How to Do Ahrefs Competitor Analysis: Complete Guide + Automation
If you searched for "ahrefs competitor analysis," you are looking for a clear, actionable walkthrough —not another product pitch. This guide teaches you the full 11-step manual process inside Ahrefs, shows you where to click, and highlights the metrics to track. Expect ~4–6 hours to complete manually. Prefer speed? You can automate 90% of it in ~15 minutes (see Section 5).
Prerequisites
You will need the right inputs before diving in. The manual process assumes an active Ahrefs subscription and a place to log what you find so you can act on it.
Ahrefs account (required)
Access to Site Explorer, Keywords Explorer, and Site Audit.
3–5 competitor domains
Pick peers within 10–20 DR of your site for realistic targets.
Spreadsheet or dashboard
Track backlinks, keyword gaps, content ideas, and actions.
Optional: Toffu account
Automate monitoring, alerts, and reporting so you spend time on execution.
Time Investment
Manual: 4–6 hours for 5 competitors (setup, analysis, data organization). Automated with Toffu: ~15 minutes to connect Ahrefs, add competitors, and review weekly insights.
Soft CTA: Prefer to skip the 6-hour spreadsheet marathon? Jump to Section 5 to see the automation workflow.
The 11-Step Manual Ahrefs Competitor Analysis Process
Follow these steps in order. Each one includes where to click in Ahrefs, what to record, and how to convert findings into actions.
Identify Your SEO Competitors
Start your Ahrefs competitor analysis by confirming who you actually battle in organic search. Many teams chase brand-name giants, but the best insights come from sites whose pages rank for the same intent-based keywords as yours.
How to do it:
- Open Ahrefs Site Explorer → enter your domain → Organic competitors report. Sort by common keywords and focus on sites with similar traffic volume.
- Cross-check in Keywords Explorer → Traffic Share by Domain to see who owns the most clicks for your target topics.
- Remove publishers or directories that do not sell comparable products (they can still inspire content format ideas, but they are rarely the right benchmarks).
Action
Document 3-5 domains within ±10–20 DR of your site. Add a 'primary competitor' label to the two with the closest overlap so you can track them monthly.
Pro tip
Filter the Organic competitors list by Domain Rating to avoid aiming at out-of-reach DR 90+ sites. The sweet spot is competitors whose DR is close enough that link building and on-page work can move the needle.
Analyze Their Backlink Profile
Strong links explain why competitors outrank you for lucrative keywords. Go beyond the headline domain rating and look at how authority is distributed across pages and anchors.
How to do it:
- Site Explorer → Backlinks report. Scan referring domains, DR, anchor text distribution, and link types (dofollow vs. nofollow, redirect, image).
- Use the 'One link per domain' toggle to focus on unique domains, then re-run with it off to see how deep specific referrers link into their site.
- Flag sudden spikes in referring domains in the history chart; these bursts often correlate with launches or PR pushes you can replicate.
Action
Log total referring domains, % dofollow, and top 10 anchors in your spreadsheet. Note any recurring link sources (newsrooms, communities, partner directories) worth pitching.
Pro tip
If anchor text skews to exact-match keywords, expect vulnerability to Google updates. Build pages that deserve those keywords and earn diversified anchors to beat them on stability.
Find Backlink Gaps
Backlink gaps reveal ready-made outreach targets—domains that already trust your competitors. Winning even a fraction of these links can close ranking gaps fast.
How to do it:
- Site Explorer → Link Intersect. Enter your domain as the target and add 3–5 competitors.
- Sort by DR and referring domains to prioritize authoritative domains linking to multiple competitors but not you.
- Export the top 50 domains and annotate why they linked (resource list, tool mention, quote, statistic).
Action
Create an outreach queue with columns for domain, linking page, angle (update, replacement, new data), and contact path. Aim to pitch 10 domains per week.
Pro tip
If several competitors earned links from the same roundups, build a sharper, fresher resource and pitch as an update—cite the outdated elements you are fixing.
Conduct Keyword Gap Analysis
Keyword gaps show where competitors capture demand you do not. Focus on commercial-intent terms where your product is relevant and you can produce a better result.
How to do it:
- Competitive Analysis → Content Gap. Enter your domain and the same set of competitors.
- Apply filters: positions 1–20, exclude branded terms, and set 'Main positions' to ignore SERP noise.
