Ahrefs Automation
Run Ahrefs SEO analytics directly from Claude Code. Analyze backlink profiles, research keywords, track domain authority over time, audit organic keyword rankings, and batch-analyze multiple URLs without leaving your terminal.
Toolkit docs: [composio.dev/toolkits/ahrefs](https://composio.dev/toolkits/ahrefs)
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Setup
- Add the Composio MCP server to your configuration:
https://rube.app/mcp
- Connect your Ahrefs account when prompted. The agent will provide an authentication link.
- Most tools require a
target(domain or URL) and acountrycode (ISO 3166-1 alpha-2). Some also require adateinYYYY-MM-DDformat.
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Core Workflows
1. Site Explorer Metrics
Retrieve comprehensive SEO metrics for a domain including backlink counts, referring domains, organic keyword rankings, and traffic estimates.
Tool: AHREFS_RETRIEVE_SITE_EXPLORER_METRICS
Key parameters:
target(required) -- domain or URL to analyzedate(required) -- metrics date inYYYY-MM-DDformatcountry-- ISO country code (e.g.,us,gb,de)mode-- scope:exact,prefix,domain, orsubdomains(default)protocol--both,http, orhttpsvolume_mode--monthlyoraverage
Example prompt: *"Get Ahrefs site metrics for example.com as of today in the US"*
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2. Historical Metrics Tracking
Track how a domain's SEO metrics have changed over time for trend analysis and competitive benchmarking.
Tools: AHREFS_RETRIEVE_SITE_EXPLORER_METRICS_HISTORY, AHREFS_DOMAIN_RATING_HISTORY
For full metrics history:
target(required) -- domain to trackdate_from(required) -- start date inYYYY-MM-DDdate_to-- end datehistory_grouping--daily,weekly, ormonthly(default)select-- columns likedate,org_cost,org_traffic,paid_cost,paid_traffic
For Domain Rating (DR) history:
target(required),date_from(required),date_to,history_grouping
Example prompt: *"Show me the monthly Domain Rating history for example.com over the last year"*
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3. Backlink Analysis
Retrieve a comprehensive list of backlinks including source URLs, anchor text, link attributes, and referring domain metrics.
Tool: AHREFS_FETCH_ALL_BACKLINKS
Key parameters:
target(required) -- domain or URLselect(required) -- comma-separated columns (e.g.,url_from,url_to,anchor,domain_rating_source,first_seen_link)limit(default 1000) -- number of resultsaggregation--similar_links(default),1_per_domain, orallmode--exact,prefix,domain, orsubdomainshistory--live,since:YYYY-MM-DD, orall_timewhere-- rich filter expressions on columns likeis_dofollow,domain_rating_source,anchor
Example prompt: *"Get the top 100 dofollow backlinks to example.com with anchor text and referring DR"*
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4. Keyword Research
Get keyword overview metrics and discover matching keyword variations for content strategy.
Tools: AHREFS_EXPLORE_KEYWORDS_OVERVIEW, AHREFS_EXPLORE_MATCHING_TERMS_FOR_KEYWORDS
For keyword overview:
select(required) -- columns to return (volume, difficulty, CPC, etc.)country(required) -- ISO country codekeywords-- comma-separated keyword listwhere-- filter by volume, difficulty, intent, etc.
For matching terms:
select(required) andcountry(required)keywords-- comma-separated seed keywordsmatch_mode--terms(any order) orphrase(exact order)terms--allorquestions(question-format keywords only)
Example prompt: *"Find keyword variations for 'project management' in the US with volume and difficulty"*
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5. Organic Keywords Audit
See which keywords a domain ranks for in organic search, with position tracking and historical comparison.
Tool: AHREFS_RETRIEVE_ORGANIC_KEYWORDS
Key parameters:
target(required) -- domain or URLcountry(required) -- ISO country codedate(required) -- date inYYYY-MM-DDselect-- columns to return (keyword, position, volume, traffic, URL, etc.)date_compared-- compare against a previous datewhere-- rich filter expressions onkeyword,volume,best_position, intent flags, etc.limit(default 1000),order_by
Example prompt: *"Show all organic keywords where example.com ranks in the top 10 in the US"*
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6. Batch URL Analysis
Analyze up to 100 URLs or domains simultaneously to compare SEO metrics across competitors or site sections.
Tool: AHREFS_BATCH_URL_ANALYSIS
Key parameters:
targets(required) -- array of objects withurl,mode(exact/prefix/domain/subdomains), andprotocol(both/http/https)select(required) -- array of column identifierscountry-- ISO country codeoutput--jsonorphp
Example prompt: *"Compare SEO metrics for competitor1.com, competitor2.com, and competitor3.com"*
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Known Pitfalls
- Column selection is required: Most Ahrefs tools require a
selectparameter specifying which columns to return. Omitting it or using invalid column names will cause errors. Refer to each tool's response schema for valid identifiers. - Date format consistency: Dates must be in
YYYY-MM-DDformat. Some historical endpoints return data at the granularity set byhistory_grouping, not by exact date. - API unit costs vary: Different columns consume different unit amounts. Columns marked with "(5 units)" or "(10 units)" in the schema are more expensive. Monitor API usage when requesting expensive columns like
traffic,refdomains_source, ordifficulty. - Batch limit is 100 targets:
AHREFS_BATCH_URL_ANALYSISaccepts up to 100 targets per request. For larger analyses, split into multiple batches. - Filter expressions are complex: The
whereparameter uses Ahrefs' filter expression syntax, not standard SQL. Consult the column descriptions in each tool's schema for supported filter types and value formats. - Deprecated offset parameter: The
offsetparameter was deprecated on May 31, 2024. Use cursor-based pagination or adjustlimitinstead. - Mode affects scope significantly: Setting
modetosubdomains(the default) includes all subdomains, which can dramatically increase result counts compared todomainorexact.
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Quick Reference
| Tool Slug | Description | |---|---| | AHREFS_RETRIEVE_SITE_EXPLORER_METRICS | Current SEO metrics for a domain/URL | | AHREFS_RETRIEVE_SITE_EXPLORER_METRICS_HISTORY | Historical SEO metrics over time | | AHREFS_DOMAIN_RATING_HISTORY | Domain Rating (DR) history | | AHREFS_FETCH_ALL_BACKLINKS | Comprehensive backlink list with filtering | | AHREFS_FETCH_SITE_EXPLORER_REFERRING_DOMAINS | List of referring domains | | AHREFS_GET_SITE_EXPLORER_COUNTRY_METRICS | Country-level traffic breakdown | | AHREFS_BATCH_URL_ANALYSIS | Batch analysis of up to 100 URLs | | AHREFS_EXPLORE_KEYWORDS_OVERVIEW | Keyword metrics overview | | AHREFS_EXPLORE_MATCHING_TERMS_FOR_KEYWORDS | Matching keyword variations | | AHREFS_EXPLORE_KEYWORD_VOLUME_BY_COUNTRY | Keyword volume across countries | | AHREFS_RETRIEVE_ORGANIC_KEYWORDS | Organic keyword rankings for a domain | | AHREFS_RETRIEVE_SITE_EXPLORER_KEYWORDS_HISTORY | Historical keyword ranking data | | AHREFS_RETRIEVE_TOP_PAGES_FROM_SITE_EXPLORER | Top performing pages by SEO metrics | | AHREFS_GET_SERP_OVERVIEW | SERP overview for specific keywords |
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