20 Best SEO Keyword Research Tools & Software

Finding a keyword research tool isn’t that difficult these days.

The market is brimming with keyword research (KR) tools, and there’s no doubt they are well-equipped to help you optimize your content.

But the question here isn’t to grab a tool that generates just a list of keywords for you.

The ideal app should provide you with in-depth information on what keywords are trending, which one has tough competition, and which one brings high traffic.

I have compiled some of the best keyword research SEO tools that meet our checks. Go ahead and explore each one. The list consists of both paid and free tools.

1. Moz Keyword Explorer

Moz Explorer is part of an SEO suite and offers a user-friendly dashboard for keyword research.

The tool provides in-depth insight into organic traffic, click-through rate, keyword difficulty, and search volume.

Moz’s distinct feature is its smart suggestions. The app, among related search results, displays untapped long-tail keywords up for grabs.

It additionally generates a priority score to show the high-volume and low competition ratio of your keyword.

It’s an excellent tool to consider.

Key Features

• Long-tail keywords
• SERP analysis
• Keyword metrics
• Advanced filter

Pricing

Moz Explorer is available in the Moz Pro package that offers four plans between $49 to $299 per month and a 30-day free trial.

 2. SEMrush

SEMrush offers an extensive list of functions to help you discover keywords and phrases your competitors are leveraging to drive traffic to their site.

You’ll probably use its Keyword Magic tool often. The features contain amazing advanced filters to narrow down the keyword list. With the refining function, you can extract low-competition long-tail phrases and commercial words for your PPC ads.

SEMrush also categorizes keywords into groups, saving you time to delete irrelevant niches from your list. You’ll rarely find this function in other tools.

Key Features

• In-depth keyword overview
• Competitors SEO strategies
• SERP filter
• Comparison reports
• A database containing almost 20 billion keywords

Pricing

SEMrush starting price is $119 per month. You have the option to upgrade your plan anytime you want and cancel any additional services.

Take advantage of its 7-day free trial to learn more about the app.

3. KWFinder

As a part of Mangools SEO package, KWFinder provides you with a well-detailed keywords analysis at an incredibly affordable price.

You can sort the data by search volume, CPC cost, and difficulty level. The list offers clickable long-tail keywords allowing you to analyze any suggestion with a single click. You can also discover the keywords your competitors are using.

The tool has a simple interface to absorb information comfortably.

Key Features

• In-depth keyword insights
• SERP analysis feature
• Competitor’s history
• Local keyword search option
• Individual phrase difficulty score

Pricing

You can get a KWFinder in the Mangools package for $29 per month. The tool provides three plans customized for small businesses to large enterprises. Mangools also offers a 10-day free trial. If you’re a beginner, this is the best keyword research out there.

4. LongTail Pro

If you’re specifically looking for a long-tail keyword research app, this tool might be the best for your project.

The tool is incredibly effective and time-saving. It generates low-competition phrases related to your niche and automatically updates the list based on the keywords you pick.

You can also view the analysis of individual suggestions to learn if you can compete with others currently ranking their pages for the said keyword.

Key Features

• Up to 6000 words
• Competitive keywords recommendations
• SERP analysis
• Daily rank tracking
• Site audit

Pricing

The LongTail Pro starter plan stands at $37 a month, but you can get discounts on an annual subscription. The platform offers three plans and an eight-day paid trial.

5. Wordtracker

Wordtracker is a user-friendly tool that offers a clean dashboard and super relevant features to extract your targeted keywords.

Just like any other ordinary platform, you’ll, of course, receive keyword suggestions, volume, historical graph, difficulty level, and CPC in one column. But what’s fantastic about Wordtracker is the bonus addition.

The tool provides separate PPC and SEO results that allow you to discover your keyword’s commercial value, the number of times it’s been used, and its estimated competition.

Key Features

• Four search engines’ results
• Keywords suggestions
• SEO and PPC metrics
• Refining options 

Pricing

Wordtracker plans cost somewhere between $27 to $99 a month. The tool offers ten free searches and an additional seven-day free trial to test the platform.

6. Answer the Public

Answer the Public displays a visual representation of real-time queries people are searching on Google.

While the tool may appear more suitable for generating content ideas, you’d be surprised at how specific keywords you can mine from the data.

Answer the Public extracts raw data and breaks it down into phrases and questions. The organized information provides you with an in-depth insight into how your prospect looks for a particular solution.

Its pro version particularly offers interesting features you’d definitely love.

