Whether or not you’re new or previous to Ahrefs, you’re in the proper place.
This tutorial will stroll you thru probably the most sensible, repeatable, and actionable Ahrefs use circumstances from our six core instruments that may assist enhance your search engine optimization.
Website Explorer is our aggressive analysis instrument. With Website Explorer, you’ll be able to see an internet site’s:
- Backlinks
- Key phrases it ranks for in Google
- Website construction in a tree format
- Pages which are accountable for producing probably the most search site visitors
- Google adverts campaigns
And extra.
As a result of there are such a lot of issues you are able to do in Website Explorer, we gained’t be capable of undergo each use case. As a substitute, we’ll cowl just a few low-hanging fruits:
1. Restore misplaced hyperlink fairness from damaged backlinks
If there are damaged pages with backlinks in your web site, that hyperlink fairness is wasted.
You may reclaim the worth of the hyperlink fairness by both restoring these pages or redirecting the damaged URLs to related stay pages.
Right here’s the right way to discover damaged pages with backlinks in your web site:
- Enter your area
- Go to the Finest by hyperlinks report
- Set the HTTP code filter to 404

For instance, we may redirect this weblog submit about asking for tweets to this one on blogger outreach to reclaim round 42 referring domains:

2. Discover featured snippet alternatives
Featured snippets are full or partial solutions to a question straight on the SERPs.

In the event you can seize the snippet, you’ll be able to leap forward of everybody else. Which means extra search site visitors to your website.
Right here’s the right way to discover low-hanging featured snippet alternatives:
- Enter your area
- Go to the Natural key phrases report
- Set a Positions filter from 1 – 10 (you’ll want to be on the primary web page to win it)
- Set a SERP options filter to “the place goal doesn’t rank” and examine featured snippet

Now you can see hundreds of key phrases the place you’ll be able to try to optimize your pages to win the featured snippet.
Observe the tutorial under to learn to seize featured snippets.
3. Reverse engineer a website’s construction
Investigating a website’s construction exhibits you which of them elements of the positioning entice probably the most search site visitors.
Right here’s the right way to see a high-level overview of an internet site’s construction:
- Enter your competitor’s area
- Go to the Website construction report

For instance, we will see that almost all of Mailchimp’s search site visitors goes to its root area. We will additionally click on on the arrow to see a extra detailed breakdown.

From right here, we be taught that Mailchimp has a subfolder known as “marketing-glossary” that will get an estimated 600K month-to-month search visits.

In the event you’re a competitor, making a glossary may very well be a possible technique you may need to replicate.
4. Replicate your rivals’ prime pages
If rivals get a number of site visitors to pages about sure subjects, you in all probability can, too.
Right here’s the right way to discover your rivals’ prime pages:
- Enter your competitor’s area
- Go to the Prime pages report

This report exhibits you the pages that entice probably the most search site visitors to your competitor.
For instance, Mailchimp’s electronic mail advertising information will get an estimated 53,000 month-to-month search visits. The key phrase that sends them probably the most site visitors is “electronic mail advertising,” which they rank #1 for within the US.

In the event you’re a competitor, this is perhaps a subject price focusing on.
5. Analyze your rivals’ backlinks for link-building alternatives
If you wish to rank for something remotely aggressive, merely publishing content material isn’t sufficient. You want backlinks.
A technique to do that is to research your competitor’s backlink profile to see how they’ve been buying theirs.
Right here’s the right way to see your competitor’s backlinks:
- Enter your competitor’s area
- Go to the Backlinks report

You may see that Mailchimp has near 800K backlinks.
Right here’s the factor: Your probabilities of discovering something helpful by manually sifting by means of all 800K is slim. But when you realize what you’re searching for, you’ll be able to add the proper filters and discover the proper hyperlink prospects.
For instance, when you’re searching for useful resource web page alternatives, you’ll be able to add a “Ref. web page URL” filter to seek for phrases like assets.html, assets.php, assets.asp, hyperlinks.html, hyperlinks.php, and hyperlinks.asp
.

