Before you start
- A SpyFu account (free tier works for basic searches; Basic plan $39/mo for unlimited)
- Your own domain so you know what you're benchmarking against
- A list of 1-3 domains you suspect compete with you (used to validate SpyFu's algorithmic suggestions)
- 30-45 minutes for the first run
The playbook
8 steps
Drop your domain into SpyFu's main search
Open spyfu.com, type your domain in the search bar, hit enter. The Domain Overview loads with your top SEO keywords, top paid keywords, monthly ad spend estimate, organic clicks estimate, and - crucially - competitor lists for both organic and paid. The competitor lists are computed from keyword overlap; the more keywords you share with another domain, the higher they rank.
Expected outcome
Domain Overview page loaded with organic and paid competitor lists ready to inspect.
Inspect the Top Organic Competitors list
Scroll to 'Top Organic Competitors'. SpyFu shows the domains with the highest organic keyword overlap with yours. Each row shows: domain, overlap score, their organic keyword count, their estimated traffic. The top 5 are your algorithmically-identified SEO competitors. Compare against your intuition list - the surprises matter most.
TipThe 'overlap score' is the number of keywords you both rank for. A high overlap competitor isn't necessarily a business threat - they might be a media site that ranks for similar terms. Look at their content type before reacting.Expected outcome
5-10 confirmed organic competitors with overlap scores documenting why each one matters.
Inspect the Top Paid Competitors list
Same page, separate section. Top Paid Competitors shows domains bidding on the same paid keywords as you. This list typically differs significantly from organic - some brands are PPC-only, some organic-only. The Paid Clicks and Paid Keywords columns tell you how much they're investing in paid search overall.
Expected outcome
5-10 confirmed paid search competitors with spend-level context.
Run SpyFu Kombat for head-to-head analysis
SpyFu's signature feature. Go to SpyFu Kombat, enter your domain plus 1-2 competitors. The Venn diagram shows three areas: keywords only you rank for, keywords only they rank for, keywords you both rank for. The 'only they rank for' section is your content gap - SpyFu's equivalent of Ahrefs Content Gap.
# Kombat output to focus on: # 'Common Keywords' = where you compete head-to-head # 'Their Keywords' = content gap to close (their wins) # 'Your Keywords' = your moats (defend these) # Export to CSV for filteringExpected outcome
Three-way keyword Venn with the content gap list (their-only keywords) exported.
Use Ad History to understand competitor PPC strategy
Click any competitor domain, then 'PPC Research' -> 'Ad History'. SpyFu shows the timeline of every Google text ad they've run, with date ranges and the keywords each ad ran on. Long-running ads (60+ days alive) are validated winners. Recently launched ads are tests; rapidly killed ads (under 14 days) failed. This is the highest-leverage SpyFu output for paid teams.
TipAd copy patterns repeat. If a competitor has been running 'free shipping over $50' for 9 months, that offer works. Borrow the structure, not the wording.Expected outcome
Per-competitor ad history with evergreen winners flagged for inspiration.
Export and filter the keyword overlap data
All SpyFu reports export to CSV. Export Kombat 'Their Keywords' (the gap), filter to: monthly search volume > 100, SpyFu's 'Keyword Difficulty' < 50 (or your domain's threshold), commercial intent matches your business. The filtered list is your editorial roadmap or paid keyword pipeline depending on whether you exported organic or paid.
Expected outcome
Filtered actionable keyword list (50-200 keywords) ready to feed editorial or paid planning.
Set up SpyFu's weekly tracking
SpyFu's Custom Reports feature lets you set up weekly email digests on your competitors - new ads launched, new keywords appearing, big rank shifts. Enable the digest for your top 3-5 competitors. The weekly email is your competitive monitoring layer without logging in.
Expected outcome
Weekly competitive digest email arriving without manual effort.
Cross-validate with a second tool
SpyFu's data is solid for the price but smaller than Ahrefs/SEMrush datasets. For high-stakes decisions, cross-check the top 5 SpyFu competitors against Ahrefs' Competing Domains or SEMrush's Domain Overview competitors. If a competitor appears in 2+ tools, treat as confirmed. If only in 1, treat as a data point worth investigating, not a confirmed competitor.
Expected outcome
Cross-validated competitor set; high-confidence list distinguished from single-source list.
Shuttergen
SpyFu finds the keywords. Shuttergen ships the creative.
SpyFu surfaces what your competitors bid on and rank for. Shuttergen turns that intelligence into ad variants - so your competitive discovery flows directly into shipped creative.
