Best Free Keyword Research Tools for YouTube : Rank Videos and Boost YouTube SEO

Before creating content for any digital platform, keyword research is a must, even for YouTube. On ClipsTrust, you will find the best keyword research tools for YouTube that will help you find good keywords. 

Furthermore, Keywords play a crucial role in driving visibility, engagement, and growth of a channel. Moreover, in the past few years, YouTube has become a powerful platform for content creators. Consequently, if they understand how to do keyword research for YouTube, they can reach their target audience. 

Basically, keyword research helps users to align their content with the interests of their viewers and target audience. 

However, manually performing keyword research might take Time. This is where keyword research tools for YouTube come into play. 

Let’s get into the article.

List of Top 10 Keyword Research Tools for YouTube

Now, we will take a quick look at the best keyword research tools for YouTube that will help you understand what people are looking for. 

Top 10 Free Best Keyword Research Tools

Now we will learn about the Top 10 Free keyword Research Tools in Detail:

TubeBuddy: One of the Best YouTube Keyword Research Tools 

TubeBuddy, a free extension for Google Chrome, directly works with YouTube. This tool is incorporated with a keyword explorer that helps users find long-tail keywords, assisting users in optimizing their videos. 

Specifications of TubeBuddy

1. Pricing: TubeBuddy is free to use, but it comes with fewer features. The Pro version costs $9/ month, the Star version costs $19/month, and the Legend version costs $39/month.
2. Search Volume Accuracy: YouTube-oriented search results with colour bars.
3. Competition Analysis: Current competition data, which includes items with difficult-to-score characteristics.
4. Related Keywords: Long-term keyword ideas through the Explorer tool
5. Advanced Features: TubeBuddy has AI-enabled suggestions, bulk edit, integrations, and A/B testing.
6. Platform Support: Chrome and Firefox extensions, as well as mobile app compatibility.
7. Integration; Compatibility:  YouTube Studio and third-party tools.

VidIQ Comes in Second for Finding Good Keywords for Your Videos

Similarly, this is another Google Chrome extension, just like TubeBuddy. The main objective of this tool is to help creators identify the best keywords to improve the searchability of their content. When you perform keyword research for YouTube, the extension will share the search volume of the term, its competition, related queries, overall keyword score, tags, and keyword stats from the top search results. 

Specifications of vidIQ

1. Pricing Structure: vidIQ offers a free plan, a Pro plan for $7.50, and a Boost plan for $39.
2. Search Volume Accuracy: Uses YouTube Reporting for exact info.
3. Competition Analysis: In-depth competitor tracking and performance analysis.
4. Related Keywords: Large set of associated keywords and tags
5. Advanced Features: AI-infused daily ideas, bulk processing tools.
6. Platform Support: Chrome, Firefox, Edge extensions, including mobile.
7. Integration & Compatibility: Reduced access to Facebook and TikTok.

Keywordtool.io is a Great YouTube Keyword Research Tool

Keywordtool.io is another one of the best keyword research tools for YouTube. The tool autocompletes the data to share hundreds of keywords on YouTube and ranks them by popularity. After that, it offers a comprehensive list of keywords categorised in different sections, such as keyword suggestions, prepositions, questions, and hashtags. 

Specifications of Keywordtool.io

1. Pricing Structure: Free, Pro Basic $69 a month, Pro Plus $79 a month, and Pro Business $159 a month.
2. Search Volume Accuracy: YouTube search volume estimates that are 100% accurate and show trends.
3. Competition Analysis: Basic features for analysing competitors with limited scoring
4. Related Keywords: A lot of long-tail keyword suggestions from autocomplete data
5. Advanced Features: API access, bulk analysis, and tools for researching competitors
6. Platform Support (Browser extension, mobile compatibility): Only available on the web; no browser extension is available.
7. Integration and Compatibility: API integration with WordPress, Excel, and CSV exports

YouTube Autosuggest Helps with YouTube Keyword Research Manually

Creators can take advantage of the YouTube autosuggest tool. It is not so much a tool per se, but the search box of YouTube. When you type a keyword in the search box, you find a lot of keywords or additional phrases in the menu. 

