Semrush Pro vs Guru (2026): Which Plan Do You Actually Need?

Short answer: as of September 2026 you cannot buy Guru or Business at all. Semrush’s public pricing page now sells four paid tiers — SEO $139, Starter $199, Pro+ $299, Advanced $549. If you want the limits Guru used to give you (15 projects, 1,500 keywords), the plan you buy today is Pro+ at $299 — which is $49/mo more than Guru cost, and it bundles AI-visibility tracking whether you wanted it or not.

What you can actually buy today

Verified on Semrush’s own pricing page, 3 September 2026:

Plan	Monthly	Annual (per mo)	Websites	Keywords tracked	AI prompts
SEO	$139	~$117.33	5	500	—
Starter	$199	~$165.17	5	500	50
Pro+	$299	~$248.17	15	1,500	100
Advanced	$549	~$455.67	40	5,000	200

Annual billing takes roughly 17% off across the line. There is also a permanent free tier at $0.

What happened to Pro, Guru and Business

In May 2026, weeks after Adobe completed its $1.9bn acquisition on 28 April, Semrush retired the decade-old three-plan ladder. Here is how the old names map onto what is actually for sale:

Old plan	Old price	Closest thing you can buy now	Now costs
Pro	$139.95	SEO — same 5 projects / 500 keywords	$139
Guru	$249.95	Pro+ — same 15 projects / 1,500 keywords	$299
Business	$499.95	Advanced — same 40 projects / 5,000 keywords	$549

Two things worth saying plainly, because most articles still have not caught up:

• The entry tier survived almost untouched. If you were going to buy Pro, buy SEO. Same limits, essentially the same price.
• The middle and top tiers got more expensive. Guru → Pro+ is a $49/mo increase; Business → Advanced is $49/mo. You do get AI-visibility prompts you did not get before — but if you do not want them, there is no longer a cheaper AI-free option at that limit level. The old advice to “stay on Classic and skip the AI bundle” is no longer available to a new buyer above the $139 tier.

The names are a trap. “Pro+” sounds like “Pro, slightly better”. It is not — it is Guru-level limits plus AI visibility, at $299.

One thing I cannot tell you honestly: whether existing Pro, Guru and Business subscribers are grandfathered indefinitely, migrated at renewal, or something else. Semrush has not stated it publicly, and I am not going to guess about your bill. If you are on a legacy plan, check what your account actually shows before assuming any article — including this one — describes what you are paying.

The standalone AI Visibility Toolkit is available

The 6 October 2026 verification corrects the earlier claim that this product was retired. AI Visibility Toolkit is $99/month standalone or as an addition, with 25 custom prompts and one Brand Performance domain. SEO access is separate.

SEO at $139 does not include custom AI prompt tracking or Brand Performance. Semrush One Starter ($199), Pro+ ($299) and Advanced ($549) include 50, 100 and 200 custom prompt slots respectively, plus one Brand Performance domain. Custom tracking is daily on ChatGPT Search, Google AI Mode and Gemini; Brand Performance uses vendor-generated prompts weekly across its own five-engine set.

Do not assume an existing SEO subscription covers the AI product. Compare its exact entitlement with specialists in Semrush AI Toolkit vs dedicated GEO tools.

Check current Semrush pricing→

The entry tier (Pro, now sold as SEO) — what you get

This is the full SEO toolkit: Keyword Magic Tool, Organic Research, Site Audit, backlink analysis and position tracking. Its ceilings — 5 projects, 500 tracked keywords — are plenty for a freelancer, a solopreneur, or a single busy site. If that’s you, this is the plan. Don’t pay for headroom you won’t use.

The middle tier (Guru, now sold as Pro+) — what the extra $160/mo buys

The middle tier raises the limits (15 projects, 1,500 keywords) and, more importantly, adds capabilities the entry plan simply doesn’t have:

• Historical data — pull metrics back to 2012, not just the recent window. Essential for trend analysis and for pitching clients with “here’s what actually happened to your traffic in 2019.”
• JavaScript rendering in Site Audit — the sleeper feature. If your site is React, Next.js or Vue, Pro’s crawler may see far less than Google does, making your audits misleading rather than merely incomplete.
• Multi-location and multi-device rank tracking (up to 10 locations vs Pro’s one) — essential for local or multi-city businesses.
• Looker Studio integration — the reporting layer agencies build client dashboards on.
• Content Marketing Toolkit — topic research, SEO writing assistant, content auditing.

