8 best SEO keyword research tools for solopreneurs in 2025 (free & paid)

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the practice of improving your website’s search engine rankings by optimizing your content toward certain searched keywords (or keyphrases). 

And though best practices may change, SEO remains an essential part of operating an online business. 

That’s because your customers are actively searching for services or products related to your business – via Google, social media, or YouTube – and using the right keywords can help your content appear earlier in search results.

Fortunately, you don’t have to be an SEO expert to improve your website’s searchability. There are plenty of keyword research tools you can use to do the heavy lifting. 

Here’s a preview of my recommended tools: 

• Best overall value: SE Ranking
• Most in-depth: Semrush
• Best for beginners: Mangools 
• Easiest to use: Morningscore 
• Best AI keyword tool: Surfer 
• Best free SEO keyword tool: Moz Keyword Explorer 
• Best SEO plugin: Keywords Everywhere
• Best for YouTube keyword research: vidIQ 

Below, I’ll share more details about each one and how to get the most out of your SEO platform. 

How to use a keyword research tool 

Keyword research tools help you find keyword opportunities that can improve your website’s ranking on search engines. 

You can use these tools to generate and analyze lists of keywords and search terms related to your business. Most tools will not only create a list of keywords you can use on your website, but they’ll also show you the search volume, ranking difficulty, and which websites or links you’d be competing with. 

For example, let’s say you create an online course that teaches people how to start a podcast. You want more people to find your course through Google, so you enter “podcast online course” into your keyword research tool.  

It’ll help you identify related keywords including: 

• podcasting online course
• best podcast courses 
• best podcast online course
• podcast online course for beginners 
• free podcast training courses

Your tool will also show you how easy or difficult it is to rank for those keywords, as well as which websites or links are already showing up in those searches. 

You can use all of this information to guide your website SEO strategy. This includes incorporating your target keywords into your main pages and creating long-form content–like blogs–that answer questions people are searching for. 

Many keyword research tools also monitor certain keywords so you can track your ranking and keep tabs on other websites that are targeting those same keywords. 

Best tools for SEO keyword research

There are several keyword research tools available, most of which provide the core functions needed to identify the best keywords for your website. 

Some offer more in-depth data while others focus on specific channels, like YouTube. The tool you choose depends on what your SEO goals are. 

Whether you’re looking for an all-in-one platform or a free SEO tool, are my recommendations for the best keyword research tools for solopreneurs. 

Best overall value: SE Ranking

SE Ranking is my favorite keyword research tool. It comes equipped with everything you need to discover, analyze, and incorporate keywords into your website and content plan. 

You can start by using the keyword generator to get a list of suggested keywords for your business. SE Ranking will then analyze the list, assess the competition, show you the SERPs (search engine results pages), and recommend related keywords and search terms to help you come up with more topic ideas. All of these features are designed to make it easier for you to improve your website’s search ranking. 

In my opinion, the platform is intuitive and easy to use, even if you don’t have any experience with SEO. 

Pros:

• Great value for the price 
• Extensive database of over 5 billion keywords 
• You can discover organic and paid keywords

Cons:

• The platform is tailored to SEO professionals and agencies, so some features might be intimidating to online business owners.

Most in-depth: Semrush

Semrush is one of the most well known SEO tools. It’s a popular choice for SEO professionals, agencies, and longtime bloggers due to its extensive features and global database. The tool has one of the biggest databases with over 26 billion keywords, 808 million domain profiles, and 43 trillion backlinks that it’s able to analyze.  

You can use Semrush to analyze your current website performance, discover organic and paid keyword opportunities, and even generate a keyword strategy, complete with recommended pillar pages and subpages. If you want to get technical, the platform also offers tools to improve your on-page SEO and audit your website for any technical issues. 

Pros:

• Having access to an extensive database ensures you’re covering all of your bases 
• You can use Semrush to generate an entire keyword strategy, even without SEO experience 

Cons:

• The high price may be hard to justify if you don’t plan on using the advanced SEO features.   

Best for beginners: Mangools 

Another great keyword research tool is Mangools. I recommend their KWFinder tool if you’re new to SEO as it’s user-friendly and makes the process easy to understand. 

Like other tools, KWFinder will help you identify keywords with high search volume and low keyword difficulty. These are the words and phrases you’ll want to target so you can try to rank for them. 

The platform’s pricing is on the lower end compared to other keyword research tools. Mangools even offers a free plan that’s limited to five keyword searches per 24 hours. This could be a good option if you don’t plan to do a ton of keyword research but still want access to a high-quality tool.

