Keyword research tools show what people type into search engines, how often, and how hard it would be to rank for it. Most give you four things: keyword ideas from a seed term, a monthly search volume, a difficulty score, and a look at the pages that rank today. They differ in database size, how they score difficulty, how much a plan lets you look up, and what else comes bundled with the keyword data.
This guide starts with Long Tail Pro, because many people searching for a keyword tool are replacing it, and then compares 12 alternatives on those four points. Every vendor fact was read on the vendor's own site on October 16, 2026, and each tool links to the pages we read. Prices change often, so check the link before you buy.
Disclosure: GoLongtail publishes this page and sells one of the tools on the list. We describe our own product with the same facts as the others, including what it does not do, and we did not rank the tools against each other.
What happened to Long Tail Pro
Long Tail Pro was a keyword research tool built around one job: turning a few seed keywords into hundreds of specific, low-competition long-tail phrases. Its keyword page promised "up to 400 long tail keywords within seconds" per seed, scored with its own Average Keyword Competitiveness metric from 0 to 100 (archived keyword research page). Over time it added SERP analysis, a rank tracker, backlink analysis and a site audit.
The last archived version of the product site is from February 2024, when its homepage offered the "Full Toolkit for ONLY $59/MO" (archived homepage). By mid-2025 the domain was serving an unrelated website, and it still did when we checked on October 16, 2026. On the Long Tail Pro Facebook page, a user reports that email to support@longtailpro.com bounces, and the brand's X profile still links to the old domain.
Facebook's summary of user discussions about Long Tail Pro vs Semrush says the same: many discussions report the tool has been "slow or not functional for months", and users who left it name SE Ranking, SpyFu, Mangools, Ubersuggest and Serpstat as lower-cost options.
| Plan | Price | Keyword results | Tracked keywords | Projects |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $59.99/mo | 800 per 24 hours | 30 | 2 |
| Pro | $89.99/mo | 2,500 per 24 hours | 200 | 10 |
| Agency | $299.99/mo | 6,000 per 24 hours | 1,000 | 35 |
What a keyword research tool does
Every tool on this list covers some mix of five jobs. Long Tail Pro covered the first three well, so a replacement should too.
| Job | What the tool does | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Find ideas | Expands a seed term into related phrases, questions and long-tail variations | A list of keywords to consider |
| Judge difficulty | Scores how hard each keyword is to rank for, usually from the backlinks of the pages that rank | A difficulty score from 0 to 100 |
| Check the results page | Shows the pages ranking today, with their authority and links | Weak spots you can outrank |
| Study competitors | Lists the keywords a competitor's domain ranks or bids for | Gaps between your site and theirs |
| Track | Checks your positions for chosen keywords on a schedule | Progress over time |
Long-tail keywords are the specific, three-or-more-word phrases this whole category grew up around. Each one has little volume, but together they make up most searches, and they are usually easier to rank for because fewer strong pages target them. Our long-tail keyword research audit starts from the same idea.
Keyword research tools compared
All figures below were read on each vendor's own pages on October 16, 2026. "Free option" is the most you can do without paying. Semrush, Ahrefs, SE Ranking and Ubersuggest showed euro prices when we read them from an EU location; their US dollar prices may differ.
| Tool | Best for | Keyword data | Free option | Entry price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Long Tail Pro | Long-tail keyword finder (no longer available) | Volume, CPC, KC score 0–100, rank value | None | Was $59.99/mo (Starter) |
| KWFinder by Mangools | Easy long-tail keywords | Volume, KD 0–100, intent, SERP, 65k+ locations | 5 lookups per 24 hours | $61/mo (Basic) |
| LowFruits | SERP weak spots | Autocomplete ideas, weak spots, clusters, KGR | 3 searches every 7 days | $29.90/mo (Standard) |
| SE Ranking | Unlimited research in a full suite | Volume, KD, CPC, intent, 188 countries | 14-day trial | €109/mo (Core) |
| Semrush | Largest database, all-in-one | Volume, KD, Personal KD, CPC, intent | Free plan, 10 reports a day | €134/mo (SEO) |
| Ahrefs Keywords Explorer | SERP and backlink context | Volume, KD, Traffic Potential, Parent Topic | Free keyword generator | €27/mo (Starter) |
| Moz Keyword Explorer | Simple metrics, DA context | Volume, difficulty, organic CTR, min. DA, intent | Free account, limited | $49/mo (Starter) |
| SpyFu | Competitor SEO and PPC keywords | Volume, CPC, SEO difficulty, advertisers, ad history | None listed | $39/mo (Basic) |
| Serpstat | International keyword data | Volume, KD, CPC, intent, AI Overview flag | 10 lookups a day | $69/mo (Individual) |
| Ubersuggest | Low-cost all-rounder | Volume, KD, CPC, intent, question ideas | Free account | €29/mo (Individual) |
| Google Keyword Planner | Free volume and bid data | Search trends, competition, bid ranges | Free with Google Ads | Free |
| Keywords Everywhere | Metrics while you browse | Volume, CPC, competition, trend | Free extension, paid data | $84/yr (Bronze) |
| GoLongtail | Competitor and AI search research | Competitor benchmark, AI citations, topic gaps | Free until 30 Nov 2026 | $19 one-time (Grow) |
Each tool in brief
1.Long Tail Pro
No longer availableLong-tail keyword finder with its own competitiveness score
Long Tail Pro took up to five seed keywords and returned up to 400 suggestions each, with search volume, suggested bid, word count, a "rank value" estimate and its Average Keyword Competitiveness (KC) score from 0 to 100. Tabs for Related Keywords, Competitor Keywords and Manual Keywords covered idea generation, competitor research and checking your own list.
