Free AdWords users will now have limited access to Google Keyword Planner

Google Keyword Planner has been an awesome tool for Blogger and Website owners who can’t afford to pay for a third party keyword research tool, especially those who have just started and still in their learning phase. However, Google has started limiting access to free AdWords users. This new policy has been implemented a month ago, and they are still rolling out, so some of the free users may have not seen the change so far. Just to remind that Google AdWords confirmed earlier “Keyword Planner can be used without setting up any AdWords campaign.” Google has not pulled the complete access but has made the Keyword data pathetic for free user.

Google Keyword Planner earlier

Google Keyword Planner now

As you can see in the screenshots above, the way Google AdWords used to show Average Monthly Search Volume has now changed. Now you can’t have a clear picture on average monthly searches of any keyword. You can still get a rough idea, but that’s not as effective as it used to be.

We got in touch with AdWords team, and they informed about the new update. According to the latest update, Free users and those Advertisers who spend less will have access to limited data. So if you are planning to start a campaign with a low budget so that you can get access to Keyword Planner, you need to give a second thought.

Google Advertising Community Manager CassieH says

Advertisers with lower monthly spend may see a limited data view in the Keyword Planner. For example, you may see values such as 0, 1-100, 100-1K, 1K-10K, 10K-100K, 100K-1M, 1M+ in the average monthly.

@techgrapple Hi, the data you see in Keyword Planner is based on a number of factors including how much you spend per month in AdWords. (1)

— Google AdWords (@adwords) September 9, 2016

@techgrapple For more information, you can read this update here: https://t.co/XAtr6Mzh0b. -Pri (2)

— Google AdWords (@adwords) September 9, 2016

What is the best alternative ?

Since Keyword Planner is not the best option anymore, bloggers must be looking for an alternative. However, there is no free alternative that can really help you in Keyword Research. Google AdWords may not give you full access to Keyword Planner if you are spending just a few dollars, and they haven’t clarified how much you really need to spend to get the same type of data you were getting earlier. So it’s better to pay for something that gives you guaranteed access to its features. Here is the best one you should try.

SEMRush – Better than Keyword Planner

Here are some features of SEMRush that make it awesome;

• Explore the keywords of any website/domain as well as sub-domain.
• Get keyword suggestion and relevant keywords based on any search terms.
• Know average monthly searches for any keyword.
• Keep an eye on your competitor.
• Get search data based on Mobile Devices (The US Only)
• See keywords and search data for 24 countries.
• Know estimated organic traffic of any website.

Please read our detailed article “Why a blogger must use SEMRush Keyword Research Tool.”