Google Keyword Planner

Overview

Keyword Planner is part of Google Ads and is the only tool in this list whose volume estimates come directly from the search engine. It lets users discover keyword ideas from seed words or a URL, see estimated monthly searches and average ad costs, organise keywords into plans and turn those plans into Search campaigns^[12].

Its forecasting feature estimates the clicks, impressions or conversions a keyword list could generate at a given daily budget and bid strategy; Google says forecasts refresh daily, use the last 7 to 10 days of data and are adjusted for seasonality^[12]. Because it is an advertising tool, it reports competition in the ad auction rather than organic ranking difficulty, and it offers no competitor domain analysis or SERP-feature data. Google’s help page states that a Google Ads account with completed setup, including billing information, is required even for basic keyword ideas, and that very low-volume or sensitive keywords cannot be discovered or forecast^[12]. For organic-only researchers these restrictions make it a supplementary source rather than a complete tool.

Google Keyword Planner features

• Keyword ideas from seed words or URL
• Estimated monthly searches
• Average ad cost data
• Click and conversion forecasts
• Plans exportable to Search campaigns

Google Keyword Planner pricing

No separate fee; requires a Google Ads account with completed setup including billing information.

Google Keyword Planner strengths and limitations

Appears in

• Best Keyword Research Tools in 2026 #4

Google Keyword Planner alternatives and competitors

Alternatives to Google Keyword Planner: companies ranked in the same lists.

• Semrush
• Ahrefs
• SE Ranking
• Similarweb
• SISTRIX
• Mangools KWFinder
• Serpstat
• Keyword Tool
• Keywords Everywhere
• AnswerThePublic
• Google Search Console
• GTGoogle Trends