These terms are taken directly from the relevant search queries that users are searching. These keywords are an excellent resource for optimising your content. 

Even though it does not reveal the search volumes, it is still a great way to find good keywords for YouTube. Manually typing keywords in the search box might be tedious, but it is completely free. 

Specifications of YouTube AutoSuggest

1. Pricing Structure: There are no paid plans; the service is completely free to use.
2. Search Volume Accuracy: No formal volume estimates, just relative recommendations.
3. Competition Analysis: Neither difficulty scores nor competitor metrics are given.
4. Related Keywords: During typing, long-tail keyword suggestions are autocompleted.
5. Advanced Features: There is no support for external integrations, AI, or bulk analysis.
6. Platform Support: Compatible with YouTube search on mobile devices and all browsers.
7. Compatibility & Integration: Integrated directly with YouTube’s search autocomplete feature.

Google Trends is a Free YouTube Keyword Research Tool 

Another free tool to search for keywords on YouTube is Google Trends. While searching for keywords, the software helps you narrow down the results to YouTube searches only. This makes the tool perfect for creators. 

It can be used to compare the popularity of keywords and implement them in your titles, descriptions, tags, video content, etc. Moreover, the Trends feature helps users discover new potential topics for creating more video content. 

Specifications of Google Trends

1. Pricing Structure: There are no paid plans; everyone has free access.
2. Search Volume Accuracy: Normalised 0–100 relative interest scale for search volume accuracy.
3. Competition Analysis: No built-in keyword competition metrics are available for competition analysis.
4. Related Keywords: Shows lists of related topics and questions that are becoming more popular
5. Advanced Features: Filters by category, comparisons, and changes to the time frame.
6. Platform Support: A web-based tool that works well on mobile devices and PCs.
7. Integration and compatibility: You can export data in CSV format and use chart widgets that can be embedded.

Ahrefs Free YouTube Keywords Generator

The Ahrefs YouTube keyword tool (free version) generates top keyword suggestions with basic metrics like click potential.

Specifications of Ahrefs 

1. Pricing Structure:

• Webmaster Tools – Free lifetime plan (no cost)
• Starter – $29/month
• Lite – $108/month
• Standard – $208/month
• Advanced – $374/month
• Enterprise – $1,249/month 

2. Search Volume Accuracy: Clickstream-based monthly volume estimates optimised for YouTube.

3. Competition Analysis: Top-ranking video statistics are measured using difficulty scoring.

4. Related Keywords: Long-tail variations categorised by parent topic are associated keywords

5. Advanced Features: Filters by category, comparisons, and changes to the time frame.

6. Platform Support: A web-based tool that works well on mobile devices and PCs.

7. Integration and compatibility: You can export data in CSV format and use chart widgets that can be embedded.

SEMrush is the Best YouTube Keyword Research Keyword

In contrast, the SEMrush YouTube keyword tool is part of its broader keyword analytics platform.

Specifications of SEMrush Keyword

1. Pricing Structure: The free limited plan Pro costs $139.95, Guru costs $249.95, and Business costs $499.95.
2. Search Volume Accuracy: National and global mean values, which are smoothed.
3. Competition Analysis: PPC competitiveness scale from 0.0 to 1.0.
4. Related Keywords: Keyword research tool puts out a large volume of long-tail terms
5. Advanced Features: AI-powered insights, large-scale keyword analysis, API integrations.
6. Platform Support: This is a fully online application without a mobile app version.
7. Integration & Compatibility: Seamlessly integrates Google Analytics, Search Console, and API workflows.

Keyword Tool Dominator for Discovering Long-Tail Keywords Fast

Keyword Tool Dominator YouTube version offers keyword suggestions based on autocomplete data.

