What is keyword density, and does it still matter?

Keyword density measures how often a word or phrase appears on a page compared with the total number of words. If a 1,000-word article uses "running shoes" 10 times, the density is 1%.

How keyword density is calculated

keyword density = (times the phrase appears ÷ total words) × 100

For multi-word phrases, some tools count each word of the phrase in the total; others count the phrase once. That's why different tools give slightly different numbers, and why the exact figure doesn't matter much.

Is there an ideal keyword density?

No. Old SEO advice suggested 1 to 3%, from a time when search engines matched pages largely by counting words. Google now understands topics, synonyms and context. Google representatives have said for years that there's no ideal density.

What does matter:

• The main phrase appears where it counts: the title, the H1, the opening paragraph and naturally in the body.
• Related terms appear too. A page about running shoes that never mentions cushioning, sizing or terrain looks thin.
• The text reads naturally. If it sounds repetitive out loud, it is.

What keyword stuffing looks like

Google's spam policies name keyword stuffing explicitly. Examples:

• Repeating the same phrase in every sentence.
• Lists of cities or keywords with no real content: "plumber London, plumber Camden, plumber Islington…".
• Hidden text or keywords in tiny or white-on-white text.
• Alt text and headings stuffed with the same phrase.

Stuffing can lead Google to rank a page lower or, in serious cases, to take manual action.

What keyword density is still good for

A density check is a quick way to see what a page is really about. Paste a page into the checker on this page and look at the top words and two- and three-word phrases:

1. Your main phrase should be near the top. If it's not in the top phrases at all, Google may not see the page as being about it.
2. Unexpected words at the top suggest the page is about something else, or that navigation and footer text are drowning out the content.
3. One phrase far ahead of everything else, at several percent, suggests stuffing.

Compare with pages that rank

Run the checker on the top three results for your search, then on your own page. Look for phrases that appear on all of theirs and not on yours. Those are often subtopics you're missing. The keyword ideas generator can suggest more related terms and the questions people ask.

Write for the reader first

Use the phrase people search for in the places that matter, cover the topic fully, and use natural variations. Then check density once, as a sanity check. If you want help tightening wording without losing the meaning, try the paragraph rewriter.