How to Find Low Competition Keywords for SEO: The Complete 2026 Guide

How to find low competition keywords for SEO is the #1 question for bloggers and business owners who want to rank without spending years building backlinks. Most people target keywords with 10,000+ monthly searches and wonder why they never rank. The secret is finding keywords with low competition where you can win.

According to Backlinko’s keyword difficulty research, the average #1 result for a high-difficulty keyword has 200+ backlinks. For a low-difficulty keyword (KD under 30), the #1 result often has 0-10 backlinks — within reach for a new website.

In this guide, I’ll show you exactly how to find low competition keywords for SEO — using free tools, advanced techniques, and a step-by-step process that reveals untapped opportunities your competitors are ignoring.

External Resources (Bookmark These)

• Backlinko — Keyword Difficulty Research
• Moz — Keyword Difficulty Explained
• Ahrefs — Keyword Difficulty Guide
• Neil Patel — Low Competition Keywords
• Semrush — Low KD Keywords
• Ubersuggest — Free keyword difficulty tool
• Google Keyword Planner — Search volume data
• AnswerThePublic — Question-based keywords
• Keywords Everywhere — Browser extension
• Google Trends — Keyword popularity

Internal Rafirit Station Resources

• SEO Services — Professional keyword research
• Complete SEO Solutions — Low-competition keyword strategy
• Content Writing — SEO-optimized content for low-difficulty keywords
• Case Studies — Keyword ranking results
• Full-Service Digital Marketing — SEO + content + ads
• Contact Rafirit Station — Free keyword audit

What Makes a Keyword “Low Competition”?

Keyword difficulty (KD) measures how hard it is to rank for a keyword, typically on a scale of 0-100.

Keyword difficulty breakdown:

30-50</td;

Low to Medium</td;

Established sites, 10-30 backlinks</td;

3-6 months</td;

50-70</td;

Medium to High</td;

Sites with authority, 50+ backlinks</td;

6-12 months</td;
70-100</td;

Very High</td;

High-authority sites only</td;

12-24+ months</td;
What influences keyword difficulty:

• Number of backlinks to top results: More links = higher difficulty
• Domain authority of top results: Forbes, HubSpot, and other high-DA sites dominate for high-difficulty keywords
• Search intent complexity: Some keywords have mixed intent, making them harder to satisfy
• Content length/comprehensiveness: If top results are 5,000-word guides, that’s harder to beat than 500-word posts

Rafirit Station’s SEO team specializes in finding low-difficulty keywords with high ROI.

Method 1: Use Ubersuggest (Free Tool)

Ubersuggest is the best free tool for finding keyword difficulty. Here’s how to use it:

Step-by-step:

1. Go to Ubersuggest (free, no credit card)
2. Enter a seed keyword related to your niche (e.g., “digital marketing”)
3. Click “Search”
4. Go to “Keyword Ideas” tab
5. Look for the “SEO Difficulty” column (score 0-100)
6. Filter keywords with difficulty under 30
7. Check monthly search volume (aim for 100-1,000+ searches/month)

Example search results:

• “digital marketing trends 2026” → volume 400, difficulty 22 ✅ GOOD
• “best digital marketing course” → volume 2,000, difficulty 68 ❌ TOO HARD
• “digital marketing for small business” → volume 800, difficulty 35 🟡 MEDIUM

Ubersuggest limits: 3 free searches per day. Use strategically or upgrade to paid for unlimited.

Method 2: Use Google Keyword Planner (Free, with Google Ads account)

Google Keyword Planner doesn’t show keyword difficulty, but it shows competition level (High, Medium, Low) — a useful proxy.

How to use Keyword Planner for low competition keywords:

1. Sign in to Google Ads (free account)
2. Go to Tools → Keyword Planner → “Discover new keywords”
3. Enter your seed keyword
4. Filter by “Competition: Low”
5. Look for keywords with decent search volume (100-1,000+)
6. Also note “Top of page bid (low range)” — low bids (৳5-20) often indicate low competition

Warning: Google’s competition metric is for paid ads, not organic SEO. Low ad competition may still have high organic competition. Use as a signal, not a definitive measure.

Method 3: The Wikipedia Strategy

The concept: Wikipedia pages rank #1 for millions of keywords. But Wikipedia also has “stub” pages — short, underdeveloped articles that you can outrank.

How to find Wikipedia stubs:

1. Go to Wikipedia.org
2. Search for a topic in your niche (e.g., “search engine optimization”)
3. Look for “stub” label (small text at bottom of page)
4. also check page length — short pages under 500 words are stubs
5. Check the page’s backlinks (use Ahrefs free backlink checker) — stubs have few backlinks
6. Create a better, more comprehensive page on the same topic

Example: Wikipedia stub on “SEO copywriting” (200 words, 2 backlinks). You write a 2,000-word guide on SEO copywriting. You can outrank — and you’ll also get backlinks from Wikipedia itself (citations).

