11 Powerful Keyword Research Tools You Need to Try

Chelsea Frost

Content Strategist

Jul 9, 2024

Keyword research tools are nice to have. But often, they’re more than that. They are essential helpful tools for any content creator.

They help you uncover keywords, plan your content strategy, find out gaps in your existing research, etc. However… they can also break your wallet and make you waste your time. A good keyword tool should save you time.

In this article, we’ll look at 11 powerful tools for keyword research that are tried and tested, so you can find your perfect fit.

Disclaimer: At Yahini, we spend a ton of time testing, researching and using various tools for keyword research to figure out which ones are worth recommending, evaluating them based on what they’re supposed to do and how well they meet our criteria. We do not accept payment for featuring a tool in our articles or linking to a site. Our recommendations are 100% authentic and unbiased, because we believe you deserve nothing less.

Yahini

Yahini is an AI-powered content brief generator, but it’s not like the generic tools for keyword research you might be used to. It's been trained by experienced content strategists, so it brings a level of expertise to the table that you don't often see in automated tools. The big idea here is to give you expert-level content briefs without the hefty price tag of hiring a full-time strategist or agency.

Yahini has a unique approach to content strategy.

It doesn't just spit out generic briefs. Instead, it takes a deep dive into your business, your competitors, and your target audience.

It uses this info to create personalized keyword clusters and organize them into meaningful groups. This means you're not just getting a list of keywords but a strategy that aligns with your audience's needs at different stages of the marketing funnel. Plus, it helps you balance your content across the funnel, typically aiming for 50% bottom-of-funnel, 40% middle-of-funnel, and 10% top-of-funnel topics.

You just input your URL and a few details about your business, and Yahini does the rest. It generates a full content workbook, complete with customized briefs for each keyword. These briefs are built using frameworks and templates designed by experienced strategists, so you're getting high-quality, strategic content plans without the hassle of complicated tools or the cost of an agency.

How to use it for keyword research

Yahini simplifies keyword search for you. It takes information about your product and generates a list of relevant, prioritized keywords, creating comprehensive keyword lists.

These quality keywords are ready to be used in your content briefs and articles right away.

You don't have to spend time doing keyword research yourself – Yahini handles that task for you, acting as a powerful keyword generator, backed by real world data and extensive training.

As an added bonus, Yahini categorizes each SEO keyword by its funnel stage, helping you target content for different parts of the customer journey.

Features

1. AI Trained by Content Strategists – Yahini's AI is trained by seasoned content strategists, not just generic algorithms. This means you get expert-level insights and recommendations tailored to real-world content marketing strategies.
2. One-Click Content Workbook Generation – With just a few simple inputs, Yahini generates a full content workbook. This saves you hours of manual work and gives you a full content strategy at your fingertips.
3. Advanced Keyword Clustering – Yahini uses in-house AI models to create personalized keyword clusters aligned with your audience's needs. This helps you target the right topics at each stage of the marketing funnel, improving your content's effectiveness.
4. Balanced Funnel Allocation – The tool helps you maintain a balanced content strategy across different funnel stages. This ensures you're not neglecting any part of the customer journey, leading to a more effective overall content strategy.
5. Strategist-Level Content Briefs – Each brief is customized for its specific keyword, funnel stage, and content type. This level of detail helps writers create more targeted, effective content that aligns with your overall strategy.
6. Competitor Analysis – Yahini analyzes your competitors' content to help you find unique angles. This feature helps you create content that stands out in your niche and provides more value to your audience.
7. Priority Scoring System – Yahini assigns a priority score to each keyword, considering factors like importance, funnel stage, volume, and competition. This helps you focus on the most impactful content opportunities first.
8. Funnel Stage Filtering – Unlike most tools for keyword research, Yahini allows you to filter keywords by funnel stage. This unique feature helps you easily target specific parts of the customer journey in your content strategy.
9. Content Type Matching – Yahini matches each keyword to the most appropriate content type based on the funnel stage. This feature helps ensure you're using the most effective content format for each topic, improving engagement and conversion rates.
10. Customizable and Editable Briefs – Yahini provides an editor where you can customize your briefs. This flexibility allows you to add your own insights or adjust the strategy as needed.

Pros and cons

Here are some of Yahini’s pros:

1. AI trained by real content strategists, giving you expert-level insights
2. Quick and easy to use - generate a full content workbook with just a few clicks
3. Customized briefs for each keyword and funnel stage
4. Balanced content strategy across different funnel stages
5. Unique keyword clustering and prioritization system
6. Competitor analysis to help you find unique angles
7. Affordable alternative to hiring a full-time content strategist or agency

And, a few cons that might or might not apply to you:

1. As with any AI keyword tool, it may not capture nuances specific to your brand voice
2. Might not be super accurate if you operate in a novel industry or you don’t have a lot of competitors
3. Might not adapt as quickly to sudden market changes or trends as a human strategist would.

