Open SEO

OpenSEO is an open-source alternative to Semrush and Ahrefs, built for developers and teams who want SEO tooling without a monthly subscription lock-in. It's aimed at people who find commercial SEO suites too expensive or too bloated, and who'd rather bring their own DataForSEO API key and pay only for the data they pull. It also targets developers using AI agents (Claude Code, OpenClaw, Hermes) who want those agents to run SEO workflows directly against real data through an MCP server.

Key features

• MCP server: exposes SEO data to AI agents so they can run keyword research, audits, and other tasks directly.
• Agent Skills: pre-built, reusable workflows that guide an agent through common SEO tasks using the MCP; you can also build your own.
• Pay-as-you-go pricing: no subscription. You supply a DataForSEO API key and pay DataForSEO directly for usage.
• Core SEO workflows: keyword research, rank tracking, competitor insights, backlink analysis, site audits, and AI visibility tracking.
• Simple UI: focused, single-purpose workflows instead of one dense all-in-one dashboard.
• Self-hostable: run it via Docker for local testing, or deploy to Cloudflare for internet-facing, multi-device or team use.
• Forkable: MIT licensed, so you can modify it and build your own custom SEO tool on top of it.

Ideal use cases

OpenSEO fits developers, indie hackers, and small teams doing SEO work who want to control costs and avoid vendor lock-in on a $100+/month SEO suite. It's a good fit if you already have (or are willing to get) a DataForSEO API key and want a lightweight UI plus programmatic/agent access to that data.

It's also a strong choice if you're building AI-agent-driven SEO workflows: connecting Claude Code, OpenClaw, or Hermes to run keyword research or audits without manually pulling reports.

It's not a fit if you need a fully managed, zero-setup SaaS with a flat monthly price and no API key management, since self-hosting requires setting up Docker or Cloudflare and provisioning your own DataForSEO key. It's also not ideal if you want an exhaustive, mature feature set matching everything in Semrush or Ahrefs; OpenSEO focuses on a smaller set of core workflows rather than a comprehensive suite. If you don't want to touch infrastructure at all, the hosted version at openseo.so (free tier, or $10/month to support the project) is the simpler path.

Installation

You need a DataForSEO API key regardless of hosting choice; see the project's docs/DATAFORSEO_API_KEY.md for how to get one.

Try it hosted (no setup): Go to openseo.so and use it for free, or subscribe for $10/month to support the project.

Self-host with Docker (for local/personal testing):

# Clone the repo
git clone https://github.com/every-app/open-seo.git
cd open-seo

# Follow the Docker guide for env vars and startup
# See docs/SELF_HOSTING_DOCKER.md

Self-host with Cloudflare (recommended for internet-facing or team use, works on free plan):

Follow the steps in docs/SELF_HOSTING_CLOUDFLARE.md in the repo.

Set up the MCP server and Agent Skills:

• Set up OpenSEO MCP
• Set up OpenSEO Agent Skills

Local development:

See docs/LOCAL_DEVELOPMENT.md in the repo for running the codebase locally to contribute or customize it.

Contributing:

The project encourages contributing through clear issue descriptions. There's a skill to help write them:

npx skills add every-app/open-seo --skill simple-issue-description