How we make this list: we compare vendor pricing pages, product documentation and plan limits, and print the month we checked each price. We don’t accept payment for rankings.
QUICK ANSWER
Google Keyword Planner is the best free keyword research tool for most people, because it costs nothing and shows search estimates straight from Google. Ahrefs Free is the best free pick for your own site, with backlink and audit data for verified sites. Semrush free is the best pick for competitor keyword data, with 10 reports a day.
Key takeaways
7 of 7 shortlisted tools have a free plan or a free version (Nov 2026). The lowest listed paid start is $7 a month (Keywords Everywhere Bronze, billed annually).
Google Keyword Planner ranks first because it is fully free and shows search estimates straight from Google.
Ahrefs Free is the best free pick for your own site, with backlink and audit data for verified sites.
KWFinder free allows five lookups a day, and AlsoAsked gives three free searches a day with no account.
Keywords Everywhere free covers difficulty and link metrics, but search volume needs paid credits.
The best free keyword research tools cost nothing and still answer the question that matters: what do people search for, and can you rank for it. Every tool below has a genuine free plan or free version, ranked by what that free tier actually lets you do, not by what the paid plan promises.
Google Keyword Planner is the only tool here that is fully free and shows data straight from Google. You enter a seed keyword and get ideas grouped by theme, with search estimates and cost-per-click figures from the same data advertisers use. It costs nothing to use, and you pay only if you run ads.
The catch is access and precision. It needs a Google Ads account with setup and billing completed, and low-spend accounts see volume ranges instead of exact numbers. It has no keyword difficulty score and no SEO metrics, so it tells you what people search, not how hard it is to rank.
What we like
Fully free, with search estimates straight from Google.
Keyword ideas grouped by theme, with cost-per-click figures.
No card needed; you pay only if you run ads.
Watch out for
Needs a Google Ads account with billing set up.
Low-spend accounts see volume ranges, not exact numbers.
Ahrefs Free is the most useful free plan here for your own site. It opens Site Explorer with 1,000 backlinks and keywords at once, Site Audit with 5,000 crawl credits a month per project, Web Analytics and one AI Content Helper document a month, all for sites you own and can verify. No card is needed and it never expires.
The catch is the verified-sites limit. You cannot research competitors on the free plan, so rival keywords and backlinks need Starter at $29 a month. Starter runs on 200 credits a month, so heavy research burns through the month fast, and there is no free trial on any paid plan.
What we like
Free plan never expires and needs no card.
Site Audit with 5,000 crawl credits a month per project.
Backlink and keyword data for your own sites at no cost.
Watch out for
Free plan covers only sites you own and can verify.
Semrush free is the only free plan here that lets you research competitors. It gives 10 reports a day, one demo project, 10 tracked keywords and a 100-page monthly audit, with no card required. That is enough to check a handful of keywords a day and see which terms a rival ranks for.
The catch is the tiny allowance. Ten reports a day runs out fast on a real research session, and the free plan has no exports. Paid plans start at $139.95 a month for Pro, or $117.33 billed annually, which is the dearest entry in this list by far.
What we like
Only free plan here that covers competitor sites.
10 reports a day with no card required.
Covers keywords, audits and backlinks in one account.
KWFinder free is the simplest way to judge whether a keyword is worth chasing. The free account allows five lookups per 24 hours, and each lookup shows search volume, difficulty, trends and SERP data for one keyword. The difficulty score reads as a plain number, so a beginner can tell at a glance if a term is in reach.
The catch is the daily cap. Five lookups a day covers one article, not a content plan, and KWFinder is sold inside Mangools plans, so the paid step is $29.90 a month billed annually for Basic. Rank tracking updates weekly except on the Agency plan.
What we like
Difficulty scores read as plain numbers.
Five free lookups a day with volume and trends.
SERP data for each keyword in the same view.
Watch out for
Free account allows only five lookups a day.
Paid plans start at $29.90 a month billed annually.
Starting price$69/month billed annually ($89 month to mo…
Free planYes
Free trialNot confirmed
PlatformsWeb, API
Keyword Tool free is the fastest way to build a long list of keyword ideas. You can run searches with no account and get autocomplete suggestions from Google, YouTube, Amazon, Bing and seven other platforms, in 192 countries and languages. It is the best pick here for raw idea volume at no cost.
The catch is that the free results hide the numbers. Search volume, CPC and full results need Pro, starting at $69 a month billed annually or $89 month to month. There is no free trial of Pro, only a 30-day money-back guarantee, and the tool does no audits or tracking.
What we like
No account needed to run free searches.
Autocomplete ideas from 11 platforms.
Long-tail coverage in 192 countries and languages.
Watch out for
Search volume and CPC need Pro at $69 a month billed annually.
No free trial of Pro, only a money-back guarantee.
AlsoAsked free is the best free pick for question research. It gives three free searches a day with no account required, and each search turns Google People Also Ask boxes into a tree of follow-up questions. That tree maps straight onto article headings, so a writer can plan a full post from one search.
The catch is the missing numbers. AlsoAsked shows questions, not search volume or difficulty, so it works beside a volume tool and never in place of one. Free searches return a PNG image only, and CSV export needs Lite at $23 a month. Basic at $12 a month covers 100 credits with PNG exports only.
What we like
Three free searches a day with no account.
Question trees map straight onto article headings.
Covers follow-up questions Google hides in PAA boxes.
PlatformsChrome extension, Firefox extension, Edge extension, API
Keywords Everywhere free is the only pick here that works inside your search results. The extension installs free and shows SEO difficulty scores, Moz link metrics, on-page analysis and prompt templates next to Google, YouTube and Amazon searches, with no sign-up. It is the fastest way to judge a keyword while you browse.