Specifications of Keyword Tool Dominator 

1. Pricing Structure: Free, Pro Basic $69 a month, Pro Plus $79 a month, and Pro Business $159 a month
2. Search Volume Accuracy: YouTube search volume estimates that are 100% accurate and show trends
3. Competition Analysis: Basic features for analysing competitors with limited scoring.
4. Related Keywords: A lot of long-tail keyword suggestions from autocomplete data
5. Advanced Features: API access, bulk analysis, and tools for researching competitors
6. Platform Support: Only available on the web; no browser extension is available.
7. Integration and Compatibility: API integration with WordPress, Excel, and CSV exports

Keywords Everywhere Provides Real-Time YouTube Metrics

The Keywords Everywhere YouTube volume feature helps users see estimated monthly search volume, CPC, and competition metrics across YouTube and Google.

Specifications of Keyword Everywhere

1. Pricing Model (Free/Paid): Free limited search, Bronze (starts at $2.25 per month), Silver (starts at $6 per month), Gold (starts at $25 per month), Platinum (starts at $80 per month.
2. Search Volume Accuracy (YouTube data only): Accurate monthly volume, CPC, competition, 12-month trends
3. Competition Analysis (Keyword Difficulty scoring): SEO, on-page and off-page difficulty scores (0-100).
4. Related Keywords (Long-tail suggestions): Related search, People also search for, long-tail widgets
5. Advanced Features: Bulk keyword import, competitor gap analysis, API integrations
6. Platform Support (Browser extension, mobile): Chrome, Firefox & Edge extensions; no mobile app
7. Integration & Compatibility: Integrated with Google Search, Analytics, Console, Trends, and e-commerce.

RyRob Free YouTube Keyword Tool with  AI Insights

The RyRob YouTube keyword tool is a 100% free tool focused on keyword volume data for YouTube.

Specifications of RyRob

1. Pricing Plan: Entirely free, no logins or Signups.
2. Search Volume Relevance: Monthly search volumes are pulled directly from YouTube.
3. Competition Analysis Difficulty: Low / Medium / High
4. Related Keywords: Get suggestions based on seed keywords
5. Advanced Features: RyRob offers Unlimited free usage with SEO checklist integration.
6. Platform Support: Web-based tool, and it is also a mobile-responsive website.
7. Integration & Compatibility: RyRob is not integrated with any other tool; it is a standalone, free tool. 

Additionally, here, we are going to explain a bunch of things that a new user might not be aware of. It is essential to know the basic concepts, like what a keyword means, what keyword research is, etc. 

Starting now!

What is a YouTube Keyword?

According to YouTube, incorporating descriptive keywords into your videos is one technique to help users find your videos. In short, keywords are those words that provide information to YouTube and the context about your videos. Then, YouTube’s algorithm considers and uses those keywords to display your videos to the right audience. Those videos that are well-liked are favoured by YouTube. 

What is YouTube Keyword Research?

YouTube keyword research means SEO for YouTube. This is an SEO practice that creators can perform to find good keywords for YouTube and discover phrases that people are using while searching for information. YouTube keyword research is nothing but a process of learning which keywords or search terms people use when searching for video content. With that, you can determine the exact intent of your audience and how they are phrasing terms. This allows you to include these keywords directly in the Title, tags, description, and transcript of your videos. 

Through YouTube keyword research for videos and channels, you can confidently rank videos on YouTube and reach the target audience. 

Why Are Keywords for YouTube Important?

It is important to incorporate YouTube keywords in your videos because they help the right audience discover your content. If you choose to create an advertisement on your YouTube channel, you want it to show in front of the right people. 

The best YouTube marketing agencies in India can help you enhance your brand’s awareness and recognition by optimizing your videos and finding the best keywords for YouTube.

With these tools, you will not only get keywords but also various ideas about how to make your content appear in the search results. 

Why Are YouTube Keyword Research Tools Important for Creators?

YouTube keyword research tools provide various benefits to content creators. YouTubers can find the right search terms to optimise their videos, enhance visibility, and attract their target audience. Once they understand what people are searching for, they can increase their content’s discoverability, promote their videos on YouTube, and generate more views and engagement. 

