Best backlink analysis tool, according to ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity
We asked four major AI models a single buyer-style question and recorded what they named. This page shows the verbatim brand short lists each model returned, plus where the models agreed and what they cited.
ChatGPT
Gemini
ClaudeBrowse all 6 backlink analysis tools in the directory
Every tool in this category, each with its own AI-visibility footprint.
The question we asked
“What's the best backlink checker for link building and analysis?”
At a glance
Distinct brands named
10
Across 4 of 4 models
Cited by all four models
2
True cross-model consensus
Named by only one model
6
60% of recommendations are model-specific
Total citations
43
Source URLs returned by all models combined
Brand by model coverage
Every brand named by at least one model, with the position each model gave it. First-place positions matter most: they carry disproportionate weight in how readers remember and quote AI recommendations.
| Brand | ChatGPT | Gemini | Claude | Perplexity | Models |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ahrefs | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4/4 |
| SEMrush | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4/4 |
| Majestic | 3 | 5 | 4 | · | 3/4 |
| SE Ranking | · | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3/4 |
| Moz (Link Explorer) | 4 | · | · | · | 1/4 |
| Moz Pro | · | 4 | · | · | 1/4 |
| Neil Patel | · | · | · | 4 | 1/4 |
| Google Search Console | 5 | · | · | · | 1/4 |
| Moz | · | · | 5 | · | 1/4 |
| Seobility | · | · | · | 5 | 1/4 |
What each AI model named
ChatGPT
- 1Ahrefs
- 2SEMrush
- 3Majestic
- 4Moz (Link Explorer)
- 5Google Search Console
Ahrefs is my top pick for link building due to a very large, frequently refreshed index and integrated Site Explorer workflows. SEMrush follows for its massive raw backlink database and built-in Link Building tool. Majestic is the backlink specialist (Trust Flow/Citation Flow + deep historic index). Moz is easier for beginners with DA and Link Explorer, and Google Search Console provides free first‑party backlink data for your own sites.
Gemini
Semrush and Ahrefs offer the most comprehensive backlink analysis and link building features, with SE Ranking providing excellent value. Moz Pro is great for link quality assessment and a user-friendly experience, while Majestic specializes in deep link intelligence.
Claude
- 1Ahrefs
- 2Semrush
- 3SE Ranking
- 4Majestic
- 5Moz
<cite index="4-8">Ahrefs is considered the most accurate and comprehensive backlink data provider by 68.1% of survey respondents</cite> and offers <cite index="4-9">about 35 trillion external backlinks from 494 million domains</cite>. <cite index="1-56">Semrush claims 43 trillion backlinks in its database, compared to just over 30.3 trillion on Ahrefs</cite>. <cite index="1-36,1-39">SE Ranking is a complete SEO toolkit with one of the largest backlink indexes, sometimes finding more referring domains than other tools</cite>. <cite index="1-43,1-44">Majestic is one of the few dedicated backlink checkers with two significant link indexes and proprietary metrics</cite>. All three offer free trials or limited versions.
Perplexity
- 1Ahrefs
- 2Semrush
- 3SE Ranking
- 4Neil Patel
- 5Seobility
Ahrefs is recommended first due to its world-leading backlink index of over 15 billion active links and second-most active web crawler. Semrush follows for its comprehensive competitor analysis and paid full version. SE Ranking, Neil Patel, and Seobility offer solid free alternatives for specific use cases like broken link building or domain-level metrics.
Where the models agreed
4 brands were named by more than one model. AI models diverge often; cross-model agreement is a stronger signal than a single mention.
| Brand | Models that named it | Best position |
|---|---|---|
| Ahrefs | ChatGPT (#1), Gemini (#2), Claude (#1), Perplexity (#1) | #1 |
| SEMrush | ChatGPT (#2), Gemini (#1), Claude (#2), Perplexity (#2) | #1 |
| Majestic | ChatGPT (#3), Gemini (#5), Claude (#4) | #3 |
| SE Ranking | Gemini (#3), Claude (#3), Perplexity (#3) | #3 |
What this snapshot suggests
For the question "What's the best backlink checker for link building and analysis?", the 4 models reporting collectively named 11 distinct brands on July 9, 2026.
