Keyword Density Checker
Free keyword density checker — see word frequencies, bigrams (two-word phrases), and trigrams instantly. Stop words filtered out. Built for SEO content analysis. Runs in your browser.
Enter at least 10 words for keyword analysis.
Top Words
| Word | Count | Density |
|---|---|---|
Top Bigrams
| Phrase | Count | Density |
|---|---|---|
Top Trigrams
| Phrase | Count | Density |
|---|---|---|
How Keyword Density Analysis Works
The keyword density checker filters out common stop words (the, is, and, but, etc.) and ranks the remaining words by frequency. Bigrams (two-word phrases) and trigrams (three-word phrases) surface recurring themes that single words miss. Each result shows count and density (percentage of total words). For SEO purposes, a natural density of 1-2% for your primary keyword is typical — anything above 3% can read as forced.
Stop Words Are Excluded
Common English words like 'the', 'a', 'and', 'is', 'of' appear in almost every English sentence. Including them in keyword analysis would drown out the topical words you actually care about. We filter out about 100 common stop words so the analysis surfaces meaningful vocabulary. This matches how Google's indexing handles common words during search.
What Density to Target
Modern SEO targets 0.5-2.5% for primary keywords. Below 0.5% may not signal relevance strongly. Above 3% triggers keyword stuffing penalties and reads unnaturally. Most well-optimized articles cluster around 1-2% for the primary keyword. Secondary keywords and topically related terms should appear naturally — don't tune them artificially. Quality of content matters more than precise density numbers in 2026 search algorithms. For full text analysis with readability and writing quality scores, use our Text Analyzer.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is keyword density?
- Keyword density is the percentage of times a specific word or phrase appears in your text relative to the total word count. If 'marketing' appears 5 times in a 500-word article, the keyword density is 1.0%. SEO writers monitor density to ensure their primary keyword appears often enough to signal relevance without crossing into keyword stuffing.
- What's a good keyword density for SEO?
- Modern SEO targets 0.5-2.5% for primary keywords in 2026. Below 0.5% may not signal relevance strongly enough. Above 3% looks unnatural and can trigger keyword stuffing penalties. The sweet spot is around 1-2% for the primary keyword, with secondary keywords appearing naturally throughout. Quality and context matter more than hitting an exact percentage.
- What are bigrams and trigrams?
- A unigram is a single word. A bigram is two consecutive words ('content marketing'). A trigram is three consecutive words ('content marketing strategy'). N-gram analysis shows you which phrases recur, which is more useful than just single words because phrases carry more semantic meaning and match how people actually search.
- Why do you exclude common stop words?
- Common words like 'the', 'and', 'is', 'of' appear so frequently that they drown out meaningful keywords. We filter out a list of about 100 common English stop words so the analysis surfaces the topical words that matter for SEO and content analysis. This matches how Google's own indexing handles common words.
- Should I optimize my content for exact density numbers?
- No. Modern Google ranking uses semantic understanding, not raw keyword counts. Aim for natural inclusion of your primary keyword and topically related terms. Use this tool to spot accidental over-optimization (single keyword over 3%) or to find which themes dominate a page. Don't artificially tune density — write for readers first.
- What word count works best for keyword analysis?
- Below 100 words, percentages become noisy — adding one instance of a word changes the density by a full percentage point. The most reliable analysis is on 500+ word articles where statistical patterns emerge. Long-form content of 1,500-3,000 words gives the most stable density signals for SEO planning.