Keyword gap analysis: find the keywords your competitors have and you don’t

SEO course › Part 2: Keyword research

Keyword gap analysis compares the keywords your website ranks for with the keywords your competitors rank for. It shows the relevant searches where competitors appear and you do not, the searches where they outrank you, and the ones where you lead, so you can decide which gaps to close with new or improved pages.

This lesson explains the main types of keyword gaps, what you need before you start, how to run a keyword gap analysis with or without paid tools, and how to decide which gaps to work on first.

What is keyword gap analysis?

A keyword gap is a relevant keyword where a competitor is visible in search and you are missing or weaker. Keyword gap analysis is the side-by-side comparison that finds these gaps.

It builds on competitor keyword analysis. That lesson helps you study what competitors rank for. A gap analysis goes one step further by lining up their keywords against your own.

It is also different from a content gap analysis, which looks for whole topics and questions your content does not cover yet. A keyword gap analysis works at the level of individual keywords and rankings.

What types of keyword gaps are there?

Paid tools use different names for these groups, but the ideas are similar.

Missing and weak gaps are where most opportunities sit. Weak gaps are often the quickest wins, because you already have a page that Google knows about.

What do you need before you start?

• Your own keyword data. The Performance report in Google Search Console shows the search queries your pages appear for, with clicks, impressions and average position. Our lesson on Google Search Console basics shows you where to find it.
• Two to four search competitors. Choose sites that rank for your main keywords and are close to your size.
• Competitor keyword lists. These usually come from a paid SEO tool, which estimates the keywords each domain ranks for.
• A spreadsheet to combine and sort everything.

Your Search Console data is real data from Google, although it hides some rare queries to protect user privacy. Competitor data from third-party tools is always an estimate.

How do you run a keyword gap analysis step by step?

1. List your competitors’ domains.
2. If you use a paid tool, open its keyword gap feature, enter your domain and your competitors’ domains, and export the results.
3. If you are working manually, export competitor keywords into one sheet and your Search Console queries into another, then use a lookup formula such as VLOOKUP or XLOOKUP to mark which competitor keywords you also appear for.
4. Remove branded keywords, irrelevant keywords and anything you would never want to rank for.
5. Label each remaining keyword with its intent and its value to your business.
6. For the most promising keywords, check the live results using the method in our SERP analysis lesson.
7. Decide the action for each one: create a new page, improve an existing page, or ignore it.

Example: how does a dental clinic in Pune find its keyword gaps?

Imagine Smile Point Dental, a small clinic in Pune, compares itself with two nearby clinics. The positions below are illustrative, not real data.

The clinic now has a short, focused list. The teeth whitening page is a weak gap and a likely quick win, because improving an existing page is usually faster than building a new one. The implants and children’s pages are missing gaps that match services it already offers.

Notice what the clinic left out. Competitor B ranks for a few keywords about a treatment Smile Point does not provide, so the clinic removed those keywords from its list.

How do you decide which gaps to close first?

Not every gap deserves your time. Score each gap on a few simple questions:

• Relevance: Does it match a product or service you actually offer?
• Intent: Does the searcher want something your page can give?
• Competition: Are sites similar to yours ranking, or only much larger brands?
• Effort: Can you improve an existing page, or do you need a new one?

Gaps that score well on relevance and intent, and need little effort, should usually come first. Our lesson on keyword prioritization covers this scoring in more depth.

Also keep an eye on AI Overviews. For some informational keywords, fewer searchers may click through to websites, so a transactional gap can be worth more than a bigger informational one.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Trying to close every gap, including keywords that do not fit your business.
• Creating a brand-new page when improving an existing page would close the gap faster.
• Treating third-party ranking and volume figures as exact.
• Comparing yourself only with huge national sites instead of realistic competitors.
• Running the analysis once and never repeating it.

Key takeaways

• Keyword gap analysis lines up your rankings against your competitors’ to find missing and weak keywords.
• Missing gaps usually need new content; weak gaps usually need a better existing page.
• Use Search Console for your own data and treat tool data for competitors as estimates.
• Filter out irrelevant and branded keywords before you decide anything.
• Prioritize gaps by relevance, intent, competition and effort.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between keyword gap and content gap analysis?

Keyword gap analysis compares rankings for individual keywords. Content gap analysis looks for whole topics and questions your site does not cover yet.

Can I do a keyword gap analysis for free?

Partly. Your own data from Search Console is free, but reliable lists of competitor keywords usually come from paid tools, so a fully free analysis relies on manual research of competitor pages.

How often should I run a keyword gap analysis?

Every few months works for most small websites. Run it again after major changes, such as a new competitor or a big drop in your rankings.

Previous lesson: Competitor keyword analysis: find the keywords your rivals rank for

Next lesson: Content gap analysis: find the topics your website is missing