Competitor Analysis: Find Keyword Gaps
Last updated 11 March 2026
What Is Competitor Analysis?
Competitor Analysis shows you how your website compares to your competitors in Google search results. It reveals which keywords they rank for that you do not, where you overlap, and where you have opportunities to take traffic away from them.
This is one of the fastest ways to find keyword gaps and content opportunities — rather than guessing what to write about, you can see exactly what is working for competitors who are already ranking.
Adding Competitors
To add a competitor:
- Go to the Competitor Analysis section
- Enter your competitor's website URL (e.g.
www.example.com) - Click Analyse
RnkRocket will crawl their site and build a keyword profile showing what they rank for in Google.
You can add multiple competitors depending on your plan:
| Plan | Competitors |
|---|---|
| Basic | 1 |
| Pro | 5 |
| Pro+ | 10 |
| Agency | 20 |
Choose competitors who are genuinely competing for the same customers — local businesses in the same area, or businesses offering the same services or products.
Gap Analysis
Gap analysis answers the question: what keywords are my competitors ranking for that I am not?
These are your highest-priority opportunities. Your competitors have already proven there is search demand and that a website like yours can rank for these terms. You just need to create better or more relevant content to compete.
RnkRocket lists these gap keywords sorted by opportunity, so you can work through them in order of potential impact.
Venn Diagram Comparison
The Venn diagram gives you a visual overview of your keyword overlap with each competitor:
- Shared keywords: Both you and your competitor rank for these. Check your positions — if they are ranking higher, you may be able to improve with better content or more backlinks.
- Your unique keywords: Only you rank for these. These are strengths to build on.
- Competitor's unique keywords: Only they rank for these. These are your gap opportunities.
Keyword Stealing Opportunities
Within the gap analysis, RnkRocket highlights keyword stealing opportunities — terms where your competitor ranks but where your existing content could realistically compete with some optimisation.
For example, if a competitor ranks position 8 for a keyword and you have a page that could target it with a few improvements, that is a keyword stealing opportunity. You are closer to ranking than you might think.
Manual vs Automatic Analysis
Manual analysis: You can run a competitor analysis at any time from the Competitor Analysis page. This gives you an updated snapshot of how they are performing.
Automatic analysis via Autopilot: If you have Autopilot enabled, RnkRocket will periodically refresh your competitor data automatically and flag any significant changes — for example, if a competitor suddenly starts ranking for a keyword you care about.
Getting the Most From Competitor Analysis
- Add your top two or three direct competitors first, rather than large national brands (unless you genuinely compete with them)
- Check the gap analysis monthly and add the top opportunities to your keyword tracking list
- Use competitor keyword data to inform your content calendar — write about the topics they are ranking for using the Content Studio, but in more depth or with a local focus
- Look at which pages of theirs are earning the most keyword rankings — that tells you the content formats and topics that are working in your market
To understand the basics of competitor research, read our SEO competitor analysis blog post.
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