A cheaper alternative for startups and small businesses investing in AEO.
AI tools are changing how people find and interact with brands.
Platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Bing Copilot are now driving traffic — but most companies don’t know what’s behind it. Profound is one of the top tools built to solve this problem.
It helps brands see how often they appear in AI answers, what questions drive traffic, and how they are shown across different models.
The challenge? Profound starts at $99 per month, making it hard for smaller companies to afford.
That’s where Airefs comes in.
It’s a leaner, cheaper alternative that focuses on the essentials: tracking AI traffic, showing how your brand appears, and helping you grow that presence.
It doesn’t have every advanced feature yet, but it’s fast-growing and very hands‑on with customers.
What Profound offers
Profound delivers a wide set of tools, including:
Tracking brand mentions across major AI platforms.
Showing what prompts lead users to your site.
Analyzing which sources are cited when your brand appears.
Content optimization & creation for better visibility in AI answers.
Enterprise support for large teams and multi‑region needs.
It’s a strong package, but often too big (and too expensive) for smaller teams.
Where Airefs fits
Airefs focuses on the core needs that most businesses care about:
Brand Visibility over time: Check how your brand shows up in AI answers.
Prompt Tracking: See what users are asking that leads them to you.
Backlink Guidance: Spot which sites are cited often and worth targeting.
Content Advice: Get tips on how to structure pages and what to create to show up in the right conversations.
It has a free plan and its paid plan is only $50/month, to track up to 250 prompts.
The team is small, but that means faster updates, quick replies, and even free bespoke help for early users.
Feature comparison
Feature | Profound | Airefs |
|---|---|---|
Brand Visibility Across LLMs | ✅ AI crawler tracking across key LLMs | ✅ AI crawler tracking across key LLMs |
Prompt Tracking | ✅ ALL key LLMs, multi-region, multi-language breakdowns | 🟡 ChatGPT first, multi-region - other LLMs as options |
Citation Analysis | ✅ Detailed reports of all sources cited | ✅ Detailed reports of all sources cited |
Competitor Benchmarking | ✅ Compare brand visibility against competitors | ✅ Compare brand visibility against competitors |
Recommendations | ✅ Automated content optimisation & creation | ✅ Manual recommendations from the Airefs team |
Alerts & Monitoring | ✅ Automated, real-time alerts | 🟡 Weekly/Monthly alerts |
Pricing | ❌ Expensive (starts at $99/month) | ✅ Cheap (starts at $0/month) |
Support | 🟡 Enterprise experience | ✅ Fast and from founders directly |
When to choose Profound vs Airefs
Situation | Profound | Airefs |
|---|---|---|
Large enterprise, global scope | ✅ Best choice | ❌ Too small |
Growing business or agency | ❌ Too much too soon | ✅ Great fit |
Need deep features + full support | ✅ Covers it all | ❌ Not yet |
Need basics: prompts, visibility, content help | ❌ More than needed | ✅ Enough |
Final thoughts
Profound is a powerful tool, but the price makes it best for enterprises.
If you’re smaller, or just starting to track AI visibility, Airefs is a smart, affordable option. It helps you:
Understand what prompts drive traffic.
See how your brand appears across LLMs.
Improve your content and backlinks.
Stay visible in the AI‑driven search world.
If you want to get ahead without overspending, Airefs gives you the tools to start now — with a team that’s ready to help you grow.