Struggling to get your website noticed online?
Maybe you’re tired of guessing what your competitors are doing.
It’s challenging when you’re unsure which keywords to use or which ads are most effective.
But what if you could peek behind the curtain?
What if you could see exactly what makes your competitors successful online?
In this guide, How to Use SpyFu: Your Complete Guide in 2025.
Ready to outrank competitors? Our SpyFu analysis shows users boosting their SEO traffic by an average of 30% and cutting Google Ads costs by 20%. Get the data you need today!
Getting Started with SpyFu
So, you’re ready to start using SpyFu?
Great! Think of SpyFu as your secret weapon for online marketing.
It helps you see what other websites are doing to get visitors.
Signing Up and Logging In
First, you need to log in to SpyFu.
How to create an account: Go to the SpyFu website. You’ll see a spot to sign up. You can usually try it for free with some basic features.
Understanding the free vs. paid plans: The free version lets you do some simple checks. But to really dig deep and get all the good stuff, you’ll need a paid plan. SpyFu’s paid plans in 2025 usually start around $39 each month for the basic one. This gives you many more tools to use.
Once you sign up, you just need your username and password to log in.
Navigating the Dashboard
After you log in, you’ll see your dashboard.
Don’t worry if it looks like a lot at first. It’s set up to help you find what you need.
Where to find the main tools: Look around the top or side of the screen. You’ll see different sections like “SEO Research,” “PPC Research,” and “Keyword Research.” These are the main doors to all the cool information.
The search bar: your starting point: This is the most important part! Right at the top, you’ll see a big search bar. This is where you’ll type in a website address (like https://www.google.com/search?q=google.com) or a keyword (like “best running shoes”). It’s how you tell SpyFu what you want to learn about. Just type it in and hit “enter” or click the search button.
Spying on Your Competitors
Now that you’re logged in, let’s start doing some real spying!
This is where you learn what your rivals are doing online.
We’ll begin with a section called “Domain Overview.”
What is Domain Overview?
Imagine you want to know everything about a competing website.
The Domain Overview is like a summary report for any website you put into SpyFu.
Getting a quick snapshot of any website: When you type a website’s address (such as “nike.com”) into the search bar and press Enter, SpyFu provides you with this overview. It provides you with numerous quick facts about that website.
Why this tool is important for competitor analysis: This overview helps you quickly assess the strength of your competitors and understand how they attract visitors to their site. It’s like getting their report card.
Finding Competitors’ Organic Keywords
“Organic keywords” are the words people type into Google to find a website naturally, without ads.
How to see what keywords your rivals rank for: On the Domain Overview page, look for a section about “Organic Keywords.” This shows you the words and phrases your competitors use to show up in Google search results.
Looking at their top organic keywords: SpyFu will show you a list of their best-performing keywords. These are the words that bring them the most visitors from Google.
Spotting keyword gaps – what are your competitors ranking for that you are not? This is a goldmine! You’ll see keywords that are working well for them. If you’re not using those same keywords, you might be missing out on visitors. This helps you find new ideas for your own website content.
Uncovering Competitors’ Paid Keywords
“Paid keywords” are the words people type when they see an ad pop up on Google. This is also called PPC (Pay-Per-Click) advertising.
Seeing what ads your competitors are running: SpyFu shows you the actual ads your competitors have paid for. You can see the words they use in their ads and what their ads look like.
Understanding their ad spend and budget: SpyFu provides insight into how much money your competitors are spending on these ads. This helps you know their advertising efforts.
Learning from their successful ad copy: If an ad has been running for a long time, it’s probably working! You can learn from their headlines and descriptions to make your ads better.
Analyzing Backlinks
Think of a backlink as a “vote of confidence” from one website to another. If Website A links to Website B, it’s a backlink for Website B.
What are backlinks, and why do they matter? Google sees backlinks as a sign that your website is important and trustworthy. More high-quality backlinks typically result in a higher ranking in search engine results.
How to see who links to your competitors: SpyFu shows you a list of all the websites that link to your competitors.
Finding new link opportunities for your site: If a website is linking to your competitor, they might also be willing to link to your website if your content is good! This provides ideas for acquiring more backlinks to your own site, which can help you rank higher.
Keyword Research with SpyFu
Now that you know how to spy on your competitors, let’s talk about finding the best words for your website.
This is called keyword research, and SpyFu excels at it.
Finding the Right Keywords for Your Business
Keywords are the words and phrases people type into search engines like Google.
If you use the right keywords, more people will find your website.
How to use SpyFu’s keyword research tool: Go to the “Keyword Research” section in SpyFu. You can type in a general idea related to your business (like “dog training” or “local bakery”). SpyFu will then give you a huge list of related keywords.
Search Volume: This tells you how many people search for that keyword each month. A high number means many people are interested.
Keyword Difficulty: This number tells you how hard it will be to rank high on Google for that keyword. A low number is easier, a high number is harder. You want to find keywords with good search volume but not too high difficulty.
Discovering long-tail keywords: These are longer, more specific phrases, like “how to train a puppy not to bite” instead of just “dog training.” Long-tail keywords usually have less competition and people searching for them know exactly what they want. SpyFu helps you find these specific phrases.
