You have decided your organisation needs to know whether ChatGPT, Gemini and Google’s AI answers mention your brand. The next decision is what to pay for that knowledge, and the answer ranges from nothing to an enterprise contract you cannot price without a sales call.
This page sets out what the main AEO (answer engine optimisation) and AI visibility tools cost in late 2026, what the plan price actually buys, which add-ons change the bill, and what a realistic annual budget looks like for a Hong Kong enterprise. Prices below come from vendors’ own pricing pages as compiled by RankScope on 20 October 2026, converted at roughly HK$7.8 to the US dollar. RankScope is itself a vendor in this market, so confirm each figure on the vendor’s page before you sign.
How much does an AEO tool cost in 2026?
Self-serve AEO and AI visibility trackers cost from about US$29 to US$495 a month, roughly HK$230 to HK$3,860, in October 2026. Enterprise platforms such as Profound no longer publish brand pricing and are sold by quote. A one-off structural AEO audit, including UD’s AEO Auditor, can be free.
The market splits into three price bands, and most Hong Kong buyers only need one of them at a time.
--- Free audits: one-off scans of your site’s AI readability and a snapshot of brand mentions. Cost: HK$0.
--- Self-serve trackers: run your chosen prompts on AI engines daily and record whether you appear. Cost: about HK$230 to HK$3,900 a month.
--- Enterprise platforms: many engines, SSO, SOC 2, agency workspaces and analyst support. Cost: by quote.
What do AEO tools actually charge for?
AEO trackers charge for recorded AI answers: one prompt, run on one AI engine, on one day. Monthly volume is prompts multiplied by engines multiplied by days tracked. Two plans at the same price can differ tenfold in answers, so cost per 1,000 answers is a better comparison than the sticker price.
RankScope’s October 2026 comparison worked this through. Otterly.AI Lite at US$29 records about 1,800 answers a month, or about US$16 per 1,000. SE Visible Basic at US$99 records about 30,000, or about US$3.30 per 1,000. The cheaper plan is the more expensive way to buy answers.
--- Prompts: the questions you track, such as “best cybersecurity provider in Hong Kong”.
--- Engines: ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Google AI Mode, Perplexity, Gemini, Copilot, Claude.
--- Frequency: daily on most plans; weekly tracking cuts volume and cost.
What does each major AEO tool cost?
Entry prices in October 2026 were Otterly.AI US$29, HubSpot AEO US$50, Peec AI US$95, Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit US$99 and SE Visible US$99 a month. Profound offers a seven-day trial for brands, then enterprise pricing by quote. Higher tiers run to about US$495 a month before add-ons.
Published monthly list prices (USD, approximate HKD)
--- Otterly.AI: Lite US$29 (HK$226, 15 prompts); Standard US$189 (HK$1,474, 100 prompts); Premium US$489 (HK$3,814, 400 prompts).
--- HubSpot AEO: US$50 (HK$390), or US$45 billed annually; 25 prompts on ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity; 28-day trial.
--- Peec AI: Starter US$95 (HK$741, 50 prompts); Pro US$245 (HK$1,911, 150 prompts); Advanced US$495 (HK$3,861, 350 prompts); any three engines.
--- Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit: US$99 (HK$772) per domain with 25 tracked prompts.
--- SE Visible: Basic US$99 (HK$772, about 30,000 answers); Core US$189; Plus US$355.
--- Profound: no self-serve brand plan; 7-day trial, then Enterprise by quote. Agencies pay US$399 per client workspace.
Semrush’s own knowledge base lists extra domains at US$99 each a month, which matters for groups with several brands.
Which add-ons and engine limits change the real bill?
The real bill changes most when the engines your buyers use are add-ons or enterprise-only. Otterly sells Google AI Mode, Gemini and Claude separately, Peec reserves Perplexity for Enterprise, and HubSpot AEO does not track Google AI Overviews. Check engine coverage before comparing prices.
RankScope’s figures show how quickly add-ons move the number. Adding Google AI Mode to Otterly Standard costs US$59 a month, taking it from US$189 to US$248. Adding Claude to Otterly Premium costs US$439 a month.
--- Otterly.AI: AI Mode, Gemini and Claude are paid add-ons.
--- Peec AI: Perplexity and Claude require an Enterprise contract.
--- HubSpot AEO: no Google AI Overviews or AI Mode tracking.
--- Semrush: extra prompts at US$60 for 50; extra domains at US$99 each.
--- Billing: Otterly and Peec offer about 15% off for annual billing.
What does a realistic annual AEO budget look like for a Hong Kong enterprise?
