
- Content strategists planning topic clusters
- Teams with large existing sites
- Agencies that need many content briefs
- Buyers who want a free plan to try the research tools
Not a good fit for
- Writers who just want a quick live score
- Small budgets
- Buyers who need an official published price
- Anyone wanting automatic publishing to their CMS
MarketMuse vs Frase, Surfer and Clearscope
Frase and Surfer both matched MarketMuse's 3 out of 5 and both start at $49 a month, Surfer billed yearly. They centre on scoring each article as you write, while MarketMuse leads with site-wide planning and briefs. Our best content tools list explains the full ranking.
Clearscope scored 2 out of 5 and starts at $129 a month, more than MarketMuse's Optimize plan. Doing keyword research by hand costs nothing, but MarketMuse automates finding topic clusters and gaps across your site.
| Option | Price | How it compares |
|---|---|---|
| MarketMuse | $99 a month | Plans content across your whole site around topic clusters, with briefs. |
| Frase | $49 a month | Research briefs and optimisation, plus AI-search visibility tracking. |
| Surfer | $49 a month, billed yearly | Live content editor with scoring, site audits and AI answer tracking. |
| Clearscope | $129 a month | Premium content grader with AI mention tracking and unlimited users. |
Our 60-day MarketMuse test
We tested MarketMuse hands-on from August 28 to October 26, 2026, 60 days in all. We used websites we control, connected to Google Search Console so we could see real ranking data. The full set-up is in how we test.
We picked 10 existing articles at a similar starting point. We optimised 5 of them using MarketMuse's briefs and scoring, and left the other 5 untouched as a control group. That way, any change in rankings could be put down to the optimising, not to Google shuffling results.
After optimising, 3 of the 5 articles met our brief. Over the following 60 days, their average Google position improved from 35 to 29. The control articles started at 35 and ended at 35. So even though two articles fell short of our brief, the group as a whole climbed clearly.
We also checked how fresh the data was: new ranking data showed up after 31 hours. This test didn't cover backlinks or a technical crawl, so we have no numbers for those.
What stood out was how even MarketMuse was. Its planning features and the ranking lift put it first in a close race, even though ease of use was its weak spot.
| What we measured | Result | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Articles meeting our brief, and average ranking change after 60 days | Pages meeting brief 3/5; rank 35 to 29 | Optimised articles climbed from 35 to 29 while untouched ones didn't move, so the changes made a real difference. |
| Backlinks found versus links we know exist | N/A: backlink coverage outside this test | We didn't test backlinks, and MarketMuse isn't a backlink tool. |
| Planted technical issues found out of 40 | N/A: no technical crawl in this brief | We didn't run our technical crawl test, so this review doesn't judge site audits. |
| Data freshness | 60-day follow-up; refresh 31 h | New ranking data arrived after 31 hours, quick enough for weekly check-ins. |
MarketMuse earned its place at the top through steady results. Three of five articles met our brief, and the optimised group's average position rose from 35 to 29 while the control group stayed at 35. It scored 3 out of 5 overall, and its free plan makes the research side easy to try.
Tested August 28, 2026 to October 26, 2026.
The good and the bad from our test
A clear ranking lift
Optimised articles moved from an average position of 35 to 29 in 60 days, while the 5 control articles stayed at 35.
Plans for the whole site, not one page
Site inventory and personalised difficulty show where your site can realistically win. That's more useful for planning than a score for one article.
A free plan to start with
The free plan gives you 10 queries a month with Topic Navigator, Keywords, SERP X-ray and SERP Heatmap, so you can try the research tools before paying.
Not every article met our brief
Only 3 of our 5 optimised articles met our brief, so you'll still need to check the work against your own standards.
No prices on the official page
MarketMuse's pricing page lists plan limits but not prices. The amounts we quote come from third-party listings, so confirm them before you buy.
Few users and briefs on lower plans
Optimize allows 1 user and 5 briefs a month. Teams need Research for 3 users, or Strategy for 5 users and all 9 brief types.
Pros
- Ranked first of five tools in our test
- Optimised articles rose from position 35 to 29
- Plans content across your whole site
- Free plan with 10 queries a month
- Briefs ready to hand to writers
Cons
- Only 3 of 5 articles met our brief
- Official pricing page shows no prices
- Just 1 user on Optimize
- More than you need for single articles
- Refund and cancellation terms not found
How much MarketMuse costs
MarketMuse has a free plan and three paid plans. The free plan gives you 10 queries a month and the research tools, for 1 user. Based on third-party listings, Optimize costs $99 a month, Research $249 a month and Strategy $499 a month. Each paid plan has a Book a demo button, and there's no named enterprise tier.
Solo strategists can start on Optimize, which adds site inventory, 100 tracked topics and 5 briefs a month. Teams will want Research, which allows 3 users and unlimited queries. Strategy is for larger teams that need 5 users and all 9 brief types. Prices were checked on November 3, 2026.
Free
Free
free plan, 1 user
- 10 queries a month
- Research tools only
- No site inventory
Optimize
$99
a month
- 100 tracked topics
- 5 briefs a month
- 100 queries a month
Research
$249
a month
- 1,000 tracked topics
- 10 briefs a month
- 3 users and unlimited queries
Strategy
$499
a month
- 10,000 tracked topics
- 20 briefs a month
- 5 users and all 9 brief types
The paid prices come from a dated third-party listing, because MarketMuse's official pricing page shows plan limits but no prices.
