Independent head-to-head
Clearscope vs Frase
Both are on our shortlist, and most people only need one. Here is where each genuinely wins.
Which fits your work better: Clearscope or Frase?
Clearscope suits established content and agency teams who need a defensible, consistent scoring methodology across many writers. Frase suits small teams and solo operators who want briefing, drafting and optimisation in one subscription at the lowest entry price of the three. Frase is cheaper to start with ($49/month against $129/month), so price alone favours it.
Clearscope
Content Optimization ToolsPriced for agencies, calibrated for accuracy over speed.
Frase
Content Optimization ToolsThe cheapest seat at the content-optimisation table, AI drafting included.
Decision view
Compare what changes the answer
| Decision factor | Clearscope$129/mo | Frase$49/mo |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $129/mo | $49/mo |
| Free plan | No | No |
| Free trial | 14 days | 7 days |
| Best for | Established content and agency teams who need a defensible, consistent scoring methodology across many writers. | Small teams and solo operators who want briefing, drafting and optimisation in one subscription at the lowest entry price of the three. |
| Not for | Solo bloggers or small budgets — it's priced well above Surfer and Frase for a comparable core job. | Teams who need Clearscope's grading consistency across a large writer roster, or Surfer's deeper keyword and clustering tooling. |
Shared answers are dimmed so trade-offs stay visible.
Plan comparison
Published plans as recorded on each vendor’s pricing page on its verification date. Limits and add-ons differ between vendors, so compare at your own volume.
Clearscope
| Plan | Monthly | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Essentials | $129 | 50 tracked prompts, 50 pages, 20 topic explorations/month |
| Business | $399 | 300 tracked prompts, 300 pages, dedicated account manager |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom credits, SSO and crawler whitelisting — contact sales |
Frase
| Plan | Monthly | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | $49 | 1 seat, 10 articles/month, 50 audit pages/month |
| Professional | $129 | 3 seats, 40 articles/month, content calendar and internal linking |
| Scale | $299 | 5 seats, up to 10 domains, client-ready reports |
Where Clearscope wins
- Scoring methodology has stayed more stable release to release than competitors'
- Google Docs integration means writers rarely leave their normal workflow
- Content inventory view is genuinely useful for auditing an existing site, not just new drafts
Where Frase wins
- Cheapest entry point of the three mainstream optimisation tools
- Content Guard's AI-drop monitoring is a genuinely distinct feature, not a rebrand of grading
- Article and audit-page allowances are generous relative to price at the Professional tier
Clearscope or Frase?
Clearscope suits established content and agency teams who need a defensible, consistent scoring methodology across many writers. Frase suits small teams and solo operators who want briefing, drafting and optimisation in one subscription at the lowest entry price of the three. Frase is cheaper to start with ($49/month against $129/month), so price alone favours it.
Established content and agency teams who need a defensible, consistent scoring methodology across many writers.
Small teams and solo operators who want briefing, drafting and optimisation in one subscription at the lowest entry price of the three.
What decides it
- Entry price
- Clearscope starts at $129/month; Frase at $49/month. Compare the plan that matches your real usage, not the entry tier.
- Trial
- Clearscope offers a 14-day trial; Frase offers a 7-day trial.
- What each gives up
- Clearscope: meaningfully more expensive than Surfer or Frase for a similar core job. Frase: grading and recommendations feel less rigorous than Clearscope's.