Pricing

For $39 a month per project, you get access to all of Yahini’s features, letting you generate 20 content briefs with total month-to-month flexibility to pause when you need to.

And if you just want to give it a spin first, there’s a completely free plan that lets you set up a project and create a handful of briefs to see how it feels before committing.

Google Keyword Planner

Google Keyword Planner is a free keyword tool used by advertisers to research and analyze keywords for their Google Ads campaigns. Many consider Google Keyword Planner the foundational keyword planner.

It provides you with basic keyword suggestions, keyword search volume data, and cost estimates for Google Ads. Google Keyword Planner also offers bid estimates.

It’s a great starting point for keyword research, but it has quite a learning curve for beginners. You need to create campaigns and set up a few things before using it for your advertising plans.

Why use it?

Google Keyword Planner is useful for getting a general idea of keyword popularity and potential ad costs. It's integrated with Google Ads, making it convenient for those already using the platform.

It can provide your business with insights for Search ads and helps in finding the right campaign keyword.

Pricing

Google Keyword Planner is free to use, but you need a Google Ads account to access it.

Ahrefs Keywords Explorer

Ahrefs is renowned in the SEO world. Its keyword tool feature offers one of the most extensive data and features for SEO professionals.

While it provides in-depth keyword analysis and suggestions, it may be overwhelming for those new to SEO.

Why use it?

Ahrefs is great if you love data analysis. You'll get search trends, difficulty scores, and a good look at what's happening on search result pages.

Pricing

Now, about the cost. Ahrefs' basic plan starts at $99 a month. Many SEOs complain of the steep pricing, but for some companies, it might be worth it—especially if you use all their features, not just keyword research.

SEMrush Keyword Magic Tool

SEMrush digits into a massive database of 25 billion keywords. It’s easily comparable to Ahrefs, and it’s one of their biggest competitors.

Why use it?

The Keyword Magic Tool is great if you love exploring keyword metrics. It gives you information on keyword difficulty, search intent, and volume, as well as cool features like SERP features. It can also show you monthly searches for any given search term.

Pricing

SEMrush offers different plans, but they're not exactly cheap. The basic plan starts at $119.95 per month, which can be a bit steep if you're just starting out or running a small business.

Moz Keyword Explorer

Moz helps you analyze things like search volume and keyword difficulty and even predicts how many clicks you might get if you rank for a keyword. Using Moz Keyword Explorer alongside Google Keyword Planner can give you a broader perspective.

One of the coolest features is its ability to find question-format keywords. These are great for creating content that directly answers what people are searching for. Plus, it gives you a peek at the SERP (Search Engine Results Page) for each keyword, so you can see what you're up against.

Why use it?

Moz is fantastic if you want to get really detailed with your keyword research.

It's great for understanding not just what keywords to target but why you should target them. This keyword tool helps you prioritize keywords based on their potential impact, which is super helpful when you're planning your content strategy.

Pricing

Moz Keyword Explorer is free to use.

KWFinder

KWFinder gives you a clear picture of how difficult it'll be to rank for each keyword. It pairs this with search volume data, so you can spot those sweet spots - keywords with decent search volume but low competition.

It's also great for local SEO, letting you dig into location-specific keywords.

And if you're curious about what's working for your competitors, KWFinder can show you the keywords they're ranking for.

Why use it?

KWFinder is perfect if you want a straightforward approach to keyword research. It's especially useful if you're focusing on long-tail keywords or local SEO. The interface is user-friendly, making it a good choice if you're not an SEO expert.

It's also a solid alternative to Google Keyword Planner for certain use cases.

Pricing

KWFinder is part of the Mangools SEO suite, which starts at $29.90 per month when billed annually.

Ubersuggest

Ubersuggest lets you peek behind the curtain of your competitors’ strategies.

It also helps you find new keyword ideas, from broad topics to super-specific long-tail phrases. But it doesn't stop there. Ubersuggest also dives into content ideas, showing you what's getting shared and linked to in your niche. It can help you discover popular keywords if you're shorter on budget.

And if you're into backlinks (which, let's face it, we all should be), it helps you find link-building opportunities by showing you who's linking to similar content.

Why use it?

Ubersuggest is great if you want a well-rounded view of your SEO landscape without juggling multiple tools for keyword research. It's particularly useful for competitor analysis and finding content ideas that are already proven to work. The interface is pretty user-friendly, making it accessible even if you're not an SEO pro. It’s a decent keyword planner for beginners.

Pricing

Ubersuggest has a free plan with limited features, which is nice for dipping your toes in. Paid plans start at $29 per month when billed annually.

Wordtracker

What sets Wordtracker apart is its blend of data sources. It pulls from Google, sure, but it also has its own proprietary search technology. This keyword planner also aims to provide you with unique data points.

