Hey there, fellow creators and bloggers!
Are you tired of pouring your heart and soul into a blog post only to see it languish on page nine of Google? You’re not alone. The digital landscape is more competitive than ever, but here’s a comforting thought: the secret to getting found online isn’t some complicated, expensive trick. It all comes down to knowing what your audience is actually searching for.
That’s where the unsung hero of the SEO world steps in: the Google Keyword Planner.
Now, before you click away because you hear “Google Ads” and think, “That’s not for me—I’m a blogger, not an advertiser,” stop right there! This powerful tool, tucked away inside Google’s advertising platform, is a completely free keyword research tool that provides the most reliable data on what people type into the world’s biggest search engine. It’s an absolute game-changer for keyword research for beginners.
In this exhaustive 2025 guide, published right here on Tech4Creators.com, we’re going to walk you through everything. We’ll show you how to set up your account (without spending a penny), master its two core functions, and—most importantly—how to use its data to find those gold-mine, low competition keywords that will drive real, consistent traffic to your blog.
Ready to stop guessing and start growing? Let’s dive in!
- 1. Why Google Keyword Planner is Still Your Best Friend in 2025
- 2. Getting Started: The Non-Advertiser's Setup Guide
- 3. Free vs. Paid: Unpacking the Keyword Planner Data
- 4. Mastering the Core Features: The Two Golden Roads
- 5. A Step-by-Step Tutorial: How to Find Low Competition Keywords
- 6. Decoding the Metrics: Simple Explanations for Non-Techies
- 7. Advanced Strategies for Creators
- 8. Conclusion: Time to Unleash Your Traffic Potential
- 9. FAQs: Your Top Questions Answered
1. Why Google Keyword Planner is Still Your Best Friend in 2025
For a creator focused on organic SEO, using a tool designed for paid ads might seem like bringing a hammer to a fine-toothed carpentry job. But trust me, the Google Keyword Planner is a powerful instrument because of who created it: Google itself.
The Authority of Google’s Data
Think of the Keyword Planner as getting the keyword data straight from the “horse’s mouth.” Unlike third-party SEO tools, which use complex modeling and estimates, the data you see in the Keyword Planner is based on the actual searches that happen on Google.
- No Guesswork: You aren’t seeing estimates; you are seeing Google’s own internal data about search popularity and trend changes.
- The Trend Advantage: You can see how a keyword has trended over time, helping you spot emerging topics or avoid keywords that are quickly fading away. This is critical for planning content that stays relevant.
Dispelling the “It’s Only for Ads” Myth
It’s true that the tool’s interface includes metrics like “Suggested Bid” and “Competition” (which refers to ad competition), but these metrics are actually a goldmine for us non-advertisers!
For example, a keyword with a High Competition and a high Top of Page Bid tells you one thing: advertisers are willing to pay a lot for that traffic. This means the keyword likely has strong commercial intent—it leads to people buying something. While we’re not bidding, knowing this helps us choose which topics are most likely to convert subscribers or sell products. It’s a huge clue for keyword research for beginners!
2. Getting Started: The Non-Advertiser’s Setup Guide
This is the only slightly tricky part, but we’ll make it pain-free. To access the Google Keyword Planner, you need a Google Ads account. Don’t panic—you do not need to create an ad or spend any money!
Creating Your Google Ads Account (The No-Spend Way)
- Visit the Google Ads Homepage: Go to ads.google.com and sign in with the Google account you want to use for your blog.
- Start the Setup: Google will immediately ask you to create your first campaign. Do not create a campaign. Instead, look for a small link, usually near the bottom of the page, that says something like “Are you a professional marketer? Switch to Expert Mode.” Click this link.
- Skip the Campaign: After switching to Expert Mode, Google will ask you about a campaign again. Look for an option that says “Create an account without a campaign” or “Skip campaign creation.” Click this.
- Confirm Details: You’ll be asked to confirm your business information (like country, time zone, and currency). Click Submit.
- The Final Step: You now have a Google Ads account! You’ll be taken to the dashboard, but you still haven’t spent any money.
Finding the Keyword Planner Tool
Once you’re in the dashboard (Expert Mode), look for the Tools icon (it looks like a small wrench or gear) in the top-right menu.
- Click the Tools icon ($\text{\Large\img}$).
- Under the Planning section, click on Keyword Planner.
That’s it! You’ve successfully accessed the free keyword research tool without opening your wallet.
3. Free vs. Paid: Unpacking the Keyword Planner Data
This is the most critical section for bloggers and creators. The Google Keyword Planner is free, but the data it shows changes dramatically if you are running an active, paid ad campaign.
| Feature | Free Access (No Active Ads) | Paid Access (Active Ad Campaigns) |
| Cost to Use Tool | Free | Free (but you pay for ads) |
| Search Volume Data | Broad Ranges (e.g., 1K–10K, 10–100) | Exact Numbers (e.g., 5,400, 180) |
| Keyword Ideas | Unlimited ideas based on your seed words. | Same unlimited keyword ideas. |
| Competition | Shown as Low, Medium, or High (for Ad Competition) | Shown as Low, Medium, or High (for Ad Competition) |
| Value for SEO | Excellent for finding ideas and topics. Great for keyword research for beginners. | Superior for precision and scaling content strategy. |
When the Free Version is Enough for Bloggers
For most beginners, the free access is more than enough. Here’s why:
- Topic Discovery: The main goal of a blogger is to find what to write about. The “Discover New Keywords” function works flawlessly in the free version. It gives you thousands of ideas.
