How to Find Competitors’ Google Ads: A Step-by-Step Guide

Ever tried to peek behind the curtain of your competitors’ Google Ads, only to realize you’re not even sure where the curtain is? I’ve been there. Back when I was first helping teams break into new markets, the question was always: “How do we know what our competitors are doing with their ads—before we spend a single dollar ourselves?” It’s like wanting to see everyone’s poker hand before you ante up. Spoiler: with the right approach, you can get pretty close.

In this guide, I’ll walk you through a practical, step-by-step process for uncovering your competitors’ Google Ads—from spotting their ad placements to dissecting their landing pages. And, because I’m a big believer in making things as easy as possible (I mean, I co-founded for a reason), I’ll show you how to use AI-powered web scraping to automate the heavy lifting—no coding, no headaches, just actionable insights. Ready to outsmart the competition? Let’s dive in.

Why Finding Competitors’ Google Ads Matters for Your Business

Let’s get real: competitor analysis isn’t just for the marketing nerds or the “growth hackers” of the world. It’s for anyone who wants to make smarter decisions—sales, operations, founders, you name it. Especially if you’re gearing up to launch Google Ads campaigns, understanding what others are doing gives you a serious leg up.

Why? Because about . That’s not a typo. If you’re not paying attention to paid placements, you’re missing nearly half the action.

But the benefits go way beyond just “knowing who’s there.” Here’s how competitor analysis in Google Ads can directly impact your business:

Competitor research gives you a . It’s like having a cheat sheet for budget planning, messaging, and landing page design—before you even launch your first campaign.

Understanding the Basics: What Does It Mean to Find Competitors’ Google Ads?

When we talk about “finding competitors’ Google Ads,” we’re really talking about three things:

1. Identifying which companies are running ads for your target keywords (not just your obvious rivals, but also indirect competitors who might be after the same customers).
2. Spotting where those ads appear on the Google Search Engine Results Page (SERP)—usually at the top, marked with “Ad” or “Sponsored.”
3. Analyzing both the ad copy and the landing pages those ads link to.

And here’s a twist: your competitors in Google Ads aren’t always the same as your competitors in the real world. For example, if you sell high-end coffee machines, you’ll see ads from other coffee machine brands (direct competitors), but also from kitchen appliance stores or coffee subscription services (indirect competitors) .

The process doesn’t stop at just seeing who’s there. It’s about capturing the details: the actual ad headlines, descriptions, display URLs, and most importantly, the landing pages. Because let’s face it, the landing page is where the magic (or the disappointment) happens.

And here’s where web scraping comes in. Instead of manually searching dozens of keywords and copying/pasting competitor ads, you can use a tool to automate this process—collecting all the juicy details at scale, and in real time. (More on this soon.)

Traditional Competitor Analysis Tools: Pros, Cons, and Limitations

If you’ve ever Googled “how to spy on competitors’ Google Ads,” you’ve probably run into tools like SEMrush, Ahrefs, or Google’s Auction Insights. These platforms aggregate tons of data about advertisers, keywords, and ad copies. Here’s a quick rundown:

These tools are great for a broad overview—like seeing which keywords a competitor bids on, or viewing historical ad copy. But they have some real limitations:

• You often need to be running ads yourself to access the best data (especially with Auction Insights).
• Data can be out of date—many tools update on a schedule, so you might miss the latest campaigns or A/B tests.
• Cost adds up fast—not ideal if you’re just starting out or only need occasional insights.
• Landing page analysis is limited—most tools show you the URL, but not what’s actually on the page.

If you’re not already running ads, or you want to see the real landing page experience, you’ll need another approach.

The Alternative Path: Using Web Scraping for Competitor Analysis

Here’s where things get interesting. Instead of relying solely on third-party databases, you can use web scraping to collect fresh, real-time data straight from Google’s SERPs and competitor landing pages. Think of it as sending your own research team to gather exactly the info you want—no more, no less.

Why web scraping?

• Direct access to current data: Capture the ads and landing pages as they appear right now, including short-term promos or new competitors.
• No need for an active ad account: Perfect for teams still in research mode.
• Customizable: Collect any data you want—ad extensions, pricing claims, CTA buttons, you name it.
• Cost-effective: Often cheaper than premium tool subscriptions, especially for one-off or periodic projects.

Of course, there are some caveats:

• Legality & ethics: Scraping publicly available data is generally legal, but always respect terms of service and don’t go overboard (don’t bring down anyone’s site, and avoid scraping personal data) ().
• Technical barriers: Traditional scraping required coding, proxies, and HTML parsing. But with AI-powered tools like Thunderbit, you can now do this with plain English instructions—no code required ().
• Data management: You’ll get lots of data quickly—make sure you have a plan for storing and analyzing it.

