Keyword Density Checker

Analyse keyword density in your text. See top words, phrases, and check target keyword usage for SEO optimisation.

Free to use. Runs in your browser.

Paste your content below to see keyword frequencies, density percentages, and check whether your target keyword sits in the common 1-3% range.

Your content is analysed in your browser, nothing is uploaded.

Your Content

Target Keyword (optional)

What Is Keyword Density and Does It Still Matter?

Keyword density is the percentage of times a keyword appears in your content compared to the total word count. If you write 1,000 words and use "chocolate cake" 15 times, that's a 1.5% density. Simple maths, but the SEO implications are anything but simple.

In the early days of SEO, keyword density was everything. Stuffing pages with your target keyword worked, until Google got smart enough to detect it. Today, there's no magic density number that guarantees rankings. But keyword density still serves as a useful diagnostic tool: too low means Google might not understand your topic, too high means you're probably over-optimising and it reads badly.

Think of keyword density as a temperature gauge, not a steering wheel. It tells you if something's off, but it shouldn't drive your writing. Write naturally for humans first, then check the density to catch obvious problems.

Keyword Density Guidelines

Density Range	Interpretation	Action Needed
Under 1%	Keyword is sparse, search engines may not associate the page with your topic	Add a few more natural mentions, especially in headings and the opening paragraph
1% to 2%	Common healthy range, topic is clear without over-repetition	No changes needed, this is where most well-written content lands
2% to 3%	Upper end of the common range, acceptable if the writing flows naturally	Read it aloud. If the keyword feels forced, use synonyms for some instances
3% to 4%	Starting to look over-optimised, may affect readability and credibility	Replace some instances with related terms, pronouns, or rephrase sentences
Over 4%	Keyword stuffing territory, hurts readability and can be flagged as spam	Major rewrite needed. Focus on natural language and topic depth

What this means for you: A typical primary keyword lands in the 1-3% range for well-written content. There is no officially correct number, so do not obsess over it. If the content reads naturally and covers the topic thoroughly, the right density tends to follow.

Beyond Single Keyword Density

Modern SEO cares less about a single keyword and more about topical coverage. Google's algorithms understand semantic relationships, if you're writing about "budget planner", they expect to see related terms like "monthly spending", "savings target", "fixed costs", "income", and "category totals" throughout the content.

TF-IDF (Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency)

A more sophisticated metric than raw density. TF-IDF weighs how important a term is to your document relative to how common it is across all documents. High TF-IDF terms are your unique topical signals.

LSI Keywords (Latent Semantic Indexing)

Related terms that search engines associate with your topic. For "coffee maker", LSI keywords might include "brew", "grind", "filter", "carafe". Using these signals topical depth without repeating your main keyword.

N-gram Analysis

This tool shows bi-grams (2-word phrases) and tri-grams (3-word phrases) alongside single keywords. These multi-word phrases often reveal your real topical focus better than individual words.

Keyword Prominence

Where your keyword appears matters more than how often. A keyword in your H1, first paragraph, and meta description carries more weight than the same keyword buried in paragraph twelve.

How to Fix Keyword Stuffing

If the checker shows a density over 3%, your content probably reads awkwardly even to humans. Here's how to fix it without losing topical relevance: use synonyms and related phrases (e.g., "budget planner" → "spending tracker", "monthly budget tool"), use pronouns ("it", "this tool"), restructure sentences so the keyword isn't needed, and add more depth around the topic so the total word count increases while keyword count stays the same.

The best content doesn't need density tricks. If you genuinely cover a topic in depth, the right keywords appear naturally at the right frequency. This tool just confirms you're on track.

Keyword Density by Content Type

Content Type	Ideal Density	Word Count	Why
Blog post	1-2%	1,500-2,500	Longer content can spread keywords naturally
Product page	2-3%	300-500	Short pages need higher density to signal relevance
Landing page	1.5-2.5%	500-1,000	Balance between conversion copy and SEO
Category page	1-2%	200-400	Light touch, products do the heavy lifting
Pillar page	0.5-1%	3,000-5,000	Covers topic broadly; related pages target specifics (a Low badge is expected here)

These are guidelines, not rules. Google's algorithms are sophisticated enough to understand synonyms and related terms. Focus on writing naturally and covering the topic thoroughly, if your keyword density falls within these ranges without forcing it, you're doing it right.