Each model led with a different recommendation in many cases. ChatGPT opened with Ahrefs. Gemini opened with Semrush. Claude opened with Ahrefs. Perplexity opened with Ahrefs. The brand a model names first carries disproportionate weight, because first-place recommendations are the most likely to be remembered by readers and quoted by downstream AI agents.
Treat this as a snapshot, not a definitive ranking. AI Overview content changes 70 percent of the time for the same query, and SparkToro found less than a 1-in-100 chance that two identical queries return the same brand list. The pattern across many runs is more informative than any single result. That is why Honeyb runs measurements daily, across a full prompt set rather than a single question, for the brands we monitor.
If your brand appears here, the recommendation work is paying off. If it does not, the gap is measurable and improvable. The pillars of getting recommended by AI are documented in our guide to generative engine optimization.
Source domains AI cited
Most-cited domains across the four models. Stacked segments show which engine drove each citation. Perplexity and Claude expose citations consistently; ChatGPT and Gemini do so inconsistently, so absence does not mean a model used no source.
Full citation list
- https://ahrefs.com/site-explorer
- https://www.semrush.com/kb/997-semrush-data
- https://majestic.com/
- https://moz.com/link-explorer
- https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/9049606?hl=en
- https://backlynk.io/blog/backlink-checker-tools/
- https://www.searchscientists.com/the-ultimate-guide-to-the-best-backlink-checkers-in-2026/
- https://marketerschoice.com/ahrefs-review-2026/
- https://raptorkit.com/ahrefs-vs-majestic-seo/
- https://rankcrown.com/resources/best-backlink-checker-tools
- https://backlinksandseo.com/ahrefs-review-2026/
- https://chatseo.app/blog/ahrefs-vs-majestic
- https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQENGxUPfzEOGWafbWiYiM9aUbtv1x_QNeaCK4z3-uP7GBUB4VRI6l0f624Iy1KcL8Q8oS2HYf0tuedmEPiKW1JI8YQBWa4HyXUJWaKwb0APZIWOXRWEq1RATza5bl8tGqK8jInmTjH9gJK3B0s2
- https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQEClwIXoRZETJ0BRBqm4FrUrWHXXVG5PDGIslPEzfNl_8LoHa3IO9ulh81LhRsAZxBgopOfz_xrOdt7EzhnDS39r8tlbzTO_Xzt1bkD8pRH3LiAKMQXD-0IQSYo3AQUtUWudBB8gTeP0K2uKc1S
- https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQEQLV-QhXF0QUlETquf3z8KFaIzlUP2CWXwwgrX0UORxBITN0ZXfL6u7ugf-Qq4aYkUWeYhMEZ1Eig0sLV2wU6agtY0bXvQ0Hx6v9oH7JcCB6I9bXxA3boAgZQRf-Wa9XyvhJSc3JHzBi0kPpJ7oGxQJeuTE6Uj-jnOxjrNaljh7EPMrmt8Pnv5rmw=
- https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQHf6a256TuVfdVBuV2VvWHAlDGN-jO8BmBz6mkS_Y6lF7gF0Ac90cYqfWGSYVGpjR4j9w_h4TVn13phRJH5fAXbuHARKSinSIHuoQUqJdccJpCtOmsu0cUMF2oaM7uHjJnNxZPdyQTar0zU6g==