Step 1: Identify Your Target Keywords for Competitor Analysis

Every good competitor investigation starts with a solid keyword list. After all, the competitors you find will depend on which searches you look at.

How to build your list:

• Start with your core offerings: What do you sell? What problems do you solve? List out product terms, pain points, and feature terms.
• Include branded keywords: Add your competitors’ names and product names to see if they’re bidding on their own brands (or if others are).
• Categorize your keywords: Group them by product, problem, feature, and competitor terms ().
• Validate and expand: Use or third-party tools to check search volumes and find related terms.
• Don’t forget long-tail and question keywords: These can reveal niche competitors or less crowded opportunities.

Once you’ve got your list (say, 20–50 keywords), prioritize them by importance or search volume. For your first analysis, focus on the top 10–20.

Step 2: Spotting Competitors’ Google Ads in Search Results

Now comes the fun part: seeing who’s actually advertising for your chosen keywords.

How to spot paid ads on Google SERPs:

• Look for “Ad” or “Sponsored” labels: These appear next to paid listings at the top (and sometimes bottom) of the results page ().
• Distinguish from organic results: Organic listings don’t have these labels and usually show a full URL path.
• Note ad extensions: Paid ads often include extra links, callouts, or phone numbers—these are clues to what competitors think is important.

Document your findings in a spreadsheet. For each keyword, list the advertisers, their ad positions, and any notable features. For example:

Pro tip: Use incognito mode or log out of Google to reduce personalization. If location matters, use a VPN or Google’s gl and hl parameters to simulate searches from your target market.

Step 3: Extracting Ad Copy and Landing Page URLs

Spotting the ads is just the start. The real gold is in the details: what the ads say, and where they send users.

What to collect:

• Ad headlines and descriptions: Usually up to 3 headlines and 2 description lines. Look for key benefits, pain points, and CTAs.
• Ad extensions: Note any extra links or features.
• Landing page URLs: Right-click the ad headline and copy the link, or click through (sparingly—don’t make your competitors pay for your research). The actual landing page URL is crucial for the next step.

Manual vs. automated: Doing this by hand for a few keywords is fine, but it gets tedious fast. This is where web scraping tools like Thunderbit shine. With Thunderbit, you can instruct the AI to “scrape the ad headline, description, and final URL for each ad result,” and it’ll produce a structured table for you ().

Example output:

Step 4: Deep Dive—Analyzing Competitor Landing Pages

Clicking through to a competitor’s landing page is like stepping into their digital storefront. Here’s what to look for:

• Page headline and sub-headline: Does it match the ad? What’s the main value prop?
• Call-to-action (CTA) and forms: What are they urging visitors to do? Is the form short or long?
• Key benefits and bullet points: What features or advantages do they highlight?
• Visuals and media: Are there images, videos, or testimonials?
• Trust signals: Client logos, awards, guarantees, or security badges?
• Offer details and pricing: Is pricing shown? Are there discounts or free trials?
• Page layout and length: Is it a short, focused page or a long, detailed one?

Batch extraction with web scraping: With Thunderbit, you can automate this process. For each landing page URL, you can instruct Thunderbit to “extract the main heading, subheading, and the text of the sign-up button,” or whatever elements matter to you. Thunderbit’s AI will figure out what to grab—even if the page structure varies ().

Summarize your findings for each competitor. For example:

• Competitor A: Headline: “Reduce Task Overload by 50%.” CTA: “Start Free Trial.” Key points: automation, integration, time-saving. Short form, minimal navigation.
• Competitor B: Headline: “Project Management for Marketing Teams.” CTA: “Get a Demo.” Long page, video testimonials, no pricing shown.

This gives you a clear view of their conversion tactics and unique selling points.

Step 5: Bringing It All Together—Using Thunderbit for AI-Powered Web Scraping

Now for the fun part: how to use to automate everything above, even if you’re not a developer.

Step 5.1: Install Thunderbit

Thunderbit is a Chrome extension—. There’s a free tier, so you can try it out risk-free. Once installed, you’ll see a side panel in your browser.

Step 5.2: Scrape Google Search Results for Ads

• Open Google, search your target keyword.
• Activate Thunderbit. In the interface, use plain English: “Get the title, description, and URL of each ad on this page.”
• Thunderbit’s AI will suggest columns (Ad Title, Ad Description, Ad URL) automatically ().
• Click “Scrape.” In seconds, you’ll have a table with all the ad data.

Step 5.3: Use Subpage Scraping for Landing Pages

• With your list of landing page URLs, use Thunderbit’s subpage scraping feature.
• For each URL, instruct Thunderbit: “Extract the main heading, subheading, and the text of the sign-up button.”
• Thunderbit will auto-detect these elements and fill in your table.
• Repeat for all competitor pages.

