How to Do Moz Keyword Analysis for Free: Volume, Difficulty

You know you need keyword data to rank higher. But most keyword research tools lock the good stuff behind paywalls. You're stuck guessing which keywords to target, how much traffic they bring, and whether you can actually compete for them. That uncertainty kills your content strategy before it starts.

Moz Keyword Explorer gives you access to real search volume data, keyword difficulty scores, and SERP analysis. The free version includes 10 queries per month plus two keyword lists. That's enough to research your most important topics and build a solid content foundation without spending a dime.

This guide walks you through the exact process for using Moz's free keyword analysis tools. You'll learn how to set up your account, find high-opportunity keywords with actual search volume numbers, evaluate competition through difficulty scores, and organize everything into actionable lists. By the end, you'll have a clear keyword strategy based on data instead of guesswork.

What Moz keyword analysis covers

Moz Keyword Explorer provides four core metrics for every keyword you search. You get monthly search volume numbers that show how many people actually search for a term. The tool also calculates a difficulty score from 0 to 100, which tells you how hard it will be to rank in the top 10 results. Beyond these basics, you see organic click-through rate (CTR) predictions that estimate what percentage of searchers actually click on results. The final metric is priority, which combines all three factors to identify your best opportunities.

Before jumping into any keyword analysis SEO Moz workflow, ask yourself a few strategic questions. What problems does your audience actually have? What topics does your business have genuine expertise in? Which pages on your site already attract traffic? Starting with these questions prevents you from burning your limited free queries on irrelevant terms. The keyword analyzer Moz provides is powerful, but 10 queries per month means each one counts.

Moz also supports keyword trend analysis, letting you spot whether a keyword's search volume is climbing, stable, or declining over time. This trending data appears alongside the core metrics and helps you avoid investing in keywords that are losing relevance. A keyword with 2,000 monthly searches on a downward trend may be a worse bet than one with 800 searches that's growing steadily.

Core features in the free version

Your free Moz account includes 10 keyword queries per month. Each query unlocks hundreds of related keyword suggestions based on what real users search for. You can filter these suggestions by relevance, volume, or difficulty to find exactly what you need. The tool pulls data from a database of over 1.25 billion keywords, so you're working with comprehensive information instead of limited samples. That Moz keyword database size puts it in the same league as paid-only platforms, which is unusual for a free keyword tool.

The free Moz keyword tool also includes full access to SERP analysis, organic CTR estimates, and the priority scoring system. You aren't getting a watered-down version of the data. The only real limitations are the number of queries and the cap of two saved keyword lists per account.

Analysis tools you can use

Every keyword search shows you the actual SERP for that term. You see which websites currently rank in the top positions and what types of content Google favors. Moz also breaks down SERP features like featured snippets, local packs, and image carousels that affect your click-through rates. You can save up to two keyword lists in your free account, which helps you organize research by topic or content campaign.

The Moz keyword difficulty and SERP analysis tool works together as a single view. When you check keyword difficulty, you can immediately click through to see the exact pages ranking for that term, their authority scores, and backlink counts. This pairing is what makes Moz useful for competitive analysis, not just raw data collection. You can also use Moz to check keywords by clicks, the organic CTR metric shows you how many of those monthly searches actually result in someone clicking an organic result, which tells you whether a keyword's volume translates into real traffic opportunity.

Moz keyword analysis gives you the data you need to make informed decisions about which keywords to target and which ones to skip.

Step 1. Create your free Moz account

Getting started with Moz keyword analysis takes about two minutes. You don't need a credit card, and the free account gives you immediate access to 10 keyword queries each month. This means you can research your most important topics right now without any financial commitment.

Account setup process

Visit moz.com/community/join and enter your email address. Moz will send you a verification link within seconds. Click that link to activate your account and set your password. Once you're in, you can access Keyword Explorer directly from the main navigation menu.

Your free account includes these core features:

• 10 keyword queries per month
• 2 keyword lists for organization
• Full access to search volume data
• Keyword difficulty scores (0-100)
• SERP analysis for every query
• Hundreds of keyword suggestions per search

Free Moz accounts reset on the first day of each month, so you get 10 fresh queries every 30 days.

