Ahrefs Keyword Analysis: Step-by-Step Competitive Workflow

Ahrefs is one of the most capable SEO tools on the market, but raw data without a workflow is just noise. Running an ahrefs keyword analysis without a systematic approach leaves you with endless spreadsheets and no clear direction on what to actually target.

The difference between wasted hours and real results comes down to process. When you know how to filter keywords by realistic difficulty, compare your site against competitors, and identify gaps worth filling, you stop guessing. You start building a content strategy based on actual ranking opportunities.

This guide walks you through a complete competitive workflow for Ahrefs keyword analysis, from finding initial keyword ideas to prioritizing based on difficulty, search intent, and competitive gaps. You'll learn how to extract actionable insights instead of drowning in metrics. At RankYak, we automate keyword discovery and daily content creation using similar research principles, but understanding the manual process helps you evaluate opportunities and verify that any SEO approach, automated or not, is targeting keywords that can actually rank.

What ahrefs keyword analysis is and what you need

Ahrefs keyword analysis is the process of using Ahrefs' database to discover, evaluate, and prioritize keywords based on search volume, ranking difficulty, and competitive landscape. Unlike basic keyword tools that show you lists of terms, an effective ahrefs keyword analysis digs into who already ranks for those terms, what their content looks like, and whether you realistically have the authority to compete. You move beyond surface metrics and start making decisions based on actual SERP data and competitor backlink profiles.

The analysis involves multiple Ahrefs tools working together. You pull competitor keywords from Site Explorer, identify gaps using Content Gap analysis, validate difficulty with SERP analysis, and check search intent with Keywords Explorer. Each step filters out keywords that look good on paper but won't deliver results. The goal is not to collect thousands of keywords but to isolate the 20 to 50 terms that you can rank for within your current domain authority and resource constraints.

The difference between keyword research and keyword analysis is action. Analysis tells you what to target next, not just what exists.

Understanding the Core Analysis Types

You need to distinguish between exploratory research and competitive analysis. Exploratory research starts with seed keywords and expands outward, pulling related terms, questions, and variations. This approach works when you're entering a new niche or need fresh content ideas, but it doesn't factor in whether you can actually rank. Competitive analysis starts with your rivals and reverse-engineers their keyword portfolio, focusing only on terms where competitors already prove there's ranking potential.

Most effective workflows combine both. You run exploratory research to understand the full topic landscape, then layer in competitive filtering to remove unrealistic targets. Ahrefs gives you both paths, but competitive analysis delivers faster wins because you're targeting proven keywords instead of chasing theoretical search volume.

Tools and Access Requirements

You need an Ahrefs subscription at the Lite plan minimum to access Site Explorer and Keywords Explorer, the two core tools for this workflow. Content Gap analysis requires at least the Standard plan. If you're working with a free trial, focus on extracting competitor keyword lists and SERP snapshots before the trial ends, then use that data for ongoing prioritization.

Your analysis setup should include:

• Ahrefs account with Site Explorer and Keywords Explorer access
• Spreadsheet tool (Google Sheets or Excel) for organizing keyword clusters
• Your domain added to Ahrefs with Search Console connected for tracking
• List of 3 to 5 direct competitors whose domains you can analyze
• SERP checker access through Ahrefs or manual Google searches

The actual analysis doesn't require coding or complex technical setup. You export data from Ahrefs, filter it in spreadsheets, and validate findings by manually checking Google results. Most analysts spend 70% of their time in Site Explorer and Keywords Explorer, with the remaining 30% validating in the SERP to confirm that metrics match reality.

Domain authority matters more than tool access. If your site is new, you need to focus on low-difficulty keywords regardless of how powerful your Ahrefs plan is. The tool shows you opportunities, but your domain's backlink profile and content history determine what you can actually capture.

Step 1. Find your real search competitors

Your business competitors are not always your search competitors. The local bakery down the street might compete for customers, but a food blog with strong domain authority competes for your keyword rankings. Most people start ahrefs keyword analysis by analyzing brands they already know, which misses the sites actually stealing organic traffic. You need to identify domains that rank for keywords you want to target, not just companies that sell similar products.

