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Keyword Checker

Powered by Semrush Keyword Overview

Check the difficulty of any keyword on a 1–100 scale. See how hard it is to rank, how many people search for it, and which sites are already on page 1.

For example: socks running shoes

You will see:
  • Keyword Difficulty score from 1–100
  • Monthly search volume in the US
  • Search intent behind the keyword
  • Average cost per click for paid ads
  • The top 10 ranking pages and their authority

Need more than a free keyword check? Try Semrush Keyword Overview.

How to Check Keyword Difficulty

  1. Enter the keyword you want to check in the field above. Keyword Difficulty is a 1–100 score that estimates how hard it would be to rank for that keyword in Google.

  2. Click “Check Keyword” to analyze the keyword for free.

  3. Review the difficulty score, search volume, intent, CPC, and the top 10 pages currently ranking.

What Is Keyword Difficulty?

Keyword Difficulty (KD) is a score from 1 to 100 that estimates how hard it is to rank a new page in the top 10 Google search results for a given keyword. A higher score means it will take more time, more high-quality backlinks, and stronger content to break in.

Keyword Difficulty is a third-party metric, not something Google publishes. SEO tools calculate it by looking at the sites that already rank for the keyword and how strong their backlink profiles are. It’s a quick way to gauge competition before you invest time writing a page.

For example, a keyword with a Keyword Difficulty of 85 is dominated by sites with strong, established backlink profiles. A new or low-authority site would struggle to crack the first page, no matter how good the content is. A keyword with a difficulty of 20 has weaker competition, so a smaller site has a realistic chance of ranking.

Diagram showing the Keyword Difficulty 0–100 spectrum with two example scores: KD 20 (easier, weaker competitors with lower authority) and KD 85 (harder, dominated by high-authority sites).

How We Calculate Keyword Difficulty

We calculate Keyword Difficulty by analyzing the pages that already rank in the top 10 Google results for the keyword. The stronger and more established those pages are, the higher the difficulty score.

  • Backlink strength of the top 10 ranking pages. We look at how many backlinks each ranking page has and how trusted the linking sites are. The more backlinks the top pages have, the harder it is to outrank them.
  • Authority Score of the ranking domains. Authority Score is Semrush’s 1–100 measure of a site’s overall SEO strength. If most of the top 10 results come from high-Authority sites, the keyword is harder to break into.
  • SERP features on the results page. AI Overviews, featured snippets, video carousels, “People also ask” boxes, and image packs all push organic listings down the page, which makes ranking less rewarding even when you make it to position 1.

We recalculate Keyword Difficulty as the top-ranking pages and SERP layout change, so the score reflects the current competitive landscape.

One keyword check is just the start.

Semrush’s Keyword Magic Tool pulls thousands of related keywords with difficulty, search volume, and intent already attached, so you can build a full list in one pass instead of checking each term by hand.

Try free for 7 days

What Is a Good Keyword Difficulty Score?

A “good” Keyword Difficulty score depends on your own site’s authority. If your site is new or has a low Authority Score, you’ll want to target keywords with low difficulty (typically under 30). If you have an established site with strong backlinks, you can realistically pursue keywords in the 50–70 range and still expect to rank.

There’s no single number that’s “good” for every site. A keyword with a difficulty of 40 might be an easy win for a high-authority publisher and a multi-month project for a brand new blog.

Here’s how each Keyword Difficulty tier breaks down, and what it means for your site:

  • Easy (0–14). Almost any site can rank for these keywords with a well-written page. Good for brand-new sites looking to earn their first organic traffic.
  • Possible (15–29). Achievable for newer sites with decent on-page SEO. You may need a few backlinks and a clear, helpful page that matches the search intent.
  • Difficult (30–49). Realistic for sites with some existing authority. Expect to invest in a thorough page and earn a handful of quality backlinks before you rank.
  • Hard (50–69). Suitable for established sites with a solid backlink profile. Plan on producing the best page on the topic and running active link-building.
  • Very Hard (70–84). Reserved for high-authority sites. You’ll need strong on-page SEO, comprehensive content, and significant backlink work to compete.
  • Almost Impossible (85–100). Dominated by major brands and household names.
Side-by-side ladders matching each Keyword Difficulty tier from Very Easy to Very Hard with the Authority Score band a site needs to compete in that tier.

