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Content gap analysis: find the pages your site is missing
A content gap analysis compares the topics your site has pages for with the topics people search for and the leading competitors cover. The result is a short list of pages to write, pages to improve and pages to leave alone. About 170 people in the US search for "content gap analysis" every month, and another 70 for "competitor content analysis".
It is one view of the wider competitor gap analysis. That page compares your site with specific rivals. This one stays on the pages: which exist, which are missing, and which are too weak to count.
What a content gap is
A content gap is a topic where the market searches and your site has no good page. It uses the same words as the hub, plus one for weak pages:
- Catch-up. People search for it, others have a page, and you have none.
- Thin. You have a page, but a competitor's page answers the search better.
- Open. People search for it and no one has a page. Anyone who writes a good one meets the demand first.
- Ahead. You have a page and they do not. Not a gap, but worth protecting.
A topic that nobody searches for is not a gap, however thin the pages around it are. Volume comes first.
Content gap, keyword gap and competitor content analysis
The three terms overlap, and the difference is the unit.
- A keyword gap compares single phrases: which phrases a rival's pages are found for that yours are not.
- A content gap compares topics and pages: what each side has written about, grouped by what the searcher needs.
- Competitor content analysis reads what a competitor has published, page by page, to judge how strong it is.
Keyword lists repeat themselves. A content gap shows one row per need, so you write one page, not several. The competitor keywords page covers the phrase view.
A finished content gap table
Here is an example for an agency blog about search research, set against its leading competitors. The topics and their US monthly searches are real figures. The coverage marks are made up, to show the layout.
| Topic | US searches a month | Your site | Competitors with a page | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| competitor analysis | 6,600 | thin page | all | Thin: rewrite |
| content plan | 1,300 | none | all | Catch-up: write |
| seo competitor analysis | 1,000 | none | one | Catch-up: write |
| keyword clustering | 390 | page | some | Covered: keep |
| location pages | 390 | none | none | Open: write first |
| keyword difficulty | 320 | none | none | Open: write |
| keyword gap | 140 | page | none | Ahead: protect |
The thin and catch-up rows add up to about 8,900 US searches a month where rivals already answer and you do not. The two open rows add up to about 710 where no one answers. In this example the first group is bigger.
How to read the table
- Start with volume. A row with 140 searches is a small bet, even when no one has a page.
- Read the competitor column as a signal. When all of them have a page, the need is proven. When none does, it is either a missed need or no need. Volume tells you which.
- Open the competitor's page before you call a row "thin". If their page already does the job well, a rewrite on your side may not be worth the time. Move to the next row.
- Match the search intent. A row can have volume and still be the wrong kind of page for you. Read the search intent before you decide a topic fits your site.
- Fold near-duplicates. If two rows share an intent, they are one page.
What to do with it
- Write one page for each catch-up or open row, largest volume first.
- For each thin row, rewrite the page so it answers the search more directly than the competitor's does.
- Put every new page into a content plan with a month and an owner, so the table turns into published pages.
- Protect what you are ahead on. Pages the rivals lack are the cheapest to defend.
- Rebuild the table when you add pages. Gaps close, and new ones open as competitors publish.
Mistakes to avoid
- Writing a page for every row. Low-volume rows still cost time to write.
- Copying a competitor's outline. You get a page that matches theirs and adds nothing.
- Skipping the buyer check. A topic can have volume from people who will never buy. Check before you build.
- Counting pages instead of needs. Several pages on one need can compete with each other.
- Trusting a gap with no link behind it. If the table says a competitor has no page, you should be able to open the page where it would be.
What to ask a provider
Ask for a link to the competitor page behind every row. A table without links cannot be checked, so treat it as a guess. The full list of asks is on the competitor gap analysis page.
Frequently asked questions
What is a content gap?
It is a topic with real search demand where your site has no page, or only a thin one. The gap can also be a topic that no competitor has covered either.
Is a content gap the same as a keyword gap?
No. A keyword gap compares phrases. A content gap compares topics and pages, with similar phrases shown as one row. One content gap can hold many keyword gaps.
What is competitor content analysis?
It means reading what a competitor has published and judging how strong each page is. A content gap analysis uses that reading, then adds search volume so you can tell which differences matter.
Does a content gap always mean a new page?
No. A thin page is a gap too, and the fix is to rewrite it. A row that shares its intent with a page you already have means you need to improve that page, not add another.
Want to see the layout on a real market? Open the sample reports.
Checked by a person and delivered within 24 hours, with a link and a search number behind every row.