Free YouTube keyword tool

Find what viewers search for on YouTube and get keyword ideas for every video. Free, no sign-up.

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Free forever
No sign-up
Long-tail keyword ideas
16,500+ brands use ContentStudio

What is a YouTube keyword tool?It is a tool that suggests the words and phrases people type into YouTube search, so you can use them in your titles, descriptions and tags. ContentStudio's YouTube keyword tool is a free YouTube keyword research tool: enter a topic or audience and get a list of keyword ideas, with no sign-up.

How to use it

How to Use ContentStudio YouTube Keyword Generator

Enter a seed keyword
Type your topic or audience into the field, for example "marketers" or "mirrorless camera". Use the broadest accurate description of the video, not a full sentence.
Generate
Click Generate YouTube keywords now to get a list of keyword ideas.
Look for long-tail phrases
Phrases of four or more words, such as "best mirrorless camera for beginners", usually face less competition than the seed term and say clearly what the viewer wants.
Check them on YouTube
Type your favorites into YouTube search. If autocomplete suggests them and the top videos match your idea, you have a good keyword.
Select and apply
Pick one main keyword for the title and the first sentence of the description. Use related phrases in the rest of the description, the chapters and the tags.

Only use keywords that match the video. If viewers click and leave quickly, YouTube shows the video less for that search.

What you can find

What you can find with this YouTube keyword generator

Video ideas for a new channel

Enter your audience and get topics they search for. Each keyword can be a video.

Long-tail keywords for tutorials

How-to and beginner phrases that are easier to rank for than broad terms.

Keywords for Shorts

Short, specific phrases that fit a Shorts title and the first line of the description.

Channel keywords

Category-level terms to add under Channel keywords in YouTube Studio settings.

Finding the best keywords

How to Find the Best Keywords for YouTube Videos

Finding strong YouTube keywords means matching three things: search demand, competition and content fit.

Search demand

How often people search a term on YouTube. Broad terms such as "yoga for beginners" bring large audiences but face heavy competition from big channels. Narrower terms bring smaller but more targeted audiences.

Competition

How many strong videos already target the keyword. A popular keyword where the top videos come from channels with millions of subscribers is harder to rank for than a smaller keyword where the top videos come from mid-size channels.

Content fit

The filter you can't skip. A keyword belongs in a video only if the video truly answers the search. YouTube looks at whether viewers who find a video through a search keep watching, and moves it down if they leave early.

The best YouTube keywords sit where all three meet: enough searches to bring traffic, low enough competition to rank and a close enough match to keep viewers watching.

Keyword research in 5 steps

YouTube keyword research in 5 steps

Start with your audience. Write down who the video is for and what problem they have.
Generate ideas. Run the audience or topic through this tool and save the phrases that fit.
Check YouTube autocomplete. Type each phrase into YouTube search and note the suggestions. They come from real searches.
Use YouTube Studio's Research tab. Under Analytics, then Research, "Searches across YouTube" shows related searches with a low, medium or high popularity level and flags content gaps.
Study the top results. Look at the titles, length and age of the top videos. If they are old or don't answer the question well, that is your opening.

Where to add keywords

Where to add keywords to a YouTube video

Place	How to use the keyword
Title	Main keyword in the first 60 characters
Description	Main keyword in the first sentence, related phrases in the body
Chapters	Use keyword phrases as chapter names where they fit
Tags	A few variations and common misspellings (500 characters in total)
Hashtags	3–5 relevant hashtags at the end of the description
Spoken words and captions	Say the keyword in the video. YouTube can read your captions
Channel keywords	Category terms in YouTube Studio settings

Turn your main keyword into a title with the YouTube title generator, then write the description with the YouTube description generator.

