Semrush Competitor Analysis: A Practical Guide
Understanding what your competitors are doing online can reveal opportunities to improve your own search visibility, content and advertising. Semrush brings together several tools that can help you investigate competing websites, compare performance and turn your findings into a focused marketing plan.
This guide explains how to use Semrush for competitor analysis, what to look for and how to turn the data into useful next steps.
What is competitor analysis in Semrush?
Competitor analysis is the process of reviewing other businesses’ online activity to understand where they appear in search results, which topics they cover, how they attract links and, where data is available, how they use paid advertising.
Semrush provides estimates and research tools to support this work. Depending on your plan and the tools available in your account, you can explore organic keywords, ranking changes, backlinks, advertising activity and broader traffic trends. These figures are useful for spotting patterns, but they should be treated as estimates rather than a complete record of a competitor’s performance.
Choose the right competitors
Start by identifying the websites you want to compare. Your business competitors and your search competitors are not always the same. A company may compete with you for customers but have little search visibility, while a publisher or directory may rank for many of the same queries without selling a competing product.
For a useful comparison, select a small group of websites that:
- target a similar audience or market;
- offer comparable products or services;
- appear in search results for topics important to your business; and
- operate in the same country or language market you are researching.
Check that you are comparing like with like. A country-specific subfolder, subdomain or website version may have a different search footprint from the main domain.
Review a competitor’s overall visibility
Begin with Semrush’s domain research tools, such as Domain Overview, to get a broad picture of a website’s search presence. Depending on the data available, you may be able to review estimated organic visibility, paid search activity, leading keywords and referring domains.
Use this first look to form questions rather than draw firm conclusions. For example, does the competitor appear to have a strong presence in a particular topic area? Are its rankings spread across many pages, or concentrated on a few? Has its visibility changed over time?
Compare several competitors using the same country database and date range. This makes the comparison more meaningful and can help distinguish a market-wide trend from a change affecting just one website.
Find keyword opportunities
Keyword research is one of the most useful parts of competitor analysis. Semrush’s Organic Research and Keyword Gap tools can help you investigate the queries competitors rank for and compare them with your own site.
Look for:
- Keywords you do not target: These may reveal useful topics or products you have overlooked.
- Keywords where competitors rank higher: Review the pages appearing in search results and assess whether your own page better answers the searcher’s needs.
- Shared keywords: These show where you are competing directly and may deserve closer monitoring.
- Longer, specific queries: These can point to clear questions, use cases or purchase considerations to address in your content.
Do not add every competitor keyword to your plan. Check that each query is relevant to your audience, matches your offering and has a suitable search intent. A keyword with high estimated search volume is not automatically a good target.
Study the pages behind the rankings
Keyword data is more useful when you examine the pages ranking for those terms. Note the type of page (for example, a product page, guide, comparison or category page), the questions it answers and how it helps visitors take the next step.
Look for content gaps you can address with a clearer explanation, more current information, original expertise or a better user experience. The aim is not to imitate a competitor’s page. It is to create the most helpful and relevant page for your audience.
Analyse backlinks
Semrush’s backlink tools, including Backlink Analytics, can help you review the websites linking to a competitor. This may show which publications, organisations or resources have cited them, and which pages have attracted links.
When reviewing backlinks, focus on relevance and context rather than simply counting links. A link from a trusted, relevant website may be more valuable than numerous links from unrelated sources. Consider whether the competitor has earned links through research, useful resources, partnerships or news coverage. These observations can inspire legitimate outreach ideas for your own business.
A backlink report is not a complete view of the web, and metrics used to assess link quality are indicators, not guarantees. Review promising sources manually before taking action.
Investigate paid search activity
If paid search is relevant to your business, Semrush’s advertising research tools may provide insight into competitors’ paid keywords, ad copy and landing pages. Use this information to understand the types of searches they appear to target and how their adverts present an offer.
Treat the findings as research clues, not a definitive record of a competitor’s advertising strategy. Estimated spend and activity can vary in accuracy, and adverts may change by location, device and time. Use your own campaign data to decide which keywords and messages are worth testing.
Turn findings into an action plan
Competitor analysis is valuable only when it informs decisions. After reviewing the data, create a short list of opportunities and prioritise them according to relevance, potential impact, effort and available resources.
- Record the insight: Note the competitor, page, keyword or trend that caught your attention.
- Check the evidence: Review the search results and the competitor’s page directly.
- Assess the opportunity: Decide whether it fits your audience, goals and expertise.
- Choose an action: This might mean updating a page, creating a new resource, improving internal links or testing a campaign.
- Measure the outcome: Track relevant rankings, organic visits, leads or sales over time.
A simple spreadsheet can help you track competitors, target keywords, relevant pages, content gaps, backlink prospects and next steps. Keep the list focused: a few well-researched actions are usually more useful than a large, unprioritised collection of data.
How often should you run a competitor analysis?