The full comparison

	Entry — SEO $139/mo (was Pro)	Middle — Pro+ $299/mo (was Guru)
Projects	5	15
Keywords tracked daily	500	1,500
Results per report	10,000	30,000
Reports/requests per day	3,000	5,000
Site Audit pages per crawl	20,000	20,000
Site Audit pages per month	100,000	300,000
JS rendering in Site Audit	✗	✓
Historical data	✗	✓ (back to 2012)
Multi-location tracking	✗ (1 location)	✓ (up to 10)
Looker Studio integration	✗	✓
Content Marketing Toolkit	✗	✓ (see caveat)
Extra user seat	from $45/mo	from $45/mo

One caveat I want to flag honestly: Semrush’s own materials are currently inconsistent about the Content Marketing Toolkit. Its plan comparison lists it as a Guru inclusion, while a separate Content Toolkit add-on (~$60/mo) is also sold. If the content tools are your main reason to upgrade, check inside the app — or ask support — before paying for Pro+ on that basis alone. I’d rather tell you the picture is murky than pretend it’s clean.

What’s in neither plan: Traffic & Market intelligence, Local and Social remain paid add-ons at every tier. Budget for those separately if you need them, because add-on sprawl is the most common source of “why is my Semrush bill so high?” AI Visibility Toolkit is also sold separately at $99/month; SEO-only does not include custom monitoring or Brand Performance.

The rule I’d use

• Pick SEO ($139) if you’re a solo SEO, blogger, freelancer or small business with five or fewer sites, working in one country and one location, who doesn’t need pre-2024 trend data. It covers the vast majority of real SEO work. The dealbreakers to check first: no historical data, no JS rendering, one tracking location.
• Pick Starter ($199) if the SEO tier’s limits suit you and you want volume on the AI side. SEO-only does not include custom AI tracking or Brand Performance. One Starter includes 50 custom prompt slots and one Brand Performance domain, alongside five SEO websites.
• Pick Pro+ ($299) if any one of these is true — you build client dashboards in Looker Studio, you track multiple cities or devices, your site is JavaScript-heavy, you need historical data to pitch or diagnose, or you’ve simply outgrown 5 projects / 500 keywords. Any single one justifies it; you don’t need all five. Note you’re paying $49/mo more than Guru cost for the same limits, and getting 100 AI prompts you may not use.
• Pick Advanced ($549) if you’re an agency or in-house team hitting Pro+‘s limits, or you need the API, Share of Voice and higher report volumes.

Not sure? Start on SEO — Semrush lets you upgrade mid-cycle the moment you hit a wall, so you never overpay upfront. And if cost is the sticking point, the Semrush coupon and free-trial guide covers the honest ways to try it before committing. New to the platform? Start with how to use Semrush.

See current Semrush plans→

Frequently asked questions

Is Semrush Guru worth it over Pro?

Neither plan is on sale any more — Semrush retired Pro, Guru and Business in May 2026. The question today is whether to step from the SEO tier ($139) up to Pro+ ($299), which carries the limits Guru used to. It is only worth it if you need what the entry tier lacks: historical data, the Content Marketing Toolkit, multi-location tracking, JavaScript rendering, or more than 5 projects / 500 keywords. For most single-site owners and freelancers the $139 tier is enough.

How much does Semrush Pro cost in 2026?

The plan formerly called Pro is now sold as SEO, at $139/mo on monthly billing or about $117.33/mo billed annually (roughly 17% off). The limits are unchanged at 5 projects and 500 tracked keywords. Verified on the Semrush pricing page on 3 September 2026.

Can I upgrade from Pro to Guru later?

You can upgrade tiers at any time and Semrush prorates it, so starting on the entry plan and moving up when you actually hit a limit is still the cost-smart path. The destination is now Pro+ rather than Guru, since Guru is no longer sold.

What is the difference in keyword limits?

The SEO and Starter tiers track up to 500 keywords across 5 projects; Pro+ tracks up to 1,500 across 15 projects and Advanced up to 5,000 across 40. Those limits are usually the first reason to move up a tier. The figures are unchanged from the old Pro, Guru and Business plans.

Does Semrush Pro render JavaScript in Site Audit?

No — JavaScript rendering has always been a middle-tier feature, which today means Pro+ or Advanced rather than the SEO and Starter tiers. If your site runs on React, Next.js, Vue or similar, the entry crawler can see substantially less content than Google does, which makes your audit misleading. For JS-heavy sites this is often the single strongest reason to pay for Pro+.

What replaced Semrush Pro, Guru and Business?

Semrush retired the three-plan ladder in May 2026 and now sells four paid tiers: SEO ($139), Starter ($199), Pro+ ($299) and Advanced ($549). SEO carries the old Pro limits at essentially the old price; Pro+ carries the old Guru limits but costs $49/mo more; Advanced carries the old Business limits, also $49/mo more. Starter, Pro+ and Advanced bundle AI-visibility prompts, which the old plans did not.

Did Adobe buy Semrush?

Yes. Adobe announced the acquisition in November 2025 and completed it on 28 April 2026. The tools themselves work as before, but Semrush has been reorganising its packaging around AI-visibility features, so verify current plan names and pricing on the live page rather than trusting older articles.

How far back does Semrush historical data go?

Guru and Business unlock historical data reaching back to 2012, letting you pull metrics from past years rather than only the recent window. Pro has no historical access at all, which is the most common single reason agencies and consultants upgrade.