A competitor analysis report turns what you learned about your rivals into something another person can read in ten minutes and act on. This guide explains what the report should contain, shows a complete example you can copy, and gives a blank template for your own. The example company and its competitors are invented so the structure is easy to see; every figure in it is demonstration data.
What is a competitor analysis report?
It is a short document, usually two to six pages, that answers three questions: who are we up against, how do we compare, and what should we do about it. A founder writes one before choosing what to build, a product team before a pricing change, and an agency for a client entering a new market.
The research behind it is a competitor analysis. The report is the part other people see, so it has to stand on its own: every claim dated, every number traceable to where it was read. If the reader is a lender or an investor and the report is going into a plan, use the competitor analysis example for a business plan instead, which follows the shorter format they expect.
What should a competitor report include?
Eight sections, in this order. Skip one only if you can say why it does not apply.
Executive summary
Three to five sentences, written last and placed first: the market in one line, who leads it, where they are weak, and what you recommend. Many readers stop here, so it has to carry the conclusion.
Competitor overview
One row per competitor: what they sell, who they sell it to, roughly how big they are, and whether they are a direct competitor, an indirect one or an alternative. Five to eight rows is enough. If you are not sure which is which, see direct vs indirect competitors.
Pricing comparison
Entry price, most popular plan, what the price is charged per (user, project, usage) and whether there is a free plan or trial. Convert everything to the same unit and note the date you read each price. When a price is not published, say so and give the best public estimate with its source; the guide on how to find competitor pricing lists where to look.
Feature comparison
A matrix of the eight to twelve capabilities buyers actually choose on, marked yes, partial or no for each competitor. Leave out features every product has and features nobody asks for: they make the table longer without changing the decision.
Market position
Who each competitor says they are for, in their own words from their homepage, and the one thing they lead with. Two axes that matter to your buyer (for example price and ease of setup) are enough to show where the crowd sits and where the space is.
Strengths and weaknesses
Two or three of each per competitor, taken from evidence: what reviewers praise, what they complain about, what the product visibly does well. Opinions without a source do not belong here.
Market gaps
What no competitor does well for a customer who wants it: a missing feature, an ignored audience, an empty price band. Each gap needs a reason to believe someone will pay, which is covered in how to find a gap in the market.
Opportunities and recommendations
What to do, in order, and what would change your mind. A report that ends with observations instead of a recommendation has left the hard part to the reader.
Competitor report example
Example / demonstration data. The company (LedgerLeaf, invoicing for freelance designers), the competitors and every figure below are invented to show the format. Do not cite them as market facts.
Executive summary
Freelance designers invoice through general small-business tools built for bookkeepers. Three products hold most of the visible market; all three price per user and none handles the way design work is actually billed, by milestone with a deposit. Reviews of the two largest repeat the same complaint about setup time. We recommend entering with milestone invoicing for solo designers at a flat price under the cheapest paid plan, and not competing on accounting features.
Competitor overview
| Competitor | Type | Sells to | Leads with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billwise | Direct | Small businesses, any trade | Full accounting |
| InvoKit | Direct | Freelancers | Fast invoices |
| StudioBooks | Direct | Creative agencies, 5+ staff | Project profitability |
| Spreadsheet and a PDF | Alternative | New freelancers | Free |
Pricing comparison
| Billwise | InvoKit | StudioBooks | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry paid plan | $19 / user / month | $12 / user / month | $45 / user / month |
| Most popular plan | $35 / user / month | $24 / user / month | $79 / user / month |
| Free plan | No, 30-day trial | Yes, 3 clients | No, demo only |
| Charged per | User | User | User |
| Price read on | Pricing page, 2 Oct | Pricing page, 2 Oct | Sales quote in a review, Aug |
Feature comparison
| Capability | Billwise | InvoKit | StudioBooks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recurring invoices | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Milestone billing with deposit | No | Partial | Yes |
| Client approval before invoicing | No | No | Partial |
| Time tracking | Add-on | Yes | Yes |
| Setup in under an hour | No | Yes | No |
Market position
Billwise and StudioBooks both sit at the complete, expensive, slow-to-set-up end. InvoKit is cheap and quick but generic. Nobody is positioned as quick to set up and built for how designers bill.
Strengths and weaknesses
- Billwise: trusted by accountants and widely integrated; reviewers call setup long and the interface heavy for one person.
- InvoKit: fastest to a first invoice and has a free plan; milestone billing is a workaround and reports are thin.
- StudioBooks: the only one with real project billing; priced and designed for agencies, with no plan for a solo designer.
Market gaps
- Milestone billing with a deposit, for one person, at a freelancer price.
- Client sign-off on a milestone before the invoice goes out.
- A flat price: all three charge per user, which solo buyers read as paying for seats they do not have.
Opportunities and recommendations
- Launch for solo designers only, with milestone billing and client approval as the two headline features.
- Price flat, below InvoKit's most popular plan, with a free plan limited by clients rather than time.
- Leave accounting to an export. Revisit if more than a third of trial users ask for it.
A competitor report template you can copy
Paste these headings into a document and fill them in. Keep each answer to the length given.
- Executive summary (3 to 5 sentences): the market, the leader, the weakness, your recommendation.
- Competitor overview (table, 5 to 8 rows): name, type, who they sell to, what they lead with.
- Pricing comparison (table): entry plan, popular plan, free plan or trial, pricing unit, date read.
- Feature comparison (matrix, 8 to 12 rows): yes, partial or no per competitor.
- Market position (1 paragraph or a two-axis chart): where each sits and where the space is.
- Strengths and weaknesses (2 to 3 each, with a source).
- Market gaps (3 to 5 bullets, each with a reason someone would pay).
- Opportunities and recommendations (numbered, in order, with what would change your mind).
- Sources and dates: every page you read and when.
What makes a competitor report weak
- No dates. Prices and features change; an undated report cannot be trusted or updated.
- A feature list with no conclusion. The reader wants to know what to do, not only what exists.
- Only the famous competitors. The rival that matters is often the small one aimed at your exact customer.
- Written once. A report from six months ago describes a different market. Re-check prices and launches on a schedule; see how to monitor competitor websites.
Generate a competitor report with SignalDart
Gathering the facts is the slow part. SignalDart finds the competitors for an idea, reads their pricing and feature pages, compares them and writes the result as a cited market research report you can export to PDF or PowerPoint, with the page each figure came from. The competitor analysis tool builds the comparison, and competitor monitoring tells you when a price or a feature in the report has changed.