AI visibility tools for the Japanese market: 12 compared, six from Japan and six from overseas (2026)
About this article: Written by Synapse Arrows, which sells AI visibility work and whose own service, AI映え診断, is one of the twelve tools below. For that reason the selection criteria come first and every tool is described on the same items. Features and prices are taken from each vendor's own site as it stood on 5 November 2026, in the currency the vendor uses, and will change; check the vendor's page before deciding. Nothing here is a ranking.
An AI visibility tool shows how often, and how, generative AI such as ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google's AI Overviews mentions, cites or recommends a brand. For a company that sells in Japan, or is entering Japan, the question is narrower than "which tool is best": which tools put Japanese questions to the AIs and read Japanese sources, and which measure the English-language market. This article is the English version of our Japanese comparison, rewritten for that reader. Japanese tools are described in more depth because less has been written about them in English; the overseas tools are covered briefly.
- What these tools do (five things)
- Six criteria for choosing one, including "can it measure Japanese queries"
- Six Japanese tools in depth, six overseas tools in brief
- A comparison table and picks by purpose
1. What an AI visibility tool does
AI answers change from day to day. To avoid doing work and never finding out whether it changed anything, you need a tool that measures the current position and the change. The five things these tools do:
- Check whether the AIs mention or cite your brand, across several AIs.
- Show which keywords trigger Google AI Overviews and what they say.
- Compare your share of voice against competitors.
- Diagnose whether your own content is easy for AI to read and understand.
- Monitor third-party mentions (citations) over time.
2. How to choose
- Which AIs it covers: ChatGPT, Gemini, AI Overviews, Perplexity, Copilot.
- How it measures: is the method stated, and is web search on when the questions are asked?
- Which markets and languages: can it put Japanese questions to the AIs and read Japanese sources? Can it also measure English? This is the item most often overlooked by companies on either side of the border.
- Independence: is the measurement separate from whoever does the implementation, or can a third-party measurement be used alongside?
- Price and entry: free plan or trial, and whether you can start small.
- Operation: how often it updates and how a team uses it.
3. The six Japanese tools
1. AI映え診断 (Synapse Arrows), this site
Vendor: Synapse Arrows Pte. Ltd., Singapore, with a Tokyo base.
What it does: puts a fixed set of questions about a business to ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity with web search on, extracts the factual claims the AIs make about the business, and checks each claim against the official website. The free Light check needs no sign-up; a free detailed check (four AIs, three fixed questions, once) needs email confirmation. The questions are built per industry from our own measurement of where each AI reads in Japan, so the check also tells you whether your site is connected to the platforms the AIs rely on for your industry. Works in Japanese and English, for Japanese shops and companies and for overseas companies addressing Japan.
Pricing (JPY, excluding tax, per shop or company): Light check and detailed check free; fact-check report JPY 50,000 one-off; report plus one re-measurement after a month JPY 80,000 one-off; monthly monitoring JPY 30,000/month with a 6-month minimum (then month by month). Prices set 2026-10-28. Prices are in Japanese yen. For clients in Singapore we quote in SGD on request.
Markets: Japanese and English. Independence: the measurement runs on KanseiLINK, an instrument operated by the same group that has no sales function of its own; Synapse Arrows, which sells the service, also offers implementation, so it is a party to the result. We say so here rather than claim neutrality for ourselves.
2. MIERUCA GEO (ミエルカGEO), Faber Company
What it does: GEO and LLMO diagnosis and improvement. Visualises how your company and competitors are mentioned in AI search and which sources the AIs cite. Consulting can be combined with the tool, which suits a company that wants the vendor to act on the findings as well as report them.
Pricing: one site JPY 49,800/month; several sites from JPY 99,800/month; a separate set-up fee; an AI search share-measurement add-on from JPY 50,000/month (vendor site, 5 November 2026; the vendor notes prices may be revised).
Markets: English-language coverage: ask the vendor. Independence: the vendor's own tool, with the vendor also doing implementation.
3. AKARUMI, ipe
What it does: daily quantitative tracking of your brand's mention rate across the major AI models, together with AI crawler visits to your site. The crawler view is the distinctive part: it shows whether the AIs' bots are fetching your pages at all, which is the precondition for being cited.
Pricing: not published (enquire); 7-day free trial.
Markets: English-language coverage: ask the vendor. Independence: vendor's own tool.
4. Keywordmap, CINC
What it does: AI search analysis added to an established Japanese SEO analysis platform. Analyses the AIs' answers and the pages they cite alongside conventional keyword data, so a team that already runs Japanese SEO in Keywordmap can see AI citations in the same place.
Pricing: not published (enquire); 7-day free trial.
Markets: English-language coverage: ask the vendor. Independence: vendor's own tool.
5. DolphinX AIO, Media Reach (メディアリーチ)
What it does: visualises brand exposure and citations across several AIs. It publishes a full price list and states no set-up fee, which makes it easy to budget for from outside Japan.
Pricing: Light JPY 30,000, Pro JPY 50,000, Business JPY 100,000 per month, excluding tax, with discounts for six-month and annual contracts; no set-up fee; 14-day free trial (vendor site, 5 November 2026).
Markets: English-language coverage: ask the vendor. Independence: vendor's own tool.
6. Generative AI brand-mention checker (生成AIブランド言及チェッカー), Nyle (ナイル)
What it does: a quick check of whether the major generative AIs mention your brand. It is a simple checker rather than a monitoring platform, and a reasonable first step for a Japanese brand name before paying for anything.
Pricing: free (vendor site, 5 November 2026; confirm on the tool's own page).
Markets: English-language coverage: ask the vendor. Independence: a simple checker; not a third-party measurement service.
