Can I do keyword research for free?

You can do keyword research for free using several accessible tools. Google Keyword Planner, built for ad campaigns, still gives rough search volume estimates without requiring a paid subscription. Google Trends shows how interest in a topic changes over time and by region.

Typing partial questions into Google or YouTube's search bar and reading the autocomplete suggestions reveals common phrasings people actually search, and the People Also Ask boxes on a results page surface related questions worth targeting.

Free tools generally lack the depth of paid platforms like Ahrefs or Semrush, particularly for competitive analysis and precise volume data, but they cover the basics well enough for a small site just starting out.

Our generative engine optimization softwarebuilds on this same free data with added AI citation insight.