The benefits are: 

Increased Views and Engagement: By targeting keywords that align with audience search intent, creators can attract more viewers who are actively looking for content like theirs. This can lead to more views, comments, likes, and subscribers, ultimately driving more engagement and growth for the channel. 

Better Visibility: With keyword research tools, creators can easily understand and find the terms that their audience is using. This allows them to optimise the titles, descriptions, and tags for their videos. Moreover, the chances of their videos appearing on target keywords increase. 

Enhanced Views and Engagement: YouTubers can target keywords that align with their audience’s search intent. Doing so helps them attract more viewers actively searching for similar content. Their views, comments, likes, and subscribers also increase, leading to an increase in YouTube Shorts views. 

Ideas to Create Content: The YouTube keyword research tools provide users with trending topics based on popular search terms. Users also get insights into their audience preferences, which can help them identify opportunities to create new content. Moreover, they can refine their existing content to meet the needs of their audience. 

SEO Optimisation: For YouTube, keywords are the way to understand the intent and categorise your content. With proper implementation of keywords in your video’s metadata improves the SEO. It further leads to higher rankings on YouTube as well as Google search. 

How to Use Free Keyword Tools Step-by-Step? 

If you are thinking about using free keyword tools, this guide will walk you through the four simple steps to research, analyse, and implement keywords that boost your presence, visibility, and ranking on YouTube and Google. Whether you are using free keyword research tools like Tubebuddy, VidIQ, and keywordtool.io, the process remains effective and beginner-friendly.

Here are the steps that guide you on how to use Keyword Tools:

Step 1- Start with simple Keyword Ideas:

The first and most crucial step is to find simple keywords that match your video topic.         

For example, if you’re planning to create a video about cooking, you could start with basic keywords like “easy recipes,” “Chinese food,” or “tasty Italian dishes.”

To get keyword ideas, type a related word into the YouTube search bar. YouTube will automatically suggest popular search terms based on what users are actively looking for.

This can help you discover relevant and trending keywords for your content. 

Step 2- Check Search Volume & Competition:

Next, try free keyword research tools like TubeBuddy, vidIQ, or keywordtool.io to check how well your selected keywords are performing. 

These tools help you see how your chosen keyword is performing globally, including its search volume, competition level, and overall score. 

For better ranking and visibility, focus on keywords with high search volume and low to medium competition.

Step 3- Find Long-Tail Keywords:

In the third step, follow this by trying to find specific phrases. For example, if you are preparing for a cooking video, you could try an exact phrase like “easy and healthy dinner recipes for beginners.” These are called long-tail keywords. 

Long-tail keywords are great because they are less competitive, easier to rank for, and often attract a highly interested audience who are more likely to watch your content fully, support and like your content, and subscribe to your channel.

Step 4- Optimise and use keywords in your Video:

In this step, save your best keywords and add them to your video title, description, and tags. This process boosts your YouTube SEO and helps your video show up in the search results of the YouTube search bar and recommended results.

How to Turn Keyword Lists into High-Ranking YouTube Videos

Once you find the right keywords for your content, the next step is to use them smartly to reach the maximum audience. Proper keyword placement helps YouTube understand what your video is about. Also, when you use your keywords in the title, description, tag, and hashtags, you increase the chances of your video appearing in search results and recommended or suggested videos. This improves visibility of your content, boosts traffic, and helps grow your channel over Time.

To convert  the Keywords List into High-Ranking YouTube videos, Follow The following Steps:

Discover YouTube Titles that Maximize CTR 

The title of your YouTube channel is the first thing the audience notices, and it plays a significant role in YouTube SEO and click-through rate (CTR). Initially, include your main keyword near the beginning of the Title so YouTube knows what your video is about. This helps YouTube to understand your content and rank it better in search results.