4. The six overseas tools, in brief
7. Profound
Analyses brand mentions, citation sources and prompt trends in ChatGPT and other AIs; enterprise-oriented. Main plans not published (Enterprise is custom, by demo); 7-day free trial. English-native. Vendor's own platform.
8. Peec AI
Continuous monitoring of brand exposure in AI answers and comparison with competitors. Starter US$95, Pro US$245, Advanced US$495 per month; Enterprise on request. English-native. Vendor's own platform.
9. Scrunch AI
AI search exposure analysis plus optimisation that makes a site easier for AI agents to understand and use (AXP). Starter US$300, Growth US$500 per month, about 17% off annually; Enterprise custom; 7-day free trial. English-native. Vendor's own platform.
10. Otterly.AI
Continuous measurement of brand mentions and cited URLs in AI search, at a comparatively low entry price. Lite US$29, Standard US$189, Premium US$489 per month, about 15% off annually; Enterprise custom. English-native. Vendor's own platform.
11. AthenaHQ
Exposure across several AI search engines with improvement suggestions (GEO analysis). Essential free (with US$25 credit), Starter US$295 per month, Enterprise custom. English-native. Vendor's own platform.
12. Ahrefs Brand Radar
Brand exposure and competitor position in AI search on top of the existing Ahrefs SEO platform. Requires a paid Ahrefs plan; add-on from US$50/month; AI visibility index from US$199/month (shown from Japan as JPY 30,600/month; varies by region and currency). English-native. Vendor's own tool.
All overseas pricing as stated on each vendor's site on 5 November 2026.
5. Comparison table
| Tool | Vendor | Main function | Pricing | Free plan | English-language market | Independent of implementation? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI映え診断 (this site) | Synapse Arrows | Recommendation and citation check with fact-checking | Free checks; report JPY 50,000; monitoring JPY 30,000/month | Yes | Yes | Measured on KanseiLINK; vendor also implements (disclosed) |
| MIERUCA GEO | Faber Company | GEO visualisation plus consulting | From JPY 49,800/month | Trial | Ask vendor | Vendor's own |
| AKARUMI | ipe | Daily mention rate and crawler visits | Not published | 7-day trial | Ask vendor | Vendor's own |
| Keywordmap | CINC | SEO plus AI search analysis | Not published | 7-day trial | Ask vendor | Vendor's own |
| DolphinX AIO | Media Reach | Multi-AI exposure visualisation | From JPY 30,000/month | 14-day trial | Ask vendor | Vendor's own |
| Brand-mention checker | Nyle | Mention check | Free | Yes | Ask vendor | Simple checker |
| Profound | Profound | Mentions, sources, prompts | Not published (Enterprise) | 7-day trial | Yes | Vendor's own |
| Peec AI | Peec | Brand comparison monitoring | From US$95/month | No | Yes | Vendor's own |
| Scrunch AI | Scrunch | Exposure analysis plus AXP | From US$300/month | 7-day trial | Yes | Vendor's own |
| Otterly.AI | Otterly | Mentions and cited URLs | From US$29/month | Trial | Yes | Vendor's own |
| AthenaHQ | Athena | GEO analysis and suggestions | Free to US$295/month | Yes | Yes | Vendor's own |
| Ahrefs Brand Radar | Ahrefs | SEO plus AI exposure | Add-on from US$50/month | No | Yes | Vendor's own |
"Independent of implementation" for AI映え診断 means the measurement runs on KanseiLINK, an instrument with no sales function. Synapse Arrows, the vendor, also sells implementation and is a party to the result. "Ask vendor" means the vendor's site does not state English-language or overseas coverage.
6. Picks by purpose
| Purpose | Type of tool | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Find out where you stand in Japan, for free | Free check | Whether the basic check is free and asks in Japanese |
| Measure Japan and have the same vendor act on it | Japanese visualisation plus consulting | Whether implementation proposals are included |
| Measure the English-language market | English-native tool, or a Japanese tool with English coverage | Whether it measures with English queries |
| Confirm results through a party that is not implementing | Tool that can be paired with third-party measurement | Whether measurement and implementation are separated |
7. Frequently asked questions
Is there a free way to start measuring AI visibility in Japan?
Yes. Among the twelve, AI映え診断 has a free check with no sign-up, Nyle's brand-mention checker is free, and AthenaHQ's Essential plan is free; several others offer a 7- or 14-day trial. Start with a free check to learn where you stand, then decide whether a paid plan is needed.
Should a company entering Japan use a Japanese tool or an overseas tool?
Measure the Japanese market with a tool that puts Japanese questions to the AIs and reads Japanese sources, and measure the English-language market separately. Whether an overseas tool measures Japanese queries against Japanese platforms is something to confirm with the vendor; the Japanese tools' English-language coverage is likewise "ask the vendor" for most of them.
Is the agency's own measurement tool enough?
It tends to become self-grading. Measurement by a party separate from the one doing the implementation makes it easier to confirm whether anything actually changed.
Which AIs should we measure?
The ones your customers use. In Japan that is ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI Overviews; in English-speaking markets Perplexity and Copilot also matter. Our October 2026 research found that each AI reads different sources even for the same industry.
Will a tool by itself improve our AI visibility?
No. These tools measure. Improving the result takes primary information, structured data and third-party mentions in the target language; our guide for companies entering Japan sets out the steps.
8. Summary
Choose on three things: which AIs the tool covers, whether it measures the market and language you are entering, and whether the measurement is separate from the implementation. Start with a free check to learn where you stand, and measure Japan and the English-language market separately.
To see where you stand in Japanese AI answers now, try the AI visibility check. Related: Getting cited by Japanese AI search, How Japanese AI search cites local businesses, and the Japanese original of this comparison, AI可視性・AI引用の計測ツールおすすめ12選.
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