- https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQFTJSzbJewAKq8nsx7IyuWmSPRE9qm2Rf-wTC5WlYwvl5RllJG1KGryPwGM4vCzu3Hk4mpU-Iz0FR_wGwXlHIGSWkYEn3b1ITOwzr7gikwjCNOCtfl49dZupRL1spYp2jlZvWisdvaT5a-LfLK4YVc=
- https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQHFKXGylnYIsVzHzviyZdv6kJ2JlFA281IqAFkERjUgScFkRTS0JBjq2dEx4-n3JFMf8-L7n2gP4_oDmFVXPqnT5PY2d64CXLH_TrPSRG_MRnFyk2cvl7g0Nd8_F1TixSiBkSFXQwyu
- https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQEgi5-GLaJSis3jzu61P_HN4INcn7e2D7-K9jb9TfvE4qRmjZ_pU_7_R4mR6_Y7Wh3vuqOvAWM7O2jEXIqGqqne_PR374BxnwxQW2VlbFXxdvWJ6d2pYlUjUOr0VmGaTxEqX4J-1qG7pUGm8U_smw4p_bTI0jnLBotpOwQLSJlcoQiQOzWksOSXnA==
- https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQEymhQniJl6M3DJwORYhAHN3_KWhR_YbrRabB5eHdT_UQwskWitquDc1sgGf9sMCcO2AJNmZIj_7kMPdnBruzojdPUXWkKbOTmwqlNzlCAqMsv-XICemkHoK6IuN0qmOHbl5N4AEDpPmX1Ha3iOmU31I8b_K1Tgw1GiX3yE1yh1ND2nyy56
- https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQFFrpzT97Uq0qW2jqwputNVgz_ZKDjd6vzZUWXHfCbf3VW5Qsq4DeW6R1fLmR9qkNk58WYkvwsiIlQlxxKgTThTxSNP5v_LFibBnzRCXqv7DQQlMhZqCz1mOC0eN_74qSkG9AZQw7T_lkpO2kcHeQ==
- https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQGEZRXV92FvnFhkoxNwzxypZr7GPfh_Kgt0KoRhbb0BUHvaNNmiyoGoVpkKQ91afcpd7hfwwkYnaPFCG5iuNiDwp-8LUDEqjfbWQpi2uubS_7_r4UMEij6i2406awF9EyfDyoOvYw==
- https://vertexaisearch.cloud.google.com/grounding-api-redirect/AUZIYQFXahGzp4d0fvimki77GWvJRceDWp8V7QCI7GIYwZBei3Fcja5tRucRZDNIIYaVqeXftsifrc0uRSID9yMHn1YdGa4tXUbUNlVFtrAlkuPcYlYxPVSD-XSu3cd9abo=
- https://searchendurance.com/backlink-checker-tools/
- https://orangemonke.com/blogs/backlink-checker-tools/
- https://scale-xpert.com/best-backlink-checker-tools-for-seo-in-2026/
- https://editorial.link/backlink-checker-tools/
- https://clickdo.io/seo-tools-to-check-backlinks/
- https://www.uprankly.com/blog/backlink-monitoring-tools
- https://www.therankmasters.com/insights/seo-tools/best-backlink-monitoring-tools
- https://www.clickdo.io/seo-tools-to-check-backlinks/
- https://neilpatel.com/blog/backlink-analysis-tools/
- https://www.seoreviewtools.com/valuable-backlinks-checker/
- https://ahrefs.com/es/backlink-checker
- https://es.semrush.com/analytics/backlinks/
- https://seranking.com/es/backlink-checker.html
- https://neilpatel.com/es/backlinks/
- https://www.seobility.net/es/backlinkchecker/
- https://www.redactorfreelance.com/herramientas-comprobar-backlinks/
- https://www.reddit.com/r/growmybusiness/comments/1pjw3jd/recs_for_the_best_backlink_checker_for_a_small/
- https://agenciaseo.eu/enlaces-calidad/
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeNRMTed7-A
- https://www.seoptimer.com/es/blog/mejores-sitios-para-backlinks/
Free to start
See your brand through every major AI model.
Run a free check in 30 seconds. The picture is usually different than you'd expect.
ChatGPTClaudeGeminiFull Spectrum and Enterprise plans include a monthly 30-min strategy call.