Top 7 free keyword research tools
TL;DR
You don’t need a paid SEO tool to see where you rank. Start with Google Search Console. It’s free, has no query caps, and shows the actual queries driving your traffic, your average positions and your click through rates. Add Bing Webmaster Tools next to it. It’s also free, and since February 2026 it has an AI Performance report that shows when Copilot and Bing’s AI answers cite your pages.
For quick spot checks, use the Ahrefs Free Keyword Rank Checker or FATRANK. Neither needs an account, and FATRANK works straight from your browser. If you want daily tracking, Semrush’s free plan covers 10 keywords. Adobe now owns Semrush, though, so export your data in case the free tier shrinks. Ubersuggest suits beginners who want keyword ideas and rankings in one place. On WordPress, Rank Math’s free version covers the basics.
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Top 12 free keyword research tools
Google Search Console: completely free, with no keyword or query caps for verified site owners. It isn't a dedicated rank checker, but it shows valuable insights into keyword performance.
Item | Details |
What it is | A collection of tools and resources that help site owners, marketers and SEOs monitor their website's performance in Google's search index |
Owner | Google, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., headquartered in Mountain View, California (from my general knowledge) |
Origins | Launched as "Sitemaps" in June 2005, renamed Google Webmaster Tools in August 2006 |
Rebrand | Renamed Google Search Console on May 20, 2015, so the name wouldn't limit its audience to webmasters |
Redesign | A new version with a refreshed interface was introduced in January 2018 |
Cost | Completely free; sign in with a Google account |
Performance data | Shows which queries drive traffic, average rankings for key terms and click-through rates |
Technical tools | Crawl errors, indexing status and manual actions; submit sitemaps and request URL indexing |
Alerts | Notifications about unnatural links and whether your site has been hacked |
Scope | Covers visibility in Google Search only, so pair it with Bing Webmaster Tools for Bing |
Website | search.google.com/search-console |
Bing Webmaster Tools: the same idea for Bing, also free.
Item | Details |
Owner | Microsoft (Bing search engine); Bing launched in 2009 |
What it covers | Indexing, crawl health and search performance monitoring |
Data history | 16 months of Search Performance data, up from six |
Recommendations | The "Top Insights" section was evolved and renamed "Recommendations" |
Copilot inside the tool | Lets you ask Copilot questions about the data in your account |
AI Performance report | Added on 10 February 2026, giving first-party data on how your content shows up in AI answers |
What it tracks | Citations in Microsoft Copilot, AI-generated summaries in Bing and select AI partner integrations |
Newer AI views | Intents, Topics, Citation Share and Compare |
Query-to-page mapping | Connects AI grounding queries to the exact pages cited, and the reverse |
Limitation | Early versions gave no traffic or click-through data, and the report focuses on citation visibility, not clicks, rankings or traffic |
Easy setup | Sign in with a Microsoft account, click "Add site," and import your sites from Google Search Console; allow about 24 hours for data |
Website | bing.com/webmasters |
Ahrefs Free Keyword Rank Checker: instant ranking lookups backed by Ahrefs' web index, with no account needed for basic use.
Item | Details |
What it is | An all-in-one SEO toolkit for keyword research, competitor analysis, content research, rank tracking and web monitoring |
Founded | 2010, by Dmytro (Dmitry) Gerasymenko |
Legal entity | Ahrefs Pte. Ltd. |
Headquarters | 7 Straits View, Singapore |
Funding | Bootstrapped from about $300,000 in personal seed funds, with no venture capital or institutional funding |
Revenue | $149.1M in 2024, up from $100M in 2023 and $86M in 2021 |
Team size | 171 employees as of March 2024 (other sources give 90 to 143, so it varies by source and date) |
Customers | More than 50,000 paying customers |
Crawler | AhrefsBot, which the company says visits over 8 billion web pages every 24 hours |
Backlink index | Described as the world's largest index of live backlinks, updated every 15 minutes |
Search engine | Invested $60M in Yep, a creator-friendly search engine, announced in 2022 |
Free tools | A suite of free tools, such as the rank checker, that serve as lead generation; also Ahrefs Webmaster Tools, a free tier for site owners |
Acquisition | Acquired Detailed (SEO expertise), announced January 2024 |
Website | ahrefs.com |
Semrush free plan: monitors up to 10 keywords with daily rank updates.
