I’m trying to grow a small blog and my budget is basically zero, so I’m looking for the most effective free keyword research tool available in 2017. I’ve tried a few trial versions of paid tools, but they either expired too fast or limited the data so much that I couldn’t really plan my SEO strategy. What free tools or combinations of tools are you using to find low-competition keywords, search volume, and long-tail opportunities that actually help content rank in Google?
For 2017, if your budget is zero, use Google Keyword Planner as your main tool, then stack a couple of helpers around it.
Here is a simple setup that works for a small blog:
-
Google Keyword Planner
• Needs a Google Ads account, but you do not need to run ads.
• Use “Discover new keywords” and plug in 3 to 5 seed terms.
• Sort by “Avg. monthly searches.”
• Export the list to a spreadsheet.
• Since you get ranges, use it to find topics, not to obsess over exact volume. -
Google Suggest + Alphabet soup
• Type your main keyword into Google and look at autocomplete.
• Do this: “your topic + a, b, c, d …”.
• Copy anything that looks specific and long tail.
• These often have lower competition and are better for a small blog. -
Keyword Shitter (yes, real name)
• Free tool that spits out hundreds of long tail ideas using Google Suggest.
• Start it, let it run for a few minutes, then stop.
• Import the list to Keyword Planner or a spreadsheet.
• Filter out junk terms manually. It is messy but it works. -
Ubersuggest (2017 version)
• In 2017 it was still free or almost free.
• Enter your seed keyword.
• Use it to expand variations and see rough volume and CPC.
• Use it when Keyword Planner is too vague. -
Google Search Console
• After your blog has some traffic, this becomes gold.
• Go to “Search Analytics” or “Performance.”
• Filter by pages, then see queries bringing impressions but few clicks.
• Write new posts or improve existing ones around those phrases.
Simple workflow that I used in that period for a small niche blog:
Step 1: Brain dump 20 topic ideas from your niche.
Step 2: Run them through Keyword Planner, export.
Step 3: Expand them with Keyword Shitter and Google Suggest.
Step 4: Use Ubersuggest to sanity check volume and difficulty.
Step 5: Pick long tails like “how to [topic] without [pain point]” or “best [product] for [specific user]”.
Step 6: Write one strong post per keyword, answer the query fast, then add detail.
Focus less on exact volume, more on intent and specificity.
If you see anything over 50 to 100 searches per month, low competition, and you can write the best answer on page one, it is worth a shot.
I know this sounds a bit hacky and manual, but for 2017 and a zero budget, this stack beats most “free” trials that lock you down after a week.
If you’re asking for a single “best” free tool for 2017, I’d actually say: there isn’t one. There’s one best data source: Google itself. Most free tools in 2017 were just remixing Google’s data in different ways.
@cacadordeestrelas covered the “tool stack” angle really well. I’ll add a different angle so you’re not just redoing the same workflow.
1. Use Google itself as the “real” keyword tool
If your blog is small, forget about chasing perfect volume numbers. What you really want is:
- Queries people actually type
- Things that indicate low competition
- Topics where you can write the best, clearest answer
You can get a lot of that with:
a) SERP mining
Search your seed topic and look at:
- “People also ask” questions
- “Searches related to…” at the bottom
- Titles of posts ranking in the top 10
Dump all those phrases into a spreadsheet. Those are basically pre-validated keyword ideas. If there’s a Quora or random forum thread ranking on page 1, that’s usually a low-bar SERP where a solid blog post can compete.
b) Manual difficulty check
Instead of relying on a “KD” number from a freemium tool:
- Check Page 1 results domain authority with the MozBar (was free in 2017)
- If you see: small blogs, forums, Q&A sites, Pinterest, etc., that’s your in
This is slower than clicking a “difficulty” filter, but way more accurate at your scale.
2. Chrome extensions > external tools
Everyone back then ran to Ubersuggest and similar. They’re fine, but you can stay in the browser and move faster.
Two useful free-ish 2017 style helpers:
- Keywords Everywhere (in 2017 it had a generous free phase / very cheap)
Shows rough volumes right in Google results, YouTube, etc. - MozBar
Shows domain/page authority in the SERPs so you can eyeball competition.
Even if the numbers are off, you only need relative volume and difficulty, not surgical precision.
3. Lean harder on Search Console than most people do
Here I slightly disagree with the “use it after you have traffic” part. Turn it on from day 1 and check it regularly, even with tiny impressions:
- Sort by impressions, then filter to positions 8–20
- Those are keywords where Google already “likes” your page a bit
- Add a section or a dedicated H2 targeting that phrase
- If it’s clearly a distinct angle, spin it into its own post and interlink
On a small blog, this “optimize what’s already half-working” approach can beat cold keyword research in terms of actual traffic gained.
4. Content angle is your real “tool”
Everyone obsesses over tools and forgets the angle. For a small blog in 2017, what tends to win is stuff like:
- Very specific long tails:
- “how to clean suede shoes in the rain” instead of “how to clean suede shoes”
- Opinionated posts in boring SERPs:
- “why most productivity tips suck for night shift workers”
So when you find a keyword, don’t just target the phrase. Decide:
- Can I give a faster, clearer answer than page 1?
- Can I cover an angle nobody’s touching?
- Can I pack examples and screenshots that the generic sites don’t bother with?
5. If you really want one named “tool”
If I had to pick a single named free tool circa 2017 and I’m on zero budget:
- Google Keyword Planner as the base data source
- Manual SERP + MozBar as the reality check
Everything else is just convenience wrappers.
So: instead of hunting for a magic free tool, use Google’s ecosystem aggressively, plus a couple of browser add-ons, and spend most of your time writing the best answer on low-competition, very specific queries. That combination was (and honestly still is) stronger than hopping between a bunch of crippled free trials.