Competitor keyword research is the process of analyzing which keywords a competitor's site ranks for in Google search results, along with their positions and estimated traffic. With SEO_CHECK, you can research competitor ranking keywords for free by simply entering a domain (up to 3 times per month).
Knowing which keywords drive traffic to your competitors is the starting point of any SEO strategy. However, most keyword research tools are paid, costing anywhere from $10 to $100+ per month. SEO_CHECK's competitor keyword research is available even on free accounts (up to 3 times per month). This guide covers how to use the tool, interpret the results, and turn insights into an actionable content strategy.
Why Competitor Keyword Research Matters
When starting SEO, most people create content around keywords they want to write about. But this risks wasting time on keywords with no search demand or burning out competing against dominant players.
Competitor keyword research lets you verify what's already working. When you can see which keywords drive traffic to successful sites and how much, you can efficiently prioritize which keywords to target.
What you learn from competitor keyword research
- Keywords where competitors rank in Google and their positions
- Monthly search volume and estimated traffic for each keyword
- Keywords your site doesn't yet cover (content gaps)
- Competitor content structure and per-page keyword strategy
How to Research Competitor Keywords with SEO_CHECK
Open the Keyword Tool
Log in to SEO_CHECK and click "Keyword Research" in the header. Select the "Competitor KW" tab.
Enter a competitor domain
Enter the competitor's URL (e.g. https://competitor.com) or domain and click "Analyze". If you enter a URL, the domain is extracted automatically.
Analyze the results
Ranking keywords, search positions, monthly search volume, and estimated traffic are displayed in a table. Click column headers to sort.
How to Read the Results
The results table has 5 columns. Here's what each means and how to use it.
Keyword
Keywords where the competitor site ranks in Google's top 100. Keywords your site doesn't yet cover represent 'content gaps' — candidates for new content.
Ranking Page
The URL path of the page ranking for that keyword. Understanding which pages capture which keywords helps inform your content structure.
Monthly Search Vol.
Estimated monthly search volume on Google. Higher volume means more potential traffic, but also stronger competition.
Est. Traffic
Estimated monthly organic traffic from that keyword, calculated from search position and volume. Higher-ranking keywords with large volume drive the most traffic.
Search Position
The competitor's current search ranking for that keyword. Positions 1–3 have significantly higher CTR and capture the majority of clicks.
Building a Content Strategy from Competitor Keywords
Find content gaps
Identify keywords where competitors rank but your site has no coverage. Keywords with 500+ monthly searches where the competitor ranks below position 10 are prime targets — if even they can't crack the top 10, quality content can leapfrog them.
Prioritize by estimated traffic
Sort by estimated traffic, not just search volume. A keyword ranked #1 with 500 monthly searches can drive more actual traffic than one ranked #50 with 10,000 monthly searches.
Study competitor content structure
Check the ranking page column to analyze how competitors structure their content. When one page ranks for multiple keywords, it's likely functioning as a pillar page in a topic cluster strategy.
Focus on long-tail keywords
Keywords with 100–500 monthly searches and 3+ words (long-tail) face less competition and are achievable even for sites with lower domain authority. Build traffic steadily with long-tail keywords first, then target more competitive terms as your domain grows.
Usage Limits by Plan
Competitor keyword research is available on all plans. The number of monthly searches and displayed keywords varies by plan.
| Plan | Searches | Keywords |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 3/month | Top 3 |
| Entry ($7/month) | 10/month | Top 5 |
| Basic ($20/month) | 30/month | Top 20 |
| Pro ($65/month) | 100/month | Top 100 |