- Volume Comparison: Even with broad ranges like “1K–10K,” you can easily compare two keywords. If “keyword A” is 10K–100K and “keyword B” is 100–1K, you know A is vastly more popular. This comparison is often enough to make smart content choices.
- Finding Low Competition Keywords: You’re looking for keywords with Low Ad Competition and a decent volume range (e.g., 1K–10K). These are your best bets for driving organic traffic quickly.
The Golden Nugget: Don’t chase a keyword just because its volume is exactly 8,000 instead of “1K–10K.” Focus on the relevance and the intent of the searcher. The free version helps you do exactly that.
4. Mastering the Core Features: The Two Golden Roads
Once you’re in the Google Keyword Planner, you’ll see two main paths. You’ll be using these tools for slightly different purposes in your blogging journey.
Road 1: Discover New Keywords (The Idea Generator)
This is the workhorse for keyword research for beginners and where you will spend most of your time. It’s perfect for brainstorming new content topics.
A. Start with Keywords
This is the fastest way to get a list of related terms. You enter a few “seed keywords”—broad topics related to your niche.
Example for a WordPress Blogger:
WordPress speed optimizationbest WordPress themehow to start a blog in 2025
The tool will take these few seeds and return hundreds (sometimes thousands!) of related, long-tail, and question-based keywords. You’ll get ideas you never thought of!
B. Start with a Website
This feature lets you analyze your own site, or even a competitor’s, to generate keyword ideas based on the existing content on that URL.
- For Your Site: Enter a URL (like your blog’s homepage) and choose “Use only this page” or “Use the entire site.” This is great for finding new angles on topics you’ve already covered.
- For a Competitor: While not a dedicated competitor analysis tool, entering a competitor’s URL can give you a peek at what Google thinks their page is about. This can quickly reveal content gaps in your own strategy.
Road 2: Get Search Volume and Forecasts (The Keyword Analyzer)
This feature is best for checking the volume of a list of keywords you already have. Maybe you brainstormed 50 topics in a notebook, and now you need the data.
- Click “Get search volume and forecasts.”
- Paste or upload your list of keywords (one per line).
- Click “Get Started.”
The results will show you the historical average monthly searches for each term, helping you decide which ones have the most potential traffic. The “Forecasts” section is geared towards advertisers, estimating ad clicks and costs, so as a blogger, you can mostly ignore this tab.
5. A Step-by-Step Tutorial: How to Find Low Competition Keywords
The goal of any creator is to find low competition keywords that still have a decent amount of search traffic. This is where you outsmart the big corporate sites that are chasing huge, highly competitive keywords.
Step 1: Start with a Broad Seed Keyword
Go back to “Discover New Keywords” and enter your main topic.
Example Scenario (Tech Blogger): Your blog is about optimizing images.
- Seed Keyword:
image optimization
Click “Get results.”
Step 2: Set Your Target Audience Filters
The results page will default to a broad search (usually the United States, English). You need to be specific.
- Location: If your content is for a global audience, select “All locations.” If you only sell a product in Canada, set the target to “Canada.”
- Language: Keep this set to the language you write in (e.g., “English”).
Step 3: Filter for Opportunity (The Gold-Mine Strategy)
This is the secret sauce for keyword research for beginners. We are going to filter the results to find those easy-to-rank terms.
- Filter by Competition: Click on the “Competition” column header to sort the keywords. You want to focus on the keywords labeled “Low.” Remember, this is ad competition, but it’s a strong indicator that fewer people are actively fighting for that search term.
- Filter by Volume: Next, check the “Average monthly searches” column. Look for keywords with a Low competition level but a volume range of at least 1K–10K or higher.
- Use the Keyword Filter: Click the “Add filter” button above the results table. Select “Keyword text” and include words like:
how tobest freefor beginnerstutorialalternative
Filtering like this forces Google to show you long-tail keywords—those longer, more specific phrases that are easier to rank for.
Result Example:
Instead of targeting:
Image optimization(Volume: 10K–100K, Competition: High)
You’ve found and should target:
how to optimize images for web loading speed(Volume: 1K–10K, Competition: Low)best free image optimization plugin for wordpress(Volume: 100–1K, Competition: Low)
These are your low competition keywords! They might have lower volume, but you have a much higher chance of hitting the top of the search results, which means 100% of that smaller traffic volume comes to you.