Apply the filters and hit present outcomes, and also you now have over 700 potential alternatives for useful resource web page hyperlink constructing.

6. Analyze competing pages’ backlink profiles for hyperlink alternatives
You may also do the identical backlink evaluation as above however on a web page degree.
For instance, say we need to analyze the backlink profile of HubSpot’s weblog submit on electronic mail advertising statistics. We need to create a competing web page focusing on that subject, so we need to know the way HubSpot acquired so many hyperlinks to their web page.

Manually sifting by means of 14K backlinks is a large waste of time, so we’ll go to the Anchors report back to see all anchor texts of backlinks pointing at HubSpot’s article.

Eyeballing the report tells us that most individuals are linking to HubSpot’s web page due to some particular stats:

There are two actionable takeaways:
- We should always embrace comparable stats on our web page, as these earn hyperlinks.
- We should always substitute outdated stats so we will use them in our outreach marketing campaign.
FYI, that’s precisely what we did for our search engine optimization statistics submit. Since then, we’ve earned hundreds of backlinks and ranked #1 persistently.

Learn the way we did that in our video collection under.
7. Discover damaged hyperlink constructing alternatives
Damaged hyperlink constructing is the place you:
- Discover a damaged web page that has backlinks
- Create your individual web page on the subject
- Attain out to these linking to the damaged web page to hyperlink to you as an alternative
Right here’s how yow will discover damaged hyperlink constructing alternatives:
- Enter your competitor’s area
- Go to the Finest by hyperlinks report
- Set a HTTP code filter to 404 not discovered

For instance, when you’re a competitor to GetResponse, this subject on “what are popups” may make sense so that you can cowl as a result of 21 web sites are linking to it.

To see who’s linking to those pages, click on on a caret beside the URL and go to the Backlinks report.


From right here, you’ll be able to attain out to the individuals linking to those damaged pages and ask them to hyperlink to your new information on the subject.
Key phrases Explorer is our key phrase analysis instrument.
Let’s have a look at just a few methods to search out good key phrases to focus on, quick.
1. Discover key phrases by search intent
Search intent is the rationale behind a searcher’s question. To rank excessive on Google, you’ll have to match search intent.
However, analyzing the SERPs for hundreds of key phrases manually will be extremely time-consuming. So, a fast manner is to make use of key phrase modifiers like “greatest,” “how,” and “purchase.”
So, let’s say we have now an ecommerce retailer that sells tenting tools. Right here’s how we might discover key phrases by search intent:
- Enter just a few broad seed key phrases (e.g., tenting, tent, sleeping bag, campfire)
- Go to the Matching phrases report
- Add an Embrace filter for these modifiers (how, what, when, the place, why, tutorial, ideas)

This may present us an inventory of informational key phrases we will create content material for on our weblog.
If we need to discover industrial investigation key phrases, we will merely add an Embrace filter for phrases like “greatest,” “vs,” and “evaluation.”

9. Discover low-competition key phrases
There are two methods to search out low-competition key phrases in Key phrases Explorer.
The first manner is to set a Key phrase problem (KD) filter. Set it to a low quantity, like 10, and also you’ll see low-difficulty key phrases you’ll be able to goal:

The second manner is to set a Area Ranking (DR) filter. DR is extensively used within the search engine optimization group to estimate an internet site’s authority. So, setting a DR filter can assist you discover key phrases the place non-authoritative websites rank excessive within the SERPs.
So, let’s set it to a low worth like 30. This may present us key phrases which have no less than one web site with a DR as much as 30 within the prime 5.

If we increase one of many SERPs, we see a consequence with <DR30 and 0 backlinks!

This actually looks like a simple subject to rank for.
10. Bulk analyze an inventory of key phrases
You may enter as much as 10,000 key phrases at a time in Key phrases Explorer, which lets you analyze any customized listing of key phrases.
When you’ve pasted your listing, you’ll be capable of view all their metrics.