Step 5.4: Export and Analyze

• Export your data to Google Sheets, Airtable, or Notion with one click ().
• Analyze patterns: Which CTAs are common? Who’s offering free trials? What features are emphasized?

Thunderbit’s key features for this workflow:

• No-code, natural language scraping—just describe what you want.
• AI field suggestions—Thunderbit figures out what data to grab.
• Subpage navigation—scrape both ads and landing pages in one flow.
• Easy export—integrate with your favorite tools.
• Reusable templates—set up once, rerun anytime for ongoing monitoring.

If you want to see this in action, check out the for step-by-step demos.

Comparing Methods: Traditional Tools vs. Web Scraping with Thunderbit

Let’s put it all in a table:

Which should you use?

• Pre-launch or one-off research: Thunderbit is ideal—get real ad copy and landing pages without a big investment.
• Ongoing, broad monitoring: Traditional tools can help, but Thunderbit is great for regular, focused checks (and is budget-friendly).
• Hybrid approach: Use a tool for the big picture, Thunderbit for the details.

Tips for Making the Most of Your Competitor Analysis

Collecting data is just the start. Here’s how to turn it into real business value:

1. Refine your ad copy and messaging: Don’t copy competitors—learn what works and then differentiate. If everyone says “easy to use,” maybe you highlight “most customizable” or show proof of ease.
2. Adjust your keyword strategy: Spot gaps or overcrowded terms. Test new keywords you found in competitor ads, and avoid bidding wars where you can’t win.
3. Optimize your landing pages: Mimic effective elements (clear headlines, trust badges), but also find ways to stand out (unique offers, better UX).
4. Develop counter-messaging and offers: If competitors all push free trials, maybe you offer a longer trial or a unique bonus. If they avoid pricing, maybe you highlight your affordability.
5. Monitor regularly: The PPC landscape changes fast. Set a routine to check competitors monthly, or use Thunderbit’s scheduling to automate it.
6. Translate insights into action: Make your findings specific and measurable—test new headlines, landing page layouts, or bidding strategies, and track results.
7. Stay true to your brand: Don’t chase every competitor move. Use their tactics as inspiration, but keep your own voice and strategy.
8. Share findings across teams: Sales, support, and product teams can all benefit from knowing what competitors are promising.

And don’t forget: keep a “competitor swipe file” of notable ads and landing pages. It’s a goldmine for future brainstorming.

Conclusion & Key Takeaways

Uncovering your competitors’ Google Ads strategy isn’t rocket science—it’s detective work, with a dash of automation. Here’s the process in a nutshell:

• Identify your target keywords—the battlegrounds where you and your competitors meet.
• Spot competitors’ ads on the SERPs—see who’s bidding, and how often.
• Extract ad copy and landing page URLs—get the real messaging and offers.
• Analyze landing pages—see how competitors convert clicks into customers.
• Leverage AI-powered web scraping tools like Thunderbit—automate the entire workflow, even if you’re not technical.
• Compare traditional and scraping methods—use both for a full picture.
• Act on your insights—refine your ads, landing pages, and strategy. Make competitor analysis a habit, not a one-off.

Paid search is a huge slice of the digital pie—don’t let your competitors eat it all. With the right process and tools, you can launch smarter, optimize faster, and maybe even have a little fun along the way (I mean, who doesn’t love a good digital stakeout?).

If you’re ready to start, , check out more , and let’s make your next Google Ads campaign your most informed—and effective—yet.

FAQs

1. Why should I analyze my competitors’ Google Ads before launching my own campaigns?

Analyzing competitor ads helps you understand what messaging, offers, and landing page strategies are already working in your market. It allows you to make informed decisions on your own ad copy, keyword targeting, and landing page design—saving time and budget.

2. What can I learn from my competitors’ Google Ads?

You can uncover their calls-to-action, promotional tactics, product positioning, and even their bid strategies. By analyzing both the ad text and the linked landing pages, you get a full view of how they attract and convert customers.

3. What are the limitations of traditional competitor analysis tools like SEMrush or Ahrefs?

While powerful, these tools can be expensive and often show estimated or delayed data. They may not provide the actual landing page experience or the most recent ad tests. Also, some tools require you to be actively running ads to get access to certain insights.

4. How does Thunderbit help with competitor ad analysis?

Thunderbit lets you scrape real-time Google search results and competitor landing pages using simple, natural language instructions—no code needed. It automates the entire process, from capturing ad copy to extracting key landing page elements like headlines and CTAs.

5. Is web scraping Google Ads legal and ethical?

Scraping publicly available data from search results and landing pages is generally legal, provided you avoid excessive requests and don’t collect personal information. Tools like Thunderbit make it easy to stay within ethical boundaries while gaining valuable insights.