6. Decoding the Metrics: Simple Explanations for Non-Techies
The Keyword Planner is packed with data columns. You don’t need to be a data scientist to understand them. Here is the blogger’s quick-reference guide.
| Metric | Simple Explanation | How a Blogger Should Use It |
| Average Monthly Searches | How many times, on average, people searched this term in the last 12 months (e.g., 1K–10K). | Volume. Use the ranges to compare keywords. Higher range = more traffic potential. |
| Competition | The number of advertisers bidding on this keyword (Low, Medium, or High). | Opportunity. Look for “Low” competition keywords paired with a decent search volume range. |
| Three-Month Change | How much the search volume has changed in the last 90 days. | Trend Spotting. A high percentage suggests an emerging or trending topic. |
| Year-Over-Year Change | How much the search volume has changed compared to the same month last year. | Seasonality. A big jump in one month (e.g., December) suggests a seasonal topic. |
| Top of Page Bid (Low Range) | The minimum amount advertisers are paying to show an ad at the top of the search results. | Commercial Intent. A higher number indicates people who search this term are likely ready to buy/hire a service. |
The most misunderstood but most valuable for SEO is the Top of Page Bid. If an advertiser is paying a high amount, the searcher is valuable. You want to rank for those high-value searches!
For example, a search for “how to make a cup of coffee” will have a very low bid, but “best automatic espresso machine 2025” will have a high bid. You should write content for both, but you know the latter is far more likely to lead to an affiliate sale.
7. Advanced Strategies for Creators
Once you’ve mastered the basics of finding Google Keyword Planner data, you can start using it in more sophisticated ways to supercharge your content strategy.
Harnessing Location and Language Filters
Most beginner bloggers ignore the location and language filters, but they are a fantastic way to drill down into a less competitive niche, especially for local businesses or region-specific content.
- Example: Local Focus: If you are a travel blogger covering “best coffee shops,” the global volume is useless. Instead, set the location to “San Francisco” and target the keyword best San Francisco coffee shops 2025. The volume will be smaller, but the intent is 100% relevant, and the competition will be much lower than the global term.
- Example: Language Niche: If you write in both English and Spanish, you can use the language filter to research keywords for your Spanish-language content, giving you a massive advantage over purely English-focused competitors.
Identifying Seasonal Trends
One of the most powerful views in the Google Keyword Planner is the chart that shows search volume over the last 12 months. This allows you to plan your content calendar far in advance.
- The Content Calendar Hack: See a massive spike in searches for “holiday gift ideas” every October? This tells you exactly when to publish your content (ideally a month before the spike, in September, so Google has time to rank you).
- Evergreen vs. Seasonal: Use the trend graph to distinguish between evergreen content (keywords that are searched consistently all year, like
how to use google keyword planner) and seasonal content (keywords that spike briefly, liketax filing deadline 2025). Your content strategy needs a mix of both!
The Long-Tail Keyword Strategy
Long-tail keywords are the lifeblood of successful blogs. They are keywords that consist of three or more words and are highly specific.
- The Analogy: Think of a short-tail keyword like ordering a generic “drink” at a busy bar—you’ll wait forever. Think of a long-tail keyword like ordering a “single-shot iced latte with almond milk and two pumps of vanilla”—it’s more specific, and the person who orders it knows exactly what they want.
- How Keyword Planner Helps: Use the keyword filters (as shown in Section 5) and the “Refine Keywords” tab to find these gems. The Refine Keywords tab often groups suggestions into categories that include very specific descriptors (e.g., “Color,” “Material,” “Service Type”). Deselecting broad, irrelevant categories will narrow your list down to high-intent, long-tail terms.
8. Conclusion: Time to Unleash Your Traffic Potential
If you’ve made it this far, you’ve not only mastered the Google Keyword Planner, but you’ve also grasped the fundamental principle of successful content creation: Data must drive your decisions.
The Google Keyword Planner is arguably the best free keyword research tool available in 2025. It strips away the confusion and hands you the most accurate data possible—straight from Google. You now know the crucial difference between the free (broad ranges) and paid (exact numbers) access, and you know how to use the “Competition” and “Top of Page Bid” metrics as your secret weapons for finding profitable topics.
No more guessing. No more writing into the void.
Your next steps are simple:
- Set up your free Google Ads account in Expert Mode.
- Use the “Discover New Keywords” tool with a few seed words.
- Filter the results to find those low competition keywords (Low Competition + Decent Volume Range + High-Intent words like “tutorial” or “best 2025”).
Go implement the strategies from this guide. Find those golden keywords, and start writing content that is guaranteed to connect with your target audience. You have the power to master Google Keyword Planner and build a massive audience!
Call to Action (CTA): What is the very first seed keyword you’re going to search in the Google Keyword Planner? Share it with us in the comments below! And if this guide helped you, be sure to check out our post How to Set Up Google Analytics for a Website (Step-by-Step).
9. FAQs: Your Top Questions Answered
We’ve collected the most common questions from beginners about the Google Keyword Planner to help you troubleshoot and move forward.
GS Aeri is the founder of Tech4Creators, a platform created to help digital creators make sense of the tools, tech, and trends shaping today’s online world. With a focus on simplifying complex concepts and turning them into practical guidance, Aeri supports creators in working smarter, growing faster, and bringing bold ideas to life.
