# Otterly AI vs Profound

> Source: https://citedindex.com/compare/otterly-ai-vs-profound (structured, researched, re-verified)

Both tools measure the same thing — how often, and how favorably, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and other AI engines mention a brand — but they were built for buyers with very different budgets and team structures. Otterly AI leads with accessibility: a free trial requiring no credit card, then a $29/month Lite plan that already covers 4 engines by default (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, Microsoft Copilot), with Gemini, Claude and Google AI Mode available as paid add-ons on any tier. Its plan ladder scales on monitoring VOLUME rather than engine access: Lite tracks 15 prompts/month, Standard (from $189/mo) 100 prompts plus API and MCP access, Premium (from $489/mo) 400 prompts.

Profound, by contrast, has historically been the category's enterprise reference point — "one of the most-searched names in the space," per its own listing, and until 2026 sold sales-only. It now publishes two self-serve tiers, but they scale on ENGINE ACCESS, not just volume: Starter ($99/month, billed annually) tracks ChatGPT only, 50 prompts. Growth ($399/month, billed annually, with a "Try for free" trial) unlocks 3 engines — ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews — and 100 prompts. Real parity with Otterly's $29/mo default 4-engine coverage does not exist on Profound at any published price: Growth's 3 engines still omit Microsoft Copilot, and the fourth-engine gap plus deeper coverage (Claude, Gemini, Grok, Meta AI, DeepSeek, up to 9 engines total) requires a custom, sales-led Enterprise plan.

The budget-to-coverage math is the clearest way to see the gap: a team wanting Otterly's 4-engine Lite-tier baseline pays $29/month; the closest Profound gets on a published price is Growth's 3 engines for $399/month — over 13x the price for LESS engine breadth. What Profound's higher tiers add instead of raw engine count is depth: source-level citation analysis (which specific publications and pages the engines cite), AEO-focused content recommendations, multi-seat team access, and enterprise account features (SSO/SAML, SOC2, dedicated Slack support) that Otterly does not offer at any tier. Profound is also, by its own listing's framing, the most-searched brand in the category — a proxy for broader adoption among larger teams already budgeting for this depth.

Neither tool's API story favors Profound at the accessible end either: Otterly includes API and MCP access from its $189/mo Standard tier up; Profound gates API access entirely to the custom Enterprise plan, with no API on Starter or Growth at any price.

| Fact | Otterly AI | Profound |
| --- | --- | --- |
| What it is | Monitor how ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews and Copilot mention your brand. | Enterprise answer-engine insights: how AI models talk about your brand, at scale. |
| Pricing | $29 / month | $99 / month (billed annually) |
| API | Yes — Otterly AI offers an MCP API with dedicated API documentation, and lists 'API' as a trackable engine/data source. | — |
| Tags | Perplexity · Brand monitoring · Free trial · AI Overviews · Copilot · ChatGPT | Enterprise · Perplexity · Brand monitoring · Gemini · Free trial · Claude · ChatGPT |
| Full facts | https://citedindex.com/otterly-ai.md | https://citedindex.com/profound.md |

## Verdict

Want the cheapest credible way to start measuring AI visibility, with a free trial, and can live with add-on costs for engines beyond the 4-engine default → Otterly AI. Need source-level citation analysis, AEO content recommendations, or account-level features like SSO/SAML and dedicated support, and have budget for $399/mo or a custom Enterprise plan → Profound.

## FAQ

**What's the main difference between Otterly AI and Profound?**

Otterly AI is the accessible, self-serve option — $29/mo covers 4 default engines (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, Microsoft Copilot) with a free trial. Profound is the category's enterprise anchor: its cheapest tier (Starter, $99/mo) covers only ChatGPT, and matching Otterly's 4-engine default coverage isn't possible on any published Profound tier — Growth ($399/mo) covers 3 engines, still missing Copilot.

**Which is cheaper for the same engine coverage?**

Otterly AI, by a wide margin. Its $29/mo Lite tier covers 4 engines by default. Profound's closest published equivalent, Growth at $399/mo, covers only 3 engines and still omits Microsoft Copilot — over 13x the price for less coverage.

**Does either have a free trial?**

Yes, both. Otterly AI offers a free trial with no credit card required on any tier. Profound's Growth plan ($399/mo) carries a "Try for free" trial offer; its Starter and Enterprise tiers do not advertise one.

**Which has the API?**

Otterly AI includes API and MCP access from its $189/mo Standard tier upward. Profound gates API access entirely to its custom Enterprise plan — there is no API on Starter or Growth at any price.

**Which is better for enterprise-scale, multi-engine monitoring?**

Profound, once a buyer commits to its custom Enterprise tier (up to 9 engines, SSO/SAML, SOC2, dedicated Slack support, multiple companies tracked) — a level of account-management and coverage depth Otterly does not offer at any tier, though Enterprise pricing is sales-led and unpublished.