Ahrefs makes this process systematic. You enter a seed keyword related to your niche, check the SERP overview, and note which domains appear repeatedly across multiple keyword variations. These are your real competitors for search visibility. A competitor might be a massive media site, an affiliate blog, or a niche authority you've never heard of, but if they rank where you want to rank, they're worth analyzing.

The domains ranking in your target SERPs are your true competitors, regardless of whether they sell the same product or compete for the same customers.

Identify Competing Domains in Keywords Explorer

Start by opening Keywords Explorer in Ahrefs and entering 3 to 5 seed keywords that represent your core business topics. For example, if you run a coffee equipment store, you might enter "espresso machine reviews," "best coffee grinder," and "french press guide." After running the search, click on any keyword to view the SERP Overview tab, which shows the top 10 ranking pages for that term.

Scan the domains in the SERP results and mark any that appear for multiple keywords in your list. These recurring domains have content strategies aligned with your niche. Export the SERP data or manually track domains that show up more than once. You're looking for patterns, not one-off rankings.

Pay attention to domain rating (DR) in the results. If most competitors ranking for your target keywords have DR 50+ and your site sits at DR 15, those keywords might not be realistic targets yet. You need competitors within 20 points of your DR to model a winnable strategy. Analyzing sites far above your authority wastes time because their tactics won't work for your domain strength.

Build Your Competitor List

Create a spreadsheet with these columns: Competitor Domain, DR, Overlap Keywords, and Content Type. Add 5 to 10 domains that consistently rank in your target SERPs. This becomes your analysis pool for the next steps in your ahrefs keyword analysis workflow.

Step 2. Pull competitor keywords in Site Explorer

Once you have your competitor list, you extract their ranking keywords to see what's already working in your niche. Site Explorer in Ahrefs reveals every keyword a domain ranks for, along with position, search volume, and traffic estimates. This data forms the foundation of your competitive ahrefs keyword analysis because you're starting with terms that competitors already validate through real rankings.

You don't analyze every keyword a competitor ranks for. A typical domain ranks for thousands of terms, but most drive zero traffic or sit beyond page 10. Your goal is to filter down to keywords where competitors rank in positions 1 through 20 and that match your content capabilities. This focused extraction prevents data overload and keeps your analysis tied to actionable opportunities.

Competitor keyword lists reveal proven ranking opportunities instead of theoretical search volume that may never convert to traffic.

Navigate to Site Explorer and Enter Competitor Domains

Open Site Explorer in Ahrefs and paste the first competitor domain from your list into the search bar. After the tool loads the domain overview, click on Organic Keywords in the left sidebar. This displays every keyword the domain currently ranks for in Google, sorted by estimated traffic value by default.

Change the sorting to Position and filter to show only keywords where the competitor ranks in positions 1 through 20. This isolates terms they actually have visibility for. Next, add a search volume filter of at least 100 monthly searches to remove ultra-low-volume long-tail terms that won't move the needle. These two filters typically reduce a 50,000-keyword list down to 500 to 2,000 realistic targets.

Filter and Export Keyword Data

Apply additional filters based on your domain strength. If your DR is below 30, add a Keyword Difficulty (KD) filter to show only keywords with KD below 20. This ensures you're targeting terms you can realistically compete for. Click the Export button and save the filtered keyword list as a CSV file.

Repeat this process for each competitor domain in your list. You'll end up with 3 to 5 CSV files, each containing 200 to 1,000 keywords depending on niche size and filter settings. Combine these files into one master spreadsheet, removing duplicates but keeping a count of how many competitors rank for each keyword. Terms that appear across multiple competitor lists represent high-priority opportunities because multiple sites prove the keyword delivers results.

Step 3. Run Content Gap to find quick wins

Content Gap analysis in Ahrefs reveals keywords that competitors rank for but your site doesn't, creating a clear roadmap of missing opportunities. This tool compares your domain against up to 10 competitors simultaneously and isolates terms where you have zero visibility while rivals capture traffic. Instead of guessing which keywords to target next, you extract a validated list of gaps that competitors already prove are worth ranking for.

The power of Content Gap comes from its specificity. You're not looking at random keyword suggestions or broad topic ideas. You identify exact terms where multiple competitors rank in the top 10 while your domain sits outside the top 100. These represent your fastest path to new rankings because the groundwork is already proven. Your ahrefs keyword analysis workflow accelerates dramatically when you focus only on these verified gaps instead of exploring untested keyword variations.