You may also cluster them by phrases or Mum or dad Matters.

11. See natural share of voice to your rivals
In the event you’ve entered your individual listing of key phrases, you’ll be able to go to the Visitors share by domains report back to see websites that rank to your listing of key phrases, together with the site visitors share they personal.

This tactic is nice for key phrase analysis.
For instance, we will click on on the caret for any of the web sites, select Prime pages, and we will see all of the subjects which are sending them probably the most search site visitors.

Website Audit permits you to crawl your web site to search out and monitor for 100+ technical and on-page search engine optimization points.
To run a crawl, create a brand new challenge and both import your web sites from Google Search Console (GSC) or add them manually.

When your crawl is full, you’ll see the Overview report, which is able to present you a high-level overview of all technical and on-page points Ahrefs discovered in your website.

In case your most important aim is to maintain your website in good technical well being, then all you’ll want to do is figure on fixing the problems we discovered when crawling your website.
To try this, head to the All points report.

You may prioritize by engaged on the crimson ones first, which signify errors. Then, work on the yellow ones (warnings) and the blue ones (notices).
To see the affected URLs, click on on the quantity within the corresponding row:

There’s extra to Website Audit than sustaining your website’s technical well being, although. Listed here are some extra use circumstances (that aren’t technical search engine optimization):
12. Discover all affiliate hyperlinks on an internet site
Let’s say you personal a recipe weblog that largely makes cash from Amazon affiliate hyperlinks. Nevertheless, you latterly joined a brand new associates program with larger payouts than Amazon. Now, you’ll want to swap out the Amazon hyperlinks to your new affiliate ones.
However somewhat than doing a sitewide change, you need to take a look at the brand new affiliate hyperlinks on just a few pages to get a pattern measurement for conversion charges.
Right here’s how you are able to do this with Website Audit (after operating a crawl):
- Go to Web page Explorer
- Hit Superior filter
- Create a rule to search out URLs which have an exterior hyperlink containing amzn.to (Amazon’s quick hyperlink).
- Set an Natural site visitors filter to point out pages that get no less than 1,000 month-to-month natural visits

Hit ‘Apply,’ and also you’ll see 51 pages that match these filters:

You may choose from these pages to exchange the Amazon hyperlinks.
13. Discover inside linking alternatives
The Inner Hyperlink Alternatives report exhibits you inside linking alternatives based mostly on key phrases your pages rank for.
Particularly, it exhibits:
- The web page we advocate you hyperlink from
- The key phrase that’s talked about on the supply web page (additionally the key phrase that the goal web page ranks for)
- The web page we advocate you hyperlink to

For instance, let’s say we need to add inside hyperlinks to our weblog submit on key phrase analysis. Within the report, we will set a Goal web page filter and paste the URL to our key phrase analysis information.

We now have over 200 potential pages we will hyperlink from.
Rank Tracker permits you to monitor your Google rankings over time. You may observe rankings from any nation, metropolis, zip, or postal code. On prime of that, you’ll be able to phase your key phrases utilizing tags and observe your efficiency towards your rivals.
Within the Rank Tracker Overview, you’ll be able to see charts that offer you a pleasant visualization of assorted classes like share of voice, common place, site visitors, SERP options, and positions. And these graphs are affected by the filters you set.

Beneath these teams is the info desk the place you’ll see rating, key phrase, and site visitors information for every tracked key phrase.

A cool function in Rank Tracker is that we maintain observe of your rivals too:
14. Mechanically observe your rivals’ rankings
Go to the Opponents overview report and also you’ll see the identical information, plus how your rivals are performing for each key phrase.

Even when you didn’t add any tracked rivals to your challenge, you’ll be able to nonetheless get competitor insights by going to the Opponents site visitors share report.

