Every SEO tool claims to be "AI-powered" now. Most of them just slapped a chatbot on top of the same keyword database you've been using since 2019.
So which tools actually use AI to make keyword research faster — and which ones are just marketing the buzzword?
I tested five tools head-to-head on the same task: find 20 blog topics for a mid-size B2B SaaS company entering a new market. Here's what happened.
The tools I compared
- Jello SEO — conversational AI that runs keyword research, competitor analysis, and backlink tools through chat
- Ahrefs — the industry standard for keyword and backlink data
- Semrush — the all-in-one platform with the biggest feature set
- Ubersuggest — Neil Patel's budget-friendly option
- Surfer SEO — content optimization tool with keyword research features
I evaluated each on three things: speed to actionable output, quality of suggestions, and how much manual work I still had to do afterward.
Speed: How fast can you go from zero to a keyword list?
Jello SEO: ~3 minutes. I typed "Find me blog opportunities in the project management space for a B2B SaaS company. Prioritize low difficulty, buyer-intent keywords." It came back with 20+ keyword clusters, grouped by intent, with volume and difficulty scores. No clicking through menus. No exporting CSVs.
Semrush: ~15 minutes. Keyword Magic Tool is powerful, but you're filtering through thousands of results manually. The AI features (Keyword Strategy Builder) help with clustering, but it still requires navigating multiple screens and setting up filters.
Ahrefs: ~12 minutes. Keywords Explorer gives you great data fast. The filtering is intuitive. But you're still doing the strategic thinking yourself — which keywords to group, which to prioritize, what the content angle should be.
Ubersuggest: ~10 minutes. Simple interface, fast results. But the data depth is noticeably thinner. Keyword difficulty scores feel optimistic compared to Ahrefs or Semrush.
Surfer SEO: ~20 minutes. Surfer is really a content optimization tool, not a keyword research tool. You can find keywords, but it's not the primary workflow. The SERP Analyzer is useful, but you need a keyword first.
Winner: Jello SEO. The conversational interface eliminates the "staring at a dashboard" phase. You describe what you need in plain English, and it does the filtering, clustering, and prioritization for you.
Quality: Are the suggestions actually good?
This is where things get interesting.
Ahrefs and Semrush have the deepest databases. Period. If you need exact search volumes, historical trends, and granular SERP data, they are hard to beat. Their data is the gold standard.
Jello SEO pulls from the same underlying data sources (DataForSEO) that power many enterprise SEO platforms. The difference is in how it presents that data. Instead of handing you a spreadsheet with 10,000 rows, it gives you a curated list with context: "This keyword has 2,400 monthly searches, KD 23, and the top results are thin content — you could rank with a comprehensive guide."
Ubersuggest has decent data for high-volume head terms but gets unreliable for long-tail and niche keywords. Fine for beginners, frustrating for anyone doing serious research.
Surfer SEO shines once you have a keyword and want to optimize content for it. The NLP analysis and content scoring are genuinely useful. But for discovery? It's not the right tool.
Winner: Tie between Ahrefs and Jello SEO. Ahrefs for raw data depth. Jello for turning that data into decisions without the manual work.
Manual work: What do you still have to do yourself?
This is the real test. Every tool gives you data. The question is: how much thinking do you still have to do before you can start writing?
Traditional tools (Ahrefs, Semrush, Ubersuggest): You get keywords. Then you manually cluster them by topic. Then you figure out search intent. Then you prioritize by difficulty vs. potential. Then you decide what content format makes sense. That's 1-2 hours of strategic work on top of the research itself.
Surfer SEO: You still need to find keywords elsewhere first. Surfer helps you optimize once you know what you're writing about.
Jello SEO: You describe your goal. It returns clustered keywords with intent labels, difficulty analysis, and content angle suggestions. You review and refine. The AI does the strategic layer that usually takes the most time.
Winner: Jello SEO. The whole point of AI in keyword research should be eliminating the busywork between "raw data" and "content plan." That's exactly what Jello does.
Pricing reality check
Let's be honest about what these tools cost:
- Semrush: $129.95/mo (Pro). Gets expensive fast if you need more projects or users.
- Ahrefs: $99/mo (Lite). Similar story — real usage often pushes you to higher tiers.
- Surfer SEO: $89/mo. Good value if content optimization is your primary need.
- Ubersuggest: $29/mo. The budget pick, but you get budget-level data.
- Jello SEO: $29/mo (Pro). Full access to keyword research, competitor analysis, backlink tools, and the conversational AI interface.
If you're already paying for Ahrefs or Semrush and using their full suite (rank tracking, site audits, link building), they're worth the investment. But if keyword research and content planning are your main use cases, you're overpaying significantly.
Who should use what?
Use Jello SEO if: You want to move fast, you're tired of dashboard fatigue, and you want AI that actually thinks — not just filters. Best for content marketers, small teams, and solo operators who need results without a learning curve.
Use Ahrefs if: You need the deepest backlink database, you run a large site with complex technical SEO needs, and you're comfortable doing the strategic analysis yourself.
Use Semrush if: You need an all-in-one platform for a large team. PPC, social, content, SEO — it does everything, and the AI features are getting better.
Use Ubersuggest if: You're just starting out and need something cheap to learn with. Graduate to something more robust once you're serious.
Use Surfer SEO if: Content optimization is your primary workflow. Pair it with another tool for keyword discovery.
The bottom line
The best keyword research tool is the one that gets you from "I need content ideas" to "I'm writing" the fastest. For most people, that means less time in dashboards and more time getting answers.
That's what we built Jello SEO to do. Not to replace Ahrefs or Semrush — they're excellent at what they do. But to give you a faster path from question to answer when you don't need to spend 30 minutes clicking through filters to find what you already know you're looking for.
Try it yourself
Ask Jello SEO to find keyword opportunities for your niche. Describe what you're looking for in plain English. See how fast you get from zero to a content plan.