What Is Profound?
Profound tracks how brands show up in AI answers. It watches ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Gemini and other AI search tools, and reports whether your brand gets mentioned and how it gets described.
That is a different job than classic SEO software. Traditional tools track blue-link rankings. Profound tracks something newer: whether an AI assistant name-checks your brand when someone asks a related question, and what tone it uses when it does.
The company launched in 2024. Sequoia Capital led its $35 million Series B round in 2025. Ramp, U.S. Bank, Indeed, MongoDB, Docusign and Chime are named customers, which is a strong enterprise roster for a two-year-old startup.
Confusion about what Profound does is common. Even on forums like Reddit, people who found the funding news before the product page have asked what it actually tracks. Below is a plain breakdown of the features, the price, and who it fits.
Key Features
Profound is built around five named modules, not one dashboard.
- Prompt Volumes shows what people ask AI tools related to your category, so you can see demand before deciding what to target.
- Answer Engine Insights monitors how AI models describe your brand and your competitors across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Claude.
- Agents are automation workers for specific marketing tasks. One generates AEO-optimized FAQ content for landing pages.
- Agent Analytics shows how AI crawlers read and interpret your site, useful for figuring out why a page isn't getting picked up in AI answers.
- Aim flags the highest-impact tasks each week. Think of it as a prioritization layer sitting on top of the other four modules.
Platform coverage depends on your plan. Trial tracks three engines: ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews. Enterprise tracks up to nine engines: ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Gemini, Google AI Mode, Microsoft Copilot, Exa Search, DeepSeek and Google AI Overviews. A brand just testing AI visibility does not need the same tier as one trying to cover every major AI assistant at once.
Profound Pricing
Profound has two tiers. Trial is free for 7 days and covers three answer engines: ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews. It runs 50 prompts daily, includes limited AI Marketer credits and allows unlimited seats. Enterprise is custom-priced, tracks up to nine answer engines with tailored prompt tracking, and adds unlimited seats, SSO/SAML, SOC2 compliance and a dedicated support contact with a 24-hour SLA.
| Plan | Price | Answer engines tracked | Seats | Free trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trial | Free for 7 days | 3 (ChatGPT, Gemini, Google AI Overviews) | Unlimited | Yes, this is the trial |
| Enterprise | Custom | 9 | Unlimited | No (sales-assisted) |
Trial
The free trial lasts 7 days and tracks three engines: ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews, with 50 prompts run daily and limited AI Marketer credits. It's a solid way to see whether AI visibility tracking is useful before committing to anything, though it isn't built for ongoing monitoring.
Enterprise
Enterprise is Profound's only paid tier, and it's the default recommendation for teams treating AI search as a real channel. Tracking up to nine engines with tailored prompt tracking gives a much wider view than the trial, though pricing requires a sales call rather than a listed rate.
Trial Limits
The trial's biggest constraint is scope, not price. Three engines, a daily prompt cap and limited AI Marketer credits are enough to sample the product, not to run ongoing AI visibility monitoring. Teams that need continuous tracking across more engines or compliance certifications will need to move to Enterprise once the trial ends.
Who Should Use Profound (and Who Should Skip It)
Who Should Use Profound
Scaling tech companies and enterprise marketing teams fit best here, especially ones that already treat organic search as a serious channel. Teams that need to report AI visibility alongside SEO metrics to leadership will find the Answer Engine Insights and Agent Analytics modules built for exactly that.
Who Should Skip It
Solo operators and small budgets should look elsewhere first. The free trial only lasts 7 days, and the only paid tier is Enterprise, which requires a sales call and custom pricing. That is a real jump for a team still deciding whether AI visibility deserves its own budget line.
Profound Alternatives
Profound is not the only AI visibility tracker, and it is not the cheapest one either. If the pricing or platform coverage above does not fit, compare these first.
| Tool | Starting price | LLMs covered | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profound | Free trial, then custom Enterprise pricing | 3 on Trial, 9 on Enterprise | Scaling tech companies |
| Semrush | $99/month | 7+: ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Grok, Perplexity, DeepSeek, Google AI Overviews | Enterprise, existing Semrush users |
| Scrunch AI | $300/month | ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, Google AI Mode, AI Overviews, Meta | Content-led teams |
| Otterly.ai | $29/month | ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, MS Copilot | Small teams, budget-conscious |
| AthenaHQ | Free / $295/month | Up to 11 AI models on paid tiers | SEO agencies, unlimited seats |
Semrush covers more platforms by default and has a straightforward monthly price, unlike Profound's custom Enterprise plan, which makes it the obvious pick if you already run Semrush for SEO. Otterly.ai wins on budget if you do not need the Agents automation layer. See our 10 Best AI Visibility Tools comparison for the full ten-tool breakdown.
Founders and Funding
James Cadwallader and Dylan Babbs founded Profound. The company has raised $58.5 million to date, including the $35 million Series B that Sequoia Capital led in 2025 with Kleiner Perkins, Khosla Ventures, Saga VC and South Park Commons also participating. G2 named Profound a Leader in its inaugural Answer Engine Optimization category in the Winter 2026 report, and the platform now carries more than 140 verified customer reviews.
That funding and recognition is a fair trust signal for a young vendor, useful if you need to justify a new tool internally. It does not tell you whether the product fits your specific use case. The pricing and fit sections above answer that question better.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does Profound cost?
Profound offers a free 7 day trial that tracks three answer engines: ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews. Its only paid tier, Enterprise, is custom priced and covers up to nine answer engines.
Does Profound have a free trial?
Yes. Profound's free trial runs 7 days, tracks 50 prompts daily and covers three answer engines (ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews). Enterprise does not offer a self-serve trial and requires a sales call.
What AI platforms does Profound track?
Depends on your plan. The free trial covers three engines: ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews. Enterprise covers up to nine, including ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Gemini, Google AI Mode, Microsoft Copilot, Exa Search, DeepSeek and Google AI Overviews.
Who is behind Profound?
James Cadwallader and Dylan Babbs founded Profound in 2024. It has raised $58.5 million to date, including a Sequoia Capital-led Series B in 2025.
Is Profound worth it for small teams?
Usually not as a paid tool. The free trial only covers three engines for 7 days, and the only paid tier, Enterprise, requires a sales call with custom pricing. Otterly.ai is a cheaper starting point with transparent monthly pricing if budget is the main constraint.
