Free Keyword Difficulty Checker

In 2025, keyword research is still a big deal for SEO — it just looks a little different nowadays. Instead of chasing exact-match keywords, smart marketers focus on understanding user intent and creating content that covers topics in-depth. Search engines (and AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini) now care more about how well you answer a user’s question, not just if you use the right words. Keyword research helps you find the right topics, not just the right phrases.

Another big shift? Schema markup is way more important. Adding structured data helps search engines and AI models “read” your content better, which can boost your chances of showing up in rich results, voice searches, and AI answers. So today, keyword research isn’t just about ranking — it’s about building a full content strategy that helps you show up across all kinds of search experiences.

But not all keywords are created equal. As everyone competes for the number one spot as well as SERP features, each keyword comes with a slightly different competitive landscape.

What is the keyword difficulty metric?

Keyword difficulty is a metric used to measure how hard it is to rank for a particular keyword or phrase in search engine results pages (SERPs). This metric takes into account various factors like the number of competing websites, the quality and relevance of their content, and the strength of their backlink profiles.

Keyword difficulty scores are usually calculated on a scale of 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating greater competition and lower scores indicating less competition. Understanding keyword difficulty is essential for SEO, as it helps you identify keywords that are feasible to target and create content that can compete with existing ranking pages.

By analyzing keyword difficulty, you can refine your content strategy, prioritize your SEO efforts, and increase your chances of ranking higher in search engine results. For example, as part of your content marketing strategy you may choose to diversify the levels of keyword difficulty you target within a particular month, or you may invest more heavily in content if you know that your industry is tied to predominantly high difficulty keywords.

This metric provides valuable insights into the competitive landscape and helps you make strategic decisions to improve your website’s visibility and performance.

What is a keyword difficulty checker?

A keyword difficulty checker is an online tool that evaluates how challenging it is to rank on the first page of search engine results (SERPs) for a specific keyword. It instantly gathers search results data and uses its algorithms to estimate the ranking difficulty for any keyword. In this case, we’re using data from the extensive Semrush Keyword Difficulty Tool, to bring you free access to a smaller set of useful data.

The benefits of using a free keyword difficulty checker include the ability to instantly assess ranking difficulty, identify new keyword opportunities, and make data-driven decisions to improve your SEO efforts. This tool can help you focus on keywords that offer the best potential for driving organic traffic and achieving higher rankings.

Understanding keyword difficulty in SEO

Every website has its own dream keyword list, aligned with its specific needs and niche. But your competitors are vying for those same keywords, with only 10 prime spots available on a SERP. If you create content for your dream keywords without first assessing how difficult they are to rank, you risk investing time and effort into creating content that may not be the best first-choice strategically.

That’s where keyword difficulty comes into play. Understanding how hard it will be to rank for keywords allows you to create a more targeted content strategy, improving your chances of ranking higher. Analyzing target keywords and using tools like Semrush can help in evaluating factors contributing to domain authority and in understanding how to build better backlink profiles. Additionally, position tracking tools used alongside keyword difficulty checkers help monitor keyword rankings over time and make optimization decisions informed by real-world data.

Keyword difficulty is an important SEO metric that factors in the competitiveness of a keyword, the number of high-authority websites already ranking for it, and the quality of their content and backlinks.

Highly difficult keywords have a lot of competition and are often targeted by established sites with strong SEO foundations. On the other hand, low-difficulty keywords have less competition and offer smaller, younger sites a chance to rank higher and build traffic.

Understanding keyword difficulty can help you prioritize your SEO efforts. By targeting keywords that fit with every growth stage of your website, you can maximize your potential to drive organic traffic.

Practical use cases for the Keyword Difficulty Checker Tool

Let’s walk through some real-life scenarios for how you can get the most out of our Keyword Difficulty Checker Tool. 

Identify quick-win keywords for new pages

When launching new pages, focus on low-difficulty keywords that are less saturated by high-authority competitors. You’ll have a better chance of quickly building relevant traffic with these opportunities without investing too much time or resources. From there, you’ll also be more likely to obtain backlinks specifically targeted to individuals pages, which is crucial for competing in higher difficulty keyword categories.

Use the Keyword Difficulty Checker Tool to:

• Focus on low-competition keywords with decent search volume for better ROI
• Identify niche keywords that are hyper-relevant to your website. Even if they have low search volume (20-30 searches/month), they can attract more valuable, qualified leads than those with higher traffic but less relevant terms.
• Rank faster for less competitive but highly relevant keywords so you can speed up site visibility and your site’s authoritative presence.