The product site went offline in 2025 and now serves an unrelated business. There is no way to sign up, and existing users report unanswered support email.
- Status
- Not available; domain serves an unrelated site (checked Oct 16, 2026)
- Last published price
- Starter $59.99/mo, $539.99/yr (December 2023)
- Signature metric
- Average Keyword Competitiveness, 0–100
Good fit: Nobody new, since you can no longer sign up. If you relied on its KC score and seed-to-long-tail workflow, start with KWFinder or LowFruits below. Watch out: No longer sold, updated or supported.
Sources read:Archived homepage (Feb 2024)Archived pricing (Dec 2023)Facebook discussion summary
2.KWFinder by Mangools
Long-tail keywords with low SEO difficulty
KWFinder is the keyword tool in the Mangools suite and the closest like-for-like replacement for Long Tail Pro. It shows search volume with historical trends, a Keyword Difficulty score, user intent and an analysis of the top-ranking pages, from a database of "2.5 B+ keywords" across more than 65,000 locations, including cities.
You can also enter a competitor's domain to see the keywords it ranks for, and analyze keyword lists in bulk. Mangools describes itself as "no giant all-in-one tool", and the interface reflects that: it is quick to learn.
- Free option
- 5 lookups per 24 hours, 15 related and 5 competitor keywords per lookup
- Entry plan
- Mangools Basic, $61/mo or $452.40/yr
- Database
- 2.5B+ keywords, 65k+ locations
Good fit: Bloggers and small sites that want Long Tail Pro's workflow with fresher data and local results. Watch out: Basic's limits are tight for heavy research, with 25 competitor-keyword rows per lookup.
Sources read:KWFinderMangools pricingVisit KWFinder by Mangools
3.LowFruits
Long-tail keywords where weak sites already rank
LowFruits, from the team behind AIOSEO, takes a different route to the same goal Long Tail Pro had. It pulls long-tail ideas live from Google Autocomplete, including wildcard searches, and then analyzes each results page for "Weak Spots": low-authority sites already ranking in the top results.
It also clusters keywords by shared intent, runs an allintitle check for the Keyword Golden Ratio, extracts competitors' keywords from their sitemaps, and tracks rankings.
- Free option
- 3 Keyword Finder searches every 7 days on a pay-as-you-go account
- Entry plan
- Standard, $29.90/mo or $20.75/mo billed yearly (3,000 credits a month)
- Pay as you go
- From $25 for 2,000 credits; 1 credit analyzes 1 results page
Good fit: Niche-site builders who want keywords they can rank for quickly with a young domain. Watch out: No keyword database size or location count is stated, and SERP checks use credits.
Sources read:Keyword finderLowFruits pricingVisit LowFruits
4.SE Ranking
Keyword research inside an SEO and AI visibility suite
SE Ranking's Keyword Tool covers search volume with yearly dynamics, keyword difficulty, CPC, search intent and global volume, from databases in 188 countries. Its Keyword Generator lists similar, question, long-tail and low-volume keywords that you can filter by word count, difficulty and intent.
It is one module of a broader platform that also tracks rankings, audits sites, and tracks visibility in AI answers. The Core plan includes "Unlimited keyword, competitor, backlink research".
