Best Free SEO Tools for Keyword Research

Best Free SEO Tools for Keyword Research

Keyword research is the foundation of a successful SEO strategy. Whether you run a blog, an eCommerce store, or a business website, identifying the right keywords helps you attract targeted traffic and improve your rankings on search engines. While there are many premium tools like SEMrush, Ahrefs, and Moz, not everyone has the budget to invest in them. Fortunately, there are several free SEO tools available that can deliver excellent insights for keyword research. Let's explore the best ones in detail.

Google Keyword Planner

Ideal For: Beginners, PPC & SEO planning

Website: ads.google.com

Overview:
Google Keyword Planner is a tool provided by Google Ads. While it's designed for advertisers, it's extremely useful for SEO as well. You can discover new keyword ideas based on your seed keyword or a website URL.

Key Features:

• Search volume data (monthly average)
• Keyword competition level (low, medium, high)
• Top of page bid estimates (helps gauge commercial value)
• Filter keywords by location, language, and device

Pros:

• Accurate data from Google itself
• Easy to use and integrates with Google Ads
• Great for commercial intent keywords

Cons:

• Gives ranges instead of exact search volumes unless you're running ads
• Limited data for non-commercial keywords

Ubersuggest (Free Version)

Ideal For: Bloggers, small business owners

Website: ubersuggest.com

Overview:
Created by Neil Patel, Ubersuggest provides in-depth keyword data and content suggestions. The free version allows limited daily searches but gives rich insights.

Key Features:

• Keyword suggestions with SEO difficulty and search volume
• Domain analysis
• Content ideas based on keyword/topic
• SERP analysis for top-ranking pages

Pros:

• User-friendly interface
• Includes backlinks and domain metrics
• Keyword filtering by country and language

Cons:

• Daily search limits in the free plan
• Limited historical data

Answer The Public

Ideal For: Content marketers, bloggers

Website: answerthepublic.com

Overview:
Answer The Public turns a keyword into a visual map of questions, comparisons, and prepositions. It’s perfect for finding long-tail keywords and understanding search intent.

Key Features:

• Visual keyword cloud (great for brainstorming)
• Sections include "what", "why", "how", "can", and more
• Supports multiple languages and countries

Pros:

• Ideal for creating FAQ and blog content
• Reveals user intent behind searches
• Engaging and intuitive interface

Cons:

• Limited free searches per day
• Doesn’t show search volume or competition

Google Trends

Ideal For: Trend spotting, seasonal keywords

Website: trends.google.com

Overview:
Google Trends is a powerful tool to explore trending keywords over time. It helps you understand keyword popularity in a specific region or timeframe.

Key Features:

• Compare keyword popularity
• Discover related rising queries
• See interest over time and by region
• Identify seasonal trends

Pros:

• Real-time data
• Helps avoid targeting declining keywords
• Useful for news, seasonal or viral content

Cons:

• No specific search volume numbers
• Not ideal for niche keywords

Keyword Surfer (Chrome Extension)

Ideal For: Quick keyword analysis while browsing
Website: Available on Chrome Web Store

Overview:
Keyword Surfer is a free Chrome extension that adds keyword data directly to your Google search results. It’s perfect for on-the-go research.

Key Features:

• Displays keyword search volume directly in Google
• Shows keyword suggestions and related terms
• Displays estimated domain traffic in SERP

Pros:

• Saves time while browsing
• Great for competitor insights
• No need to open a separate tool

Cons:

• Data may vary slightly from other tools
• Only works on desktop (Chrome)

 Also Asked

Ideal For: Finding related questions (great for featured snippets)
Website: alsoasked.com

Overview:
Also Asked explores the “People Also Ask” section from Google and organizes it into a tree structure, showing how users refine their searches.

Key Features:

• Shows question paths based on search intent
• Easy to visualize content clusters
• Export data as CSV or image

Pros:

• Helps plan topic clusters
• Great for voice search optimization
• Visual content mapping

Cons:

• Limited free searches per month
• Not much SEO metric data (volume/difficulty)

Conclusion

Keyword research is crucial for driving organic traffic and achieving higher rankings on search engines. While premium tools offer extensive features, the free tools listed above are powerful enough to cover most of your needs, especially if you’re just starting.

Here’s a quick summary:

Tool	Best For
Google Keyword Planner	Accurate Google data for PPC & SEO
Ubersuggest	SEO beginners, bloggers
Answer The Public	Content ideation and question-based keywords
Google Trends	Seasonal and trending topics
Keyword Surfer	On-page search analysis
Also Asked	Visual content and keyword clustering

You can even combine multiple tools for better results. For example, use Google Trends to check keyword seasonality, then use Ubersuggest for keyword difficulty, and Answer The Public for content ideas.