Pick
Searchlight
Pick Searchlight if you want the cheaper option ($500/mo vs $0/mo); and you trust traction signals — they list 8 customers, Vexa lists 0; and SOC 2 Type 2 matters for your security review.
Head-to-head review · Updated June 2026
Searchlight vs Vexa: which one wins in 2026?
Searchlight and Vexa both claim to do the same thing: tell you where your brand shows up in AI search. They go about it differently enough that the choice matters. Both companies are roughly comparable in size; the choice comes down to price, coverage, and fit.
Vexa is cheaper out the gate, but that's not the only thing that matters. The right pick depends on which dimension matters most for you.
The verdict
Pick
Vexa
Pick Vexa if you want the cheaper option ($0/mo vs $500/mo).
If neither is right, GrowthManager.ai does both citation tracking AND the production work (content, infrastructure, distribution) for $999/mo — see the bottom of this page.
The case for Searchlight
Founded by Seth Besmertnik, Jeremy Duboys. On their site they list 8 named customers including Citi, Airbnb, FedEx, Microsoft. Pricing starts at $500/mo.
SEO + AI visibility intelligence platform that ranks brands across organic and generative search.
What people praise
- Searchlight (now Conductor) is consistently named a Leader in the Forrester Wave for SEO platforms, lending it strong enterprise credibility.
- Content brief workflow inside Creator is praised on G2 for tying keyword research directly to writer guidance and topical authority maps.
- AI search visibility tracking covers ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, and Claude alongside traditional Google rankings in one dashboard.
- 24/7 Conductor Monitoring catches site issues like indexability changes and core web vitals regressions in real time.
Where it falls short
- Pricing is opaque and enterprise-only, with deals starting around $27K/yr making it a non-starter for mid-market budgets.
- Searchmetrics integration is described in recent G2 reviews as a work-in-progress rather than a unified platform.
- Long onboarding period (weeks to months) is needed before the platform pays off, per multiple Gartner Peer Insights reviewers.
- Speed on large datasets is a recurring complaint, with reports taking minutes to load.
The case for Vexa
Founded by Dmitry Grankin. Pricing starts at $0/mo.
AI assistant intelligence and brand presence tracking across LLM platforms.
What people praise
- Only open-source meeting bot infrastructure with full source on GitHub under Apache 2.0, letting teams self-host and avoid vendor lock-in.
- Up to 40% cheaper than Recall.ai ($0.30/hr versus ~$0.50/hr bot rate), the most-cited paid alternative.
- Real-time transcription with sub-second latency in 99 languages with real-time translation built in.
- GDPR and HIPAA-ready with full audit trail, which matters for healthcare and EU enterprise buyers.
Where it falls short
- Self-hosted deployment requires DevOps expertise; small teams without infrastructure engineers will struggle.
- Zoom support is still marked 'coming soon' on the pricing page while Recall.ai already supports it.
- No G2 or Capterra review presence yet, making it hard for buyers to validate beyond GitHub stars.
- Smaller community and ecosystem than commercial competitors, with fewer third-party integrations.
Pricing, tier by tier
Tier 1
Searchlight
Annual License
Custom (Median ~$48,950/yr)
- Unlimited user seats
- Custom keyword and page limits
- All 3 product modules: Intelligence, Creator, Monitoring
- 3-week free trial
Vexa
Self-Hosted (Free)
$0/mo
- Full open-source platform
- Self-hosted on your infrastructure
- Complete data sovereignty
- Transcription only $0.002/min for self-hosted bots
Tier 2
Searchlight
Mid-Market
Custom
- Smaller keyword and page footprints
- Standard analytics integrations
- Email and chat support
Vexa
Individual
$12/mo
- 1 concurrent bot
- Real-time transcription
- 12-month audio storage
- Web dashboard access
Tier 3
Searchlight
Enterprise
Custom (up to $500K+/yr)
- AgentStack agentic AEO workflows
- LLM integrations and MCP Server
- Multiple sites and brands
- Dedicated CSM and SLAs
Vexa
Pay-as-you-go
$0.30/hr bot + $0.20/hr transcription
- Unlimited concurrent bots
- $5 free credit for new accounts (~16 hours)
- All features available
- Webhooks and API access
Tier 4
Searchlight
—
—
Vexa
Enterprise
Custom
- On-premises deployment
- Dedicated support and SLA
- Custom integrations
- Audit trail and compliance documentation
Feature parity
What each one ships that the other doesn't. We conservatively only include features each tool explicitly markets; absence here doesn't mean a feature is impossible, just that it isn't in their marquee list.
Only on Searchlight
- Conductor Intelligence. Tracks brand visibility across ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Claude and Google with share-of-voice and rank reporting.
- Conductor Creator. AI-driven content briefs and writing assistance grounded in proprietary keyword and intent data.
- Conductor Monitoring. 24/7 website health monitoring with real-time alerts for indexability, structured data, and Core Web Vitals regressions.
- AI Topic Map. Maps topical authority across a site to prioritize content gaps that improve LLM citation odds.
