What is Keyword Density?

Keyword frequency is defined as the percentage of a keyword or keyword phrase shown on a webpage, divided by the total number of keywords on the page. For example, if a keyword is shown three times on a webpage and the number of text on the webpage is 100, the keyword density for that keyword is 3%.

Is Keyword Density a SEO Ranking Factor?

In the early stages of SEO, Google would use keyword density as a ranking factor.As in, if a keyword or keyword phrase is repeated more frequently on a webpage, the greater the webpage’s chance of appearing higher on search results.

With the advancement of Google’s search algorithm and AI technologies, Google is now able to understand and measure a webpage’s contents beyond just its keyword density. A webpage can even rank on the first page of search results for a keyword that it doesn’t have, because the webpage will have synonyms of the keyword that it ranks for. Keyword density is no longer a vital ranking factor in today’s digital marketing landscape.

What Do SEO Experts Say About Keyword Density As A Ranking Factor

John Mueller, Webmaster Trends Analyst at Google, says that mentioning a keyword a few times can help with rankings, but any more than that may lead to Google seeing it as keyword stuffing.

“Once you start to mention it a whole lot, it really doesn’t help that much more. There’s diminishing returns. It’s just an incremental benefit but it’s really not that large. And then what you’ll find is, if you continue to repeat stuff over and over again, then you’re in danger of getting into keyword stuffing or gibberish and those kinds of things. So the first one or two times you mention a word that might help with your rankings, absolutely. But just because you can say it seven or eight times, that doesn’t mean that it will necessarily help your rankings.”

How Should You Incorporate Keyword Density For Your Website’s SEO?

There’s no specified keyword density for a targeted keyword that you have to reach in order for a webpage to rank higher for that keyword or keyword phrase. All you have to do is ensure that the keyword or keyword phrase that you want to rank for is in the title tag, H1 or H2 heading, and is mentioned a few times in the body content naturally, and your webpage will rank for that keyword phrase.