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Side-by-side comparison · SEO & Analytics

Frase vs Microsoft Clarity

Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.

Frase

4.0

From $49/mo

Best overall

Microsoft Clarity

4.3

Free to start

Comparing 2 tools. Add one more if you like.

At a glance

Pick it if: Small marketing teams, freelancers and agencies who write SEO content and want research, briefs and drafts in one place.

Best overallBest valueEasiest to use

Pick it if: Store owners and marketers who want to know why visitors aren't converting, without paying for it.

Overview

AttributeFraseMicrosoft Clarity
In one lineResearches, briefs and drafts SEO articles, and tracks if AI search cites you.Free heatmaps and session replays that show where visitors get stuck.
Pricing modelPaidFree
Starting price$49/moFree
Free plan No Yes
Works with Claude Code Yes Yes

Rating breakdown

Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.

AttributeFraseMicrosoft Clarity
Overall rating4.04.3Winner
Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it.
4.0
4.5
FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together.
4.5
4.0
Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them.
3.5
4.0
Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan.
4.0
5.0
Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over.
4.0
4.0

Feature comparison

A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.

AttributeFraseMicrosoft Clarity
Access & platform
Free plan No Yes
Mobile app––
Desktop app– No
Browser extension– No
API access Yes Yes
Teams & business
Team workspace Yes Yes
Enterprise plan or SSO Yes No
Connects to other apps Yes Yes
Open source or self-hosted No No
AI abilities
Works with your files– No
Understands images– No
Makes images No No
Makes video No No
Writes code No No
Runs agents or automations Yes–
Learns your brand or style Yes No
Works in many languages Yes Yes
Capabilities score7/ 175/ 17

Pricing

Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.

AttributeFraseMicrosoft Clarity
Plans

Starter

$49/mo, or $39/mo billed yearly

One person writing a few articles a month.

FreeOur pick

Free

Every website and online store.

ProfessionalOur pick

$129/mo, or $103/mo billed yearly

Small teams publishing weekly.

Scale

$299/mo, or $239/mo billed yearly

Agencies running several sites.

Enterprise

Custom

Large teams needing white-label and SSO.

Which plan to pickProfessional is the plan most teams settle on, because Starter's 10 articles a month runs out quickly. Try the 7-day trial on two or three real articles before paying.There's one plan and it's free. Microsoft says it's free forever with no traffic limits. Install the tag through Shopify, WordPress or Google Tag Manager and it starts recording within minutes.

Key features

AttributeFraseMicrosoft Clarity
Standout features
  • SERP research and briefs
  • AI drafting in your voice
  • Content scoring
  • Content Guard
  • AI visibility tracking
  • API, MCP and CLI
  • Session recordings
  • Heatmaps
  • Copilot
  • Smart events and funnels
  • AI visibility
  • MCP server

Pros and cons

AttributeFraseMicrosoft Clarity
Pros
  • Fast, thorough content briefs
  • Cheaper than Clearscope and Surfer at the entry level
  • Covers Google and AI search in one tool
  • API, MCP and CLI on every plan
  • Completely free with no traffic or team limits
  • Session replays and heatmaps that match the paid tools
  • Copilot turns piles of recordings into plain findings
  • Easy installs for Shopify, WordPress and Tag Manager
  • MCP server for Claude
Cons
  • AI drafts need editing to sound human and be accurate
  • Starter limits are tight
  • Rebuilt in 2026, so the newer features have little track record
  • Past complaints about slow replies on billing issues
  • Your visitor data goes to Microsoft, which some businesses won't accept
  • Recordings keep for 30 days, so you can't go back far
  • The interface is rougher than Hotjar and filters take some learning
  • Can slow a page slightly if it's already heavy with scripts

Who each one is for

AttributeFraseMicrosoft Clarity
Best for
  • Building SEO content briefs fast
  • Drafting articles from a brief
  • Answering the questions searchers ask
  • Tracking citations in AI search
  • Finding checkout drop-offs
  • Watching real user sessions
  • Scroll and click heatmaps
  • Spotting broken buttons
You'll find it used by
  • Content marketers
  • SEO freelancers
  • Agencies
  • Small business owners
  • B2B software teams
  • Store owners
  • Marketers
  • Product teams
  • Agencies

Questions people ask

Which is better, Frase or Microsoft Clarity?

Microsoft Clarity scores highest overall in our ratings (Frase 4.0/5 and Microsoft Clarity 4.3/5). Frase is best for Building SEO content briefs fast and drafting articles from a brief. Microsoft Clarity is best for finding checkout drop-offs and watching real user sessions.

Which is cheaper, Frase or Microsoft Clarity?

Frase: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at $49/mo. Microsoft Clarity: It's free to use.

Which is easier to use, Frase or Microsoft Clarity?

Microsoft Clarity rates highest for ease of use in our scores. Store owners and marketers who want to know why visitors aren't converting, without paying for it.

How we compare

Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.

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