Here are proven and straightforward title format examples:

• “Top 5 YouTube SEO Tips you are missing”
• “Best Free YouTube Keyword Research Tools” 

Points to remember: 

• Always make sure your titles are clear, attention-grabbing, and relevant.
• Make sure your title is not more than 50-60 characters, and it accurately reflects the content of your video.
• Add words like easy, ultimate, fast, or complete to grab audience attention and to enhance click-through rate (CTR).
• Avoid Clickbait because it may increase bounce rates, which creates a negative impact on SEO, because SEO is important for business

Implement the Best YouTube Video Descriptions and Chapters for SEO

Additionally, Video description is an essential part of YouTube keyword SEO. Always start the description with the first 1-2 sentences that clearly explain what your video is about. Make sure to include your main keyword in the description. This helps YouTube’s algorithm to understand your content better and also makes it easier for viewers to decide if they want to watch the video.

Optimise YouTube Tags and Hashtags 

However, Tags play an important role in helping YouTube understand your video’s topic and recommend it alongside similar content. Always use a group of 10-15 relevant tags, including your main keyword, related search terms, and topic-based variations. Proper tag usage increases your chances of appearing in suggested videos and helps you reach a wider and targeted audience.

Common Mistakes with Free Keyword Tools (How to Avoid Them) 

Using free keyword tools for YouTube keyword research is a wise choice for those creators who are starting their career on YouTube or those who are working with a small budget. However, many creators make small mistakes that create a negative impact on their video rankings.

Finally, let’s discuss the common mistakes with free keyword tools and also learn how to avoid them:

1. Only focusing on search volume:

High search volume might seem like a good sign, but such keywords are highly competitive, making it difficult for your video to rank, and your video won’t show up in search results. 

Instead, it is better to focus on low-competitive keywords and long-tail keywords that match your specialty and are easier to rank.

How to Avoid: Balance search volume with user intent, competition difficulty, and conversion potential.

2. Ignoring the Search Intent:

If your keyword doesn’t match the search intent of what people are actually searching for, your video will not perform as well as you expect. 

For example, if you have made a funny video about dogs, but you use the keyword “funny video”, it likely won’t rank well. Why? 

Because “funny video” is too broad and a highly competitive keyword. Instead, choose a keyword that matches your content. 

For example, a better keyword would be “funny dog walk on his hands” or “funny German shepherd videos”. These are more specific and align with what users are really searching for.

How to Avoid: Always use SERPs(Search Engine Result Page) for keywords to avoid and adjust your content format to match the user experience.

3. Overusing Exact Match Keywords

This is a common mistake that every creator should avoid. Repeating the exact keywords too often is known as keyword stuffing, and it hurts your SEO on websites and YouTube. 

Additionally, instead of repeating the exact phrase, try mixing in synonyms, related terms, or natural variations. 

This makes your content more readable and helps it rank better in search results.

How to avoid: Instead of writing the same word over and over, focus on writing naturally. Use related keywords, synonyms, and variations that match the user’s intent. Moreover, it not only improves SEO but also makes your content valuable and enjoyable.

4. Trusting Outdated Data

Many free keyword tools provide monthly or 6-month average data, which may be outdated. This older data doesn’t always reflect current trends or data, and this can slow your SEO success. 

How to Avoid: Try to use tools that offer real-time or up-to-date keyword insights and cross-check volumes with tools like Google Trends or recent search console benchmarks.

5. Relying on single-source estimates

Free keyword tools often use data from search engines like Yahoo or Bing, which don’t provide complete information. As a result, the keyword lists may be incomplete or inaccurate. This lack of incomplete or inaccurate data can make it harder to rank your content effectively on platforms like Google and YouTube.

How to Avoid: Never rely on a single tool or source. Always double-check with two or more tools, like combining Google Keyword Planner with popular keyword finders like TubeBuddy or VidIQ. Compare the results from all the sources and remove any inaccuracies or incompletion. This strategy will provide you more accurate and well-rounded keyword strategy.

Case Study: Ranking a New Channel with Only Free Tools 

Stories are powerful proof of what is real or not in this universe. By reading real case studies, you can learn what works, what does not work, which strategies to apply, and avoid for your channel.

To illustrate, Meet Nawed Zafar, a beginner YouTube creator who launched a comedy shorts channel at the beginning of 2025. He started his YouTube channel from scratch, only with the hope of growing. Initially, he began with a zero budget, zero subscribers, and zero paid tools. He only wanted to test how far he could go with the free keyword research tools his younger brother had recommended.

