How to Perform a Competitor Backlink Analysis

Performing a competitor backlink analysis is a crucial step in SEO to uncover link-building opportunities, understand your competitors’ strategies, and improve your own rankings. Below is a structured guide based on the latest 2025 insights from top SEO tools and industry best practices.

Step 1: Identify Your Competitors

Before analyzing backlinks, determine who your true competitors are. Tools like:

• Semrush (Organic Research Tool) 10

• Ahrefs (Organic Competitors Report) 7

• SpyFu’s RivalFlow AI 10
  can help you find websites ranking for your target keywords. Focus on competitors with:

• High Domain Authority (DA) or Domain Rating (DR).

• Strong backlink profiles (e.g., diverse referring domains).

Step 2: Gather Backlink Data

Use SEO tools to extract competitors’ backlinks:

Free Methods:

• Ahrefs Free Backlink Checker (top 100 backlinks) 57.

• Moz Link Explorer (10 free queries/month) 10.

• OpenLinkProfiler (analyzes recent backlinks) 10.

Paid Tools (Recommended for Depth):

• Ahrefs Site Explorer: Full backlink profiles, anchor text analysis, and spam scoring 57.

• Semrush Backlink Analytics: Competitor overlap and link gaps 1011.

• Moz Pro: Link Intersect tool to find domains linking to competitors but not you 410.

Step 3: Analyze Competitors’ Backlinks

Focus on:

1. Quality Metrics:

   • Domain Authority (DA)/Domain Rating (DR): Prioritize links from high-authority sites (e.g., DR > 70) 410.

   • Traffic Estimates: Links from high-traffic pages are more valuable 5.

   • Anchor Text: Natural diversity (avoid over-optimized anchors) 5.

2. Link Types:

   • Editorial Links: Earned naturally (e.g., guest posts, interviews) 78.

   • Directory Links: Easy to replicate but lower value 7.

   • Broken Links: Opportunities for “broken link building” 78.

3. Patterns:

   • Are competitors leveraging guest posts, podcasts, or HARO (Help a Reporter Out)? 78.

   • Do they have skyscraper content or ultimate guides attracting links? 8.

Step 4: Find Link-Building Opportunities

1. Replicate High-Value Links:

   • Target directories, listicles, or forums linking to competitors 711.

   • Use Ahrefs’ Link Intersect or Semrush’s Backlink Gap to find unique opportunities 710.

2. Outreach Strategies:

   • Guest Posting: Pitch sites where competitors publish 8.

   • HARO: Respond to journalist queries for backlinks 810.

   • Broken Link Building: Replace dead links with your content 78.

3. Create Better Content:

   • Improve on competitors’ top-linked pages (e.g., longer guides, updated stats) 8.

Step 5: Track and Refine

• Use Google Analytics 4 to monitor referral traffic from new backlinks 2.

• Disavow toxic links (e.g., spammy referrals) via Google Search Console 25.

• Regularly update your analysis (backlink profiles change frequently) 10.

Tools Summary

For a deeper dive, explore guides from Ahrefs 7 or Backlinko 8.

By systematically analyzing competitors’ backlinks, you can build a data-driven link-building strategy to outperform them in SERPs.