Content Gap shows you exactly where competitors are winning traffic that you're missing, eliminating guesswork from your strategy.

Set Up Your Content Gap Analysis

Navigate to Site Explorer in Ahrefs and enter your domain in the search bar. After the tool loads your domain profile, click on Content Gap in the left sidebar under the Organic Search section. You'll see input fields where you can add competitor domains for comparison.

Enter the 3 to 5 competitor domains you identified in Step 1. Add them one at a time in the comparison fields. Leave the intersection setting at the default, which shows keywords where at least one competitor ranks but your site doesn't. Click "Show keywords" to generate the gap report.

The initial results typically show thousands of keywords. You need to filter immediately. Set the search volume minimum to 100 and the Keyword Difficulty maximum based on your domain rating. If your DR is below 30, cap KD at 20. Sites with DR 30 to 50 can target KD up to 35. This prevents you from chasing impossible rankings.

Filter for Realistic Opportunities

Apply a position filter to show only keywords where competitors rank in positions 1 through 10. This ensures you're targeting terms with proven top-page potential rather than terms where competitors barely scrape into visibility. Add a traffic potential filter of at least 50 monthly visits to focus on keywords that actually move traffic needles.

Sort the filtered results by the number of competitors ranking. Keywords where 3 or more competitors rank represent validated opportunities because multiple sites confirm the term delivers results. Export this filtered list and mark these as high-priority targets in your keyword spreadsheet.

Step 4. Validate intent and difficulty in the SERP

Ahrefs metrics tell you what might be possible, but the actual SERP tells you what's real. A keyword with KD 15 and healthy search volume looks promising until you check Google and find that every result is from DR 70+ domains with comprehensive guides. Validation catches these disconnects before you waste time creating content that can't compete. Your ahrefs keyword analysis only becomes actionable when you verify that metrics match reality in live search results.

You validate two critical factors: search intent alignment and actual ranking competition. Intent validation confirms that the content type Google rewards matches what you can create. Competition validation checks whether the ranking pages have authority levels, content depth, and backlink profiles you can realistically match. Skip this step and you'll target keywords that look perfect in spreadsheets but deliver zero rankings in practice.

Metrics show potential, but the SERP shows what Google actually rewards. Validate before you commit resources.

Check Search Intent Alignment

Open Google in an incognito window and search for your target keyword exactly as users would type it. Scan the top 10 results and categorize what type of content Google ranks. You're looking for patterns: are results primarily product pages, how-to guides, listicles, comparison posts, or informational articles? If you planned to write a guide but Google ranks only product pages, your content won't compete regardless of quality.

Note the content format and depth. Measure how many words the top-ranking articles contain by copying a sample into a word counter. Check if results include videos, tools, calculators, or other interactive elements. Your planned content needs to match or exceed this format. A 1,000-word article won't outrank 5,000-word comprehensive guides backed by original research and data.

Analyze SERP Competition

Click through the top 5 ranking pages and check their domain rating using the Ahrefs browser extension or by manually entering each URL into Site Explorer. Record the DR for each ranking page alongside the number of referring domains pointing to that specific page. This reveals whether you're competing against individual pages with moderate backlinks or authority content hubs with hundreds of links.

Compare these metrics to your own domain strength. Calculate the average DR of ranking pages and subtract your domain's DR. Gaps larger than 20 points signal difficult competition. Check the content depth by counting headings, images, and supporting sections. Pages with 15+ H2 sections, custom graphics, and detailed examples require significant resources to match. If top results come from brands like Amazon or major publishers, reconsider whether this keyword belongs in your priority tier.

Document your findings in a validation column next to each keyword: "Match Intent," "DR Gap Too Large," or "Content Depth Excessive." Filter out keywords where validation reveals misalignment between your capabilities and SERP reality.

Step 5. Cluster keywords into pages and topics

You've validated hundreds of keywords, but creating separate pages for each term wastes resources and dilutes authority. Clustering groups related keywords into single content targets based on search intent and SERP overlap. Instead of writing 20 articles that each target one keyword, you create 5 comprehensive pieces that each rank for multiple related terms. This approach builds topical authority faster because Google sees concentrated expertise rather than scattered attempts.

