GMap

Editable template

Competitive Analysis Template

Use this competitive analysis template to compare the same buyer-relevant criteria for your offer, direct rivals and substitutes. Fill in each option’s customer, offer, pricing, strengths and weaknesses; keep a source and checked date beside the claim; then state what you will do differently. Edit here or download a blank CSV without signing in.

Use the workspace See the method

Workspace

Start with a usable artifact

Name one buyer and one decision first. The starter options are illustrative, not real vendor facts. Replace them with alternatives your buyer would actually consider.

Optional AI starting draft

Enter 2–10 options or actors. AI organizes them into a comparison matrix. Suggestions and scores are unverified hypotheses. The manual editor on this page is free.

Names and notes are sent to the configured AI provider. Do not enter confidential information or personal names.

100 credits per draft

Editable comparison matrix

Example labels are placeholders. Add your evidence before sharing a conclusion.

Your product

Alternative A

Alternative B

Method

From research to a decision

  1. 1

    Add your offer, two or three direct rivals, and a relevant substitute; keep the buyer and use case consistent.

  2. 2

    Enter offer, pricing, strengths and weaknesses using a source and checked date for each option. Mark unavailable prices as unknown or quote-only.

  3. 3

    Write the decision implication: which positioning, product or sales action changes? Export a CSV so others can check the evidence.

Example to adapt

For a B2B analytics product, compare your offer, two direct analytics tools and a spreadsheet workflow for the same buyer. Record each product’s reporting task, public pricing or “quote-only,” a source URL and the date checked; leave unverified claims unknown.

Make the first draft useful

Compare alternatives for one buyer

Start with the customer and the decision, not a directory of every company. UK government guidance recommends looking beyond obvious direct rivals to relevant indirect and regional alternatives. A substitute belongs in the table when it solves the same buyer need differently.

business.gov.uk: competitor scope

Make a claim checkable

Use comparable fields for every option and attach a source and checked date. Competitor sites, published accounts and customers can inform pricing research, but quote-only or missing data should stay unknown. For public companies, SEC filings are another source; they do not reveal every private rival’s revenue.

business.gov.uk: pricing sources

End with a decision, not a score

A comparison only helps when it changes a choice: positioning, product priority, sales explanation or a question for customers. Australian government research guidance calls for findings and actions; Nielsen Norman Group likewise frames a UX comparison around recommendations, not just declaring a winner.

Australian Government: act on research

Common question

Can I use this template in Excel or Google Sheets?

Yes. Download the blank or filled CSV and import it into Excel or Google Sheets. CSV is a portable spreadsheet format, not a native XLSX workbook; the page also does not generate Word or PDF versions.

Keep exploring

Related workflows

All tools

Competitor Analysis Tool

Compare competitors side by side, turn observations into a decision, and export your working matrix.

Competitive Landscape

Map the competitive landscape around one buyer decision. Compare direct rivals, substitutes and manual options in a free, editable matrix with CSV export.

Competitive Overview Template

Prepare a concise, evidence-led overview of the alternatives a buyer considers.

Competitor Discovery Workspace

Turn a customer problem into a verifiable shortlist of direct competitors, substitutes and adjacent options.