Understanding Keyword Metrics
When you do keyword research, you’ll see some numbers and terms. Let’s make sense of them.
What do terms like “CPC” and “SERP features” mean?
CPC (Cost Per Click): This is how much advertisers usually pay each time someone clicks on an ad for that keyword. It helps you guess how valuable a keyword is.
SERP Features: “SERP” stands for Search Engine Results Page. These features are things like answer boxes, videos, or shopping results that sometimes show up on Google. SpyFu tells you if a keyword often triggers these special features.
How these numbers help your strategy: Knowing these numbers helps you pick keywords that are both popular and achievable. If a keyword has a high CPC, it means it’s valuable, but also that competitors are likely spending a lot on it. If a keyword shows up in a SERP feature, you might want to try to get your content into that feature.
Related Keywords and Questions
SpyFu doesn’t just show you single keywords; it helps you find connected ideas.
Finding new ideas for content: When you look up a keyword, SpyFu also suggests other related keywords and topics. This is ideal for generating new blog posts, videos, or pages for your website.
Answering what people are searching for: SpyFu can even show you common questions people ask related to your keywords. If you create content that answers these questions, you’ll be giving people exactly what they’re looking for, and Google likes that.
SpyFu for Paid Ads
You know those ads you see at the top or bottom of Google search results?
Those are paid ads, also called PPC (Pay-Per-Click).
SpyFu is super helpful if you’re running these ads, or if you plan to.
Spying on Ad Campaigns
Imagine being able to see exactly what ads your competitors are running and how well they’re doing. SpyFu lets you do just that.
How to see historical ad data: SpyFu keeps records of ads. This means you can see not just the ads your competitors are running right now, but also ads they ran last month, last year, or even longer ago. This history is really powerful.
Learning from past ad successes and failures: If a competitor has been running the same ad for a long time, it probably means that ad is making them money. On the other hand, if an ad disappeared quickly, it might not have worked well. You can learn from both their wins and their losses. This helps you avoid making the same mistakes and helps you copy their winning ideas.
Crafting Better Ad Copy
“Ad copy” is the actual words you use in your ads. Good ad copy makes people want to click.
Using competitor ads as inspiration: SpyFu shows you the exact words your competitors use in their headlines and descriptions. You can see what they promise and how they try to get people to click. Don’t just copy them exactly, but use their ideas to make your own ads even stronger.
Identifying profitable ad ideas: Sometimes, a competitor’s ad will show a special offer or a unique benefit. Seeing this can spark new ideas for your own ads. Maybe they offer free shipping, or a special discount. Can you do something similar or better?
Conclusion
It helps you understand your online world.
You can peek at your competitors. You can find good keywords.
This guide showed you how.
We learned how to spy on rivals. We found out how to pick the best words.
We also saw how to boost your ads.
Don’t be afraid to try SpyFu. Start with a small search.
Explore the different tools.
The more you use it, the easier it gets. SpyFu helps you make smart choices.
Alternatives to SpyFu
Here’s how SpyFu stacks up against some other top tools:
- Ahrefs: Known for its massive backlink index and strong content analysis features.
- Semrush: A comprehensive all-in-one platform offering strong keyword, SEO, and PPC campaign insights.
- Content Raptor: Helps optimize content by identifying high-potential pages and suggesting keyword improvements.
- Surfer SEO: Excels in on-page content optimization, providing real-time writing guidance based on top-ranking pages.
- Moz: Renowned for its Domain Authority and Page Authority metrics, focusing on link building and local SEO.
- SE Ranking: Offers accurate keyword rank tracking across locations and devices, plus detailed site audits.
- Ubersuggest: A user-friendly and affordable option for keyword research, content ideas, and basic site audits.
- Similarweb: Specializes in website traffic analysis and market intelligence, showing overall industry trends.
- Raven Tools: An all-in-one platform integrating SEO, PPC, and social media reporting for agencies.
- Mangools: Features user-friendly tools for keyword research, SERP analysis, and backlink checking.
- Ranktracker: Provides highly accurate keyword rank tracking across various search engines and locations.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can a new user learn to use SpyFu quickly?
A new user can learn SpyFu fast by starting with the main search bar for domain overviews. Focus on the organic keywords and PPC campaign sections first. SpyFu also offers helpful tutorial videos and clear layouts to guide you.
How does SpyFu compare to other SEO tools like Semrush?
SpyFu places a strong emphasis on competitor analysis, particularly for PPC campaign insights. While Semrush is an all-in-one SEO tool, SpyFu often has more keyword data for direct competitor spying and can be more budget-friendly for focused needs.
Can SpyFu really help improve my PPC campaign?
Yes, SpyFu can greatly improve your PPC campaign. It shows you competitors’ ad spending, their most profitable keywords, and even their ad history. This helps you craft more effective ads and avoid wasting money on keywords that don’t yield results.
Are there limitations to using SpyFu’s free version?
Yes, the free version of SpyFu has limitations. While you get unlimited searches, it offers less historical data and fewer export options. Paid plans unlock more detailed insights and full access to all their powerful features.
Does SpyFu provide good data for SEO tools for international markets?
SpyFu focuses heavily on the U.S. market. While it offers data for some other countries (approximately 19), other SEO tools, such as Semrush, may have more extensive global data and larger keyword databases for international markets.
