How to Use Google Keyword Planner Free — Step by Step

What Google Keyword Planner actually is

Google Keyword Planner (GKP) is a free tool inside Google Ads designed to help advertisers find keywords for paid search campaigns. It is also one of the most widely used free keyword research tools for organic SEO — because it provides volume data directly from Google's own systems, making it uniquely authoritative even if its presentation is limited.

The key limitation: GKP was built for advertisers, not SEOs. It shows volume in ranges rather than exact numbers for accounts that are not actively spending on ads, it groups similar keywords and averages their data, and it does not show keyword difficulty scores for organic ranking. Despite these limitations, it is the most accurate free starting point for volume estimates — because the data comes straight from Google.

Setting up Google Keyword Planner — step by step

Understanding GKP's volume data

GKP shows volume in one of two ways depending on your account status:

• Without active ad spend:Volume is shown as ranges — "1K–10K", "100–1K", "10–100". These ranges can be extremely wide and hide important differences. A keyword showing "1K–10K" could have 1,100 or 9,800 monthly searches — a 9× difference that completely changes how you prioritise it.
• With active ad spend (even £1/day):GKP shows exact monthly search volumes and 12-month historical trends. If you are serious about keyword research and need precision, running a small test campaign unlocks this data — many SEOs run a £30/month dummy campaign just to access exact volume figures.

For most beginners, the ranges are sufficient to identify relative opportunity. Treat "1K–10K" as meaning roughly 2,000–5,000 average searches rather than trying to pin down an exact number from GKP alone.

The "Competition" column — do not confuse it with SEO difficulty

GKP's Competition column (Low, Medium, High) refers to advertiser competition for paid search placement — how many Google Ads advertisers are bidding on that keyword. This is completely different from organic SEO difficulty.

A keyword can be High advertiser competition (many businesses want to show ads for it) but Low SEO difficulty (few quality organic pages target it). Conversely, a keyword might have Low advertiser competition but be dominated organically by major publications with enormous authority.

Use the Competition column only to identify commercial intent. High advertiser competition signals that businesses believe this keyword converts visitors into customers — which makes it worth prioritising even if the organic difficulty is higher. Ignore it entirely when assessing your likelihood of ranking organically.

Advanced GKP techniques most users miss

Find competitors' keywords using URL input

Instead of entering seed keywords, enter a competitor's website URL in the "Start with a website" field. GKP will analyse their site and suggest keywords based on their content. Enter multiple competitor URLs in separate searches and combine the results — you get a picture of the full keyword landscape in your niche without having to brainstorm seeds manually.

Use the "Refine keywords" filters

After generating results, use the "Refine keywords" panel on the left to filter by brand/non-brand, specific keywords to include or exclude, or keyword text. The "Keyword text contains" filter is particularly useful — enter a word like "how to" or "best" to isolate question-format and commercial intent keywords from the full list instantly.

Check the Top of page bid for intent signals

The "Top of page bid (high range)" column shows how much advertisers pay per click for that keyword. Keywords with high bids (£5+) are highly commercial — businesses spend heavily because these clicks convert into revenue. Keywords with low bids (under £0.50) are typically informational. Use this as a commercial intent signal when your keyword intent classification is unclear.