Keyword research is essential for growing an online presence. By identifying what users are searching for, you can create content that aligns with their needs and preferences.
This process not only helps in optimising your content for search engines but also improves user engagement by delivering relevant and valuable information. Whether you’re a blogger, content creator, or digital marketer, finding the right keywords can help your visibility in search engines, drive traffic, and increase conversions.
Thankfully, there are several keyword research tools available. Below is a guide to some of the keyword tools on the market (free and paid), along with their features and pricing.
Google Keyword Planner
Type: Free
Ease of Use: Beginner-friendly
Limitations: Requires a Google Ads account
Google Keyword Planner is a free tool within Google Ads that provides insights into keyword search volumes and forecasts. It’s great for both beginners and professionals. It offers keyword suggestions and historical data, making it useful for planning content strategies or paid advertising campaigns.
- Cost: Free
- Cancelation: Not applicable
- Educational Resources: Google provides free courses via Google Skillshop. They are in-depth courses with videos and short tests. Certificates are also available upon successful completion.
- Subscription: None
- Limitations: Requires a Google Ads account, primarily designed for PPC but useful for keyword search volume and competitiveness. A key advantage is the ability to target specific locations, down to cities like Zurich or Berlin, for more localised keyword data.
Ubersuggest
Type: Paid
Ease of Use: Very beginner-friendly
Limitations: Limited access to in-depth data with the free plan
Ubersuggest is another tool offering keyword suggestions, competitor analysis, and site audits. For beginners, it’s incredibly easy to use. There is a 7 day free trial available.
- Cost: Paid plans start at €29 per month
- Cancelation: Cancel anytime
- Educational Resources: Ubersuggest offers free tutorials and videos.
- Subscription: Monthly and yearly plans, no money-back guarantee
- Limitations: No free plan
SEMrush
Type: Paid and free.
Ease of Use: Intermediate, requires some learning
Limitations: Steep learning curve, especially for beginners, can be expensive
SEMrush is one of the most powerful tools for keyword research. It provides keyword suggestions, competitor analysis, search volume data, and much more. SEMrush is well-suited for professionals and businesses that want detailed reports and insights. The free account requires registration and allows for up to 10 searches a day. For those wanting to learn more, SEMrush Academy offers excellent courses covering SEO and other marketing related courses such as content marketing and digital advertising.
- Cost: Starting at $139.95 per month. Up to 17% discount applies if paid annually.
- Cancelation: You can cancel anytime, but it’s a subscription service
- Money-Back Guarantee: 7-day free trial, no official money-back guarantee
- Educational Resources: SEMrush Academy offers free SEO courses and webinars
- Subscription: Monthly and yearly plans
Ahrefs
Type: Paid and free
Ease of Use: Intermediate
Limitations: Complex for beginners but highly detailed
Ahrefs is another leading tool for advanced keyword research. It’s known for its large backlink database and accurate keyword metrics. Ahrefs covers everything from competitor research to site audits, including technical audits (i.e. 404s, redirects and orphan pages), and is widely used by agencies and large businesses. Ahrefs Webmaster Tools offers limited access to some features for free but requires sign up and website ownership.
- Cost: Starting at €119 per month up to yearly costs in the €10,000s depending on the data requirements.
- Cancelation: Cancel anytime
- Money-Back Guarantee: No money-back guarantee.
- Educational Resources: Ahrefs provides free tutorials, SEO guides, and a beginner-friendly YouTube channel which is a great source for learning about SEO.
- Subscription: Monthly with discounts on yearly payments.
Ahrefs results for the keyword “Joggingschuhe” in Switzerland:
KWFinder
Type: Paid (they have a limited free version with a set amount of free lookups with a period of 24 hrs)
Ease of Use: Beginner-friendly
Limitations: Focuses mainly on finding long-tail keywords
KWFinder is excellent for beginners and small businesses looking for long-tail keywords with low competition. It offers search volume, CPC, keyword difficulty, and trends.
- Cost: Starts at €29.90 per month up to €89.90 (if paid annually)
- Cancelation: Cancel anytime
- Money-Back Guarantee: 48-hour refund window
- Educational Resources: Mangools (the parent company) provides blog articles and free guides
- Subscription: Monthly or yearly
Answer the Public
Type: Paid (3 free searches per day upon registration)
Ads: Ad-free
Ease of Use: Very easy to use, perfect for content ideas
Limitations: Limited searches in free plan
Answer the Public is a great tool for discovering questions and content ideas based on user search behaviour. It’s perfect for bloggers and content marketers who want to create targeted, engaging content. The visuals for the data are beautiful with options for wheels, lists and tables.
- Cost: Free with limited searches, Paid plan starts at €11 per month up to €199 depending on searches. They also offer lifetime subscriptions with very competitive pricing.
- Cancelation: Can cancel anytime
- Money-Back Guarantee: None
- Educational Resources: Basic blog resources
- Subscription: Monthly or lifetime
Moz Keyword Explorer
Type: Free (with limited searches) and paid
Ease of Use: Beginner-friendly, but advanced features require experience
Limitations: Limited data in comparison to tools like SEMrush and Ahrefs
Moz Keyword Explorer is a solid tool for businesses that want to improve their SEO efforts. It offers a user-friendly interface with search volume, keyword suggestions, and difficulty metrics. The free versions do require a sign up to get access to more data. They have a variety of free tools to chose from.
- Cost: Moz Pro starts at $49 per month. Discounts for yearly payments.
- Cancelation: Cancel anytime
- Money-Back Guarantee: No official money-back guarantee
- Educational Resources: Moz offers a vast amount of free resources, including guides and tutorials
- Subscription: Monthly, yearly options
Conclusion
To get started, it’s best to combine free and paid keyword research tools. For example, start with free tools like Google Keyword Planner for initial keyword ideas, then move on to paid tools like Keyword Finder, MOZ and Ubersuggest as they are lower cost. These can be better for those starting out on a budget. SEMrush or Ahrefs are great for deeper analysis but also require deeper pockets.
Also, if you’re new to keyword research, many of these tools offer free courses and tutorials that can guide you through the process. Google Skillshop and Ahrefs Academy (both free) are two great resources. Ahrefs also has a fantastic Youtube channel with lots of great videos about SEO and marketing.