Head to head · Seo keywords · October 2026 research run

SE Ranking API + MCP vs Similarweb

SE Ranking API + MCP scores 50.9 (D) on agent readiness against Similarweb's 46 (D), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. Similarweb leads on schema & documentation, agent ergonomics and security & auth. Both do seo keywords.

Which one, for what

SE Ranking API + MCP D

Good for An agent that needs keyword, backlink, domain and AI search visibility data at a published price per call, or that manages rank tracking projects for an SE Ranking customer.

Ahead on

  • Reliability, 51 against 35
  • Payments & pricing, 40 against 5
  • Maintenance & community, 79 against 33
  • Transparency & trust, 71 against 60

Watch for

No scoped or read-only keys. The MCP docs say a key has the same access as the account, including Project API deletes

Similarweb D

Good for Traffic and engagement estimates, traffic channel mix and keyword click data for domains an agent doesn't own, with app, company and retail data on the same key.

Ahead on

  • Schema & documentation, 63 against 58
  • Agent ergonomics, 67 against 58
  • Security & auth, 52 against 21

Watch for

API and MCP access need a Business, Enterprise or API-only plan bought through sales. The FAQ says there's no API test without a subscription

Score by category

CategoryWeight this runSE Ranking API + MCPSimilarwebEdge
Reliability16%205135SE Ranking API + MCP +16
Performance10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Schema & documentation13%16.25863Similarweb +5
Agent ergonomics13%16.25867Similarweb +9
Security & auth14%17.52152Similarweb +31
Payments & pricing10%12.5405SE Ranking API + MCP +35
Task success10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Maintenance & community7%8.87933SE Ranking API + MCP +46
Transparency & trust7%8.87160SE Ranking API + MCP +11
Negative events≤1500
Total50.9 · D46 · D

Facts side by side

FactSE Ranking API + MCPSimilarweb
KindHTTP APIHTTP API
VendorSE Ranking (SER Acquisition Inc.)Similarweb Ltd.
Hosted endpointhttps://api.seranking.comhttps://api.similarweb.com
TransportsHTTP, Streamable HTTPHTTP
AuthOAuth or keyOAuth or key
PricingPay per usePaid
Price for seo keywords$0.002 per recordnot published
x402nono
LicenceProprietary service under the SE Ranking API Terms of Service. The OpenAPI file and the Claude skills on GitHub are MITProprietary service under Similarweb's terms of use
Read-only variant documentedyesno
llms.txtnoyes
MCP registrycom.seranking/mcpnot listed
Last release2026-09-282026-09-24
Terms last updatedno date given2025-03-19
Privacy policy last updated2026-06-252026-06-30
Customer content may train modelsnot found in the textnot found in the text
Terms restrict automated accessyesyes
Terms restrict benchmarkingyesyes
Terms or service can change without noticeyesnot found in the text
Arbitration or class-action waivernot found in the textnot found in the text
Popularity0 starsnone

Verdicts

SE Ranking API + MCP

Every Data API endpoint has a published credit cost, credits sell from $50 for 250,000 with no expiry, and a 14-day trial needs no card. Keys carry full account access with no scopes or read-only mode, the key may travel in the URL, and no security page, SLA or llms.txt was found.

Similarweb

The V5 API returns traffic estimates, keyword clicks and SERP positions with selectable metrics, and the hosted MCP server accepts OAuth with a read scope. Access needs a Business, Enterprise or API-only subscription sold through sales, with no API trial, public price per credit or public status page found.

Before you call either

SE Ranking API + MCP

  1. Send the key as Authorization: Token <key>, not Bearer and not ?apikey=, so it stays out of URLs and logs
  2. Call GET /v1/account/subscription (0 credits) and read units_left before a large pull. A short balance returns Insufficient funds
  3. Set limit and cols on per-record endpoints. Backlink summaries cost 100 credits a target and keyword rows 10 credits each
  4. Stay under 10 requests a second on the Data API and 5 on the Project API per key. Repeated overruns block the Project API for 10 minutes
  5. Ask the owner before any Project API or PROJECT_* create, update or delete call. The key has no read-only mode and nothing confirms a delete

Similarweb

  1. Send the key in the api-key header. The capabilities endpoint documents ?api_key= in the URL, which puts the secret in logs
  2. Stay under 10 requests a second. A 429 can also mean the monthly credit allowance is spent, so call /capabilities (free) before retrying
  3. Pass domains in lower case without www. or a path. The docs list 401 as data not found for a malformed domain
  4. Request only the metrics, countries and months needed. Credits multiply across domains, metrics, countries and periods, and daily granularity costs about 30 times monthly
  5. Website keywords accept monthly granularity for the last three months only, and position isn't returned for worldwide

Questions

Which is better for AI agents, SE Ranking API + MCP or Similarweb?

SE Ranking API + MCP scores 50.9 (D) on agent readiness against Similarweb's 46 (D), and leads in 4 of 7 scored categories. Similarweb leads on schema & documentation, agent ergonomics and security & auth.

Do SE Ranking API + MCP and Similarweb need an API key?

Both take an API key or an OAuth sign-in.

Can an agent call SE Ranking API + MCP and Similarweb without installing anything?

Yes. SE Ranking API + MCP has a hosted endpoint at https://api.seranking.com and Similarweb at https://api.similarweb.com.

Other comparisons with SE Ranking API + MCP or Similarweb

Machine-readable

For companies

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