Pros:

• Offers a free plan 
• Visual and color coded UI makes the experience user-friendly 

Cons:

• The keyword database isn’t as extensive as other tools.

Easiest to use: Morningscore

You probably don’t think of SEO keyword research as “fun” but Morningscore challenges that idea. 

The platform gamifies the process by providing guided “missions” that help you achieve your SEO goals and improve your rankings. Missions can include anything from fixing a broken link to improving your position for a specific keyword. Every time you complete a mission, you earn points and level up. 

Not only does this make keyword research fun, but the guided prompts are helpful for beginners. After a while, you’ll probably be able to complete these tasks without prompting. 

Pros:

• Beginner-friendly 
• Focused on actionable insights 

Cons:

• The keyword database isn’t as extensive as other tools. 

Best AI keyword tool: Surfer

While most SEO tools focus on the keyword research aspect, Surfer focuses on content optimization. 

For example, you can use it to outline and analyze blog content and the tool will provide real-time suggestions for how to improve your content for SEO. It’ll also provide a content score that you can improve as you make adjustments to your structure, headings, and keywords. 

What I like best about Surfer is its AI features. Surfer AI will do everything from outlining to writing, and even optimizing all on its own. This is a huge timesaver for solopreneurs. 

Pros:

• Built-in AI tools help with content creation 
• Real-time SEO recommendations makes the content creation process seamless 

Cons:

• If you don’t plan to publish long-form content, you might not get the most out of Surfer’s content optimization tools.

Best free SEO keyword research tool: Moz Keyword Explorer

Moz is an all-in-one SEO and digital marketing platform that offers a free tool called Keyword Explorer. 

I recommend using this tool if you’re brand new to SEO keyword research. You can quickly get an understanding of how to search for keywords you’re interested in targeting. 

Keep in mind that because it’s free, the extent of Keyword Explorer’s data is pretty limited. After you search for a keyword, it will display the volume, click-through rate (CTR), and the ranking difficulty, along with the top five related keywords. But if you want more insights you’ll have to sign up for a free trial or a paid plan. 

Pros:

• Moz also offers other free tools like its Link Explorer and Competitive Research feature
• You can easily sign up for an account if you enjoy the free tool 

Cons:

• The free tool is limited to three searches per day.

Best SEO plugin: Keywords Everywhere

Another easy-to-use option for keyword research is the browser plugin, Keywords Everywhere. 

After installing the plugin, you’ll see keyword and search data as you’re browsing Google. For example, if you’re searching for “email marketing tips” for a blog post you’re writing, you’ll automatically see data for that keyword along with related search terms and historical trend data. This is useful for quick insights or brainstorming.  

Pricing starts at $6 per month and it includes up to 400,000 credits per year (credits are essentially the number of keywords you can search for). 

Pros: 

• The plugin works on Google Chrome, Firefox, and Microsoft Edge
• The real-time insights can help spark content or keyword ideas 

Cons:

• Unless you turn it off, the plugin is always pulling data no matter what you’re searching for.

Best for YouTube keyword research: VidIQ 

Want to boost your YouTube views? I recommend using vidIQ. 

vidIQ works like other keyword research tools but is focused solely on YouTube. You can use the tool to discover trending keywords and topics on YouTube, analyze competitors’ channels, and optimize your existing videos to improve their search ranking and engagement. This tool is a great way to identify video topics people are already searching for. 

All that to say, vidIQ is essential if you want your YouTube videos to get seen by your target audience. 

Pros:

• You can research keywords directly in YouTube search 
• vidIQ offers AI tools to help generate and optimize your video titles and descriptions

Cons:

• Because it’s so niche, this tool is only useful for people who have YouTube channels. 

Final thoughts 

Here’s a recap of our recommended SEO keyword research tools:

• Best overall value: SE Ranking
• Most in-depth: Semrush
• Best for beginners: Mangools 
• Easiest to use: Morningscore 
• Best AI keyword tool: Surfer 
• Best free SEO keyword tool: Moz Keyword Explorer 
• Best SEO plugin: Keywords Everywhere 
• Best for YouTube keyword research: vidIQ 

Keyword research doesn’t have to be difficult or time consuming. When you use a keyword research tool that you’re comfortable with, finding the right search terms to incorporate can be a breeze. SEO is a long game, so the more efforts you put into keyword research now, the more results you’ll see down the road.