What Data Does the Keyword Checker Provide?

The Keyword Checker provides the following:

  • Keyword Difficulty (KD%): A 0–100 score showing how hard it is to rank in Google’s top 10 search for the keyword.
  • Monthly Search Volume: Estimated number of searches per month in the target location. Higher volume means more traffic potential, but also greater competition.
  • Search Intent: The reason people search for the keyword, shown as Informational, Navigational, Commercial, or Transactional.
  • Average Cost Per Click (CPC): Estimated ad cost per click for the keyword. Higher CPC can signal stronger commercial intent and more competition.
  • Top 10 Ranking Pages: The top Google results for the keyword, with SERP features and URL-level metrics like Authority Score, backlinks, traffic, and ranking keywords.
  • AI Overview: Indicates whether Google shows an AI Overview for the keyword. Keywords with AI Overviews tend to result in fewer clicks, so traffic potential may be lower than the search volume suggests.
Keyword Checker results showing the five data points returned for every keyword

How to Use Keyword Difficulty

Here are five practical ways to use Keyword Difficulty scores:

  • Decide whether a keyword is worth targeting

    Before you spend hours creating or updating a page, check the keyword’s difficulty against your website’s authority. If the score is far above what your site can realistically compete for, save time and effort by targeting a keyword you can actually rank for.

  • Pick which keywords to target first

    If you have a list of keywords you want to target, sort them by difficulty and start with the lowest scores. These represent your quick wins, which build organic traffic, generate backlinks, and raise your overall authority. Then you can go after harder keywords.

  • Set realistic expectations for ranking timelines

    Ranking for keywords with low Keyword Difficulty scores can happen in weeks, or even days. Keywords with higher difficulty scores often take six months to a year, sometimes longer. Use the difficulty score to plan how long you’ll need to wait before judging whether a page is working, and how aggressively you need to build links.

  • Choose between SEO and paid for a keyword

    If a keyword has a high difficulty score and a high CPC and clear commercial intent, running paid ads may make more sense than trying to outrank established sites organically. For example, a keyword with a KD of 85 and a CPC of $8 is a paid play, not an SEO play. Reserve SEO effort for keywords where you have a realistic chance of ranking in the top 10.

  • Spot lower-difficulty variants of competitive keywords

    If your target keyword has a difficulty of 80, check long-tail variants like “best running shoes for flat feet” or “running shoes under $100.” These often have lower difficulty and clearer intent, even if the search volume is smaller.

Find easy keywords faster

Skip the one-off checks. Try Semrush to build a fully integrated keyword research workflow:

  • Generate thousands of related keywords from a single seed term
  • Filter the full list by difficulty, volume, and search intent
  • See every low-difficulty keyword your competitors already rank for
  • Save keyword lists and track your rankings as you publish
Try Semrush for Free

How to Find Low-Difficulty Keywords

Keywords with low Keyword Difficulty (under 30) are the fastest path to organic traffic for newer websites. Here are four practical ways to find low-difficulty keywords:

  • Check long-tail variants of the keyword you care about

    Long-tail keywords are more specific versions of a broader keyword, like “best running shoes for flat feet” instead of “running shoes.” Because they target narrower needs, they often have lower search volume and less competition, which can make them easier to rank for. To find them, enter your main keyword into a keyword research tool, then look for longer variations, question keywords, and related terms with lower Keyword Difficulty.

  • Filter a keyword research tool by difficulty

    Use a keyword research tool like Semrush’s Keyword Magic Tool to generate a list of related keywords and filter that list by difficulty. Set the filter to show only keywords under 30 and pick the ones with the highest search volume from what’s left. This is the fastest way to surface low-competition opportunities.