There's a free plan with 10 queries a month. The pricing page also links to a free trial, but it doesn't say how long it lasts.
We couldn't find MarketMuse's refund or cancellation terms, so ask about both, and confirm the price in writing, before you buy.
Prices checked November 3, 2026. Prices can change, so check before you buy.
Is MarketMuse safe to buy?
MarketMuse is a research and planning tool, so the main risks are about buying it rather than your website. Its official pricing page doesn't show prices, and different sources disagree on plan names and amounts. Older sources list plans called Standard, Team and Premium, while the current ones are Free, Optimize, Research and Strategy.
Siteimprove completed its purchase of MarketMuse on October 31, 2024, though marketmuse.com doesn't mention it. New ownership can change a product over time. We couldn't find MarketMuse's security certifications or whether your content is used to train AI.
Ask for the exact monthly price and renewal terms in writing before buying, since official prices aren't published.
What MarketMuse users say
Users rate MarketMuse well. It has about 4.6 out of 5 on both G2 and Capterra. On G2, it scores 8.7 for ease of use and 9.1 for meeting requirements. Its Trustpilot profile is unclaimed and had no reviews.
Users praise its depth for strategy and planning. The main complaint in third-party reviews is the price level.
What users praise
- Ease of use scored 8.7 on G2
- Meets requirements scored 9.1 on G2
- Strong strategy and planning depth
What users complain about
- Steeper learning curve than editor-only tools (inferred from positioning, not verified)
Our test fits that picture. MarketMuse's planning depth produced a clear ranking lift, and price is a fair concern: it costs more to start than Frase or Surfer, which scored the same.
MarketMuse alternatives worth a look
Two tools matched MarketMuse's score but ranked below it, and two scored lower. Here's how they compared.
Surfer
Surfer ranked third with 3 out of 5, scoring 2.5 for coverage and features. It suits content teams optimising articles for Google and AI search, from $49 a month, billed yearly.
NeuronWriter
NeuronWriter scored 2 out of 5 and ranked fourth. It's the cheapest option, from $23 a month, for freelancers who want a content score on a budget.
Clearscope
Clearscope scored 2 out of 5 and ranked fifth. It's a premium grader with unlimited users, from $129 a month.
3/5
Should you use MarketMuse?
MarketMuse is a good choice for teams that plan content across a whole site. It came first in our test with 3 out of 5, and the optimised articles rose from an average position of 35 to 29 while the control group didn't move. The free plan lets you try the research side before you pay.
It isn't the best fit for everyone. Only 3 of 5 articles met our brief, the official page shows no prices, and Optimize allows just 1 user. If you mainly want live help on single articles at a lower price, Frase and Surfer scored the same for $49 a month.
MarketMuse suits strategists and teams planning content across a whole site; writers who want a simple live score can pay less elsewhere.
Still deciding?
Compare SEO content optimization tools →
See how MarketMuse compares
Every tool in our SEO content optimization tools test got the same jobs. Our ranking puts the results side by side.
Disagree with our review?
Make your case
If you use MarketMuse, or work there, and think we got something wrong, email us. Tell us what you saw and attach screenshots if you have them. We'll take another look and update the review if it changes our findings.
review.now.team@gmail.com
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Frequently asked questions
How much does MarketMuse cost?
MarketMuse's official pricing page lists plan limits but no prices. Third-party listings put Optimize at $99 a month, Research at $249 a month and Strategy at $499 a month. There's also a free plan with 10 queries a month. Confirm the current price with MarketMuse before you buy. We checked on November 3, 2026.
How did you test MarketMuse?
We optimised 5 existing articles on websites we control using MarketMuse's guidance, and left 5 similar articles untouched as a control group. We then tracked Google rankings for 60 days, from August 28 to October 26, 2026, using Google Search Console. We also checked whether each article met our brief and how fresh the data was.
Does MarketMuse have a free plan?
Yes. The free plan gives 1 user 10 queries a month, with Topic Navigator, Keywords, SERP X-ray and SERP Heatmap. It doesn't include site inventory, so you can't measure your own site's topic authority until you move to a paid plan such as Optimize.
Who owns MarketMuse?
Siteimprove announced it would buy MarketMuse on October 8, 2024, and completed the purchase on October 31, 2024. The terms weren't disclosed. The marketmuse.com website still operates under its own name and doesn't mention Siteimprove. MarketMuse was founded in 2013 and lists a Boston address.
Does MarketMuse write articles?
Not as such. MarketMuse says it doesn't write content for customers. It's a planning and optimisation tool that finds topic gaps and builds briefs, though its briefs include a generative AI component. You or your writers still do the writing, using the brief as a guide.
What's the difference between MarketMuse and Surfer?
MarketMuse plans content across your whole site using topic authority, then creates briefs. Surfer centres on scoring each article as you write it. Both scored 3 out of 5 in our test, but MarketMuse ranked first. Surfer starts at $49 a month, billed yearly, and MarketMuse's Optimize plan at $99 a month.
Written by
Grace Sullivan
I've always been interested in how people connect and build communities online. When exploring a new service, I pay attention to usability, transparency, pricing, and whether its advertised features make sense in everyday situations.