It is very easy to be overwhelmed by the number of keyword research tools available these days. Each tool has its own unique selling point, but it is tough to determine which one is the right fit for you. It is even more difficult for beginners who just stepped into the SEO world. That is why we have compiled the five best free keyword research tools that are very much beginner-friendly.
Whether you are a fresh-on-the-block content marketer, copywriter, blogger, or let’s say from an early-stage startup, these tools will definitely bring value to your business or profession:
(P.S. Click on the titles to learn more about each tool.)
1. Google Ads Keyword Planner
Google is the king of search engines, and it is not surprising that people rely on Google tools to learn more about what other people search for on this platform. Keywords Planner is a free Google keyword research tool which helps you search for:
- Fresh keyword ideas using words, phrases, and URLs.
- New keyword combinations from multiple keyword lists.
- Search volume metrics and forecasted keyword performance.
All that is required to access this keyword planner is a Google Ads account. After entering a keyword or a phrase, you will receive a list of relevant keyword ideas along with estimated traffic volume and level of competition for that keyword/phrase. You can also refine your results by using basic filters like location, language, search network and opt out negative keywords.
For this tool, we used the keyword ‘online casino’ as an example.
One of the disadvantages of this tool is that it does not show you an exact figure for average monthly searches of a particular keyword. Instead, it gives you a very broad range like 100K – 1M or 10K – 100K, which might not be useful for organic keyword research.
Since Google Ads is designed mainly for advertisers, it is more suitable for those who want to run ad campaigns and do PPC keyword research.
This creative and rather amusing tool greets you with a grumpy old man impatiently waiting for you to type the keywords in the search box provided. Unlike other keyword research tools, ‘AnswerThePublic’ gives out results in visual charts for the questions, prepositions, comparison searches, relevant keywords (grouped alphabetically), and searches related to the keyword you are looking for.
What’s even better is that you can download the results as a whole in CSV file format or charts as individual images. Alternatively, you can choose to view the results as a list instead of an interactive wheel chart. Let’s use the keyword ‘sandwich,’ as an example this time.
This is an example of a chart for the questions related to the keyword ‘sandwich’ and there are altogether 199 questions listed in it. While it might not always give you the correct grammatical terms, the number of keyword ideas it generates is very impressive. It also supports 12 different languages and is a fantastic tool for content writers and bloggers looking for heaps of content ideas.
3. Ubersuggest
Ubersuggest is one of the three toolkits provided on Neil Patel’s website, and it is a pretty impressive alternative to Google Ads Keyword Planner. (Quick fact: Neil Patel is a marketing agency named after its co-founder. He is a marketing guru and is regarded as one of the top 100 marketers by Forbes Magazine.)
Appearance-wise, It has a beginner-friendly interface and a very clean design. To test out its functionality, we used the word “Chocolate” and chose English/UK for language/location option. Here is what we got:
Apart from the regular search volume results and CPC data, it also produces data for SEO difficulty and paid difficulty for each keyword. Those are a few features which Google Ads Keyword Planner certainly doesn’t offer. If you are looking for an SERP analysis (which is a list of top web pages that rank for that particular word.) of a specific keyword, all you have to do is click on that word.
Ubersuggest is a great tool for you to perform a thorough organic SEO keyword and PPC keyword research with sufficient data. It is an excellent middle ground for both beginners and intermediate-level keyword users.
4. Soovle
Soovle is an interactive keyword research website which suggests you ten results each from sixteen different search engines. These include:
- Browsers/ Directories: Google, Yahoo, Bing, YouTube, Naver, Yandex, Answer.com, Wikipedia, AskTM (ask.com), Baidu
- E-commerce websites: Amazon, eBay, Buy.com, Walmart, AliExpress, Overstock.com
To make the search more fun, it actually gives out suggestions as you type the keyword. You can also customize the number of search engines to be displayed on the results page. Just click on “engines” link at the top right corner of the page to begin customization.
Here is what happened when we searched the term “sports betting” for seven search engines.
All the relevant results from each search engine were revealed in one page as the keyword was being typed into the search box.
As a cherry on top, Soovle can generate the most up-to-date list of top keywords trending on Google, Yahoo, Amazon, AskTM, and YouTube in alphabetical order. If you are a beginner keyword user who wants to get instant results without any complex data, this tool is perfect for you.
5. Keywords Everywhere
Keywords Everywhere is not a website but an awesome browser extension for Chrome and Firefox. (Sorry Opera and Microsoft Edge Users!) Once installed, it will show you the real-time search volume data, cost per click and competition data on sixteen different websites.
The best part is that it is compatible with all the other four keyword research tools we have mentioned in this article. In this way, you can be more efficient and productive in your keyword hunt without jumping from one tool to the other.
Putting it all together
These tools are completely free and easy to use for beginners, but they do have their own limits. The number of keyword suggestions can be quite less, and some of them lack in providing detailed statistics about the keywords that they suggest.
However, at the end of the day, it really depends on what you are looking for. If your goal is to get more keyword suggestions and new content ideas, then ‘Answer The Public’ and ‘Soovle’ are the right tools for you.
On the other hand, Google Ads Keyword Planner, Ubersuggest and Keywords Everywhere can give you more details for a particular keyword which can be used for both SEO and paid ad campaigns.
Once you have mastered the basic free keyword research tools and techniques, you should step up your SEO game with paid keyword research tools which are worth investing your time and money in.
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