The platform requires no setup beyond creating your account. You can start your first keyword search immediately after logging in. If you already have Google Search Console connected to your site, take a minute to review which keywords you're already ranking for before using your Moz queries. This way, you can focus your limited searches on new opportunities rather than terms you've already captured.

Step 2. Find keywords and search volume

Click Keyword Explorer in the main navigation menu after logging into your Moz account. The search interface appears at the top of the page with a single input field and a location selector. This is where you start your moz keyword analysis by entering any keyword that relates to your business or content topic.

Enter your seed keyword

Type your main topic or keyword into the search box. For example, if you run an outdoor gear website, enter "hiking boots" or "camping equipment". Select your target location from the dropdown menu next to the search box. This matters because search volume varies by country and region. A keyword that gets 10,000 monthly searches in the United States might only get 500 in Canada.

Click the blue search button to generate your results. Moz processes your query and displays four key metrics at the top of the results page:

• Monthly Volume: Total searches per month for this exact keyword
• Difficulty: Competition score from 0-100 (higher means harder to rank)
• Organic CTR: Percentage of searchers who click organic results
• Priority: Combined score showing overall opportunity

Here's a concrete Moz Keyword Explorer example to illustrate how this works in practice. Say you search "best hiking boots for beginners." Moz might return a monthly volume of 2,400, a difficulty score of 32, an organic CTR of 64%, and a priority score of 78. That combination tells you there's solid search demand, the competition is beatable for a mid-authority site, and most searchers actually click organic results rather than getting absorbed by ads or SERP features.

Read the search volume data

Look at the Monthly Volume number first. This tells you exactly how many people search for your keyword each month. A volume of 1,000 means you could potentially reach 12,000 searches per year if you rank well. Keep in mind that search volume changes with seasons and trends. "Christmas gifts" spikes in November and December but drops to almost zero in summer months.

Volume numbers below 100 monthly searches usually indicate very specific, long-tail keywords. These can still drive valuable traffic because searchers often have clear intent. A keyword with 50 monthly searches but high purchase intent beats a 5,000-volume keyword that attracts casual browsers.

When setting a Moz keyword minimum volume threshold for your research, consider your niche. Broad consumer topics might warrant filtering out anything below 200-500 monthly searches. But in B2B or specialized niches, keywords with 30-50 monthly searches can drive meaningful revenue because each visitor has high intent. Don't dismiss low-volume keywords automatically, filter based on your business context.

Search volume gives you the ceiling for potential traffic, but your actual clicks depend on where you rank and what percentage of searchers click organic results.

Explore keyword suggestions

Scroll down past the main metrics to find hundreds of related keywords. Moz generates these suggestions based on actual search data and semantic relationships. You see columns for each keyword showing its volume, difficulty, and organic CTR. Click any column header to sort the entire list by that metric.

The Questions tab shows keywords phrased as questions. These work perfectly for FAQ sections and blog posts that answer specific problems. The Related Topics tab reveals broader subjects connected to your main keyword. Use the filter options above the suggestions table to narrow results by minimum volume or maximum difficulty score. This helps you find realistic opportunities instead of impossible-to-rank keywords.

Pay attention to the content format that matches each keyword's intent. If you check the SERP for a suggested keyword and see mostly listicles, write a listicle. If how-to guides dominate, create a how-to guide. Matching the format Google already rewards for a given search saves you from producing content that doesn't align with what searchers expect.

Copy promising keywords by clicking the plus icon next to each one. Moz adds them to a temporary list that you can save later. This collection becomes your content roadmap for the next few months.

Step 3. Check keyword difficulty and SERPs

The Difficulty score appears right next to your search volume data in every moz keyword analysis query. This number ranges from 0 to 100 and predicts how hard it will be to rank in the top 10 organic results. A score below 30 indicates relatively easy competition, while anything above 70 means you're fighting against established authority sites with strong backlink profiles. Understanding this metric saves you from wasting months creating content for keywords you can't realistically rank for.

Understanding the difficulty score

Difficulty scores combine multiple ranking factors into a single number. Moz calculates this by analyzing the Domain Authority and Page Authority of the current top-ranking pages for your target keyword. Sites with stronger backlink profiles and better overall authority push the difficulty score higher. You also need to consider your own site's authority when evaluating these scores.