Key Features

• Google search queries
• Long-tail keyword ideas
• Search engine alerts
• Extensive filter options

Pricing

Answer the Public is a freemium tool; however, the daily search limit is extremely restricted. I suggest upgrading your account to Pro once you get familiar with the platform.

The platform offers three plans from $79 to $199 per month.

7. Ahrefs Keyword Explorer

Ahrefs is a complete SEO suite and a popular choice for keyword research.

While the company offers several products, its Keywords Explorer is the one you should look up to get a comprehensive list of phrases.

The keyword explorer generates monthly search volume, the level of competition you’ll face should you decide to choose it, and the target market it will attract. Not only that, but it also shares the number of backlinks required to improve your site’s ranking.

Key Features

• Keyword ideas
• SEO metrics
• Advanced filter
• Ranking score
• Top competitor’s history

Pricing

Ahrefs offers four plans, starting at $99 per month.

Since the subscription isn’t cheap, I suggest taking a trial before picking out a plan. It’s relatively affordable and will help you make an informed decision.

8. SECockpit

SECockpit isn’t the prettiest of the tools, but it provides a wealth of information and advanced refining functions.

You can filter the keyword suggestions and extract untapped phrases that could be ranked easily. You can also restrict the search to eCommerce keywords or YouTube videos.

The software is particularly designed for those who want to optimize their Ads or shopping pages.

Key Features

• Over 10k search results
• Keywords suggestions from Google Ads, Amazon, and YouTube.
• Advanced refining options
• Competitor analysis

Pricing

SECockpit offers surprisingly affordable prices, given its advanced features. The prices start from $25 to $79 a month.

Check out its video tutorials to get a general idea of how the software works.

9. Keyword Tool

Contrary to its bland name, KT is one of the popular tools for the vast amount of data it offers.

You can generate keyword suggestions from eight major search engines, analyze your competitor’s SEO strategy, and discover what questions people are asking around.

Interestingly, you can also find hashtags that are trending on different search engines.

Judging from its functions, KT has been created with influencers in mind.

Key Features

• Thousands of relevant keywords
• Trend graphs
• Hashtag suggestions
• Negative keyword filter

Pricing

Keyword Tool offers both free and Pro plans, although its free version has limited access.

Look into its paid plan to get more features. The tool provides three plans charging between $79 to $150.

10. Jaaxy

This is an advanced keyword research tool that’s well suited for affiliate marketers.

While the platforms provide all the primary metrics to find the right keyword, it’s particularly popular for its additional features.

For instance, Jaaxy exhibits domain availability beside each keyword to let you know you can use it for your site name. The tool also offers an affiliate program function allowing you to see the list of affiliate pages ranked for the keyword.

I highly recommend taking a starter trial to explore Jaaxy.

Key Features

• Site analysis
• Affiliate program discovery
• Domain search option
• Competition score
• Keyword management

Pricing

Jaaxy starter plan is free, but it offers limited searches. You can buy a pro plan for $49 per month.

11. GrowthBar

Growth Bar is the best choice for bloggers who prefer to get a complete SEO package from one software. It helps you analyze any site’s SEO, gain access to keyword metrics, and auto-create content outlines for your blog.

You can discover how top sites are performing and generate low-competition keyword ideas to optimize your content.

Key Features

• Unlimited search
• Keyword tracking
• Competitor site audit
• Al-generated content outline

Pricing

Growth Bar extends to three monthly plans beginning at $29. You can also avail yourself of a 5-day free trial by signing up to the site.

12. UberSuggest

Ubersuggest is the mini and affordable version of Ahrefs. While I wouldn’t go so far as to call it an alternative to the former, it’s surprisingly a solid tool for keyword research.

You can discover your keywords search volume, potential competition, cost per click, and geographical reach.

You can also analyze what content people are using to attract traffic and what social networks they’re using to generate the said traffic.

Key Features

• Keywords suggestions
• SEO metrics
• Competitors historical data
• Target market segmentation

Pricing

UberSuggest’s basic keyword research tool is free. To gain access to in-depth graphs on your audience and competitors, upgrade the plan for $12 per month.

13. Keyword Everywhere

If you prefer a straightforward app, go for Keyword Everywhere.

It is a freemium chrome extension that provides you with SEO search results data directly on your browser, which makes keyword research highly convenient.

You can discover the five-year trend, both on-page and off-page difficulty levels, related keywords, and a list of queries people search for.

Keyword Everywhere also shares whether anyone is searching for your brand.

Key Features

• Long-tail keyword list
• Search queries
• Global trend graph
• SEO metrics

Pricing

While Keyword Everywhere is free for all, you may need to buy credit points to access the search volume. The minimum package of $10 consists of 100,000 credits.

