Keyword Insights alternative: a map from a topic, not a cluster from a list
We make Topical Map AI, so read this as one vendor's comparison. Every Keyword Insights figure below comes from its pricing page, read on 4 November 2026. Prices change, so check theirs before you buy.
The two tools start from opposite ends. Keyword Insights starts from a keyword list you already have, usually exported from Ahrefs or Semrush, and clusters it by checking which keywords share search results. It is good at that, and it is the tool most often named for clustering in the roundups we have read. Topical Map AI starts from a topic or a site with no list at all, and an SEO map lists hundreds of keywords already grouped into pillars and clusters. Search volume and difficulty from DataForSEO are shown wherever Google reports a number, and marked where it does not.
So the question is whether you have the keyword list already.
What the two cost
| Keyword Insights | Topical Map AI | |
|---|---|---|
| Free option | None. Trial is $1 for 7 days with 5,000 one time credits, clustering up to 500 keywords | No free plan |
| Entry plan | Basic, $58 a month, 10,000 credits, 1 seat, 5 workspaces | Basic, $56 a month, up to 25 maps a month, a standard map uses one credit |
| What a credit buys | 1 credit per keyword clustered; 100 per content brief; 200 per writing assistant article; 1,200 per AI written article | One credit is one standard map |
| Next tier | Professional, $99 a month, 20,000 credits, 3 seats | Pro $104, Enterprise $179, Agency $374 a month |
| One off purchase | Pay as you go after the trial (rates not shown on the pricing page) | Single map, $39, never expires |
| Keyword data | You bring it, from your own keyword tool export | DataForSEO volume and difficulty on the map where Google reports it |
| Exports | Inside the platform; briefs and articles on credits | CSV and Excel on every plan; PDF on paid plans; white label PDF on Agency |
Where Keyword Insights is the better choice
If you already have a keyword list of thousands of terms and need it sorted into pages, that is what Keyword Insights was built for, and its clustering runs on live search results. If you want briefs and AI written articles on the same credits, it has those. If you need three seats, Professional includes them.
Where Topical Map AI is the better choice
If you do not have the list. Keyword Insights assumes you have already done the research in another paid tool. Topical Map AI does the research and the grouping in one step, from a topic, so you do not need an Ahrefs or Semrush subscription to get a usable map.
If you want the map as the deliverable, not the process. A finished SEO map, exported to CSV or Excel, is what an agency hands a client or a writer. Keyword Insights produces clusters you then turn into a plan.
If you want one map without a subscription. $39, once, and it is yours.
The short version
Do you have a keyword list you need clustered? Keyword Insights. Do you have a topic and need the whole map? Topical Map AI.
Try it on your own topic
A single map is $39, no subscription: topicalmap.ai/upgrade.
Comparing more tools? See topical map tools compared or the Floyi alternative.
Keyword Insights prices and plan details from keywordinsights.ai/pricing, 4 November 2026. Topical Map AI prices from topicalmap.ai/upgrade, same date.