The three core keyword metrics in Search Atlas — Keyword Difficulty (KD), Search Volume, and CPC — tell you how competitive, popular, and commercially valuable any keyword is. Use them together to decide which keywords are worth targeting.
📏 Keyword Difficulty (KD)
Keyword Difficulty (KD) is a score from 0 to 100 that measures how hard it is to rank on the first page of Google for a given keyword. The higher the score, the more competitive the keyword.
- 0–29 — Low: Easy to rank; ideal for newer sites or underserved content gaps.
- 30–59 — Medium: Moderate competition; achievable with quality content and a growing backlink profile.
- 60–79 — High: Strong competition; requires solid domain authority and targeted link building.
- 80–100 — Very High: Dominated by high-authority sites; best suited for established domains with significant SEO investment.
For most growing sites, targeting keywords with a KD under 40 delivers the fastest ranking results.
🔍 Search Volume
Search Volume is the average number of monthly searches for a keyword on Google. It tells you how much audience demand exists for a topic.
- High volume (10,000+/month): Broad terms with large audiences and typically high competition.
- Medium volume (1,000–9,999/month): Balanced demand — often niche-relevant and worth targeting.
- Low volume (<1,000/month): Long-tail keywords with specific intent; easier to rank and frequently higher-converting.
Search Volume is averaged across the past 12 months, so seasonal keywords may show lower averages than their true peak-month demand. Always check month-by-month trend data before discarding a keyword that looks low on the annual average.
🌍 Filtering by Location
If your business targets multiple regions, Search Atlas aggregates volume across all selected geo-targets, giving you a combined figure that better reflects total demand. Select your locations in the Location filter before pulling metrics.
Your selected location carries through automatically when you drill from a multi-keyword results list into a single keyword's detail view.
💰 CPC (Cost Per Click)
CPC is the average amount advertisers pay per click in Google Ads for a keyword, displayed in USD. It signals the commercial value of a keyword — even if you never run paid ads.
- High CPC: Strong commercial or transactional intent; businesses pay a premium because the keyword drives purchases or leads.
- Low CPC: Typically informational intent with lower direct conversion potential.
A keyword with manageable KD and high CPC is often a high-value organic target — real buyer intent with achievable rankings.
⚖️ How to Combine KD, Search Volume, and CPC
No single metric tells the full story. Use all three together to prioritize keywords effectively:
- Filter by Search Volume to confirm meaningful demand exists. Remove keywords below your minimum threshold.
- Check KD against your site's current authority. Growing sites should generally target KD under 40–50.
- Review CPC to identify commercial intent. A keyword with moderate volume, low KD, and high CPC is often a hidden opportunity.
Example: A keyword showing 2,000 monthly searches, a KD of 22, and a CPC of $7.80 is a strong target — enough traffic, low competition, and clear buyer intent.
Once you identify a pattern that works for your site, save a filtered view in the Keywords tool so you can repeat the process quickly for new topics.
🔎 Where to Find Keyword Metrics in Search Atlas
Keyword metrics appear throughout Search Atlas wherever keywords are listed. The main places to access them are:
- Keywords: Enter any seed keyword to see KD, Search Volume, and CPC for that term and all related suggestions.
- Rank Tracker: Each tracked keyword displays its KD and Search Volume alongside your current ranking position.
- Content Planner: Suggested keywords in topic clusters include metrics so you can prioritize by opportunity.
In the Keywords tool, use the filters at the top of the results table to set minimum and maximum ranges for KD, Search Volume, and CPC. Results update instantly as you adjust each range.
To save your filtered list, click Export → CSV to download the keywords for use outside Search Atlas.
🎯 You now know how to read and combine Keyword Difficulty, Search Volume, and CPC to find high-opportunity keywords. Open the Keyword Research tool, apply your target metric ranges using the filters, and export your shortlist to start building content that ranks.