This report exhibits you all of your natural search rivals to your tracked key phrases. In the event you have a look at the Pages tab, you’ll be able to see the precise pages you’re competing with in natural search. In the event you go to the Domains tab, you’ll see all web sites rating to your tracked key phrases.

For instance, each HubSpot and Shopify personal a variety of site visitors for our tracked key phrases. So, they doubtless rank for a ton of subjects that is perhaps fascinating for our personal weblog, which suggests we may dig deeper into them in Website Explorer.
Content material Explorer is a search engine for entrepreneurs with billions of pages in its index. Seek for any subject, and also you’ll see all pages that match your question, together with their search engine optimization and social metrics.
One of the best half: You may apply any mixture of filters to dig into the information.
Listed here are some use circumstances for Content material Explorer:
15. Discover low-competition subjects with excessive search site visitors potential
Right here’s how:
- Enter a broad question (e.g., backpack)
- Set a Referring domains filter <10 (to search out low-competition subjects)
- Set a Web page site visitors filter >500 (to search out subjects with excessive site visitors potential)
- Set a Phrase depend filter >500 (to search out weblog content material)

For instance, this looks like an incredible subject to cowl for an internet site that sells backpacks:

Click on the Web page site visitors field and also you’ll see the precise key phrases it ranks for, its rating positions, and extra:

16. Discover visitor submit alternatives
Right here’s how:
- Enter a niche-related question (e.g., knitting)
- Set a DR filter of 30-65 (to search out low- to mid-authority web sites)
- Set a Web site site visitors filter of >5,000 (to search out websites that get an excellent quantity of search site visitors)
- Set a Phrase depend filter of >500 (to slim outcomes to weblog content material)

Head to the Web sites tab to see websites that match our filters:

Eyeball the report to search out potential websites to pitch. For instance, a website like Nimble Needles would make an excellent visitor submit goal.
Internet Explorer permits you to search by means of all pages, domains, and hyperlinks which are listed by Yep, which is our search engine. This index is round 500 billion pages, ~36 occasions bigger than Content material Explorer’s index.
Principally, you’ll be able to search by means of nearly something and filter them down by search engine optimization metrics.
Listed here are some use circumstances:
17. Discover unlinked model mentions
Unlinked point out hyperlink constructing is when you:
- Discover pages that point out your model however don’t hyperlink to you
- Attain out and ask them to hyperlink to you
The explanation why this tactic works properly is as a result of the battle is midway gained. They know who you might be and doubtless such as you, however they might have simply forgotten to hyperlink to you.
To search out unlinked mentions, seek for [your brand] -outlinkdomain:[yourwebsite].com -site:[yourwebsite].com
.

You’ll see over 61 million pages that point out Ahrefs however don’t hyperlink to us.
18. Search niche-relevant pages that hyperlink out to Amazon affiliate URLs
For instance, let’s say you need to discover pages on gardening that hyperlink out to Amazon affiliate URLs. The explanation you may search that is to search out potential acquisition targets, discover web sites that is perhaps taken with becoming a member of your associates program, or discover affiliate content material concepts to your personal gardening web site.
To search out these pages, run this search: “gardening” (outlinkdomain:amazon.com OR outlinkdomain:amzn.to)

You’ll see 14 million pages that match this question.
FYI, if you wish to discover extra use circumstances in Internet Explorer, merely hit the Examples tab.

Remaining ideas
We’ve barely scratched the floor with all accessible use circumstances in Ahrefs. That’s why we’ve additionally created a 7-hour certification course that digs deep into how Ahrefs works. I extremely advocate checking it out.
Although we’ve lined our core instruments, we have now another instruments as properly.
Take a look at Aggressive Evaluation, which incorporates instruments like Content material Hole and Hyperlink Intersect.

Our Batch Evaluation instrument permits you to get search engine optimization metrics on as much as 200 targets in seconds:

And don’t neglect to put in our free search engine optimization toolbar the place you may get Ahrefs metrics laid over your SERPs and internet pages.

Any questions or feedback? Let me know on X (Twitter).