For example, instead of targeting a broad and competitive term like “dog toys,” focus on a less competitive long-tail variation such as “plush dog toys for aggressive chewers.” This keyword may be more relevant to your audience than the generic “dog toys” keyword, and you stand a much higher chance of quickly ranking for the term. You can build momentum and drive traffic to new pages faster, setting the groundwork for long-term SEO success. 

Refine your content strategy with actionable data

Keyword difficulty scores can help shape your content strategy. Gain insight into which types of content have the highest chance of ranking for a keyword and know if (or when) to target more competitive keywords. 

Here are ways to refine your content strategy with the Keyword Difficulty Checker Tool:

• Prioritize high-impact content for moderate-difficult keywords with strong search intent and high volume. To maximize your chances of ranking well for a competitive keyword, analyze the top SERP results and identify which types of content perform the best. From blog posts, landing pages, or other content types, focus your efforts on creating the most valuable content for these keywords. 
• Optimize existing content to improve rankings for keywords they may already be ranking for. Instead of starting from scratch, you can target a handful of new keywords per page and tweak existing content to better align with their search intent. 
• Strategically plan new content to strike a healthy balance between targeting easier opportunities for quick wins and heavier content lifts for higher-impact keywords.

Improve ad campaign targeting

Keyword difficulty isn’t an SEO metric reserved for just organic search. Use it to help plan your PPC and ad campaigns, too. 

The Keyword Difficulty Checker Tool can help you improve your ad campaign targeting in the following ways:

• Reduce overspending by avoiding overly competitive, high-cost-per-click keywords in exchange for lower-cost-per-click keywords that can still deliver value
• Align keywords with intent by comparing difficulty scores and search intent insights. Use this data to identify high-intent keywords with relatively low difficulty so your ads reach an audience likely to convert.   
• Adapt and iterate by continually reviewing which keywords you’re targeting and how their difficulty score, cost per click, search intent, or search volume has changed. Identifying new low-cost opportunities or shifting budget to better-performing keywords helps drive consistent results. 

By using keyword difficulty to inform your ad targeting, you can create more effective PPC campaigns, reduce costs, and drive higher-quality traffic to your site.

We have only just scratched the surface of valuable insights available with Semrush keyword difficulty data,  which you can find in the full Keyword Overview Tool, as well as the multiple applications for your SEO and growth strategies. Check out the range of other keyword data tools available in the Semrush Keyword Research Toolkit.

Search intent and keyword difficulty

Search intent refers to the reason behind a user’s search query, which can be informational, navigational, transactional, or exploratory. Understanding search intent is crucial for keyword research, as it helps you create content that resonates with your target audience and addresses their specific needs.

Keyword difficulty is closely tied to search intent, as keywords with high commercial intent tend to have higher competition and difficulty scores. By analyzing search intent and keyword difficulty, you can identify opportunities to create content that meets the needs of your target audience and has a higher chance of ranking well in search engine results.

By prioritizing keywords with low to moderate difficulty and high relevance to your content, you can improve your website’s visibility, drive more qualified leads, and increase conversions. This strategic approach ensures that your content is aligned with user intent and optimized for search engines.

Keyword research tools and resources

There are numerous keyword research tools and resources available, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. Google Keyword Planner is the most popular tool for beginning keyword research, providing insights into search volume, competition, and CPC. It’s a great starting point for identifying potential keywords and understanding their value.

Semrush offers other powerful tools that offer advanced keyword research features, including keyword suggestions, competitor analysis, and backlink profiling. These tools provide comprehensive data that can help you uncover new opportunities and stay ahead of the competition.

Long-tail keyword research tools, such as Keyword Explorer and Keyword Magic Tool, can help you identify niche keywords with lower competition and higher conversion rates. These tools are particularly useful for finding specific keywords that align with your content strategy and target audience.

By leveraging these tools and resources, you can streamline your keyword research process, identify new opportunities, and create a data-driven content strategy. This approach ensures that your content is optimized for the right keywords and has the best chance of ranking well in search engine results.

Explore our other SEO tools

By incorporating a free keyword difficulty checker into your SEO toolkit, you can enhance your keyword research process, optimize your content strategy, and ultimately improve your website’s performance in search engine results.

Don’t stop at keyword difficulty! Browse our library of free tools:

Keyword Rank Checker: Monitor keyword rankings & your growth in the SERPs

Keyword Generator: Find high-impact keyword ideas & inspiration for your content strategy

SERP Checker: Gain insights into SERPs & what it takes to rank

Website Traffic Checker: Analyze website traffic patterns & performance metrics for any domain

Competitor Analysis Tool: Discover your competitors’ top keywords, backlinks, & traffic sources

Website Authority Tool: Check your site’s authority score & get key metrics on rankings and traffic

Backlink Checker: Get powerful insights into any site’s backlink profile and link-building opportunities