How This Tool Counts

Knowing exactly how the numbers are produced helps you read them correctly.

Text is split into words by letters, numbers, and apostrophes, then lowercased, so "Budget" and "budget" count as the same word.
The total word count includes common stop words such as "the", "and", and "of", because density is always measured against the full length of the text.
The top-keyword lists leave those stop words out so the results show terms that actually carry meaning.
Two and three word phrases are built after stop words are removed, so "the best coffee" is counted as the phrase "best coffee", and only phrases that appear at least twice are listed.
A target keyword is matched on whole-word boundaries, so "cat" does not match inside "category". Its density is simply its count divided by the total word count.

Common Keyword Density Mistakes

Writing for the number

Forcing a keyword in to hit a target percentage makes copy read badly. Write for the reader first, then use the checker to catch anything that drifted too high or too low.

Ignoring synonyms

Search engines understand related terms. "Spending tracker" and "monthly budget" support a "budget planner" page without repeating the exact phrase, and they keep the density natural.

Stuffing every heading

The same phrase in every H2 reads as spam to both people and search engines. Vary your headings and let subtopics carry related terms.

Comparing unlike pages

A 300-word product page and a 3,000-word guide will sit at very different densities by nature. Compare a page against its own goal, not against a page of a different length.

Related Tools

Word Counter

Check total word count, the denominator in keyword density.

Readability Checker

Ensure your content is readable after optimising for keywords.

Google SERP Preview

Preview how your optimised page appears in search results.

Meta Tag Generator

Include your target keyword in title and meta description tags.

Case Converter

Format headings and titles for consistent capitalisation.

Slug Generator

Create keyword-rich URL slugs for your optimised pages.

How to use this tool

Paste your article or blog post content into the text area

Optionally enter a target keyword to check its specific density

Review the density percentages and adjust your content if needed

Common uses

Checking target keyword usage before publishing blog posts
Detecting keyword stuffing in SEO content
Analysing competitor page content for keyword patterns
Optimising landing page copy for search engines

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is keyword density?

Keyword density is the percentage of times a keyword appears in your text relative to the total word count. A 1,000-word article with 15 mentions of a keyword has a density of 1.5%.

What is ideal keyword density?

There is no officially correct density. A typical primary keyword lands between 1-3% in well-written content, which is the common practitioner heuristic. Under 1% may not signal your topic clearly to search engines. Above 3% risks keyword stuffing, which reads poorly and can be flagged as spam.

Does this check phrases too?

Yes. We analyse single words (unigrams), two-word phrases (bigrams), and three-word phrases (trigrams). Multi-word phrases often reveal your real topical focus.

Are stop words filtered?

Common stop words (the, is, and, etc.) are excluded from the top keywords list but included in the total word count for accurate density calculations.

What is keyword stuffing?

Keyword stuffing is the practice of overloading content with your target keyword to manipulate search rankings. Google penalises this. If your density is over 3%, you're likely over-optimising.

Does keyword density still affect SEO rankings?

Not directly as a ranking factor, but it's a useful diagnostic. Too low means Google might not understand your topic. Too high means you're probably over-optimising. Modern SEO cares more about topical coverage than exact keyword counts.

What is TF-IDF and how does it relate to keyword density?

TF-IDF (Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency) is a more sophisticated metric. It weighs how important a term is to your document relative to how common it is across all documents. It's what search engines actually use internally.

Should I check density before or after publishing?

Ideally both. Check before publishing to catch obvious stuffing or under-use. Check after by analysing competitor pages that rank well to see what density patterns correlate with top positions.

What's the difference between keyword density and prominence?

Density is how often a keyword appears. Prominence is where it appears. A keyword in your H1, first paragraph, and meta description carries more weight than the same keyword buried in later paragraphs.

How do I reduce keyword density without losing relevance?

Use synonyms and related phrases, use pronouns, restructure sentences, and add depth around the topic. More words on related subtopics naturally reduces density while improving topical coverage.

Is my content analysed on a server?

No. All analysis happens in your browser using JavaScript. Your content is never uploaded or stored anywhere.

What are LSI keywords?

LSI (Latent Semantic Indexing) keywords are terms search engines associate with your topic. For 'coffee maker', LSI keywords include 'brew', 'grind', 'filter'. Using these signals topical depth without repeating your main keyword.

Results are for general informational purposes only and should be checked before use. They are not professional advice. See our Disclaimer and Terms of Service.