Cognitive Authority
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Alternatives

HubSpot AI Search Grader alternatives for local businesses

HubSpot's AI Search Grader is a popular free way to see how AI describes a brand. If you run a local business, you may also want to know whether AI recommends you to customers in your city. Here are the free checks worth knowing about, and what each costs if you want more.

Run your free check →About a minute · no account
Short answer

HubSpot, Semrush and Ahrefs each offer a free AI visibility check built around a brand or domain. Their paid upgrades are monthly plans. Cognitive Authority's free check is built around a local business, its city and its category; the optional full report is a one-time $69 + applicable sales tax.

At a glance

Price, billing and fit

Price, billing and fit of free AI visibility checks compared with a one-time local report
OptionPriceHow you payOngoing trackingFree optionGood fit if
Cognitive AuthorityFree check + full reportOur report
Free checkFull report $69 + applicable sales tax, one-time
Free; report is a one-time paymentResults on screen in about a minute; full report as a private web report right after checkout, with PDF
No · one-time snapshot
Free check, no account
You run a local business and want to know if AI recommends you in your city
HubSpot AI Search GraderFree grader
FreeAEO monitoring $50/mo
Grader free; AEO monthlyOnline report, no account required
With paid AEO plan
Yes, grader is free
You want a free read on how AI perceives your brand overall
Semrush AI Visibility CheckerFree tool
Free (3 checks/day)AI Visibility Toolkit $99/mo
Free; toolkit monthlyOnline results by domain, no registration
With paid toolkit
Yes, 3 free checks per day
You want a quick domain-level snapshot and may use Semrush later
Ahrefs AI Visibility CheckerFree tool
FreeBrand Radar from $50/mo
Free; Brand Radar monthlyOnline results by brand name, no signup
With paid Brand Radar
Yes, no signup
You want a free brand-mention check and may use Ahrefs later

Prices verified on from each vendor's public pages, in US dollars, before tax. Plans change; check the vendor's site before you use or buy. Sources: HubSpot · Semrush · Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit · Ahrefs · Ahrefs Brand Radar.

Free check: score and grade, all four dimension scores, mentions across 8 questions, the most-mentioned competitor, cited sources.

Brand checks vs local checks

Most free AI visibility checkers start from a brand name or a domain. They're designed for companies whose customers search for the brand or the product category. That works well for a software company or a national retailer.

A dentist, plumber or restaurant has a different question: when someone nearby asks AI for a recommendation, does my business come up, and who comes up instead? That's a local question. It depends on your city and your category, not only on your brand. It's worth checking both ways, and all of the checks below are free to try.

HubSpot AI Search Grader

HubSpot's grader is a free, one-time check that needs no account. You enter your company name, location, industry and product or service. HubSpot describes the result as a brand perception analysis across five dimensions: sentiment, presence quality, brand recognition, share of voice and market position. It's based on what AI models say from their training data. For ongoing monitoring, HubSpot AEO is $50/month on its own, or included in Marketing Hub Professional and Enterprise.

Semrush AI Visibility Checker

Semrush's free checker takes a domain and returns an AI Visibility Score, brand mentions, the pages on your site that are cited most, and the topics where you appear. You can use it three times a day without registering. The full AI Visibility Toolkit is $99/month, with 25 tracked prompts and no free trial.

Ahrefs AI Visibility Checker

Ahrefs' free checker takes a brand, product or person's name. It shows whether AI platforms mention it, using prompts based on real searches. No signup is required. It's powered by Ahrefs Brand Radar, whose paid plans start at $50/month for custom prompts.

Cognitive Authority free check

Our free check is built for local businesses. You enter your business name, city and industry, and your website if you have one. We then ask AI the kinds of questions local customers ask. In about a minute you get your score and grade, all four dimension scores, mentions across 8 questions, the most-mentioned competitor, cited sources. You also see the first question with the AI's summary; the other seven unlock with the full report. There's no account and no card. If you want the full picture, the one-time report covers up to 16 questions, each with the full AI answer and sources, plus a 90-day action plan.

Choosing

Who should pick which

Cognitive Authority

Good fit if

You serve customers in one city or area and want to know whether AI recommends you, and which competitor it mentions most.

Run the free check →

HubSpot AI Search Grader

Good fit if

You want a free, brand-level read on how AI perceives your company, and you may already use HubSpot.

Semrush AI Visibility Checker

Good fit if

You want a quick domain-based snapshot, including which of your pages get cited, and you might use Semrush's tools later.

Ahrefs AI Visibility Checker

Good fit if

You want a fast, no-signup check of whether your brand name is mentioned, and you might use Ahrefs later.

FAQ

Questions about free AI visibility checkers

See if AI recommends you locally.

Free, about a minute, no account.

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