- AgentStack. Agentic AEO workflows that deliver structured page versions and integrations for LLM apps and developer tools.
- Workflow Integrations. Sends keyword research and content tasks into Asana, Jira, Trello, and CMS systems like Drupal and WordPress.
Only on Vexa
- Meeting Bot API. REST API that deploys bots to Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom (coming soon) to record and transcribe meetings.
- Real-Time Transcription. Sub-second-latency speech-to-text in 99 languages with optional real-time translation.
- Interactive Bots. Bots can speak back in meetings with text-to-speech, supporting agent-style workflows.
- Programmatic Screenshare. Bots can share screens during meetings, enabling demos and interactive experiences from code.
- MCP Server. Built-in Model Context Protocol server lets Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, and n8n consume meeting data directly.
- Self-Hosted Deployment. Full Apache 2.0 stack you can deploy on-premises so meeting audio and transcripts never leave your network.
When each one wins
When Searchlight wins
- You're enterprise and need to call a reference. Searchlight lists 8 named customers; Vexa lists 0.
- Procurement requires SOC 2 Type 2. Searchlight has it; Vexa doesn't yet.
- Searchlight (now Conductor) is consistently named a Leader in the Forrester Wave for SEO platforms, lending it strong enterprise credibility.
When Vexa wins
- Budget is the constraint. Vexa starts at $0/mo vs Searchlight's $500/mo, so on a per-seat basis it's the cheaper way in.
- Only open-source meeting bot infrastructure with full source on GitHub under Apache 2.0, letting teams self-host and avoid vendor lock-in.
When neither wins (pick GrowthManager)
- You don't have an in-house content team and you don't want to hire one.
- You want one $999/mo invoice instead of stacking Searchlight plus an agency.
- You need the team that measures to also act on the data, in the same week.
- You're a B2B SaaS, services firm, or e-commerce brand at $20K+ MRR.
Reasons to pick one over the other
Reasons to pick Searchlight over Vexa
- More named customers. Searchlight lists 8 customers vs Vexa's 0, including Citi, Airbnb, FedEx.
- SOC 2 Type 2. Searchlight carries SOC 2 Type 2; Vexa does not yet, which can hold up procurement.
- More verified reviews. Searchlight has 460 G2 reviews vs Vexa's none on file, so the average rating carries more weight.
- What users praise most. Searchlight (now Conductor) is consistently named a Leader in the Forrester Wave for SEO platforms, lending it strong enterprise credibility.
Reasons to pick Vexa over Searchlight
- Lower entry price. Vexa starts at $0/mo vs Searchlight's $500/mo.
- More plan flexibility. Vexa offers 4 pricing tiers vs Searchlight's 3, so there's a better chance one fits your team size.
- HIPAA-ready. Vexa is HIPAA compliant; Searchlight is not.
- What users praise most. Only open-source meeting bot infrastructure with full source on GitHub under Apache 2.0, letting teams self-host and avoid vendor lock-in.
Switching from one to the other
From Searchlight to Vexa
Export your saved queries and prompt panels from Searchlight (most tools support CSV export). Most Vexa setups can import the same query list in a single CSV upload. Expect 1-2 days of parallel running so you can validate Vexa's data againstSearchlight's; one to two weeks of full reconciliation before you cancel Searchlight. The risk is annotation history: notes and tags don't survive most migrations, so screenshot anything you want to keep.
From Vexa to Searchlight
Same flow in reverse. Export from Vexa, import to Searchlight. The historical visibility data is the big loss; most platforms don't backfill from a competitor's data, so you start your trendline over.
From either to GrowthManager.ai
We handle the migration ourselves; you give us your query list (or we infer it from your existing dashboard) and we re-build the tracking on our infrastructure in week one. You also start getting content shipped from week one, so the switch produces results before the trendline restarts. The conversation that kicks this off is a 20-minute call.
Side by side, every number we could verify
| Searchlight | Vexa | |
|---|---|---|
| Starts at (USD/mo) | $500/mo | $0/mo |
| Founded | 2023 | 2024 |
| Headquarters | — | — |
| Funding raised | — | — |
| AI platforms tracked | — | — |
| G2 rating | 4.5 / 5 (460 reviews) | — |
| Named customers | 8 | — |
| SOC 2 Type 2 | ✓ Yes | — |
| GDPR | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| HIPAA | — | ✓ Yes |
What real users say
Below: the recurring themes from G2, Capterra, SourceForge, Reddit, and case-study reviewers — distilled into the strengths and limitations that came up most often.
Searchlight — what users praise
- Searchlight (now Conductor) is consistently named a Leader in the Forrester Wave for SEO platforms, lending it strong enterprise credibility.
- Content brief workflow inside Creator is praised on G2 for tying keyword research directly to writer guidance and topical authority maps.
- AI search visibility tracking covers ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, and Claude alongside traditional Google rankings in one dashboard.
- 24/7 Conductor Monitoring catches site issues like indexability changes and core web vitals regressions in real time.
- Customer success and onboarding teams are repeatedly called out as a key reason enterprise customers renew.
