Keyword Density Checker

What the Keyword Density Checker checks

Keyword density is the share of a page’s words taken by one word or phrase: a word used 10 times on a 1,000-word page has a density of 1%. It is a crude measure, but a list of the most frequent terms is a quick way to see what a page is actually about, as opposed to what its author meant it to be about.

This checker reads the visible text of the page you enter, removes common stop words such as “the”, “and” and “of”, and lists the most frequent single words and two-word phrases with their counts and density. For each term it shows whether it also appears in the title tag, the meta description and the H1. It warns when a single term goes above about 5% of the words on a long page, a level that usually points to repetition rather than natural writing.

Why it matters

There is no ideal keyword density. Search engines no longer count keywords this way; they understand synonyms, related terms and topics. Repeating a phrase to hit a target percentage does not help, and keyword stuffing is named in Google’s spam policies as a practice that can push a page down or out of the results.

The frequency list is still useful as a sanity check. If the top terms are your brand name, “cookies” and “menu”, boilerplate is drowning out the content. If the phrase people search for never appears in the title or the H1, readers and search engines get a weaker signal of what the page covers. The title tag and the headings are where a clear topic shows first.

How to fix common problems

Check that the top terms match the topic you intended. If they do not, the page probably needs more substance on its subject and less repeated template text. Use the main term naturally in the title, the H1 and the first paragraph, and use the variations and related words a person would use when explaining the topic.

If a term is flagged above 5%, read the page aloud. Replace mechanical repeats with pronouns, synonyms or a restructured sentence, and remove keyword lists, hidden text and repeated anchor text. Make sure the meta description describes the page in a sentence instead of listing keywords.

Keep in mind that short pages inflate percentages: on a 150-word page, three uses of a word is already 2%. Compare pages of similar length, and use the Readability Checker alongside this tool so the text stays clear while you edit.

Questions

What is the ideal keyword density?

There is none, and Google does not use a target density. Use the main term where it fits naturally, especially in the title, H1 and opening paragraph, and focus on covering the topic well.

Why are some words missing from the list?

Stop words such as articles, prepositions and pronouns are removed, because they are the most frequent words on almost every page and say nothing about its topic.

Is a density above 5% always keyword stuffing?

Not always. On a short page, or with a product name that has to be repeated, a term can pass 5% innocently. The warning is a prompt to read the page, not a penalty.

Does the tool count text added by JavaScript?

No. It counts the visible text in the HTML your server returns, so text that scripts add after the page loads is not included.