Competitive AEO analysis means finding out which sites are getting cited in AI-generated answers for your target queries, and understanding exactly why. Unlike traditional SEO competitor analysis (which focuses on keyword rankings and backlinks), AEO competitor analysis looks at content structure, schema markup, and passage quality. The goal is not to mirror competitors but to identify specific structural gaps your pages have relative to consistently cited pages. Start by understanding how AI Overview ranking works before auditing competitors.
Competitor Citation Share by Query Type
Benchmarks from BrightEdge AI citation share studies (2024). Select a query category to see citation distribution and the gap analysis for each competitor.
e.g., 'what is schema markup', 'what is topical authority'
Competitive AEO Audit Workflow
A repeatable 5-step process for identifying and closing AI citation gaps against competitors. Average completion time: 4-6 hours per 50-query cluster.
Identify target query clusters
Group 20-50 informational target queries by intent type (definition, how-to, comparison, FAQ). Use Google Search Console's query report filtered to queries where you rank position 4-15 and AI Overviews appear.
Run AI Overview sampling
For each query cluster, manually trigger AI Overviews in incognito mode. Record which domains appear as citation sources. Tools: AirOps, Ahrefs AI Overview Tracker, or manual sampling with a spreadsheet.
Scrape competitor page structure
For each consistently cited competitor URL, extract: opening paragraph, heading structure, schema types present, word count per section, presence of FAQ blocks. Tools: Screaming Frog custom extraction, browser dev tools.
Gap matrix analysis
For each query cluster, score your page vs. the top 2 cited competitors on: answer-first opening (Y/N), matching schema type (Y/N), passage length match (within 20%), FAQ block present (Y/N). Count gaps.
Prioritize by impact and effort
Map each identified gap onto an impact x effort grid. High-impact, low-effort items (adding FAQPage schema, rewriting opening paragraphs to direct-answer format) go first. De-prioritize gaps requiring new content creation.
Gap Priority Matrix
Click any gap to see the effort estimate and expected citation impact. Upper-right quadrant (high impact, low effort) items should go first in your sprint plan.
Click a point on the matrix to see effort estimates and citation impact details.
Competitor Page Scoring Rubric
Score any competitor page (0-100 per criterion) to estimate its relative AI citation advantage. Use this alongside your own page score to quantify the gap.
Low citability
Weighted score: 0 / 1100