SEO & marketing tools / Keyword research16 tools
Best keyword research tools
Find what people search for and how hard it is to rank. Facts come from each tool's own pages, and every score says where it comes from. How we rank
- Tools
- 16
- Researched
- 10
- Free option
- 3
- Only listed
- 6
Ranked by signals we can measure or quote: website health, the facts each tool's own pages state, and community discussion. Nothing here has been hands-on tested yet, so this is not a quality test. How the signals rank works
Want two of these head to head? Compare tools side by side.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- Not stated.
- Paid plan
- Not stated.
- Signup
- An account is required to select and use plans. The page says: “Sign In and Select.”
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Not stated.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-04. Sources: Pricing. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Read automatically by a program, not by a person. Each fact quotes the sentence it came from, and a fact is shown only if that sentence is on the page. Where a page did not say, it reads “Not stated.”
Details and sources
- Free tier
- The free version provides 5 lookups per 24 hours, with 15 related and 5 competitor keywords per lookup. The page says: “Get 5 lookups per 24 hours, 15 related and 5 competitor keywords per lookup for free.”
- Paid plan
- Not stated.
- Signup
- A free account is required. The page says: “Create a FREE account.”
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Not stated.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-08. Sources: Home, Privacy. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Read automatically by a program, not by a person. Each fact quotes the sentence it came from, and a fact is shown only if that sentence is on the page. Where a page did not say, it reads “Not stated.”
Details and sources
- Free tier
- Not stated.
- Paid plan
- Not stated.
- Signup
- An account is required to use Moz Pro. The page says: “We may collect or obtain information about you when you sign up, when you create profiles, pages or contributions, when you use and interact with our services and when you make your personal information public.”
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Data is processed by third party processors such as analytic providers and data centers located anywhere in the world. The page says: “third party Processors (such as analytic providers; data centers; etc.), located anywhere in the world, subject to the requirements and limitations;.”
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-04. Sources: Privacy. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Read automatically by a program, not by a person. Each fact quotes the sentence it came from, and a fact is shown only if that sentence is on the page. Where a page did not say, it reads “Not stated.”
Details and sources
- Free tier
- A free plan at $0 per month, no credit card required. Limits: 1 demo project and 10 reports per day across its tools. A 7-day free trial of paid plans is also offered.
- Paid plan
- Billed annually, per month: SEO $117.33, Starter $165.17, Pro+ $248.17. Monthly billing is $139, $199 and $299. Advanced and Enterprise are custom priced. Prices shown in US dollars; the page does not say if they vary by country.
- Signup
- Not stated. The free plan button links to a signup page.
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Semrush is US-based. Data may be transferred to the US, other countries and US service providers. Personal data is kept as long as reasonably necessary, then anonymized or deleted. No specific retention periods are given.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-01. Sources: Semrush pricing, Semrush privacy policy. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- 14-day free trial, no credit card required. Trial limits are not stated. No permanent free plan is stated.
- Paid plan
- Shown in $ (monthly): Lite $69, Business $99, Pro $159, Premium $299. Keywords per plan: 100, 500, 2,000, 5,000. Yearly billing gives 2 months free; yearly prices not stated.
- Signup
- Trial starts by entering a website in a signup modal; whether an account is needed is not explicitly stated.
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Privacy page says information you provide is stored on its secure servers; server location and retention periods are not stated. Website or keyword data is not mentioned by name.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-01. Sources: Pricing, Privacy policy. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- Not stated.
- Paid plan
- Not stated.
- Signup
- Not stated.
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- SE Ranking stores data in its databases. The page says: “We regularly expand our databases and securely store them.”
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-04. Sources: Home. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Read automatically by a program, not by a person. Each fact quotes the sentence it came from, and a fact is shown only if that sentence is on the page. Where a page did not say, it reads “Not stated.”
Details and sources
- Free tier
- Not stated.
- Paid plan
- Keyword Tool Pro is the advanced version that provides more keywords and additional features compared to the free version. The page says: “The advanced version of Keyword Tool, Keyword Tool Pro, provides more keywords in comparison to the free version and offers a handful of other useful features.”
- Signup
- An account is not required to use the free version of the tool. The page says: “Free to use , even without creating an account.”
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Not stated.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-08. Sources: Home. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Read automatically by a program, not by a person. Each fact quotes the sentence it came from, and a fact is shown only if that sentence is on the page. Where a page did not say, it reads “Not stated.”
Details and sources
- Free tier
- No permanent free tier is described. A 7-day free trial is offered, with no payment details needed to start. Trial limits are not stated.
- Paid plan
- Monthly: Launch $39, Growth $89, Scale $149, Authority $299. With annual billing, per month: $31.20, $71.20, $119.20, $239.20. Any currency can be chosen at payment. Taxes may apply by country.
- Signup
- Not stated. The page refers to buying plans from within your account.
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- The privacy policy does not say where data is stored. Google user data and tokens are stored encrypted and deleted when you disconnect, delete your account or revoke access, except limited records kept for legal reasons. No general retention period is given.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-01. Sources: Ranktracker pricing, Ranktracker privacy policy. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- The pricing page lists an Ahrefs Free option to get data on your own site. It does not state its limits.
- Paid plan
- Per month: Starter $29, Lite $129, Standard $249, Advanced $449, Enterprise $1,499 with an annual commitment. Annual payment saves up to 17%. The page does not say if prices vary by country.
- Signup
- Not stated. Plan buttons link to signup pages.
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- Not stated.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-01. Sources: Ahrefs pricing. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Details and sources
- Free tier
- Not stated.
- Paid plan
- Not stated.
- Signup
- Not stated.
- Watermark
- Not stated.
- Where files go
- The privacy policy does not say where data is stored. Usage data is usually kept for ten years or until consent is withdrawn. After account deletion, some data is kept for regulatory and service needs and other data is deleted within 72 hours.
From the tool's own pages, checked 2026-11-01. Sources: Serpstat privacy policy. Prices and limits change; check the tool before you rely on them.
Answers come from each tool's own pages (“Unclear” means they do not say). Tick “Compare” on two to four tools to read them side by side.
Also listed (6, not yet tested)
Each of these answered when we visited its site. We have not tested them or recorded facts, so they are in alphabetical order, not ranked.
- Google Keyword PlannerOpen
Get your ads to the right customers with Google Ad's Keyword Planner. Discover how to do keyword research and get keyword suggestions for your campaign.
- Keywords EverywhereOpen
Keywords Everywhere is a free Chrome, Firefox and Edge extension that shows search volume, CPC, competition and trends on Google, YouTube, Amazon and more.
- SimilarwebOpen
Similarweb is an AI-powered digital data company providing real-time market intelligence, competitive insights, and consumer trends to accelerate business growth.
- SpyFuOpen
Search for a competitor. See their PPC and SEO secrets, download their best keywords, get the backlinks that drive their rankings, and laugh at their mistakes.
- UbersuggestOpen
Ubersuggest is a FREE SEO tool that enables you to do keyword research, analyze competitors, do site audits and more! Level up your marketing today.
- WordtrackerOpen
The best FREE alternative to the Keyword Planner. Use Wordtracker to reveal 1000s of profitable longtail keywords with up to 10,000 results per search
Other SEO & marketing tools rankings
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