- Group results by parent topic to avoid creating overlapping pages. Mark keywords with traffic potential and business fit.
Action
Select 10–20 high-value keywords. For each, note search intent, competing URL, traffic potential, KD, and a draft angle (format, CTA, examples) in your sheet.
Pro tip
When a competitor ranks with a multi-intent article, split the topic into focused pages (e.g., 'how to' guide + 'tool' page) to win multiple SERP slots.
Analyze Their Content Strategy
Content strategy becomes clear when you see how competitors group topics and which folders drive revenue. This prevents you from copying one-off hits and helps you build a durable structure.
How to do it:
- Site Explorer → Site structure. Sort by traffic to see which subfolders and content types carry their site.
- Open top folders to check URL patterns, internal linking, and whether they cluster topics (e.g., /blog/ vs. /guides/ vs. /tools/).
- Note formats they repeat: data studies, calculators, teardown posts, comparison pages. Repetition signals what actually earns links and traffic.
Action
Add a 'format' column in your tracker (guide, template, statistic, calculator) and map which formats align with your funnel stages. Plan to mirror only the formats that match your product’s strengths.
Pro tip
If a subfolder drives traffic but has thin DR, your stronger domain can outrank them with equal quality. Prioritize those topics for fast wins.
Find Their Top-Performing Content
Knowing what earns links for competitors helps you produce linkable assets that compound authority across your site.
How to do it:
- Site Explorer → Best by links. Sort by referring domains and check whether the top URLs are evergreen resources or news-driven spikes.
- Open the top 10 pages and catalog why people link: stats, templates, industry definitions, or controversial takes.
- Check if those pages internally link to commercial pages. If not, you can outperform by shipping a better asset and routing link equity to money pages.
Action
List the top 10 linkable assets, the hook (data, template, glossary), and the downstream commercial pages they support. Plan one superior asset for each hook.
Pro tip
If multiple sites link for a statistic, recreate it with fresher data and provide an embeddable chart. Mention that you will keep it updated—this increases link win rate.
Spot Featured Snippet Opportunities
Featured snippets let you leapfrog stronger domains. Target snippets where you already rank 1–10, then structure content to match the winning format.
How to do it:
- Competitive Analysis → Content Gap → set SERP features to Featured snippet and your position to 1–10.
- Open each opportunity and note the snippet format (paragraph, list, table, how-to steps).
- Rewrite your section to mirror the format: concise 40–55 word answer, ordered steps, or a clean table with headers.
Action
Create a snippet backlog with target query, current URL, desired format, and the exact 50-word response to insert. Update pages and re-crawl.
Pro tip
Add a short intro before lists so Google can pull a paragraph or list. Use semantic twins of the query in H2/H3 to reinforce relevance.
Discover Their Traffic Sources
Geography often reveals unexplored markets. If competitors win traffic in countries you ignore, you can localize quickly and capture incremental conversions.
How to do it:
- Site Explorer → Overview → Traffic by country. Compare country splits across competitors.
- Check whether localized subfolders or ccTLDs drive the traffic. Inspect localized top pages to see translation quality and local examples.
- Note if certain countries over-index for commercial-intent queries—these often justify fast localization or paid tests.
Action
Flag 1–2 countries where competitors outperform you despite similar DR. Add a localization plan: top 5 pages to translate, currency changes, and region-specific examples.
Pro tip
If competitors rely on machine translation, a human-edited version with local proof points can beat them with minimal extra links.
Analyze Their Broken Pages
Broken pages with backlinks are link reclamation gold. Rebuild the value, then offer site owners a better destination.
How to do it:
- Best by links → filter HTTP code = 404. Sort by referring domains.
- Open each URL in Archive.org to see what used to live there: templates, research, product pages, or press releases.
- Create an improved, up-to-date alternative on your site that satisfies the same intent.
Action
Add the top 20 broken URLs to your outreach queue with reasons to update (outdated data, dead resources). Send tailored replacement suggestions referencing your refreshed version.
Pro tip
Include a short changelog in outreach—what is new, what is sourced, and why it is safer for their readers. Editors prefer low-friction fixes.
Check Paid Search Strategy
Paid keywords reveal where competitors prove monetization. If they pay for a term, it likely converts. Use this to prioritize SEO pages with revenue potential.