There is no single schedule that suits every business. A quarterly review may be enough for a stable market, while businesses in fast-moving industries may benefit from checking key competitors more often. It is also sensible to review your analysis when launching a new product, entering a new market or planning a major content campaign.
Use consistent settings where possible, including the same market, device or date range. This makes it easier to identify meaningful changes rather than differences caused by the way the data was collected.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Assuming estimates are exact: Semrush data can help identify patterns, but it does not provide a complete view of another website’s analytics.
- Choosing competitors by size alone: A useful benchmark should be relevant to your market and search goals.
- Copying content or campaigns: Competitor research should inform your strategy, not replace original thinking.
- Chasing every keyword: Prioritise terms that match your products, expertise and audience.
- Ignoring search intent: A page may rank because it answers a different need from the one your business can serve.
- Focusing only on rankings: Visibility matters, but business outcomes such as qualified leads and sales matter too.
Frequently asked questions
Can Semrush identify my competitors?
Semrush can help you discover websites that overlap with yours in search results and keywords. Review the suggestions carefully, as some may be publishers, directories or other sites that compete for search visibility but not directly for customers.
Is Semrush competitor data accurate?
Semrush provides estimates based on its own data and methods. These estimates are useful for comparisons and trend spotting, but they may differ from a competitor’s actual analytics. Treat them as a guide and support important decisions with your own research.
What should I analyse first?
Start with the competitors most relevant to your business, then compare their organic keywords and ranking pages. This often reveals practical content opportunities before you move on to backlink or paid search analysis.
Final thoughts
Semrush competitor analysis can help you understand where other websites are visible, what topics they cover and which opportunities may be worth exploring. Its greatest value comes from combining the data with careful judgement: verify what you find, focus on your audience and turn the strongest insights into measurable actions.
Mastering Competitor Analysis: 6 Essential Tips Using Semrush
- Compare your domain with up to four key rivals in Semrush.
- Use Organic Research to find competitors’ top-performing keywords.
- Check Keyword Gap to spot terms your rivals rank for but you don’t.
- Review backlink gaps to uncover link-building opportunities.
- Track competitor rankings regularly to spot changes early.
- Use Traffic Analytics to compare rivals’ channels and audience trends.
Compare your domain with up to four key rivals in Semrush.
Compare your domain with up to four key rivals in Semrush to see where your search visibility overlaps and where opportunities may be hiding. Use the comparison to identify shared keywords, terms your competitors rank for but you do not, and areas where your site may be falling behind. Choose businesses that target a similar audience and market, and treat Semrush’s figures as estimates; then check the actual search results and prioritise the opportunities most relevant to your goals.
Use Organic Research to find competitors’ top-performing keywords.
Use Semrush’s Organic Research tool to discover which keywords bring competitors the most search visibility. Enter a competitor’s domain and review its organic keyword report, paying particular attention to terms with strong rankings and pages that appear to attract substantial estimated traffic. Compare these keywords with your own content to spot relevant gaps and opportunities, then check search intent and the results page before deciding what to target. Treat Semrush’s figures as estimates, and prioritise keywords that genuinely match your audience and business.
Check Keyword Gap to spot terms your rivals rank for but you don’t.
Use Semrush’s Keyword Gap tool to compare your site with your competitors and find search terms they rank for but you don’t. These gaps can reveal topics your audience is searching for and opportunities to strengthen your organic visibility. Review each keyword for relevance and search intent before adding it to your content plan, and focus on terms that genuinely match your expertise, products or services.
Review backlink gaps to uncover link-building opportunities.
Reviewing backlink gaps in Semrush can reveal websites that link to your competitors but not to yours—potential prospects for your own link-building activity. Use the Backlink Gap tool to compare your site with relevant competitors, then assess the linking websites for relevance, credibility and genuine editorial value. Look for why they linked to a competitor, such as a useful guide, original research or expert commentary, and consider whether you can offer something equally valuable or more helpful. Prioritise thoughtful, personalised outreach rather than pursuing every link: a relevant mention is more worthwhile than a large number of low-quality links.
Track competitor rankings regularly to spot changes early.
Track your competitors’ rankings regularly to spot changes early. A new page climbing the search results or an established page losing visibility could signal a shift in strategy, a content update or a change in search demand. Use Semrush to monitor relevant keywords over time, then investigate notable movements and decide whether your own content or SEO priorities need adjusting. Remember that rankings can fluctuate, so look for sustained patterns rather than reacting to every short-term change.
Use Traffic Analytics to compare rivals’ channels and audience trends.
Use Semrush Traffic Analytics to compare how rivals attract visitors across channels such as direct, referral, search and social. Reviewing these estimates alongside audience trends can help you spot where competitors are gaining traction, how their traffic mix changes over time and which channels may be worth investigating for your own strategy. Treat the figures as directional estimates rather than exact analytics, and use them to guide further research—not as a substitute for your own performance data.
