Ahrefs
Connect Ahrefs to research backlinks, organic keywords, competitors, rank tracking, site audits, and domain ratings.
You paste a single Ahrefs API v3 key, created in Account settings under API keys. PopMCP sends it as an Authorization: Bearer header.
Paid plan required before this connector works
No human approval, but Ahrefs only lets workspace owners/admins on a paid Lite plan or higher mint an API v3 key - the free Webmaster Tools tier and the $29 Starter plan cannot use the API at all.
- Typical wait
- None - the key is issued instantly once you are on Lite or above
- Cost
- Plan prices on ahrefs.com/pricing: Lite $129/mo, Standard $249/mo, Advanced $449/mo (monthly billing; paying annually saves up to 17%), Enterprise $1,499/mo on an annual commitment. API units are included per plan - Lite 100,000, Standard 400,000, Advanced 1,000,000, Enterprise 2,000,000 per month - with pay-as-you-go top-ups on eligible plans.
- Blocked until approved
- Every billable endpoint (Site Explorer, Keywords Explorer, backlinks, batch analysis) on the free Ahrefs Webmaster Tools tier and on the $29 Starter plan - Ahrefs states API v3 is available to "Lite and higher subscription plans", so below Lite there is no key to create. Row caps also bind by tier: 100 rows/request on Lite, rising through Standard and Advanced to uncapped on Enterprise.
- Works meanwhile
- On any paid plan you can create the key and run the free test queries, plus Rank Tracker, Management and Public endpoints, which cost no units.
Where to apply: No application. Subscribe to a paid plan, then Account settings > API keys > create key (owner or admin only).
- Only workspace owners and admins see the API keys screen; ordinary seats cannot create a key and will assume the feature is missing.
- Minimum 50 units per billable request, so chatty single-row polling burns an allowance far faster than the headline unit count suggests.
- Lite's 100-row-per-request cap makes large backlink or keyword pulls impractical even though the endpoint is technically available.
- Purchased add-on units expire after three billing months.
- Setup time
- 4 min
- Auth
- API credentials
- API base URL
- https://api.ahrefs.com/v3
- Rate limits
- 60 requests per minute per key (HTTP 429 above that). Most endpoints also consume API units with a 50-unit minimum per request.
Before you begin
- An Ahrefs subscription on an eligible paid plan. Other plans get only a limited set of free test queries
- Workspace owner or admin role. Only those roles can create and manage API keys
- API calls burn API units from the workspace balance, so agree a budget before pointing an AI agent at it
Get your credentials
Open Account settings and click API keys
Sign in to Ahrefs, click your avatar in the top right and choose Account settings. Click API keys in the settings sidebar.
API keys
Keys authenticate requests to the Ahrefs API v3 and spend this workspace's API units.
| Name | Key | Created by | Expires | Units limit | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reporting sheetCreated Mar 4, 2026 | 01ab****7f92 | Sam Okafor | Mar 4, 2027 | 500,000 | Active |
| Legacy exportCreated Jan 9, 2025 | 9d4c****b118 | Priya Raman | Jan 9, 2026 | No limit | Expired |
If this item is missing you are not an owner or admin, or the workspace has no API access.
Create a key for PopMCP
Click Create API key and name it PopMCP. Set a Monthly API units limit if you want a cap on what the connection can spend.
API keys
A workspace can hold up to 1,000 keys. The unit cap can be changed later on this page.
Copy the key before you close the dialog
Ahrefs shows the full key once. Click Copy and store it somewhere safe.
API keys
- Name
- PopMCP
- Expires
- Aug 30, 2027
- Units limit
- No limit
Lose it and you have to delete the key and create another.
Paste the key into PopMCP
Put the value in API key and connect.
Connect in PopMCP
Open your workspace, choose Ahrefs in the marketplace, and fill in the connect dialog:
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| API keysecret | In Ahrefs: click your avatar (top right) → Account settings → API keys → create a key (workspace owners/admins only; requires an Enterprise plan with API access). Copy it and paste here. Keys last 1 year. Stored encrypted.Encrypted with AES-256-GCM on save and never shown again. |
PopMCP verifies the credential against Ahrefs immediately. On success the connection flips to Verified and its MCP tools are provisioned.
Verify it worked
PopMCP shows Ahrefs as Connected and a domain-rating or backlinks lookup returns metrics rather than an authorization error.
Troubleshooting
401 Unauthorized
Why: Each key lasts one year from creation. The key may have expired, been deleted, or been killed because the person who created it left the workspace.
Fix: Create a fresh key in Account settings, API keys, and reconnect PopMCP with it. Set a reminder roughly 11 months out.
403, or no API keys item in the sidebar
Why: You are a member rather than an owner or admin, or the plan is not one of the eligible paid plans.
Fix: Ask a workspace owner to create the key, or move the workspace to an eligible plan.
429 Too Many Requests
Why: More than 60 requests in a minute from the same key.
Fix: Slow the agent down and retry with backoff. The window is a rolling minute.
Requests suddenly fail mid-month
Why: The key hit its monthly API-unit limit, or the workspace ran out of units.
Fix: Raise the per-key limit on the API keys page, or top up units under Limits & usage.