SaaS competitor analysis template: copy it, fill it in, keep it current

Most competitor analysis templates are either a 40-column grid that is out of date a month after you fill it in, or a SWOT box that never says where an answer came from.

This template is built for small SaaS teams. It has four short tabs, every answer carries a source link and a date, and each field has a refresh schedule, so you know which parts go stale quickly and which can wait a quarter. Copy the tables below into a spreadsheet, or download the CSV (no email, no sign-up) and open it in Google Sheets, Excel or Numbers.

The four tabs

Tab 1: Scope (write this first)

Before you collect anything, write one line at the top of the sheet:

“We are comparing [competitors] for [buyer] who need [job], so we can decide [decision] by [date].”

The decision tells you which fields matter. If you're writing a comparison page, you need verbatim messaging and proof. If you're reviewing your own pricing, you need plan limits and trial terms in detail.

Then list your competitors. Three to five is enough to start:

• Direct competitors: the products prospects name on calls, in trial surveys, or in lost-deal notes.
• One indirect alternative: a broader tool that covers your job as a side feature.
• The “do nothing” option: a spreadsheet, or not solving the problem at all. Small SaaS products often lose to this, so it belongs in the comparison.

Give each a status (Active, Watching, Dropped) and name one owner for the sheet, plus a backup.

Tab 2: Competitor profiles

This is the core of the template. Put fields in rows and competitors in columns, with your own product in the first column. Add three columns at the end of the sheet: source URL, checked on and fact or inference.

Resist adding rows until a decision needs them. Revenue estimates and headcount are interesting, but they rarely change what you do this quarter, and they're often guesses.

How to fill it in without fooling yourself

Work through each competitor's site in the same order, so the profiles are comparable:

1. Homepage. Copy the headline and subheading exactly. Paraphrasing loses the thing you're trying to capture: the words they chose.
2. Pricing page. Look at it logged out, in a private window. Flip the monthly/annual toggle and note both prices. Read the footnotes and the plan comparison table, because limits often live there rather than on the plan cards. Prices can differ by country or currency, so note which one you saw.
3. Changelog or release notes. Skim the last 90 days. You're looking for direction (what they keep investing in), not a complete list. If you can't find one, the website monitoring guide lists the usual places to look.
4. Docs, help center and customers page. For limits that marketing pages leave vague, and the kind of customer they want to be seen with.
5. Your own notes. Lost-deal reasons, sales calls and support conversations that mention switching. Often the most valuable evidence you have.

Three rules keep the profiles honest:

• Every cell gets a source and a date. “Pricing page, checked 3 March” is enough. When someone asks “are we sure?” six weeks later, you can check.
• Mark facts and inferences separately. “Entry plan is $X per month” is a fact. “They're moving upmarket” is an inference; write down what it's based on.
• “Not public” is a valid answer. Not finding a feature on their site doesn't prove they lack it. Write “not found on public pages” rather than “No”.

Stick to public pages; don't sign up under a false identity to look inside a product. Before you call it done, save a dated copy of each competitor's pricing page with the Wayback Machine or a full-page screenshot. It gives you a baseline to compare against later.

Tab 3: The comparison matrix

The comparison tab answers the buyer's question: which one fits me? Keep it to 6–10 criteria your buyers actually decide on, such as things they ask about on calls or mention when they choose someone else. Score each one:

• Yes: clearly available on the plan a typical buyer would choose
• Partial: available with a catch (higher tier only, add-on, workaround)
• No: their own pages say it isn't offered
• Unknown: not found on public pages

An illustrative layout, with made-up products:

Example rows are illustrative, not real companies.

Score your own product with the same rules, including the “Partial” answers you'd rather not write. And compare the plan a typical buyer would pick, not their top plan against your entry plan.

Tab 4: The change log

A competitor analysis is a snapshot, and competitors change their sites constantly. The change log keeps it current. Use these columns: date, competitor, page, what changed, type (pricing, plan limits, feature, messaging) and what it means for us. When a change affects a profile field, update the profile and its “checked on” date at the same time.

The last column is the one that matters. For a full weekly routine, see how to monitor competitor websites for changes.

How often to refresh each part

Fields go stale at different speeds:

The weekly part is a quick check of two pages per competitor. Pricing pages need the most care; how to track competitor pricing changes covers exactly what to record and how to compare versions.

Turn it into decisions

A filled-in template is an input, not the result. Under the scope line, write a short summary that answers three questions:

1. Where do we clearly win for the buyer in the scope line, with evidence?
2. Where do we clearly lose, and is that a gap to close or a buyer we should stop chasing?
3. What will we do in the next 30 days: a message to test, a page to write, a pricing question to raise, a feature to research. Give each item an owner.

A competitor adding a feature or cutting a price is information, not an instruction. Often the best response is sharper messaging, not a copy.

Keeping it current: by hand or automated

For three to five competitors, the weekly part is manageable by hand: a bookmarks folder, a feed reader for changelogs that publish a feed, and a fixed slot each week.

If the weekly check keeps slipping, you can automate the parts that change most. RivalryRadar is a competitor-monitoring tool for small SaaS teams: you add a competitor's URL and it checks their homepage, pricing page and changelog every day, ignores noise like dates and counters, labels each real change (pricing, plan limits, feature or messaging) and sends a plain-English digest by email, which maps onto the weekly rows and the change log in this template. The Free plan covers 2 competitors with a monthly digest; Solo ($9.50/mo, 5 competitors) sends a weekly digest; Team ($24.50/mo, 15 competitors) and Agency ($74.50/mo, 50 competitors) send daily digests and can post to Slack. It only watches those three page types, so the quarterly fields, your own sales notes and the decisions stay with you. You can get a free sample report on one competitor without an account.

If you want a head start on one profile, there's also a one-off Competitor Teardown ($19, no subscription): an AI-written report on one competitor's positioning, pricing and plan limits, recent changelog items, likely weak spots and moves to consider, based on their public pages. Treat it like any other source: check the key facts against their site before acting on them.

Checklist

• Scope line written: competitors, buyer, job, decision, date
• 3–5 competitors, including one indirect alternative and “do nothing”
• One owner and a backup named
• Profile filled in for each competitor and for you, with a source URL and date on every answer
• Facts and inferences marked; gaps written as “not found on public pages”
• Dated baseline of each pricing page saved
• Comparison matrix of 6–10 buyer criteria, scored with the same rules for everyone
• Change log started, with a “what it means for us” column
• Weekly, monthly and quarterly refreshes on the calendar
• Summary with two or three dated actions and owners

Download the template as CSV (opens in Google Sheets, Excel or Numbers).