Item | Details |
CEO | Bill Wagner (formerly CEO of LogMeIn), who took over from co-founder Oleg Shchegolev on March 10, 2025; Shchegolev became CTO |
Adobe deal announced | An all-cash deal at $12.00 per share, about $1.9 billion in total equity value |
Deal closed | April 28, 2026, earlier than the first-half 2026 target; Semrush is now a wholly-owned Adobe subsidiary |
Why Adobe bought it | To integrate Semrush's generative engine optimization (GEO) capabilities into Adobe's marketing ecosystem |
Media arm | Semrush acquired Search Engine Land, MarTech and Third Door Media in October 2024 |
New positioning | Adobe now markets it as SEO, GEO and agentic search optimization |
Plan changes | The old Pro, Guru and Business plan names were retired for a structure built around AI search visibility |
Entry pricing | Semrush One launched in late October 2025 with an entry plan around $199/month (this conflicts with the ~$140 figure from earlier, so check semrush.com) |
Free plan concern | One report says the acquisition raised concerns that the free tier could be trimmed, and advises exporting data and testing alternatives such as Ahrefs Webmaster Tools |
Offices | Three in the US and eight in Europe |
Website | semrush.com |
Ubersuggest: offers a free keyword rank checker. Good for beginners who want rank tracking and keyword ideas in one place.
Item | Details |
What it is | An SEO and content marketing tool for keyword research, competitor analysis and website optimization |
Owner | Neil Patel Digital (NP Digital) |
Acquisition | Neil Patel bought it in February 2017 for $120,000 |
Original motive | He hoped to convert Ubersuggest users into agency clients, but the conversion rate was low, which led to a paid tier |
Free access | He promised to keep it affordable and mainly free, and the site is free to use with a paid option for more features |
Key person | Neil Patel, co-founder of NP Digital and owner of Ubersuggest |
Parent company | NP Digital, the performance-marketing group Patel co-founded with Mike Kamo in 2017 |
Sister tool | NP Digital acquired AnswerThePublic in 2022 for an undisclosed amount |
Users | Almost 300k daily users, plus about 300k daily users of its Chrome plugin (self-reported) |
Team and location | 11-50 employees, Los Angeles, California |
Positioning | A budget-friendly alternative to premium enterprise SEO platforms |
Website | neilpatel.com/ubersuggest |
SEO PowerSuite Rank Tracker: highly customizable, with a free version available.
Item | Details |
Company | Link-Assistant.Com, the maker of SEO PowerSuite |
Founded | 2004, growing from a small group of partners into a professional SEO software house |
CEO and owner | Aleh Barysevich |
Headquarters | One source says Minsk, Belarus, while its web-registry data lists Belgium, so sources differ |
Team size | About 25 employees on LinkedIn (another directory lists 11-50) |
Core products | Rank Tracker (keyword research and rank monitoring), WebSite Auditor (technical and on-page audits), SEO SpyGlass (backlink analysis) and LinkAssistant (link building) |
Rank Tracker reach | Monitors rankings across 500+ search engines (an older description says 300+) |
Other offering | A Backlink API with on-demand backlink data for developers and agencies |
Type of software | A desktop toolkit, not a web app, unlike most tools on your list |
Pricing model | Flat-rate Free, Professional and Enterprise versions, with a free trial; Pro was listed at $299 and Enterprise at $699 |
Free version | A functional free version, plus a seven-day free trial; limited functionality, suited to small site owners |
Website | link-assistant.com |
FATRANK: a lightweight Chrome extension that shows your organic rank for a keyword within seconds.
Item | Details |
What it is | A free, lightweight in-browser keyword rank checker |
Developer | Fat Joe, a link building and content creation services provider for SEO agencies |
Company location | A UK company, with the 2013 press release datelined Birmingham, England |
Co-founder and CEO | Joe Taylor (as of that 2013 release) |
Company services | Content-driven link building, guest posting, infographic design and blog writing |
FATRANK history | Passed 1,000 daily users in November 2013 |
Current usage | More than 50,000 users and over 1,000,000 searches in 58 countries (self-reported) |
How it works | Visit a site, click the icon, enter a keyword, and it shows the ranking position and the ranking page URL |
Search depth | Checks down to position 100, otherwise it shows "Not found" |
Search engines | Google and Bing |
Exports | CSV reports can be downloaded |
Chrome Store rating | 4.1 out of 5 from 221 ratings |
Cost | Described as completely free, forever |
Website | fatjoe.com/fatrank |
Ahrefs SEO Toolbar: a free Chrome and Firefox extension for quick rank checks.
Serpstat: create a free account for unlimited checks, or use the free on-demand tool.
Sitechecker: an SEO checker and audit tool with a free rank checker.
SEOptimer: a free keyword rank checker plus a suite of SEO audit tools.
Rank Math (WordPress): a free version with basic keyword tools; PRO is about $5.75/month. Best if your site runs on WordPress.
For a start, I'd use Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools for your own site's real data, and Ahrefs or FATRANK for quick spot checks. Free tiers change often, so check each tool's current limits. I can narrow this down by whether you need one-off checks or ongoing daily tracking.
