Content gap analysis reveals the keywords and topics your competitors rank for that you don't. It's one of the most effective ways to find proven content opportunities and build comprehensive topical coverage.

What Is Content Gap Analysis?

Content gap analysis compares your site's keyword rankings against competitors to identify topics where they have visibility but you don't. These "gaps" represent opportunities to create content that can capture traffic you're currently missing.

Why Content Gaps Matter:

• Competitors have validated these topics work in your niche
• You're losing traffic to competitors for these keywords
• Filling gaps builds more complete topical coverage
• Gap content often has lower competition than broad topics

How to Perform Content Gap Analysis

Step 1: Identify Your Competitors

Start with 3-5 direct competitors who target the same audience and topics. Include both larger sites you aspire to compete with and similar-sized sites you're competing against directly.

Step 2: Extract Competitor Keywords

Use SEO tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Moz to pull the keywords each competitor ranks for. Focus on keywords where competitors rank in the top 20 positions with meaningful search volume.

Step 3: Compare Against Your Rankings

Filter for keywords where at least one competitor ranks but you don't appear in the top 100. This reveals your true content gaps. keywords with proven demand where you have no presence.

Step 4: Prioritize Opportunities

Not all gaps are worth filling. Prioritize based on:

• Search volume: Higher volume = more potential traffic
• Keyword difficulty: Can you realistically rank?
• Business relevance: Does it align with your goals?
• Topical fit: Does it complement existing content?

Types of Content Gaps

Topic Gaps

Entire subjects you haven't covered at all. These often represent opportunities for new pillar content.

Keyword Gaps

Specific keywords within topics you cover. Your content exists but doesn't target these terms.

Format Gaps

Competitors have content in formats you don't. e.g., they have videos or tools where you only have articles.

Depth Gaps

Your content is thinner than competitors'. You cover the topic but not as comprehensively.

Content Gap Analysis Tools

• Ahrefs Content Gap: Compare up to 10 competitors at once
• SEMrush Keyword Gap: Visual comparison of keyword overlaps
• Moz Keyword Explorer: Competitive keyword analysis
• Topical Map AI: See complete topic coverage gaps in your niche

Turning Gaps Into Content

Once you've identified gaps, create a plan to fill them:

1. Group related gap keywords into content clusters
2. Identify which gaps should be new pages vs. updates to existing content
3. Prioritize by impact and effort required
4. Create content that's better than what competitors have
5. Link new content to existing related pages

Find Your Content Gaps

Topical Map AI automatically identifies topic gaps in your niche. See what you're missing and get a complete content plan to fill every gap.

Discover Content Gaps →