Goal of Nawed Zafar:

Nawed only wanted to rank a video on YouTube, specifically, using free tools like TubeBuddy, vidIQ, and Google Trends.

Let’s read how Nawed Zafar started his YouTube Journey in Simple Steps:

Step 1- Keyword Discovery:

At first, Nawed used the free version of TubeBuddy to find long-tail and low-competition keywords. Instead of targeting broad and competitive keywords like “fitness tips,” he found keywords with low competition and moderate volume, like ” Best home workout without gym equipment.”

Step 2- Check keywords with multiple tools:

Nawed did not rely on a single tool; he used more tools like VidIQ and Google Trends. The keyword  “Best home workout without gym equipment” shows consistent interest over more than a month.

Step 3- Optimising the Video

After analysing all keywords, he created a short, attractive clip using trending fitness content, titled it “Best home workout without gym equipment,” and added relevant tags like #fitness #workoutwithoutgymequipment #besthomeworkout.

He also included keywords in relevant tags.  

Result Day:

As a result, one week after publishing, Nawed noted that his video was ranking on the first page of YouTube searches for “Best home workout without gym equipment” and gained over 50,000 views without promotion or any advertisement. After his success, he got an invitation to attend the event organised by the owners of the best gyms in Noida.

That Would be All About the Best Keyword Research Tools for YouTube

In conclusion, for making your video reach your target audience, it is important to know the concept of keyword research. And how to use the best YouTube keyword research tools. If you have a list of free keyword research tools, it becomes easier to find relevant keywords that your audience is searching for. Then, implementing these keywords and incorporating them at the important places can help you improve your video’s visibility. Moreover, the benefits and importance of these tools are also mentioned so that creators who are still not convinced can understand why and how these tools help.

Frequently Asked Questions about Free YouTube Keyword Research Tools

Question 1. What is the best free YouTube keyword research tool in 2025?  

Answer. Google Trends is the best free YouTube keyword research tool in 2025.

Question 2. How accurate is search-volume data for YouTube keywords?  

Answer. The search-volume data for YouTube keywords is not perfectly accurate.

Question 3. Can I do keyword research without installing extensions? 

Answer. Yes, you can do keyword research without installing extensions by using Google Trends, Google keyword planner, etc.

Question 4. How many tags should I add to a video in 2025?  

Answer. In 2025,  you can use 6-8 relevant and targeted tags in a YouTube Video.

Question 5. Are free keyword research tools safe for YouTube channel SEO?  

Answer. Yes, free keyword research tools are safe for YouTube Channel SEO. Furthermore, they are an effective way to improve YouTube SEO.

Question 6. How do I find low-competition keywords for a small channel?  

Answer. You can find low-competition keywords for a small channel by focusing on long-tail keywords, using keyword research tools, analysing competitors’ content, etc.

Question 7. Does Google Keyword Planner show YouTube search volume?  

Answer. No, Google Keyword Planner doesn’t show YouTube Search Volume Directly.

Question 8. How often should I update video keywords?  

Answer. It is recommended to update video keywords when the video is not performing as expected, and when your initial keyword research strategy needs adjustment, or if you are targeting new digital marketing objectives.

Question 9. What’s the difference between vidIQ and TubeBuddy free plans?  

Answer. vidIQ’s plan focuses more on real-time keyword metrics and AI suggestions, while TubeBuddy’s free plan offers basic SEO tools.

Question 10. Do hashtags still matter for YouTube SEO?

Answer. Yes, hashtags still matter for YouTube SEO, but it is less effective than titles, descriptions, and thumbnails.

Livanshu Syal

I'm a content writer with a passion for crafting clear, engaging, and SEO-optimized content that drives results. From travel blogs and product descriptions to thought leadership articles, I specialize in creating content that connects with audiences and supports business goals. With a strong understanding of digital trends and storytelling, I bring ideas to life through the power of words.