14. Google Keyword Planner

Most people choose Google Keyword Planner because of its relevance to Google advertisements. The tool extracts information directly from Google and generates useful results to optimize your PPC campaigns.

The app has some decent functions. One among them being that of the top page Bid. 

The tab reveals the average cost you’d require to display your Ad on the first page.

If you have some experience in SEO campaigns, go for Google keyword planner.

Key Features

• Keywords generation
• Monthly search volume
• Estimated cost per click
• Historical data for forecasting

Pricing

Keyword planner is a free tool available to Google Ads account holders. Create an Ad account and start using it free of cost.

15. Google Trends

Google Trends works differently than traditional keyword research tool.

Besides generating related keyword and search queries, Google Trends also lets you compare two phrases to identify which one is in high demand.

With Google Trends, you can explore the rising interest of your keyword, its country’s reach, and the niche its demand is rising. Additionally, you can view trending searches to discover what people are currently browsing.

Key Features

• Related keywords and queries results
• Comparison chart
• Keyword popularity by region
• Multiple web search filter
• Trending topics

Pricing

Google Trends is free to use. Sign in from your Gmail account to use the tool.

16. Soovle

Soovle is a basic research tool that extracts relevant keywords from search engines and summarizes them to you on a single page.

The tool generates keywords from real-time search queries and provides the original links from where the words have been taken. This gives you the opportunity to study where people typically go to search for answers.

Soovle’s winning feature is the sheer number of search engines it offers.

You can discover keywords from over 15 major websites, including Walmart, AliExpress, and Wikipedia.

Key Features

• Multiple search engines
• Keyword generation from real-time queries
• Customizable dashboard

Pricing

The tool is free to use.

17. WordStream Keyword Research

Wordstream is an advertising agency that offers a free tool to generate keywords for your PPC advertisements.

The tool scans your site content and shares industry-specific suggestions, cutting down the time you’d have otherwise spent weeding out irrelevant keywords. The performance data additionally helps you select keywords suited to your marketing budget.

Wordstream is a good substitute for Keyword Planners.

Key Features

• Niche phrases
• Long-tail keywords
• Location-based data
• Google and Bing search results

Pricing

While the Wordstream keyword research tool is free to use, you may have to create an account to continue using it.

18. QuestionDB

QuestionDB is similar to the Answer the Public platform but with slight differences in the results it generates.

Unlike the latter, QuestionDB displays a list of questions and keywords fetched mostly from social networks, like Reddit.

With QuestionDB, you can discover what people are talking about, pick keywords used in queries, and create your entire content around it. The tool is an excellent choice for bloggers hoping to get both keywords and content ideas from one place.

Key Features

• Real-time search queries from Reddit
• Up to 800 keyword suggestions
• Unlimited use

Pricing

QuestionDB has 50 free searches for new users. If you want to gain access to the complete results, you’d have to buy its Pro plan at the cost of $10 a month. QuestionDB offers a 30% discount on the annual plan.

19. Keyword Surfer

This tool is an excellent alternative to Keyword Everywhere with some additional benefits to improve your content SEO.

Keyword Surfer gives insight into your competitor’s site traffic, their page’s content length, and the keywords used to optimize their content.

You can install it on your Chrome and discover SEO metrics right along with your Google search results.

Key Features

• Easy installation
• Keyword ideas
• Top pages estimated traffic
• Competitor’s content analysis

Pricing

Keyword Surfer is a free product offered by SEOSurfer. To get the complete package, you may have to buy the plan. The platform charges a monthly subscription fee between $49 to $199 depending upon the plan you choose.

20. SpyFu

SpyFu does exactly what it says. The competitor analysis platform provides you with an in-depth report on your rivals and your seed keywords.

The tools offer a wide range of features, from keyword suggestions, and backlink lists to commercially valuable phrases. You can view an extensive keyword overview, rank history, SERP analysis, and top advertisers. SpyFu even displays the currently running Ads in the same niche.

The app extends six major functions to get your page ranked for the targeted keyword.

Key Features

• Estimated Mobile and Desktop traffic score
• SERP report
• Recommended keywords for Ads
• Google Ads record

Pricing

SpyFu offers a free version. To unlock the complete data, buy the premium membership at a minimum monthly fee of $33.

Takeaway

Remember. The right keyword tool primarily helps you discover what people are actively searching for and how to use those phrases to attract traffic to your site.

Keep that in mind when you go shopping for your keyword research software next time.