Effective clustering during your ahrefs keyword analysis requires checking whether Google shows similar or identical results for different keywords. When "best espresso machine" and "top espresso maker" return nearly the same top 10 pages, they belong in one cluster. You target both with a single article rather than competing against yourself with duplicate content. The clustering process transforms your keyword list into an actionable content calendar where each cluster becomes one publishable asset.

Clustering prevents keyword cannibalization and builds topical authority by consolidating related terms into comprehensive content pieces.

Group Keywords by Search Intent

Open your validated keyword spreadsheet and create a new column labeled Intent Type. Review each keyword and mark it as informational, commercial, transactional, or navigational based on what you observed during SERP validation. Keywords seeking guides, tutorials, or explanations get tagged "informational." Terms including "buy," "best," or "review" typically signal commercial intent.

Sort your spreadsheet by intent type, then manually scan for keywords that share the same core topic. For example, "how to clean espresso machine," "espresso machine maintenance," and "descale espresso maker" all address the same user need despite different phrasing. Mark these as a cluster by adding a cluster ID or topic name like "espresso-maintenance" in a dedicated column.

Create Your Topic Clusters

Build a separate clustering document with this structure:

Each row represents one piece of content you'll create. The primary keyword becomes your target term and page title foundation. Secondary keywords get naturally incorporated as H2 and H3 headings within the article. Sum the estimated traffic across all clustered keywords to understand the full opportunity each content piece represents.

Step 6. Prioritize and track rankings over time

Your clustered keywords need a priority system because you can't target everything simultaneously. A scoring framework ranks opportunities based on traffic potential, ranking difficulty, and business value. Without prioritization, you waste resources on low-impact keywords while high-value opportunities sit untouched. Your ahrefs keyword analysis becomes actionable when you know exactly which clusters to tackle first and in what order.

Tracking comes next. You measure progress by monitoring where your pages rank for target keywords over weeks and months. Ahrefs Rank Tracker automates this process, sending position updates and showing movement trends without manual SERP checks. You establish baseline rankings, publish content targeting your clusters, then watch whether positions improve. This data loop tells you what's working and what needs adjustment.

Prioritization without tracking is planning without accountability. You need both to turn keyword research into measurable growth.

Build Your Priority Matrix

Create a scoring system in your keyword spreadsheet that assigns numerical values to each cluster based on three factors. Traffic potential gets scored 1 to 10 based on total monthly search volume across all clustered keywords. Difficulty receives 1 to 10 where lower KD scores earn higher points (a KD 10 keyword scores 9, while KD 40 scores 3). Business value gets 1 to 10 based on how directly the topic drives conversions or revenue.

Add these three scores together to create a priority score for each cluster. Sort your clusters from highest to lowest score. The top 10 to 15 clusters become your content roadmap for the next quarter. Here's a sample structure:

Set Up Rank Tracking in Ahrefs

Open Rank Tracker in your Ahrefs dashboard and add your domain if you haven't already. Click Add Keywords and paste the primary keyword from each of your top-priority clusters. Include location targeting if your business serves specific geographic markets. Ahrefs checks rankings daily and stores historical data so you can view trends over any timeframe.

Set up weekly email reports that show position changes for all tracked keywords. This keeps monitoring passive while ensuring you catch major movements. After publishing content for a cluster, expect 2 to 4 weeks before significant ranking changes appear. Track the date you publish each piece in your cluster spreadsheet so you can correlate content launches with ranking improvements.

A simple next step

You now have a complete ahrefs keyword analysis workflow that moves from competitor discovery to ranked content. The process filters thousands of potential keywords down to validated clusters you can actually rank for based on your domain strength and resource capacity. Each step builds on the previous one, creating a systematic approach that eliminates guesswork and focuses effort on proven opportunities.

Your immediate action is to implement the first three steps this week. Identify your search competitors, extract their ranking keywords, and run Content Gap analysis. These steps deliver your priority target list within hours, not weeks. From there, validation and clustering transform raw data into publishable content briefs.

Manual keyword research delivers results, but it consumes hours you could spend creating content or building your business. RankYak automates keyword discovery and daily content creation, handling research, writing, and publishing while you focus on strategy instead of spreadsheets. Start your 3-day free trial to see automated SEO in action.