One of the neatest features is how it helps you find related terms. This is super useful for creating content that covers all angles of a topic.

Why use it?

The tool is especially useful if you're looking to uncover hidden keyword opportunities that your competitors might have missed. The tool is designed to give you more than just a list of keywords; it provides context and insights that can shape your entire content strategy.

Pricing

Wordtracker starts at $27 per month when billed annually. This puts it in the mid-range of keyword research tools.

KeywordTool.io

KeywordTool.io takes your seed keyword and plays around with it, adding letters and numbers before and after to see what Google suggests. This means you're getting keyword ideas that are closely related to what people are really searching for for any search query. Consider using it alongside Google Trends for broader insights.

And it's not just limited to Google - you can use it for YouTube, Bing, Amazon, and even social media platforms like Instagram and Twitter.

Why use it?

Keywordtool.io is great if you want to start targeting long-tail keywords. These are the more specific, often less competitive phrases that can be gold for content creation and SEO, helping drive organic traffic to your blog posts. It's particularly useful if you're interested in understanding the questions and topics your audience is curious about.

The free version gives you up to 750+ keyword suggestions, which is pretty generous.

Pricing

Free to use.

Answer the Public

ATP taps into autocomplete data from the search engines. It takes your keyword and spins it into a web of questions, prepositions, and comparisons that people are actually typing into the search bars.

Why use it?

If you want to understand the questions and concerns your audience has about a topic, then use Answer the Public. It’s useful for coming up with blog ideas, FAQ sections, or even product development insights.

Pricing

One free search is available.

SpyFu

SpyFu digs deep into your competitors' SEO and PPC tactics, whether you want to know every keyword they’ve ever bought on Google Ads or you’re curious about their organic rankings.

It even shows you their ad variations over the last 18 years.

Why use it?

The tool is particularly useful for SEO specialists and PPC managers who need in-depth competitive intelligence. The historical data is a goldmine for spotting trends and understanding what works in your industry.

Pricing

Membership starts at just $33/month.

Selecting the best keyword research tool

You’ve got a few options above, and truth be told, the internet’s full of keyword research tools.

Here’s how to make sure you’re making the smart choice when pulling out your wallet at a keyword research tool.

Factors to consider when selecting a keyword research tool

When you're shopping for a keyword research tool, keep these key factors in mind:

Data accuracy and comprehensiveness

Your keyword research is only as good as the data behind it. Look for tools that pull from multiple sources and update frequently. You want fresh, reliable data that covers a wide range of keywords and search volumes.

Don't settle for tools that give you ballpark figures. The best ones provide precise search volumes, funnel stage or keyword intent, and even competition level. This level of detail can be the difference between ranking on page one or getting lost in the depths of search results.

User interface and ease of use

A powerful tool is useless if you can't figure out how to use it. The best keyword research tools have intuitive interfaces that make sense from the get-go. You shouldn't need a PhD to navigate the dashboard or interpret the results.

The less time you spend figuring out the tool, the more time you can spend actually improving your SEO strategy.

Pricing and value for money

Budget matters, but don't just go for the cheapest option.

Consider what you're getting for your money. Some tools might seem pricey at first glance but offer features that more than pay for themselves in the long run.

Look at the different pricing tiers and what they offer.

Do you need all the bells and whistles, or will a more basic plan suffice?

Remember, the goal is to find a tool that gives you the best return on your investment, not just the lowest price tag.

Unique features (highlight those your tool offers)

Every keyword research tool has its own special sauce. Some offer AI-powered suggestions, others excel at local SEO research. Yahini, for example, stands out for the fact that it performs keyword research for you already, giving you all the necessary information to build a content strategy.

Here’s a decision-making framework

When choosing a keyword research tool, start by listing out your must-haves.

What features can't you live without?

What problems are you trying to solve?

This will help you narrow down your options quickly.

Next, take the tools that made your shortlist for a test drive. Most offer free trials, so take advantage of them. Pay attention to how the tool feels to use day-to-day. Is it making your job easier or just adding to your workload?

Finally, consider scalability. Your needs might be basic now, but what about six months down the line? A tool like Yahini grows with you, offering advanced features you can use as your SEO strategy evolves.

New approaches to keyword research

Tens of keyword research tools are available, including your own SEO mind and judgment. But you do need access to the data to make informed decisions.

With the right tool in your arsenal, you’ll have access to opportunities you never knew existed.

And speaking of the perfect fit…

Yahini offers you the strategic advice you need to create a content strategy from the ground up. Its AI has been trained by seasoned content strategists, providing you with expert-level content briefs right at your fingertips.

Ditch the generic outlines! Sign up now.

1. Need a 24/7 content strategist? See how Yahini can help you craft perfect content briefs.

2. Any questions? I’m happy to help! Just reach out to us!

3. Not ready yet? Learn more about Yahini here.