Your site's starting point matters more than the raw difficulty number. A new website with Domain Authority below 20 should target keywords with difficulty scores under 30. Established sites with Domain Authority above 50 can compete for keywords in the 40-60 difficulty range. Check your own Domain Authority in Moz's free tools section before making targeting decisions.

So what Moz score should you aim for? Here's a practical breakdown based on your site's current Domain Authority:

• DA 1-15 (brand new sites): Target difficulty 1-20
• DA 16-30 (growing sites): Target difficulty 15-35
• DA 31-50 (established sites): Target difficulty 25-55
• DA 51-70 (strong authority): Target difficulty 40-65
• DA 71+ (top-tier authority): Can compete for difficulty 60+

These ranges overlap intentionally. A site with DA 30 and deep topical expertise can sometimes outrank pages with higher authority if the content is significantly better. Use these numbers as starting guidelines, not rigid rules.

How does Moz keyword rank scoring actually work behind the scenes? The difficulty metric weighs the Page Authority of pages currently occupying the top 10 positions. If most top-ranking pages have PA scores above 50 with dozens of linking root domains, the difficulty climbs. If the top 10 includes pages with PA under 30 and few backlinks, the difficulty drops. Moz essentially asks: how strong are the pages you'd need to displace?

Difficulty scores tell you the strength of your competition, not whether the keyword is valuable for your business.

Analyze the SERP results

Click the SERP Analysis button next to any keyword to see exactly which pages rank in the top 10. This view shows you each ranking URL, its Page Authority score, and the number of linking root domains pointing to that page. Study these results to understand what type of content Google rewards for your target keyword.

Look for patterns in the top results. If you see mostly product pages ranking, Google interprets that keyword as having transactional intent. A mix of blog posts and guides indicates informational intent. The content format matters because you need to match what Google expects searchers want. Creating a blog post for a keyword where only product pages rank wastes your time.

Pay attention to SERP features that appear for your keyword. The Featured Snippet box at the top takes clicks away from position one. Local packs, image carousels, and shopping results all reduce the Organic CTR you saw in the main metrics. If your keyword shows 45% organic CTR instead of 70%, that means SERP features are stealing half the available clicks.

You can also use this SERP view for keyword ranking and impression analysis when comparing against your own site. If your page appears somewhere in the top 20 for a keyword but isn't cracking the top 10, the SERP analysis tells you exactly which pages you need to outperform. Note their PA scores, backlink counts, and content depth, that's your gap analysis in a single screen.

Evaluate your competition

Open the top three ranking pages in new tabs and analyze their content structure. Count how many words they published, check their heading structure, and note what topics they cover. This competitive research shows you the baseline quality you need to beat. If the current top result is a comprehensive 3,000-word guide with charts and examples, your 800-word post won't rank.

Check the linking root domains for each top-ranking page. Pages with 50+ backlinks require a strong outreach strategy to compete. Keywords where the top results have fewer than 10 backlinks present easier opportunities. You can rank with better content quality alone instead of needing extensive link building campaigns.

Compare the Page Authority scores of ranking pages to your own. If your target page has PA 15 and you're competing against pages with PA 40+, you need to either build links first or choose a different keyword. Realistic assessment of your competitive position prevents wasted effort on impossible targets.

Step 4. Build and prioritize your keyword list

Click the plus icon next to any keyword in your moz keyword analysis results to add it to your collection. This temporary selection holds up to 1,000 keywords until you save them to a permanent list. Your free Moz account allows you to create two keyword lists, which means you need to organize strategically from the start. Think of one list as your immediate targets and the second as future opportunities you'll tackle later.

Save keywords to your lists

Select all the keywords you want to keep by clicking the checkbox at the top of your suggestions table. The Add to List button appears in the toolbar above your selections. Click it and choose Create New List from the dropdown menu. Name your list something specific like "Q1 Blog Topics" or "Product Page Keywords" instead of generic names like "Keywords 1".

Moz saves your keyword data permanently in these lists. You can return anytime to review the volume, difficulty, and priority scores without using another query credit. This matters because your free account only includes 10 searches per month. Export your saved lists by clicking the Export button and downloading a CSV file with all your keyword data.

