What Is Keyword Difficulty?
Keyword Difficulty is a scoring metric that keyword research tools use to estimate how hard it would be to rank in the top 10 positions on Google for a given keyword. Keyword Difficulty (KD) is based on the strength of the backlink profiles for the top-ranking URLs. KD scores range between 1 to 100, with 100 being the most difficult.
Domain authority, page authority, search intent, and backlinks are among the top factors that contribute to KD scores. Keyword research tools use different methods to measure this metric, which is why the KD score for a keyword usually depends on a tool.
The KD metric is also related to search volume. Keywords with KD scores below 30% usually have low search volumes and low competition, which makes them suitable terms to target for websites with low domain authority.
However, many website owners still target keywords with 30% to 70% KD scores despite the competition due to their higher search volume.
Visit the SEO Glossary
Go to the SEO Glossary to find more terms and definitions that relate to the field of search engine optimization.
The Editorial Staff at SEO Chatter is a team of search engine optimization and digital marketing experts led by Stephen Hockman with more than 15 years of experience in search engine marketing. We publish guides on the fundamentals of SEO for beginner marketers.