The catch is the core job. Search volume, CPC and competition data need paid credits, starting at $7 a month billed annually for Bronze with 100,000 credits a year. One credit returns data for one keyword, and credits expire after 12 months. If you need volume, Google Keyword Planner is the free pick instead.
What we like
18 features work free with no sign-up.
Difficulty and link data appear inside search results.
Sources used: vendor pricing pages, docs, changelogs. Prices and limits were checked against each vendor's own pricing page in Nov 2026.
Criterion
Weight
What we looked at
What the free tier actually allows
40%
We ranked tools by what you can do without paying: volume data, difficulty scores, question ideas or competitor lookups, and how fast the daily cap runs out.
Data source quality
30%
We favored tools that show their own data or Google data over tools that guess, since a free tool with wrong numbers costs more than it saves.
Cheapest paid step
30%
We noted the first paid price for each tool, since a free plan that runs out fast is only useful if the next step is affordable.
What is the best free keyword research tool?
Google Keyword Planner is the best free keyword research tool for most people, because it costs nothing and shows search estimates straight from Google, with keyword ideas grouped by theme. Ahrefs Free is the pick if you want backlink and audit data for your own site, and Semrush free is the pick if you want competitor keyword data in small doses.
Is there a free keyword research tool?
Yes, all 7 tools here have a free plan or a free version (Nov 2026). Google Keyword Planner is fully free with a Google Ads account. Ahrefs Free and Semrush free cover your own sites and a few reports a day. KWFinder free allows five lookups a day, AlsoAsked gives three searches a day, and Keyword Tool free shows limited results with no account.
How much does free keyword research cost?
Free keyword research tools cost $0 a month, but every one caps something. Google Keyword Planner needs a Google Ads account with billing set up, and it shows volume ranges instead of exact numbers for low-spend accounts. Ahrefs Free covers only sites you own and can verify. The cheapest paid step here is Keywords Everywhere Bronze at $7 a month billed annually.
Which free keyword research tool is best for beginners?
Google Keyword Planner is the best free keyword research tool for beginners, because it needs no SEO knowledge and shows keyword ideas with volume ranges from Google itself. AnswerThePublic is not in this list, but AlsoAsked is, and its question trees are easy to read. KWFinder is the next easiest, with difficulty scores as plain numbers. Our best keyword research tools for beginners guide ranks the easiest tools in more detail.
How should I pick a free keyword research tool?
Pick by the job, not by the brand. If you need search volume, start with Google Keyword Planner. If you need keyword difficulty, use KWFinder free or Keywords Everywhere free. If you need question ideas, use AlsoAsked. If you need competitor keywords, use Semrush free at 10 reports a day. The best cheap keyword research tools guide covers the lowest paid steps when the free caps run out.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free keyword research tool?
Google Keyword Planner is the best free keyword research tool for most people, because it costs nothing and shows search estimates straight from Google. It needs a Google Ads account with billing set up, and low-spend accounts see volume ranges instead of exact numbers. Ahrefs Free is the best free pick for your own site, with backlink and audit data included.
Is Google Keyword Planner really free?
Yes, Google Keyword Planner is fully free to use. You need a Google Ads account with setup and billing completed, but you pay only if you run ads. It shows keyword ideas, volume ranges and cost-per-click estimates, grouped by theme, for any seed keyword you enter.
Does Ahrefs have a free keyword tool?
Yes, Ahrefs Free is a permanent free plan for sites you own and can verify. It opens Site Explorer with 1,000 backlinks and keywords at once, Site Audit with 5,000 crawl credits a month per project, Web Analytics and one AI Content Helper document a month. It does not cover competitor sites.
What does the Semrush free plan include?
Semrush free gives 10 reports a day, one demo project, 10 tracked keywords and a 100-page monthly audit. That is enough to check a handful of keywords a day, not to research a whole topic. Paid plans start at $139.95 a month for Pro, or $117.33 billed annually.
Is KWFinder free?
Yes, KWFinder has a free account that allows five lookups per 24 hours. Each lookup shows search volume, difficulty, trends and SERP data for one keyword. Paid plans start at $29.90 a month billed annually for Mangools Basic, which raises the daily limits across all five Mangools tools.
How many free searches does AlsoAsked give?
AlsoAsked gives three free searches a day with no account required. Each search returns a visual tree of People Also Ask questions as a PNG image. CSV export needs Lite at $23 a month, and the Basic plan at $12 a month covers 100 credits with PNG exports only.
Is Keywords Everywhere free?
Keywords Everywhere is free to install, and 18 features cost nothing, including SEO difficulty scores, Moz link metrics, on-page analysis and prompt templates. Search volume, CPC and competition data need paid credits, starting at $7 a month billed annually for Bronze with 100,000 credits a year.
Does Keyword Tool show search volume for free?
No, Keyword Tool free shows limited results only. You can run searches with no account and see keyword ideas from Google Autocomplete, but search volume, CPC and full results need Pro, starting at $69 a month billed annually or $89 month to month. A 30-day money-back guarantee replaces a free trial.
Final verdict
Pick Google Keyword Planner if you want Google search estimates at no cost.
Pick Ahrefs if you want backlink and audit data for your own site.
Pick Semrush if you want competitor keyword data in small doses.
Pick KWFinder if you want a plain difficulty score for each keyword.
Pick Keyword Tool if you want long-tail ideas with no account.
Pick AlsoAsked if you want question ideas for headings.
Pick Keywords Everywhere if you want difficulty and link data while you browse.
Looking for the best keyword research tools? We compared 10 options on pricing, free plans, key features and trade-offs so you can pick the right one fast.
Our 2026 shortlist of the 8 best cheap keyword research tools, with real starting prices, free plan details, pros, cons and a clear pick for each use case.
