Step by step guide to keyword research with Ahrefs free tools

Here’s a step‑by‑step guide using only Ahrefs’ free keyword‑research tools (no paid plan needed).

1. Sign up and access Ahrefs free tools

• Go to ahrefs.com/free‑seo‑tools and open the free tools section.
• You don’t need a paid subscription to use tools like Free Keyword Generator and Keyword Difficulty Checker; they work without an account or with a free‑tier login.

Keep this page open; you’ll be jumping between the Keyword Generator, Keyword Difficulty Checker, and SERP Checker as you work.

2. Brainstorm your seed keywords

Before you touch Ahrefs, get a short list of core topics that match your niche (e.g., “home security cameras,” “romantic cruise tips,” “WordPress SEO”). Write 5–10 seed phrases that cover your main content pillars.

These seeds will be the foundation for all keyword generation in the free tools.

3. Use Ahrefs Free Keyword Generator

• Visit ahrefs.com/keyword‑generator.
• Enter one seed keyword at a time into the search box (for example, “home security camera”).
• Choose your target country (e.g., United States, United Kingdom, etc.).
• Click Generate.

Ahrefs Free Keyword Generator will return around 100 keyword ideas (short‑ and long‑tail) plus basic metrics such as:

• Monthly search volume estimates
• Keyword ideas containing your seed term or related questions
• A simple keyword‑difficulty indication

Spend 10–15 minutes per seed keyword, then export or copy the most relevant ideas into a spreadsheet.

4. Filter and shortlist keyword ideas

From the list Ahrefs returns:

• Remove irrelevant or brand‑specific terms (e.g., “Amazon” or “best buy” versions) that don’t fit your content focus.
• Prioritize keywords with:
  • Clear search intent (informational, commercial, or transactional).
  • Decent search volume (look for “Monthly volume” ranges, not just single‑digit numbers).
  • If available in the free tool, lean toward lower‑difficulty or mid‑range terms rather than ultra‑competitive head‑terms.

Organize your shortlisted keywords into columns like:

• Primary keyword
• Monthly volume
• Intent type (info/commercial/transactional)
• Target page / topic (e.g., “Product comparison,” “Beginner’s guide”).

5. Check keyword difficulty with the free checker

• Go to ahrefs.com/keyword‑difficulty (free Keyword Difficulty Checker).
• Paste one of your shortlisted keywords and select your target country.
• The tool will show:
  • A difficulty score for that keyword.
  • The top‑ranking pages for that term, highlighting domains and their relative strength.

Low‑difficulty keywords usually have weaker or smaller domains in the top‑10, while high‑difficulty terms are dominated by big sites. Use this to filter out keywords that are unrealistic for your current site authority.

6. Use SERP Checker to study real search results

• Open Ahrefs SERP Checker (free tool).
• Paste the same keyword and see:
  • The live top‑10 results (titles, URLs, and snippets).
  • The type of pages ranking (blogs, product pages, forums, brand sites).

This helps you:

• Confirm search intent (is this page best as a “how‑to” article, product list, or landing page?).
• Spot opportunities where current top pages are thin or outdated and yours can be clearly better.

7. Build simple keyword clusters and content plans

Once you’ve generated and evaluated a few lists:

• Group related keywords under broader topic buckets, such as:
  • “Home security for apartments”
  • “Cruise cabin safety tips”
  • “WordPress SEO settings for beginners”
• Assign:
  • One primary keyword per pillar page.
  • 5–15 related long‑tail or question‑type keywords as secondary targets per article.

This cluster structure improves SEO and makes it easy to map topics back to your WordPress sitemap or category hierarchy.

8. Plan your on‑page strategy (WordPress)

Even though you’re using Ahrefs’ free tools, you can still apply pro‑level SEO:

• Use your primary keyword in:
  • SEO title and H1.
  • URL slug (short, clean, and readable).
• Sprinkle secondary keywords naturally in H2/H3 headings, body text, FAQs, and image alt text.
• Set these in your SEO plugin (Rank Math, Yoast, etc.) and use internal links between related posts to strengthen clusters.

9. Track progress with other free Ahrefs tools

• Use Website Traffic Checker (free) to estimate your domain’s current traffic and top‑ranking keywords.
• Use Backlink Checker (free) to see your top 20 backlinks and understand link‑profile strength.

Revisit your keyword list every 2–3 months, add new terms from Ahrefs Free Keyword Generator, and drop underperforming keywords where the SERPs are too tough or search volume has dropped.