Pitfalls
What goes wrong
Treating SpyFu's competitor list as definitive
SpyFu's dataset is smaller than Ahrefs/SEMrush. Some real competitors won't appear if SpyFu hasn't indexed them deeply. Use SpyFu as the starting point; validate with a second source for high-stakes decisions.
Ignoring the paid competitor list
Many teams use SpyFu for SEO and ignore the PPC side, which is where SpyFu is actually strongest. The paid competitor list, ad history, and Kombat-for-paid features are SpyFu's killer apps.
Confusing organic and paid competitors
SpyFu separates them for a reason - they're often different sets. Don't blend the lists. A brand on your paid competitor list might not be an SEO threat; respond by channel, not in aggregate.
Acting on unfiltered Kombat keyword exports
Kombat exports include thousands of keywords most of which are unactionable (zero volume, wrong intent, impossible difficulty). Filter aggressively or the export sits unused.
Skipping Ad History
Ad History is one of SpyFu's most unique features. Teams that use it for ad copy inspiration consistently outpace teams that brainstorm from scratch. Don't skip it.
Limits
When this playbook won't work
- Your competitors are very small (under DR 15) - SpyFu may not have indexed them deeply enough
- Your category is in a non-English market - SpyFu's coverage outside US/UK is thin
- You need backlink gap analysis - SpyFu is weak on backlinks; use Ahrefs/SEMrush for that
- Your budget can stretch to Ahrefs/SEMrush - those tools are deeper across most dimensions except PPC ad history
Why SpyFu for competitor discovery specifically
SpyFu's pricing is its first advantage. Starting at $39/mo on the Basic plan with unlimited searches and unlimited data export, it's roughly one-fifth the cost of Ahrefs or SEMrush. For solo founders and small teams who need competitor data without enterprise budgets, SpyFu is often the right starting tool.
Ad History is its second advantage. No other competitor research tool ships ad-copy-over-time the way SpyFu does. The ability to see every Google text ad a competitor has run for the last 15+ years, with date ranges and keyword targeting, is uniquely useful for paid search teams.
Kombat is its third advantage. The Venn-diagram-style keyword overlap visualization is the cleanest UI for content gap analysis in the category. Ahrefs Content Gap returns better data; Kombat presents it more intuitively. For teams new to competitive analysis, Kombat lowers the cognitive barrier.
Its weaknesses: smaller dataset than Ahrefs/SEMrush, weaker on backlink analysis, weaker SERP feature tracking, less coverage outside US/UK. For comprehensive SEO competitive work, pair SpyFu with Ahrefs or SEMrush. For PPC-led teams on a budget, SpyFu solo is usable.
SpyFu finds the keywords. Shuttergen ships the creative. SpyFu surfaces what your competitors bid on and rank for. Shuttergen turns that intelligence into ad variants - so your competitive discovery flows directly into shipped creative.
SpyFu vs alternatives for competitor discovery
vs Ahrefs: Ahrefs has the deeper dataset, better backlink analysis, more SERP feature tracking. SpyFu wins on price (5x cheaper) and on PPC ad history. Use Ahrefs if budget allows; use SpyFu if it doesn't or if PPC is the primary use case.
vs SEMrush: SEMrush is roughly equivalent to Ahrefs in scope - bigger than SpyFu on most dimensions, also significantly more expensive. SEMrush's PPC features are strong; SpyFu's PPC features are still more affordable per dollar.
vs Ubersuggest: Comparable budget tier. Ubersuggest is cheaper but the dataset is less polished. SpyFu wins on PPC depth; Ubersuggest wins on raw price.
vs Mangools / Serpstat: All sit in the budget tier with overlapping use cases. SpyFu's edge over these is PPC depth (Ad History + Kombat for PPC). For SEO-only work, Serpstat is comparable.
The right combination for most serious teams: SpyFu for PPC + Ahrefs for SEO depth. The combined cost is still less than SEMrush alone for many account sizes, and the coverage is more complete than either tool standalone.
Internal: find-seo-competitors, seo-competitors, paid-search-keywords.
FAQ
Frequently asked
How do I find competitors using SpyFu?
What is SpyFu Kombat?
Is SpyFu better than Ahrefs for competitor research?
How accurate is SpyFu's competitor data?
What's SpyFu's Ad History feature?
How much does SpyFu cost?
Can I use SpyFu free?
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SpyFu finds the keywords. Shuttergen ships the creative.
SpyFu surfaces what your competitors bid on and rank for. Shuttergen turns that intelligence into ad variants - so your competitive discovery flows directly into shipped creative.