- Free option
- 14-day free trial, no credit card required
- Entry plan
- Core, €109/mo or €87.20/mo billed annually
- Coverage
- 188 countries; 3.2B keywords in Europe, 1.2B in North America
Good fit: Marketing teams and agencies that want keyword research bundled with rank tracking and audits. Watch out: There is no plan below Core, which is a lot if you only need keyword research.
Sources read:Keyword toolSE Ranking pricingVisit SE Ranking
5.Semrush
All-in-one SEO suite with a 28B+ keyword database
Semrush's Keyword Magic Tool searches "a database of 28B+ terms" across 142 regional databases, refreshed monthly. Each keyword gets volume, keyword difficulty, CPC and intent, plus a Personal Keyword Difficulty adjusted to your own domain's authority.
Keyword Strategy Builder groups keywords into topic clusters, and the wider suite adds keyword gap, rank tracking, site audit and AI visibility. It is the tool Long Tail Pro users most often compared it with.
- Free option
- Free plan with 10 reports a day; 7-day free trial of paid plans
- Entry plan
- SEO, €134/mo or €112.52/mo billed annually
- Database
- 28B+ keywords, 142 regional databases
Good fit: Teams that want keyword research, competitor research and site audits in one subscription. Watch out: Expensive if keyword research is all you need, and the pricing page does not list per-plan keyword quotas.
Sources read:Keyword researchSemrush pricingVisit Semrush
6.Ahrefs Keywords Explorer
Keyword data built on Ahrefs' own crawler
Keywords Explorer draws on an index of 28.7 billion keywords, filtered from 110 billion discovered, across 217 locations. Beyond volume and difficulty it shows Traffic Potential (the traffic the top page gets from all its keywords) and a Parent Topic, which help you decide whether a long-tail term deserves its own page.
Its SERP overview shows backlinks and traffic for each ranking page, with ranking history. The free Keyword Generator covers Google, Bing, YouTube and Amazon from a database of "over 8 billion queries".
- Free option
- Free Keyword Generator; Ahrefs Free for site owners; no free trial
- Entry plan
- Starter €27/mo; Lite €119/mo with 1,000 credits a month
- Database
- 28.7B keywords, 217 locations
Good fit: SEOs who judge keywords by the strength of the pages already ranking. Watch out: Lite runs on credits, and keyword clustering and intents start at the Standard plan.
Sources read:Keywords ExplorerAhrefs pricingFree Keyword GeneratorVisit Ahrefs Keywords Explorer
7.Moz Keyword Explorer
Beginner-friendly metrics with Domain Authority context
Moz Keyword Explorer offers "1.25 billion" keyword suggestions across 170 Google search engines. Each keyword shows monthly volume, organic click-through rate, difficulty, the minimum Domain Authority of the ranking pages, and a primary search intent labeled by Moz AI.
It also lists the keywords any site ranks for, highlights keywords in "striking distance" just outside the top 10, and groups suggestions by lexical similarity.
- Free option
- Free Moz account with limited Keyword Explorer access; Moz Pro trial
- Entry plan
- Starter $49/mo; Standard $99/mo with 150 keyword queries a month
- Database
- 1.25B keyword suggestions, 170 Google engines
Good fit: Small businesses that want clear metrics and already use Moz's Domain Authority. Watch out: Standard's 150 keyword queries a month is tight for heavy research.
Sources read:Keyword ExplorerMoz Pro pricingVisit Moz Keyword Explorer
8.SpyFu
Competitor keywords for SEO and Google Ads
SpyFu is built around competitors: enter a domain and see the keywords it ranks for organically and buys on Google Ads, with years of ranking and ad history. Its keyword research filters ideas by volume, CPC, SEO difficulty, number of advertisers and click-through rate, from "13.1 Billion" keywords.
Kombat compares several competitors to find the keywords they share and the ones you are missing.
- Free option
- No free plan listed; 30-day money-back guarantee
- Entry plan
- Basic, $39/mo or $29/mo billed annually (10k keyword results)
- Coverage
- 13.1B keywords, 38 countries
Good fit: Marketers who run Google Ads and SEO together and want to copy what works for competitors. Watch out: It covers 38 countries, far fewer than the 170 to 230 other tools list.
Sources read:Keyword overviewSpyFu pricingVisit SpyFu
9.Serpstat
International keyword data in an SEO platform
Serpstat's keyword research covers "over 7 billion keywords" in Google for 230 countries, with volume, keyword difficulty, competition, intent, CPC and whether a keyword triggers an AI Overview.
