Alternatives · Compared on price and fit

Frase alternatives, now that the $15 plan is gone

Q: Does Frase still have a $15 plan?

No. Frase's 2026 restructure replaced the Solo ($15), Basic ($45) and Team ($115) plans with Starter at $49, Professional at $129 and Scale at $299 a month. Reviews quoting $15 describe a plan that no longer exists.

Q: Is Surfer or Frase better?

Frase is stronger at SERP research and briefs; Surfer is stronger at optimising a finished draft. Frase starts slightly cheaper, at $49 against $59 for Surfer Discovery. Writers who plan from scratch tend to prefer Frase; teams refreshing existing content tend to prefer Surfer.

By Giovanni Rasulo Updated 20 October 2026 Prices checked September 2026 7 alternatives

Short answer

Frase's cheapest plan is now Starter at $49 a month ($39 annually): the old $15 Solo and $45 Basic plans no longer exist. The closest alternative is Surfer, from $59, which is better at optimising drafts and weaker at briefs. The cheapest AI writer is Koala AI from $9. If you only used Frase for keyword research, KeySearch at $24 covers it. If you used it to feed a blog, GrowGanic researches, writes and publishes for $99 with a free first article.

Frase built its reputation as the affordable way to go from a keyword to a brief: pull the top results, extract headings and questions, and hand a writer a structure. For years its entry plan was one of the cheapest in the category, which is why so many roundups still describe it as a budget tool.

In 2026 it restructured. Solo ($15), Basic ($45) and Team ($115) were replaced by Starter ($49), Professional ($129) and Scale ($299), with 20% off on annual billing and a 7-day trial that needs no card. The difference between tiers is volume. If you are here because your renewal went up, that is why.

The comparison table

Frase alternatives compared on entry price, free option and what they replace
Tool	Entry /mo	Free option	Replaces in Frase	Misses
Frase StarterThe reference point	$49$39 billed annually	7-day trial, no card	n/a	n/a
Surfer DiscoveryClosest match	$59$49 billed annually	Extension only	AI drafting, on-page scoring	Frase's brief-building depth
Clearscope EssentialsTeams	$129Unlimited users	No	Topic coverage and grading	Low entry price
Koala AICheapest writer	$25	Free start, no card	AI long-form drafts	Research and brief tooling
KeySearch StarterResearch only	$24~$20 billed annually	7-day trial	Keyword research, SERP analysis	Briefs and writing
Keywords EverywhereBrowser extension	~$7$84/yr, annual only	Credit-based	Quick keyword volume in Google	Everything else
GrowGanic ProAutonomous	$99Up to 30 articles; $50 first month, offered once	1 article, no card	Research, writing and scoring, then publishes	A brief for a human writer
SEOZillaAutomated drafting	$19.99About 4 articles; $49.99 for 10	Trial	Drafts with internal links, CMS publishing	Volume above the cap

Entry plans on monthly billing unless noted, checked September 2026.

Which half of Frase were you using?

Frase does two jobs, and the right replacement depends entirely on which one you paid for:

Research and briefs: looking at what ranks, collecting headings and questions, producing an outline. If a human writes from those briefs, you need a research tool or another brief builder.
AI writing: turning the brief into a draft. If that is the part you used most, a dedicated writer or an autonomous tool will be cheaper per article.

The cheapest Frase alternative

For writing: Koala AI from $25 a month. It produces SEO-oriented long-form drafts at a fraction of Frase Starter, without Frase's research workspace.

For research: KeySearch at $24 a month gives keyword difficulty, SERP analysis and rank tracking. Pair it with Keywords Everywhere ($84 a year for 100,000 credits, which works out at about $7 a month), for volume data inside Google while you plan. Together that is around $31 a month, and you build the outline yourself.

The best free Frase alternative

Frase's own 7-day trial, no card: useful to run a real brief before deciding whether $49 is worth it.
Google Search Console. The queries your pages already get impressions for are the best brief material you have, and it is free.
GrowGanic's free tier. One article researched, written, scored and published, no card: capped deliberately so you can judge the output.

Tools most similar to Frase

Surfer: same price, different strength

Discovery at $59, Standard at $119. Surfer is the stronger editor for tuning a draft against the SERP; Frase is the stronger research and brief tool. Full breakdown in Surfer vs Frase.

Clearscope: for teams that grade many writers

Essentials at $129 with unlimited users. Expensive for one person, competitive for a team of several, because per-seat tools multiply. See Clearscope alternatives.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you sign up through one and later make an eligible purchase, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

If you used Frase to feed a blog

Many Frase subscriptions exist so a small team can publish regularly without a full-time writer. In that setup the brief is an intermediate step you would skip if you could.

GrowGanic skips it: it researches keywords for your niche, writes and scores the article, and publishes to your CMS on a schedule: $99 a month for up to 30 articles, about $3.30 each at full volume. You give up the brief as a hand-off to a human writer, which is exactly the point if you do not have one. Try it on one article free, no card (affiliate link).

Who should stay on Frase

Human writers work from your briefs and the brief quality is what you are buying.
You plan content from scratch rather than optimising what exists.
You are on a legacy plan that has not been migrated yet: check what your renewal will actually be before switching.

The verdict, by situation

Recommended Frase alternative by situation
If you are…	Pick	Monthly
Mostly using the AI writer	Koala AI	$25
Mostly doing keyword research	KeySearch + Keywords Everywhere	~$31
Optimising drafts rather than briefing	Surfer Discovery	$59
A team grading several writers	Clearscope	$129
Feeding a blog with no writer	GrowGanic, free tier first	$0 → $99
Briefing human writers	Frase, unchanged	$49

Frequently asked questions

What is the cheapest alternative to Frase?

For AI writing, Koala AI from $25 a month. For the research side, KeySearch at $24 a month or Keywords Everywhere at $84 a year cover keyword data. Frase's own cheapest plan is now Starter at $49 a month, or $39 billed annually.

Does Frase still have a $15 plan?

No. The 2026 restructure replaced Solo ($15), Basic ($45) and Team ($115) with Starter at $49, Professional at $129 and Scale at $299 a month. Reviews quoting $15 describe a plan that no longer exists.

Is Surfer or Frase better?

Frase is stronger at SERP research and briefs; Surfer at optimising a finished draft. Frase starts slightly cheaper, at $49 against $59 for Surfer Discovery. Writers who plan from scratch tend to prefer Frase; teams refreshing existing content tend to prefer Surfer.

Is there a free alternative to Frase?

Frase offers a 7-day trial with no card. For ongoing free use, Google Search Console shows the questions your pages already rank for, and GrowGanic's free tier researches, writes and gives you one article.