  • Look for question-based keywords

    Keywords that start with “how,” “what,” “why,” or “when” tend to have lower difficulty than commercial keywords because they’re informational. Answer the question clearly in a blog post or guide, and you can rank for them without an enormous backlink profile. Prioritize question keywords that don’t trigger an AI Overview, as search results that contain AI Overviews tend to result in fewer clicks.

  • Target keywords your competitors rank for but you don’t

    Use a competitor research tool like Semrush’s Organic Rankings to pull the keywords websites in your niche already rank for. Filter that list to keywords with low difficulty. These are proven opportunities. Similar websites are already winning organic traffic from them, and a low difficulty score confirms you can compete.

Why Trust Semrush’s Keyword Difficulty Data?

You can trust Semrush’s Keyword Difficulty data because it’s based on large-scale SERP research, 120,000 keywords, and more than 100 search ranking parameters.

Here’s what goes into our Keyword Difficulty score and how it stays current:

  • Trained on 120,000 keywords. Our data scientists and engineers studied SERP movement across 120,000 keywords in the Semrush database to identify which were hardest to break into via SEO, then built that signal into the formula.
  • Correlations across 100+ parameters. The model analyzes more than 100 ranking parameters for every keyword and weights each one by how much it actually impacts difficulty, so no important signal gets missed.
  • Lab-tested before release, used across the Semrush platform. We relaunched our Keyword Difficulty metric in 2021 with this new formula, after extensive lab testing. The same Keyword Difficulty score now appears in every Semrush keyword research tool, so the number in this free checker matches what paying customers see.
  • Recalculated as the SERP changes. When new pages enter the top 10 or backlink profiles shift, the score updates to reflect the new competitive landscape. You’re never working off of stale data.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Keyword Checker free to use?

Yes, the Keyword Checker is free to use. You can check keywords and keyword difficulty for free, with a limited number of checks per day and no account required.

For more keyword checks, deeper data, and advanced research tools, you can create a free Semrush account or upgrade to a paid Semrush plan.

How accurate is the Keyword Difficulty score?

The Keyword Difficulty score is a reliable estimate of how hard it may be to rank in Google’s top 10 search results for a keyword. Semrush calculates the score by analyzing the pages currently ranking for that keyword, including their backlink profiles and other ranking signals.

Keyword Difficulty is a directional metric, so it can help you compare keyword opportunities rather than predict exact ranking outcomes. Your actual ability to rank also depends on your website’s authority, content quality, search intent match, and how competitive the SERP is when you publish.

How often are Keyword Difficulty scores updated?

Keyword Difficulty scores are updated as the top-ranking pages and SERP layout for a keyword change. For example, the score may change when new pages enter Google’s top 10, existing ranking pages gain or lose backlinks, or SERP features like AI Overviews appear or disappear.

These updates help the score reflect the current level of competition for the keyword.

Why do different tools show different difficulty scores for the same keyword?

Different tools show different keyword difficulty scores for the same keyword because each tool uses its own data sources, ranking factors, and calculation method. Some tools may weigh backlinks more heavily, while others may factor in SERP features, content strength, domain authority, or other signals differently.

For the most consistent comparison, use one Keyword Difficulty metric when prioritizing keywords instead of comparing scores across multiple tools.

Who should use this free Keyword Difficulty checker?

This free Keyword Difficulty checker is best for anyone who needs a quick way to evaluate keyword opportunities before creating content:

  • Marketing and SEO beginners: Use it to understand which keywords may be realistic to target and which ones are likely too competitive.
  • Small business owners: Use it to find lower-difficulty keywords that can help you compete without a large SEO budget.
  • Content marketers: Use it to prioritize article, landing page, and content ideas based on ranking difficulty, search volume, and intent.
  • SEOs and agencies: Use it for quick keyword checks, early-stage research, and fast comparisons before building a deeper keyword strategy.

For a more robust keyword research workflow, use Semrush’s Keyword Overview or Keyword Magic Tool to access deeper data, more keyword ideas, and advanced filters.

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