mttr and Surfer
Surfer helps you write: briefs, an editor that scores a draft against the pages that rank, and AI Tracker for how assistants mention a brand. mttr reads the pages once they are live, the way search engines and AI assistants do. Write in Surfer; check in mttr.
Keep Surfer. Add mttr on top.
mttr is not a replacement for Surfer. It is a free layer that reads your pages the way search engines and AI assistants do.
What Surfer is best at
- Content EditorA draft scored as you write against the terms, headings and length of the pages that rank.
- Briefs and topical mapsWhat to write next, and how to cover a subject.
- AI TrackerPrompts tracked across ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and others, and the sources they cite.
What mttr adds on top
- Pages read as an AI crawler gets themThe words in the HTML before any script, whether robots.txt and the firewall let GPTBot, ClaudeBot and PerplexityBot in, and one address for each page.
- Structured data that fits the pageWhether each block of JSON-LD parses and whether its type fits what the page is, with a free creator that writes it.
- Signs of generated textHidden characters, chat and markdown left in, placeholders never filled and stock phrasing, page by page.
- Fixes ranked by what they are worthEach failing rule weighed by its stage and by how many pages miss it, so the first fix is the one that moves the most.
Which tool for which job
Both means each does a part of it.
| Job | Use | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Plan and brief new content | Surfer | Briefs and topical maps. |
| Score a draft before it is published | Surfer | Content Editor, against the pages that rank. |
| Track how AI answers mention a brand | Surfer | mttr does not track mentions or citations. |
| Check a published page can be read by AI crawlers | mttr | The words must be in the HTML before any script, and the crawlers let in. |
| Check the structured data fits the page | mttr | Each block of JSON-LD must parse and match what the page is. |
| Find signs of generated text | mttr | Hidden characters, chat left in, placeholders and stock phrasing. |
| Judge the writing | Both | Surfer scores a draft against what ranks; mttr reads a live page for an answer up front. |
Surfer and mttr together
A way of working that plays to each.
- 01Surfer
Write it in Surfer
Brief, draft and score the page against what ranks.
- 02mttr
Check it live in mttr
Once it is published, read the site: is the text in the HTML, does its structured data fit, is anything left in that reads as generated.
Read a site - 03Surfer
Watch the prompts
Surfer’s AI Tracker shows over time whether assistants start citing the page.
Free checks to run beside Surfer
Each reads one page or one domain, with no sign-up.
- What an agent readsA page beside the Markdown an assistant gets from it, and what gets in the way.
- Schema creatorJSON-LD from a short form, with the fields Google requires marked.
- Heading checkerThe h1 to h6 outline a crawler reads, and what is wrong with it.
- OG image checkerHow a link looks when it is shared, and what its share tags lack.
Feature by feature
| What | mttr | Surfer |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Making each page readable, believable and actionable for search engines and AI assistants, and handing the fixes to your agent. | Briefs and an editor that scores a draft against the pages that rank, with AI Tracker for how AI answers mention a brand. |
| Reads and audits a site | Yes, the first 100 pages of any public site, on mttr’s servers, with nothing to install. | Partly: it audits a page against the pages that rank for its search. |
| What AI crawlers get | Yes: the words in the HTML before any script, whether robots.txt and the firewall let AI crawlers in, and one address for each page. | Not a stated feature. |
| Judges the writing | Yes: a reasoning model reads for what a rule cannot count, such as whether a page answers before it explains. A model only advises; code decides. | Yes: a draft scored against the pages that rank. |
| MCP server | Yes, 62 tools, with a key an email gets. | Yes, official. |
| Fixes handed to an agent | Yes: the fixes worth the most in your agent’s words, and each fix read again on the live site once it ships. | Its MCP drafts and tunes articles inside an assistant. |
| Links from other sites | No. mttr keeps no index of links from other sites. | No. |
| Keywords and rankings | No. | Keyword research for content. |
| Mentions in AI answers | Not built yet. | Yes, AI Tracker, across ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and others. |
| To start | Free. Reading a site needs no sign-up. | Paid plans. |
What this page says of Surfer comes from its own pages and reviews of it, as of October 2026. Its plans change; surferseo.com has the current ones.
Questions
Is mttr a Surfer alternative?
No. Surfer helps you write and scores drafts against pages that rank. mttr reads published pages the way search engines and AI assistants do and ranks the fixes, free.
Can I use mttr with Surfer?
Yes. Write and score a page in Surfer, publish it, then read the site in mttr to check what crawlers and assistants get from it.
Does mttr flag text written by AI?
It flags signs, not authorship: hidden characters, chat and markdown left in, placeholders never filled, stock phrasing and heavy dashes. A sign is a reason to read the page again, not proof.
Is mttr free?
Yes. Reading any public site is free, with no sign-up: the first 100 pages, a score, its place and the fixes worth the most. An email gets a key, and the key connects your agent.
mttr with other tools
mttr sits on top of each, on the same terms.
Read your site
Free, about a minute. Its score, its place, and the fixes worth the most.