Here is a question I hear a lot from business owners: "My competitor keeps showing up on Google and I don't. What keywords are they ranking for that I'm missing?" It is a great question, because your competitors have already done a lot of keyword testing for you. Their rankings show you which topics Google rewards in your market.
In this lesson, I will show you how to find your real search competitors (they are often not who you think), how to see which keywords they rank for, and how to pick the gaps you can actually win. You don't need to be a data expert. You just need a spreadsheet, some patience and a clear head.
This lesson builds on keyword research for beginners and long-tail keywords, so if those ideas are new, have a quick look at them first.
Who are your real search competitors?
Most owners think of competitors as the businesses down the street or the brands they meet at trade shows. Those are your business competitors. In SEO, what matters are your search competitors: the sites that appear on Google for the keywords you want.
The two lists overlap, but they are rarely the same. Let me give you an example. Imagine you run a small bakery that sells custom birthday cakes. When someone searches "how to stack a two-tier cake," the top results may be a recipe blog, a baking magazine and a video site. None of them sell cakes in your town, but they are still the pages you must beat for that search.
| Business competitor | Search competitor | |
|---|---|---|
| Who they are | Companies selling what you sell | Any site ranking for your target keywords |
| Example (bakery) | Another cake shop in town | A recipe blog, a magazine, a directory |
| How you find them | Market knowledge | Searching your keywords on Google |
| Changes by keyword? | Rarely | Yes, often very different per topic |
So your search competitors depend on the keyword. For "custom birthday cakes in Leeds" (an example), you may face local bakeries and directories. For "cake decorating ideas," you face publishers. Both lists are useful, but for different reasons.
How do I find my search competitors?
Here is how I would do it, with nothing more than Google and a spreadsheet.
- List 10 to 20 keywords you care about. Use the list you built in earlier lessons. Mix service keywords ("wedding cakes Leeds") with question keywords ("how far in advance to order a wedding cake").
- Search each one on Google. Use a private browser window so your own history affects the results less. Search from the country (and ideally the city) you serve.
- Write down the top ten organic results. Skip the ads. Note the domain for each result.
- Count how often each domain appears. A site that shows up for 8 of your 15 keywords is a real search competitor. A site that appears once is probably not.
- Sort them into groups. Direct competitors (they sell what you sell), publishers and blogs, directories and marketplaces, and very large brands.
- Pick three to five to study. Choose sites that are similar to you in size and type. Studying a giant marketplace teaches you less than studying a business a few steps ahead of you.
This last step matters. If you sell handmade candles, a small candle shop that ranks well is a far better model than a global retailer. You can realistically do what the smaller shop did.
How can I see which keywords a competitor ranks for?
There are free ways and paid ways. I suggest you start free, because it forces you to look closely at the pages themselves.
Free method 1: look at their pages
Open a competitor's website and look at their menu, service pages, product categories and blog categories. Each page usually targets a topic. Write down the topics you see. Many sites also publish a sitemap (often at /sitemap.xml or linked from /robots.txt), which lists their pages in one place.
Free method 2: use the site: search
Type site:competitor.com into Google to see pages Google has indexed from that site. Add a word to narrow it, for example site:competitor.com wedding cake, to see which of their pages Google connects with that topic. Google's own documentation for the site: operator warns that the list is not always complete, so treat it as a sample, not a full picture.
Free method 3: read the results pages you already collected
When you searched your keyword list, you saw which competitor page ranked for each one. Note the page URL, its title and what type of page it is (guide, service page, product page, list). This tells you not only the keyword, but what kind of content wins it, which ties back to search intent.
Paid method: SEO tools
Tools such as Semrush and Ahrefs estimate the keywords any domain ranks for, with rough traffic numbers. Most of them can also compare your site with several competitors and show keywords they rank for and you don't. This comparison is often called a keyword gap analysis. These tools save a lot of time, but remember that their volumes and rankings are estimates built from their own data, not figures from Google. I compare the main options in my guide to keyword research tools, and we cover tools again in the lesson on choosing SEO tools.
What is a keyword gap, and how do I find one?
A keyword gap is simply a keyword (or a whole topic) that your competitors rank for and you don't. Think of it like comparing menus. If every successful restaurant on your street serves breakfast and you don't, that gap is worth a look. It does not mean you must serve breakfast, but you should decide on purpose.