It adds keyword gap analysis between competitors and search questions for content planning, inside a full SEO platform with audits and rank tracking.
- Free option
- 10 free lookups a day; 7-day free trial
- Entry plan
- Individual, $69/mo or $50/mo billed annually (100 searches a day)
- Coverage
- 7B+ keywords, 230 countries
Good fit: Freelancers and agencies with clients in many countries. Watch out: Individual's 100 daily searches are shared between site, keyword and link lookups.
Sources read:Keyword researchSerpstat pricingVisit Serpstat
10.Ubersuggest
Budget SEO tool from Neil Patel
Ubersuggest shows volume, difficulty, CPC and intent for any keyword from "2.2B+ Tracked Keywords" across more than 230 markets. Keyword Ideas break suggestions into autocomplete, related, questions, prepositions and comparisons, the long-tail formats Long Tail Pro users relied on.
Paid plans add site audits, rank tracking and competitor keyword gaps at a low monthly price.
- Free option
- Free account; 7-day free trial of paid plans
- Entry plan
- Individual, €29/mo or €16/mo billed annually (150 searches a day)
- Coverage
- 2.2B+ keywords, 230+ markets
Good fit: Solo site owners on a tight budget who want ideas, audits and tracking in one place. Watch out: The entry plan covers one project and 150 searches a day.
Sources read:UbersuggestUbersuggest pricingVisit Ubersuggest
11.Google Keyword Planner
Google's free planning tool for advertisers
Keyword Planner is part of Google Ads. It suggests keywords from words, phrases or a website, shows how often they are searched and how that changed over time, and estimates bids and campaign results. Google calls it "a free resource to help advertisers".
It gives no SEO difficulty, results-page analysis or intent, so most SEOs pair it with one of the tools above.
- Free option
- Free with a Google Ads account
- Entry plan
- No paid plan
- Data
- Search trends, competition, bid estimates, forecasts
Good fit: Advertisers, and anyone who wants Google's own volume ranges at no cost. Watch out: Needs a Google Ads account with a campaign set up, and offers no SEO metrics.
Sources read:Keyword PlannerVisit Google Keyword Planner
12.Keywords Everywhere
Keyword metrics inside your browser
Keywords Everywhere is a browser extension for Chrome, Firefox and Edge that adds search volume, CPC, competition and a 12-month trend to Google, YouTube, Amazon, Etsy and more than a dozen other sites. Widgets beside Google results list related, "People Also Search For" and long-tail keywords.
Data is paid with credits, where one credit is one keyword. It also offers an API and an MCP server for AI assistants.
- Free option
- Free extension with 18 features; volume and CPC need credits
- Entry plan
- Bronze, $84 billed annually for 100,000 credits
- Coverage
- 15+ sites, including Google, YouTube and Amazon
Good fit: Marketers who want keyword numbers beside the results they are already looking at. Watch out: Credits are used each time a page with keywords loads, and there is no Safari or mobile version.
Sources read:Keywords EverywherePlans and creditsVisit Keywords Everywhere
13.GoLongtail
Our productCompetitor and AI search research
GoLongtail is an AI search audit rather than a keyword database. It reads your website to understand what you sell, then benchmarks you against the competitors you choose on content footprint, search visibility and AI readiness, and turns the gaps into topics and pages to create next.
Where it differs from every tool above is competitive intelligence for AI search: it shows which competitors AI answers cite and where those citations come from, and flags the sources competitors paid to appear in, such as sponsored "best of" listicles and paid reviews (from the Grow plan). It does not offer a keyword database, rank tracking or backlink analysis.
- Free option
- Start plan free until 30 Nov 2026
- Entry plan
- $19 one-time (Grow)
- Pricing model
- One-time payment per beta phase, no subscription
Good fit: Founders and small marketing teams who want to know where competitors win in Google and AI answers, and what to publish to catch up. Watch out: Not a replacement for a keyword database: use it alongside one of the tools above for volume lookups.
Sources read:AI search auditGoLongtail pricing
How to choose a keyword research tool
- Start from the job, not the database size. If you need long-tail ideas for a blog, KWFinder or LowFruits cover it for less. If you also need audits and rank tracking, a suite like SE Ranking or Semrush saves a second subscription.
- Check your market. Database claims are mostly about the US. If you publish in German, Spanish or for local cities, compare location counts: KWFinder lists 65,000+ locations, Ahrefs 217, Serpstat 230 countries, SpyFu 38.
