If you are running a small site or a side project, paying $99 a month for a keyword tool is not realistic. The good news: you can do solid keyword research without spending a cent. Below are five free tools we actually use, plus a step-by-step on how to get real value from each one.
1. Google Keyword Planner
Google Keyword Planner was built for advertisers, but it works fine for organic keyword research too. It is free to use as long as you have a Google Ads account (you do not need to run an active campaign or spend any money).
How to use it for a small site
- Sign up for a free Google Ads account.
- Go to Tools > Keyword Planner > Discover new keywords.
- Type in 3-5 seed terms related to your topic (for example, if you sell handmade candles: "soy candles," "candle gift sets," "scented candles for home").
- Sort results by "Avg. monthly searches" and look for terms with decent volume but a low or medium competition label.
One honest caveat: if you are not running a paid campaign, Google often shows volume in broad ranges (like "100-1K") instead of exact numbers. That is still useful for comparing terms against each other, even if it is not precise.
2. Google Search Console
If your site has been live for even a few months, Search Console already has keyword data sitting inside it, and it is completely free once you verify your site.
How to use it for a small site
- Go to Performance > Search Results.
- Sort by "Impressions" to see what queries are showing your site in search results, even if nobody clicks yet.
- Look for queries where you rank on page 2 or 3 (positions 11-30). These are often the easiest wins: you already have some relevance, you just need to strengthen the page.
- Check the "Pages" tab to see which pages get impressions but few clicks. That usually means the title tag or meta description needs a rewrite.
This is, in our experience, the most underused tool on this list. Most site owners chase new keywords instead of fixing pages that are already close to ranking.
3. Google Autocomplete and "People Also Ask"
This one costs nothing and takes five minutes. Open an incognito browser window (so your search history does not skew results), go to Google, and start typing your main topic.
How to use it for a small site
- Type your seed keyword and note every autocomplete suggestion Google offers. These are real phrases people search.
- Add a letter after your keyword ("candle a," "candle b," "candle c") to surface more variations.
- Run the search and scroll to the "People also ask" box. Click a few questions open, they will generate more related questions underneath.
- Scroll to the bottom of the results page for "Related searches."
This method is slow to scale but great for a small site with 10-30 pages, because you are pulling directly from what real searchers type, not a database estimate.
4. AnswerThePublic
AnswerThePublic organizes autocomplete-style data into visual clusters of questions, prepositions, and comparisons. The free version limits you to a couple of searches per day, which is fine for a small site that is not publishing content daily anyway.
How to use it for a small site
- Enter one seed keyword per day (save your free searches, do not waste them on vague terms).
- Focus on the "questions" section first: who, what, why, how, can, will. These make excellent blog post titles and FAQ sections.
- Export the free CSV if you want to save the list for later instead of relying on the visual.
A practical tip: batch your keyword research once a week. Sit down, use your one or two free daily searches for a few days in a row, and build a running spreadsheet instead of trying to do it all in one sitting.
5. Google Trends
Google Trends will not give you search volume numbers, but it tells you whether interest in a topic is rising, falling, or seasonal. That context matters more than people think.
How to use it for a small site
- Compare two or three keyword variations against each other (for example, "soy candle" vs. "soy wax candle") to see which phrasing people actually use more.
- Check the time range. A topic that looks dead over 5 years might just be seasonal (holiday gift guides, back-to-school topics, tax season questions).
- Use the "Related queries" section at the bottom for rising searches tied to your topic. These often surface trends before they show up in other tools.
We would not use Trends alone to pick a keyword, but it is a useful gut check before you commit hours to writing about a topic that is quietly losing interest.
Putting the Five Tools Together
None of these tools is complete on its own. A realistic free workflow for a small site looks like this:
- Start with Search Console to find pages already close to ranking.
- Use Keyword Planner to check rough volume on your target terms.
- Confirm real phrasing with Autocomplete and People Also Ask.
- Pull question ideas from AnswerThePublic for subheadings and FAQs.
- Sanity-check timing and trend direction with Google Trends before you commit to a full article.
This stack will not replace a $100/month tool with exact search volumes and difficulty scores. But for a small site with a handful of pages, exact numbers matter less than picking topics people are actually searching for and writing pages that answer the question clearly.
Quick Summary
- Use Google Search Console first: it shows keywords your site already ranks for, which is the fastest path to quick wins.
- Use Google Keyword Planner for rough volume comparisons between keyword ideas.
- Use Autocomplete and People Also Ask to confirm the exact phrasing real people type.
- Use AnswerThePublic (sparingly, since the free plan is limited) to generate question-based headings.
- Use Google Trends as a final check on whether interest in a topic is rising or fading before you write.
Do this once a week for 30 minutes, keep a simple spreadsheet of keyword ideas, and you will have a steady content plan without paying for a single tool.