Keyword examples

YouTube keyword examples: seed to long-tail

sourdough
sourdough bread recipe for beginners
home workout
20 minute home workout no equipment
excel
excel formulas for beginners step by step
camera
best mirrorless camera for youtube under 1000
budget travel
how to travel japan on a budget
video editing
how to edit youtube videos on iphone
marketing
email marketing tutorial for small business
guitar
easy guitar songs for beginners with chords

YouTube vs. Google keywords

YouTube keywords vs. Google keywords

YouTube keywords

Searches made on YouTube. People want to watch: tutorials, reviews, music, entertainment. "How to" and "for beginners" phrases are common.

Google keywords

Searches made on Google. Many want to read or buy. Google shows video results for some searches, so a video can rank in both places.

The same phrase can be popular on one and quiet on the other. Use a YouTube keyword tool for YouTube videos, and check Google too if you want the video to show in Google's video results.

From keyword to published YouTube video

Keywords tell you what to make. With ContentStudio, AI social media management covers YouTube from planning to publishing. With it you can:

Schedule videos and Shorts. Add the keyword-rich title, description and tags, then publish on time with ContentStudio's YouTube scheduler.
Plan videos on a calendar. Turn your keyword list into a content calendar so every week has a planned upload.
See what works. Track views and engagement for your YouTube channel next to your other social accounts.

Schedule YouTube videos free for 7 days See the YouTube scheduler

Planning YouTube videos on the ContentStudio calendar

Is it free?

Is the YouTube keyword tool free?

Yes. ContentStudio's YouTube keyword tool is free, with no login or paid plan needed. It is part of ContentStudio's suite of free social media tools.

Free forever
No sign-up
Long-tail keyword ideas
16,500+ brands use ContentStudio

More free YouTube tools

All free social media tools →

YouTube title generatorClick-worthy video titles

YouTube hashtag generatorHashtags and tags for videos

YouTube script generatorScripts with hooks and structure

YouTube channel name generatorChannel name ideas

YouTube description generatorSEO-friendly video descriptions

FAQs

Frequently asked questions

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How many keywords should I use for a YouTube video?

Use one main keyword for the title and description, plus a few related phrases. In the Tags field, a handful of accurate tags is enough; YouTube says tags play a minimal role in discovery, and the field holds 500 characters in total. Five accurate keywords beat fifteen loose ones.

Does YouTube still have its own keyword tool?

Not a classic one with search volumes. The old keyword tool is gone, but YouTube Studio has a Research tab under Analytics. Its "Searches across YouTube" view shows related searches with a low, medium or high popularity level. Tools like ContentStudio's add more keyword ideas on top.

What is the difference between YouTube keywords and Google keywords?

YouTube keyword research targets the YouTube search engine. Google keyword tools measure searches on Google web search. The same phrase can be popular on one and not the other. "How to edit videos" behaves differently on YouTube, where people want to watch, than on Google, where they may want written guides or software.

How do channel keywords work?

Channel keywords are entered in YouTube Studio settings, under Channel, then Basic info. They help YouTube understand what your channel is about. Use 5 to 10 accurate, category-level terms. Avoid single video titles or trending tags, which say little about your channel's topic.

Can I use the same keywords for multiple videos?

Targeting the exact same main keyword with several videos makes them compete with each other, and YouTube usually ranks one over the rest. Give each video its own angle: a variation, a sub-topic or a different intent such as tutorial, review or comparison.

How do I find keywords for YouTube?

Enter your topic or audience into a YouTube keyword tool, check the ideas in YouTube search autocomplete, and look at the Research tab in YouTube Studio. Pick phrases where the top videos don't fully answer the search. Then schedule the finished video in ContentStudio.

How do I do keyword research for YouTube?

List what your audience wants to learn, generate keyword ideas, confirm them with YouTube autocomplete and the Research tab, and study the top videos for each phrase. Choose one main keyword per video that you can answer better than what already ranks.

How do I add keywords to a YouTube video?

Put the main keyword in the title and the first sentence of the description, use related phrases in the body and chapter names, add a few tags in YouTube Studio and say the keyword in the video. You can edit all of these after publishing under Content, then Details.