- Read the limits, not the plan name. Entry plans cap lookups per day or credits per month. Moz Standard includes 150 keyword queries a month; SE Ranking Core is unlimited.
- Trust one difficulty score, and check the results page. Each tool calculates difficulty differently. Pick one, learn what a 30 means in your niche, and look at who actually ranks before you write.
- Try before you pay. Every tool except SpyFu and Ahrefs' paid plans has a free plan, free lookups or a trial. Run the same 10 keywords from your niche through two tools and compare.
Free keyword research tools to start with
| Tool | What you get for free |
|---|---|
| Google Keyword Planner | Search volume ranges, trends and bids with a Google Ads account |
| Semrush | Free plan with 10 reports a day, plus a free keyword tool without an account |
| Ahrefs Keyword Generator | Keyword ideas for Google, Bing, YouTube and Amazon |
| Serpstat | 10 lookups a day |
| KWFinder | 5 lookups per 24 hours |
| LowFruits | 3 Keyword Finder searches every 7 days |
| Keywords Everywhere | 18 free features in the extension; keyword data needs credits |
| GoLongtail | An AI search audit of 1 domain against 1 competitor (free until 30 nov 2026) |
What users say about keyword tools
Facebook's summaries of public discussions about the best SEO tools for keyword research and keyword research tool comparisons point to a few patterns:
- Ahrefs and Semrush are the most recommended paid tools, often used together and checked against Google Keyword Planner.
- Ubersuggest, Keywords Everywhere, Google Keyword Planner and AnswerThePublic are the free options people mention most.
- For long-tail keywords specifically, Long Tail Pro and KWFinder came up most, with SpyFu for competitor research.
- Difficulty scores vary a lot: one user saw the same keyword score 26 in Moz and 2 in Ahrefs. The common advice is to use tools as a guide and check the results page by hand.
FAQ
Is Long Tail Pro still available?
No. The last archived version of the Long Tail Pro product site is from February 2024, and since 2025 longtailpro.com has served an unrelated website. Users report that its support email bounces. You can no longer sign up or buy a plan.
What is the best alternative to Long Tail Pro?
For the same seed-to-long-tail workflow with a difficulty score, KWFinder by Mangools is the closest match, from $61 a month with 5 free lookups per 24 hours. LowFruits is the best fit if you liked finding keywords where weak sites rank, from $29.90 a month. If you want an all-in-one suite instead, SE Ranking and Semrush cover keyword research plus rank tracking and audits.
What is the best free keyword research tool?
Google Keyword Planner gives free search volume ranges and trends with a Google Ads account. For SEO metrics such as difficulty, Semrush's free plan (10 reports a day), Serpstat (10 lookups a day) and KWFinder (5 lookups per 24 hours) are the most generous free options we found.
Which keyword research tool has the largest database?
On the vendors' own pages, Ahrefs claims 28.7 billion keywords and Semrush 28 billion+, followed by SpyFu (13.1 billion), Serpstat (over 7 billion), KWFinder (2.5 billion+), Ubersuggest (2.2 billion+) and Moz (1.25 billion keyword suggestions).
Why do keyword difficulty scores differ between tools?
Each tool calculates difficulty with its own formula, usually from the backlinks of the pages ranking today, so the same keyword can score very differently. Users report examples like 26 in Moz and 2 in Ahrefs. Compare scores within one tool and check the results page yourself.
What is a long-tail keyword?
A long-tail keyword is a specific search phrase, usually three words or more, such as "best running shoes for flat feet" instead of "shoes". Each has lower search volume, but they are easier to rank for, closer to a purchase, and together they make up most searches.
Is Semrush or Ahrefs better for keyword research?
Both have databases of about 28 billion keywords. Semrush adds Personal Keyword Difficulty and bundles more marketing tools, with a free plan and a 7-day trial. Ahrefs adds Traffic Potential and Parent Topic and has a cheaper Starter plan, but no free trial. Try Semrush's free plan and Ahrefs' free Keyword Generator on your own keywords.
Which tool shows which competitors AI answers cite?
None of the classic keyword tools on this list focus on it. GoLongtail benchmarks your site against chosen competitors in Google and AI answers, and shows which competitors get cited and where those citations come from, including the sponsored listicles and paid reviews competitors paid to appear in (Grow plan and up).
See which competitors win in Google and AI answers
GoLongtail benchmarks your site against the competitors you choose and shows which ones AI answers cite, so you know what to publish next.
Free until 30 Nov · No credit card required