How to do it:
- Site Explorer → Paid keywords. Filter out branded terms and sort by cost or traffic.
- Open landing pages linked to the ads to see messaging and offer structure.
- Cross-reference paid keywords with your organic gaps to find terms worth an SEO push.
Action
Tag paid-overlap keywords in your content gap sheet. Mirror the ad messaging in your organic page to align with proven conversion language.
Pro tip
If a competitor bids on high-funnel terms, they may be compensating for weak organic visibility—SEO can own those terms with the right format (comparisons, tools, templates).
Review Technical SEO Health
Technical issues can suppress even great content. Benchmark competitor health to understand whether their rankings are powered by strength or despite weaknesses.
How to do it:
- Run Ahrefs Site Audit on a competitor domain. Check crawl errors, internal link depth, and page speed.
- Use the PageSpeed Insights integration inside Ahrefs to compare Core Web Vitals against your own pages.
- Note whether they rely on heavy JS frameworks or have thin internal links to key pages.
Action
Record their technical scores next to yours. If they rank with poorer tech health, content and links drive the win—double down there. If they outrank with superior speed and structure, prioritize fixes in your sprint.
Pro tip
Map their internal links from top pages to money pages; replicate a cleaner, shallower structure to give your commercial URLs more authority.
Organize Your Competitor Analysis Data
Avoid scattered notes. Use a structured dashboard so every insight turns into an action. Below is a suggested layout that mirrors the outputs of the steps above.
Suggested spreadsheet structure
- Tab 1: Competitor overview (DR, traffic, top folders, paid overlap)
- Tab 2: Backlink gaps (domain, page, hook, contact plan)
- Tab 3: Keyword opportunities (intent, SERP format, KD, traffic potential)
- Tab 4: Content ideas (format, angle, supporting data)
- Tab 5: Action plan (priority, owner, due date, status)
Time breakdown: Setup 30 minutes, ~45–60 minutes per competitor, 30–45 minutes to organize data. Total for five competitors: roughly 4–6 hours.
Internal links for deeper context
How to Automate Ahrefs Competitor Analysis with AI
Manual work surfaces insights once. Automation catches changes every week and keeps your team focused on execution. Here is how Toffu turns the 4–6 hour workflow into a 15-minute review loop.
What gets automated
- Weekly competitor backlink monitoring with change detection
- Automatic keyword gap tracking with deltas and freshness
- Alerts when competitors publish new content in your topics
- Featured snippet monitoring with ready-to-ship copy blocks
- Broken page monitoring for link reclamation opportunities
- One consolidated dashboard with links, keywords, and actions
How it works
- Connect your Ahrefs account to Toffu.
- Add competitor domains to track (3–5 recommended).
- Set automation rules—for example, "Alert me when a competitor gains 50+ new backlinks."
- Receive weekly reports with prioritized actions and ready-to-ship copy blocks.
- Share to Slack or email so stakeholders see the same plan.
Example automated workflow
Trigger: Every Monday 9 AM Actions: - Pull competitor backlink data from Ahrefs - Compare vs last week's snapshot - Identify new linking domains (>DR 40) - Find linkable content on those domains - Generate outreach email templates - Send report to Slack with top 5 opportunities
Time savings
Manual: 4–6 hours per cycle. Automated with Toffu: ~15 minutes to review AI-generated insights. That is a 95% time reduction while improving change detection and preventing missed opportunities.
Competitor Analysis Best Practices
Do's
- Analyze 3–5 direct competitors within 10–20 DR points
- Update your competitor analysis monthly or automate it
- Track changes over time, not just static snapshots
- Blend quantitative Ahrefs data with qualitative review
- Pair every finding with an explicit action owner and due date
Don'ts
- Copy competitors blindly without understanding intent
- Fixate on one competitor and miss adjacent overlap
- Ignore indirect competitors that rank for your topics
- Skip prioritization—analysis without action wastes time
Conclusion & Next Steps
Ahrefs competitor analysis surfaces backlink gaps, keyword opportunities, and content formats that already work in your space. The manual process takes 4–6 hours but gives you a deep baseline; automation reduces the recurring effort to a 15-minute weekly review.
Your next steps: pick 3–5 competitors, work through the 11 steps, build the dashboard, and ship the top 10 quick wins. Then decide if you want to keep running this manually or let Toffu monitor, alert, and pre-write actions for you.