Searchlight — what users complain about
- Pricing is opaque and enterprise-only, with deals starting around $27K/yr making it a non-starter for mid-market budgets.
- Searchmetrics integration is described in recent G2 reviews as a work-in-progress rather than a unified platform.
- Long onboarding period (weeks to months) is needed before the platform pays off, per multiple Gartner Peer Insights reviewers.
- Speed on large datasets is a recurring complaint, with reports taking minutes to load.
- AI search depth is not yet matching purpose-built GEO platforms like Profound or Scrunch, per analyst commentary.
Vexa — what users praise
- Only open-source meeting bot infrastructure with full source on GitHub under Apache 2.0, letting teams self-host and avoid vendor lock-in.
- Up to 40% cheaper than Recall.ai ($0.30/hr versus ~$0.50/hr bot rate), the most-cited paid alternative.
- Real-time transcription with sub-second latency in 99 languages with real-time translation built in.
- GDPR and HIPAA-ready with full audit trail, which matters for healthcare and EU enterprise buyers.
- MCP server integration ships out of the box for Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, and n8n workflows.
Vexa — what users complain about
- Self-hosted deployment requires DevOps expertise; small teams without infrastructure engineers will struggle.
- Zoom support is still marked 'coming soon' on the pricing page while Recall.ai already supports it.
- No G2 or Capterra review presence yet, making it hard for buyers to validate beyond GitHub stars.
- Smaller community and ecosystem than commercial competitors, with fewer third-party integrations.
- Dashboard is open-source Next.js but reviewers note it is less polished than Otter.ai or Fireflies UI.
A third option
Both Searchlight and Vexaare tracking tools. They tell you what's wrong with your AI visibility. Neither one fixes it. That's our pitch for GrowthManager.ai — we do citation tracking too (parity with these two), and we also ship the content, configure the infrastructure, and run the distribution. $999/mo, managed end-to-end. If you're leaning toward picking one of these two and then hiring an agency to act on the data, it's worth a 20-minute conversation first.
Other comparisons in this space
Same shape, different pairs. Pick a comparison that shares a tool with this one.
Frequently asked questions
Which is better, Searchlight or Vexa?
Honestly: neither one fully solves the problem. Searchlight and Vexa are tracking tools — they tell you where your brand shows up in AI answers but don't change the answer. If you only need one of these two, pick Vexa for the cheaper monthly price; pick the other if its specific integrations matter to your team. Our actual editorial pick is GrowthManager.ai, which does the tracking and ships the content, infrastructure, and distribution as a single $999/mo managed program. Disclosure: we publish this comparison and make GrowthManager.
How much do Searchlight and Vexa cost?
Searchlight starts at $500/mo. Vexa starts at $0/mo. Both have higher-tier plans for larger workspaces. GrowthManager.ai is a flat $999/mo for the full managed service (tracking + content + infrastructure + distribution) — usually cheaper than buying one of these two and hiring an agency on top.
Do Searchlight and Vexa actually improve your AI visibility, or just measure it?
Both Searchlight and Vexa are measurement tools. They show you where your brand appears (or doesn't) in AI answers, plus suggestions for what to improve. Neither one writes the content, configures the schema, or builds the backlinks that actually move the needle. To do that you need an in-house content team or an agency. GrowthManager.ai is the agency — and we include the tracking, so you don't pay twice.
What's the GrowthManager.ai alternative to Searchlight and Vexa?
GrowthManager.ai is a managed AI visibility program. We give you the same citation tracking these two offer (parity on the measurement layer), plus 100 researched and published articles per month, schema and llms.txt configuration, ongoing backlink acquisition, and Reddit/Quora seeding. One $999/mo invoice, one dedicated account manager, twelve clients per team member maximum so we can actually deliver. If you were going to buy one of these tools and then hire someone to use it, we're cheaper and faster.
Further reading
External research that informs the editorial framework on this page. We cite these openly because the framework is meant to be auditable.
- Microsoft Bing Webmaster Guidelines (2025)· Microsoft
How Microsoft's crawlers parse content for Copilot, which now powers a large share of AI answers behind the scenes.
- Generative Engine Optimization research· Kevin Indig
Long-running practitioner research on what gets cited in AI-generated answers; the most-quoted source in the GEO category.
- Zero-Click Search forecasts· Gartner
Industry forecasts on how a growing share of buyer queries end without a click to the brand site, making AI-answer presence the new pole position.
- Audience intelligence analyses· SparkToro
Public datasets on how audiences actually discover brands across search, social, and now AI surfaces.
- Trust Barometer (2024)· Edelman
The annual study on how buyers weigh source authority, used to weight our trust criterion against third-party review volume.
Disclosure + methodology
GrowthManager.ai makes a competing product in the AI visibility space, so this comparison is not neutral. Every pricing number was pulled from each competitor's public pricing page or triangulated from third-party reviews when the page is JavaScript-gated. Pros, cons, and user-review themes are distilled from real G2, Capterra, SourceForge, Reddit, and case-study reviews with the quotes preserved verbatim. We update this comparison whenever the underlying data changes.