backlink gap analysis: find the links your competitors have.
a backlink gap analysis finds referring domains that link to one or more competitors but not to your site. Those domains are useful outreach prospects because they already cite businesses in your category. crawlgraph compares your domain with up to 3 competitors, ranks unmatched domains by competitor overlap and graph authority, and shows the first 5 results free.
Method and product limits reviewed .
what the tool calculates
a backlink gap is a set difference, not a mystery score
a backlink gap analysis starts with unique referring domains. the tool combines the domains linking to up to three competitors, removes every domain already linking to your site, and ranks what remains by competitor overlap and cg authority. a site linking to three rivals is usually a warmer prospect than one linking to only one because it has repeatedly chosen to cite your category.
enter close competitors that serve the same audience and rank for the searches you want. broad industry giants add investor pages, parent companies, cdns, and other links you cannot reproduce. crawlgraph filters common platform noise, but you should still open each surviving domain and find the page that carries the competitor link before writing outreach. a directory entry, a comparison table, and a journalist's source citation each need a different pitch. treat the result as a research queue rather than a promise that every row is obtainable. remove investor pages, parent companies, paid placements, and sources whose audience does not overlap yours. the smaller reviewed list is more useful than a large export nobody can act on.
the free report returns the first 5 ranked gaps for an email, with no card and no account to create. paid access unlocks the complete list, csv export, contact finding, and repeat analysis. for the arithmetic and a worked example, read what a link gap is. the competitor backlink analysis hub collects the free workflow, outreach process, and supporting studies without duplicating this working tool.
how to use the gap analysis
what is a backlink gap analysis?
a backlink gap analysis compares the unique domains linking to your competitors with the domains already linking to you. subtract your own referring domains from the combined competitor lists and the remainder is your gap: sites that have already linked to your category but have not linked to you.
do backlinks still matter in 2026?
links still help search engines discover pages and understand which sources other sites choose to reference. a backlink count alone is not a ranking promise, so use the gap to find relevant editorial opportunities rather than chasing the largest possible number.
how can I analyse my backlinks?
start with unique referring domains instead of raw link totals. compare your list with two or three close competitors, remove domains that already link to you, then sort the remainder by competitor overlap and authority. open the linking page before outreach so your pitch fits the actual context.
which targets should I contact first?
domains that link to 2 or 3 of your competitors but not you - they link to your category as a habit, not as a favor. they are pre-sorted to the top of your list.
what does the authority score mean?
cg authority is a 0-100 score from the common crawl webgraph - how central a domain is in the link graph. a 50+ linking domain is a serious win.
how do I actually get the link?
lifetime users: press get contact email, then preview email - your mail app opens with a ready draft. mention the page where they link to your competitor, keep it short, offer something useful.
how fresh is the data?
we ingest each common crawl release, roughly monthly. re-run your analysis after each release - new linkers appear constantly.
what does lifetime unlock here?
the full ranked list (free shows the top 5), 50 gap analyses a month, csv export, contact finding with email drafts, and the api. $99 once.