What it does
First, the honest part: keyword density is not a Google ranking factor. There is no ideal percentage. Google has said for years that repeating a word more often won't help a page rank, and stuffing it in can make the page read worse.
Counting words is still useful, just for different reasons. It shows you when you've leaned on one word so hard it's become noise, when a draft never actually uses the term your readers search for, or when two pages are so alike they compete with each other. This tool lists the 15 most frequent words in your text and the share of all words each one takes.
How to use it
- 1Copy the body text of your page or draft. Leave out menus, footers and HTML tags, or they'll be counted too.
- 2Paste it into the Content box.
- 3Press Run. You'll see up to 15 words, each with a count and a percentage of the total.
- 4Ignore common words like the, and and to. Look at the topic words below them.
What to look for in the list
The list is a mirror of your writing. A few patterns are worth acting on.
- One topic word far ahead of the rest. Read the text aloud. If it sounds repetitive, use pronouns or more specific terms.
- Your main topic missing from the top 15. The page may not say clearly what it's about.
- Words your readers wouldn't use. If you write "utilise" and they search "use", match them.
- Two of your pages with nearly the same top words. Consider merging them or giving each a distinct angle.
How the count works
Text is lowercased and split into words of letters and digits, in any language. A word with an apostrophe inside, like "don't", stays whole. Each word is counted on its own, so phrases like "web analytics" show up as two separate words.
Common words such as "the" and "and" are counted like any other, so they usually top the list. Skip past them to the words that describe your topic.
Questions
Is keyword density a ranking factor?
No. Google doesn't reward a target density, and repeating a word to hit a number can make a page look spammy. Write for the reader and use the words they'd use.
What is a good keyword density?
There isn't one. If a word appears so often that the text reads awkwardly, it's too much. That's the only test that matters.
Does this count phrases?
No. It counts single words. Look for the words in a phrase near each other in the list as a rough sign.
Why are words like "the" at the top?
They're the most common words in English. The tool doesn't filter them out, so skip past them to the words about your topic.
Is my text sent anywhere?
No. The count runs in your browser.