Ahrefs Content Explorer API

Search billions of indexed pages to find blogs that accept guest posts, analyze top-performing content in your niche, and identify content placement opportunities. Content Explorer combines web search with Ahrefs SEO metrics, making it the primary discovery engine for guest posting at scale.

Authentication

Authorization: Bearer {AHREFS_API_TOKEN}

Requires Ahrefs Standard ($199/mo) or higher.

Core Operations

Search for blogs accepting guest posts

GET https://api.ahrefs.com/v3/content-explorer/search
Authorization: Bearer {token}

Query params:
  query="write for us" AND "{your_niche_keyword}"
  select=url,title,domain_rating,organic_traffic,referring_domains,word_count,published_date
  where=domain_rating>=30 AND organic_traffic>=500
  order_by=domain_rating:desc
  limit=200

Vary the query to cover all guest post signals:

• "write for us" AND "saas" — explicit guest post pages
• "guest post" AND "marketing automation" — sites mentioning guest posts
• "contribute" AND "submit article" AND "B2B" — contribution guidelines pages
• "guest author" AND "{topic}" — sites that have published guest authors before
• intitle:"guest post by" AND "{niche}" — live guest posts on target sites

Analyze a specific blog's content profile

GET https://api.ahrefs.com/v3/content-explorer/search
Authorization: Bearer {token}

Query params:
  query=site:targetblog.com
  select=url,title,organic_traffic,referring_domains,word_count,published_date,author
  order_by=organic_traffic:desc
  limit=100

Use this to understand what content performs best on a target blog before pitching. Identify: popular topics, average word count, publishing frequency, and whether they have guest authors (check the author field for non-staff names).

Find competitor guest posts

GET https://api.ahrefs.com/v3/content-explorer/search
Authorization: Bearer {token}

Query params:
  query="competitor_founder_name" OR "competitor_company" -site:competitor.com
  select=url,title,domain_rating,organic_traffic,published_date,author
  where=domain_rating>=20
  order_by=domain_rating:desc
  limit=200

Finds articles by or mentioning competitors on third-party sites. These sites are high-probability guest post targets because they already publish content in your space.

Discover high-traffic content gaps

GET https://api.ahrefs.com/v3/content-explorer/search
Authorization: Bearer {token}

Query params:
  query="{your_topic}" -site:yourdomain.com
  select=url,title,organic_traffic,referring_domains,word_count
  where=organic_traffic>=1000
  order_by=organic_traffic:desc
  limit=100

Identify high-traffic articles about your topic on other sites. These topics are proven to drive traffic, making them strong pitch angles for guest posts on the same or similar blogs.

Get content metrics in bulk

POST https://api.ahrefs.com/v3/content-explorer/details
Authorization: Bearer {token}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "urls": [
    "https://blog1.com/guest-post-guidelines",
    "https://blog2.com/write-for-us",
    "https://blog3.com/contribute"
  ],
  "select": ["url", "domain_rating", "organic_traffic", "referring_domains"]
}

Batch-check metrics for a list of candidate blogs. Use to score and tier your target blog list.

Rate Limits

• 60 requests per minute
• Content Explorer queries cost 2-5 API units per request
• Subject to monthly unit allocation

Error Handling

• 401 Unauthorized: Invalid API token.
• 429 Too Many Requests: Rate limited. Back off 60 seconds.
• 400 Bad Request: Check query syntax. Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT) must be uppercase. Use quotes around exact phrases.
• 402 Payment Required: Unit quota exhausted.

Pricing

Included in Ahrefs subscription. Content Explorer requires Standard ($199/mo) or higher.

• Pricing page: https://ahrefs.com/pricing

Alternatives

• SEMrush Content Marketing API ($249.95/mo+): Topic research and content audit capabilities
• BuzzSumo API ($199/mo+): Content discovery by engagement metrics (shares, links)
• SparkToro ($50/mo+): Audience research to find where your ICP reads and engages
• DataForSEO Content Analysis API ($0.002/request): Pay-per-use content metrics
• SimilarWeb API (custom pricing): Traffic data for any domain, useful for scoring blog targets