There are three kinds of gaps I look for:
- Missing topics: your competitors have a page for it and you have nothing. Example: they all have a "wedding cake prices" page and you don't.
- Weak pages: you have a page, but it ranks far below theirs. Often your page is thinner, older or answers a different question.
- Missing angles: you cover a topic, but competitors also answer the follow-up questions you skip, such as delivery, storage or dietary options.
To find gaps without a paid tool, put your findings in a simple sheet. One row per topic, one column per competitor, plus a column for you. Mark who has a page and roughly where it ranks.
| Topic (example) | Competitor A | Competitor B | Competitor C | You | Gap? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| wedding cake prices | Page, top 3 | Page, top 10 | Page, top 10 | No page | Missing topic |
| gluten-free birthday cake | Page, top 10 | No page | Page, top 3 | Page, position 25 | Weak page |
| how to store a fondant cake | Guide, top 3 | No page | No page | No page | Missing topic |
| cake delivery Leeds | Page, top 3 | Page, top 3 | No page | Page, top 3 | No gap |
For a deeper walkthrough of this process, see my article on keyword gap analysis and its sister guide on content gap analysis.
How do I pick battles I can actually win?
A gap list can get long fast. You can't fill every gap at once, and you shouldn't try. Here is how I suggest you choose.
- Relevance first. Does the keyword fit what you sell or truly know? A gap that brings the wrong visitors is not a gap worth filling.
- Look at who ranks. If the top results are all huge brands with deep, excellent pages, park it for later. If you see forum posts, thin pages or old articles in the top ten, that is a sign of an opportunity.
- Check the intent and format. If Google shows only product pages and you would write a blog post, you are fighting the wrong battle.
- Weigh value, not just volume. A small keyword that brings buyers can be worth more than a big one that brings browsers. The lesson on keyword metrics explains volume and difficulty.
- Prefer weak pages you already have. Improving an existing page is often faster than building a new one, because Google already knows it.
One more thing, and it matters a lot: don't copy your competitor's page. Use it to learn what searchers need, then make something better. Google's guidance on creating helpful content asks whether your page adds real value beyond the sources it draws on, rather than simply rewording them. Add your own experience, clearer steps, local details, better examples or original photos. We look at this closely in the lesson on helpful, people-first content.
Try it: run a mini keyword gap check on two competitors
Give yourself one hour for this. It is one of the most eye-opening exercises in the whole course.
- Pick 10 keywords from your list and search each on Google.
- Note the top ten domains for each and count how often each appears.
- Choose the two competitors closest to you in size and type.
- Browse their menus and blog categories, and run a few
site:searches. List every topic they cover. - Add your own pages to the same sheet and mark each topic as "no gap," "weak page" or "missing topic."
- Circle three gaps that are relevant, winnable and valuable.
- For each, write one line on how your page will be better than theirs.
That last line is the most important. If you can't say how your page will be better, it is not ready to write yet.
Questions beginners ask about competitor keyword research
Is it OK to target the same keywords as my competitors?
Yes. Keywords are not owned by anyone. What matters is that your page is genuinely more useful than theirs. Copying their content, though, is not OK and rarely works.
Do I need a paid SEO tool for competitor keyword research?
Not to start. You can learn a lot from Google's results pages, the site: search and a competitor's own menus and sitemap. Paid tools save time and show estimated rankings, but treat their numbers as estimates.
What if a huge brand ranks for everything I want?
Look one level more specific. Big brands often cover broad terms well but leave specific, local or niche questions thinly covered. Those gaps are where a smaller site can win first.
How often should I check competitors' keywords?
For most small businesses, a fresh look every few months is enough. Check sooner if you notice a sudden ranking change or a new competitor appearing in your results.
What competitor keyword research gives you
In brief: your search competitors are the sites that rank for your keywords, and they change from topic to topic. Find them by searching your keyword list, study the three to five that are most like you, and map which topics they cover that you don't. Then choose the gaps that are relevant, winnable and valuable, and build pages that are genuinely better, not copies.
If you want to go further, my step-by-step guide to SEO competitive analysis covers links and technical comparisons too. Next, in the lesson on keyword mapping, you will take all the keywords you have gathered so far and give each group one clear home on your site. If you would rather have our team run a full competitor review for you, you are welcome to request a quote.
Sources for this lesson on competitor keyword research
- site: search operator (Google Search Central)
- Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content (Google Search Central)
- SEO Starter Guide (Google Search Central)