Managing your Moz keyword lists effectively is critical when you only have two available. Here's a practical approach: use your first list for keywords you're actively creating content around this quarter. Use the second list as a backlog of validated opportunities for future quarters. At the end of each quarter, export the first list to a spreadsheet, delete it in Moz, and promote your backlog list to active status. Then create a fresh backlog list with your next round of research. This rotation system keeps your two Moz keyword lists working as a continuous pipeline instead of filling up and becoming useless.

If you find two lists too restrictive, export frequently. Every Moz keyword list export includes volume, difficulty, organic CTR, and priority data in the CSV, so you lose nothing by moving completed research into external spreadsheets.

Organize by difficulty and priority

Sort your keyword list by clicking the Priority column header. This reorders everything based on Moz's combined scoring system that weighs volume, difficulty, and CTR together. Keywords at the top of your priority-sorted list represent your best opportunities where decent search volume meets realistic competition levels. Start creating content for these terms first.

Create a simple organization system using these priority tiers:

• Priority 80-100: High-value targets for immediate content creation
• Priority 60-79: Secondary keywords for your content calendar
• Priority 40-59: Long-term targets requiring stronger domain authority
• Below 40: Save for future review or skip entirely

Filter your list by maximum difficulty score to find quick wins. Set the filter to show only keywords with difficulty below 30 if your site is new. Established sites can push this threshold to 50 or 60. These filtered results show you exactly which keywords you can realistically rank for within three to six months.

Build your content calendar around priority scores above 70 and difficulty scores that match your site's current authority level.

Create your content roadmap

Copy your top 10-20 keywords into a spreadsheet template that tracks your progress. Add columns for target URL, content status, publish date, and current ranking position. This turns your moz keyword analysis data into an actionable publishing schedule instead of just a research document.

Keyword | Priority | Difficulty | Volume | Target URL | Status | Publish Date
hiking boots for beginners | 85 | 28 | 2,400 | /hiking-boots-guide | Draft | 2026-01-15
best camping tents | 78 | 45 | 5,100 | /camping-tents | Research | 2026-02-01
ultralight backpacking gear | 72 | 35 | 1,800 | /ultralight-gear | Planned | 2026-02-15

Schedule your highest-priority, lowest-difficulty keywords first. This approach delivers ranking results faster and builds momentum for your SEO strategy. Save medium-difficulty keywords for months three through six after you've published initial content and started building domain authority.

Once you've published content for your target keywords, monitor performance monthly. Check whether your pages are gaining impressions and clicks in Google Search Console, then cross-reference those keywords with your original Moz data. If a page is earning impressions but few clicks, you may need to improve your title tag or meta description. If it's not gaining impressions at all after three months, revisit the keyword's difficulty score, you may need more backlinks or a more comprehensive piece of content to compete.

Keyword research isn't a one-time activity. Return to Moz Keyword Explorer each month to use your 10 fresh queries on new topics, trending terms in your niche, or variations of keywords where you're already seeing traction. Over time, this ongoing research compounds into a deep keyword map that covers your entire niche.

If you find yourself consistently maxing out 10 queries and two keyword lists, that's usually the signal to evaluate whether upgrading to Moz Pro makes sense for your business. The free tier covers the needs of most small sites publishing a few articles per month. But if you're scaling content across multiple topic clusters or managing several sites, the paid tier removes those caps and adds features like rank tracking and on-page optimization recommendations.

Key takeaways

Moz keyword analysis gives you real search volume data and difficulty scores without requiring a paid subscription. Your free account includes 10 monthly queries and two keyword lists, which covers enough research to build a solid content strategy for any small to medium website. Focus on keywords with priority scores above 70 and difficulty levels that match your site's current authority. New sites should target difficulty scores below 30, while established domains can compete for keywords in the 40-60 range.

The process takes less than 30 minutes per month once you understand how to evaluate volume, difficulty, and SERP competition. Export your keyword lists to CSV files and organize them into a content calendar that prioritizes your best opportunities first. If you want to skip manual keyword research entirely and automate your content strategy, RankYak handles keyword discovery and article creation for you every single day.