A single-brand Hong Kong enterprise tracking about 100 prompts on four engines should budget roughly HK$9,000 to HK$23,000 a year for software. A group with three brands on Semrush pays about HK$28,000. Enterprise platforms with SSO and many engines are quoted individually and usually cost far more.
Example 1: one brand, 100 to 200 prompts, four engines
SE Visible Basic at US$99 a month is about HK$9,300 a year. Otterly Standard with the AI Mode add-on at US$248 a month is about HK$23,200 a year for 100 prompts.
Example 2: a group with three brands on Semrush
Three domains at US$99 each is US$297 a month, about HK$27,800 a year, with 25 prompts per domain before extra prompt packs.
Example 3: a regulated enterprise needing SSO and SOC 2
Profound Enterprise covers all major engines with enterprise controls, but pricing is not published. Budget for a sales-led contract and allow procurement time.
Software is often the smaller line. The larger cost is the content and technical work needed to fix what the tracker reveals, whether done in-house or by an agency.
Do you need a paid tracker or a free AEO audit first?
Most enterprises should run a free structural audit first, then buy a tracker. An audit explains why AI engines cannot read or cite your site; a tracker shows whether that changes over time. Buying a tracker before fixing structure means paying monthly to watch a problem you have not addressed.
The UD AEO Auditor is the free starting point UD offers. Its published terms are specific:
--- Price: free, with no credit card and no account required.
--- Speed: under 30 seconds for most sites, up to 60 seconds for complex ones.
--- Scope: 170+ AEO structure checks, plus a scan of brand visibility on ChatGPT, Google AI Overview, Perplexity, Claude and Gemini.
--- Report: four modules: overall score, AI copy signals, 11 numeric structure checks and a prioritised action plan.
--- Re-scan: UD recommends monthly re-scans; structural fixes are typically re-crawled within 2 to 4 weeks.
UD compared the two approaches in more depth in free AEO audit versus paid visibility trackers.
What are the limitations of free AEO audits, including UD’s?
Free AEO audits, including UD’s AEO Auditor, give a point-in-time diagnosis rather than daily tracking of hundreds of custom prompts. They do not replace a paid tracker for trend reporting, share-of-voice against named competitors over months, or enterprise features such as SSO and audit logs.
Being clear about this matters, because a buyer who expects daily share-of-voice charts from a free scan will be disappointed.
--- Where paid trackers win: daily history, custom prompt libraries, competitor trend lines, exports to Looker Studio, multi-user access.
--- Where Profound wins: nine engines, SSO, SOC 2 and analyst support for global brands.
--- Where a free audit wins: zero cost, no procurement, and a fix list your web team can act on this week.
If you have already outgrown entry-level tools, UD’s guide to Profound alternatives for Hong Kong enterprises compares the enterprise options.
What should Hong Kong buyers check before signing an AEO contract?
Before signing, Hong Kong buyers should confirm the tool tracks Traditional Chinese prompts, covers the engines local customers use, lets you edit prompts during the trial, states where data is stored, and shows monthly versus annual pricing clearly. Most global AEO tools were not built with Hong Kong buyers in mind.
--- Language: test Traditional Chinese and mixed-language prompts, not only English.
--- Competitors: load your real Hong Kong competitors, not the tool’s default set.
--- Trial quality: Profound’s trial uses a recommended prompt set you cannot customise, so treat it as a demo.
--- Data handling: ask where prompts and results are stored and who can access them.
--- Commitment: some plans are annual-only; check the cancellation terms.
AEO tool pricing: key facts (October 2026)
--- Cheapest self-serve tracker: Otterly.AI Lite, US$29 a month (about HK$226), 15 prompts.
--- Lowest cost per answer: SE Visible, about US$2.37 to US$3.30 per 1,000 AI answers.
--- Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit: US$99 per domain per month, 25 prompts.
--- Profound: no self-serve brand plan; 7-day trial, then Enterprise by quote.
--- UD AEO Auditor: free, no card, no account, 170+ structure checks, results in under 30 seconds.
--- Typical single-brand budget: about HK$9,000 to HK$23,000 a year for tracking software.
What is the right next step for your AEO budget?
Start with a free audit, fix the structural issues it finds, write your real prompt list, and only then price the exact tracker setup your buyers’ engines require. That sequence keeps the software bill small and makes the paid tool measure progress rather than a known problem.
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Run the free scan to see your score and action plan in under 30 seconds. If you want help turning the results into a fix list and a tracking budget, we'll walk you through every step, from audit and content fixes to choosing the right tracker.
Reviewed by the UD enterprise AI team. Prices verified against vendor pricing pages as compiled on 20 October 2026; confirm before purchase.