This is a goldmine for low-competition keywords. Most people don’t know this strategy.

Method 4: Question Keywords (Low Competition, High Intent)

Question keywords (how, what, why, when, where, which) have lower competition than commercial keywords. They’re also perfect for blog posts and FAQs.

Where to find question keywords:

• AnswerThePublic: Enter a seed keyword → generates hundreds of question phrases
• Google Autocomplete: Type “how to [topic],” “why [topic],” etc. — see suggestions
• People Also Ask (PAA) boxes: Search your keyword on Google, scroll down to PAA box — each question is a keyword opportunity
• Reddit and Quora: Search your niche, note frequently asked questions

Question keyword examples (low competition):

• “how long does SEO take to work” (difficulty 18, volume 400)
• “what is the difference between SEO and SEM” (difficulty 15, volume 200)
• “why is my website not ranking on Google” (difficulty 22, volume 600)
• “which SEO tool is best for beginners” (difficulty 20, volume 250)

Pro tip: Question keywords are easier to rank because most sites publish “10 tips” listicles instead of answering specific questions.

Method 5: Analyze Competitor 301 Redirects

When websites merge or delete pages, they use 301 redirects. These redirected pages often have backlinks but no content — a perfect low-competition opportunity.

How to find 301 redirect opportunities:

1. Use Ahrefs free backlink checker (limited) or Moz Link Explorer
2. Enter a competitor’s domain
3. Look for “404 not found” or “301 redirected” pages
4. Check if those pages have backlinks (even 5-10 backlinks are valuable)
5. Create your own page on the same topic, better than the original
6. Contact sites linking to the broken page and suggest your new page as replacement (broken link building)

Advanced technique — but powerful for finding low-competition keywords with existing backlink opportunity.

Method 6: Long-Tail Keyword Research (3-5 Words)

Long-tail keywords are phrases with 3-5 words. They have lower search volume but much lower competition — and higher conversion rates.

Examples of long-tail vs short-tail:

• Short-tail (high competition): “SEO” (KD 85)
• Mid-tail (medium competition): “SEO services Dhaka” (KD 45)
• Long-tail (low competition): “affordable SEO services for small business Dhaka” (KD 22) ✅

How to generate long-tail keywords:

1. Start with a seed keyword
2. Add modifiers: “best,” “affordable,” “for beginners,” “step by step,” “near me,” “2026”
3. Combine with location (if local business)
4. Use Ubersuggest or AnswerThePublic
5. Check difficulty — target under 30

Long-tail keyword formula: [Adjective] + [Keyword] + [Location] + [Modifier]

Example: “best + SEO agency + Dhaka + for small business”

Rafirit Station’s keyword research focuses on long-tail, low-competition opportunities.

Method 7: Look for “People Also Ask” Keywords

People Also Ask (PAA) boxes on Google search results are goldmines for low-competition keywords.

How to extract PAA keywords:

1. Search your seed keyword on Google
2. Scroll down to “People also ask” box
3. Each question is a keyword opportunity
4. Click on questions to reveal more questions
5. Use tools: AlsoAsked.com (free tier) to extract all PAA questions for any keyword

Why PAA keywords are low competition:

• Question keywords are less competitive than commercial keywords
• Most competitors target “best X” or “X services” — not “how to X”
• You can rank by answering the question thoroughly (needle-moving content)

Example PAA keywords for “SEO”:

• “how to learn SEO step by step” (KD 18, volume 300)
• “what is on-page SEO with example” (KD 12, volume 150)
• “why is SEO important for small business” (KD 15, volume 400)

Method 8: Use Google Autocomplete (Instant Ideas)

Google Autocomplete reveals what people are actually searching for right now — trends and long-tail phrases.

How to use Google Autocomplete for keyword discovery:

1. Type your seed keyword into Google (don’t press enter)
2. Note the suggestions that appear
3. Add letters A-Z after your keyword: “SEO a” → “SEO agency,” “SEO audit,” “SEO analytics”
4. Add question modifiers: “SEO how to,” “SEO what is,” “SEO why,” “SEO when”
5. Add prepositions: “SEO for,” “SEO without,” “SEO vs”

Pro tip: Use Keyword Tool (free tier) to automate Google Autocomplete extraction across multiple languages and regions.

Low Competition Keyword Checklist

Question modifier included?</td;

Yes (how, what, why, when) = easier</td;

☐</td;

Real Example: How a New Blog Found 50+ Low Competition Keywords and Reached 100K Monthly Visitors

Client: New personal finance blog (3 months old, DA 1, zero backlinks).

Challenge: High-competition keywords like “how to save money” (KD 75, impossible).

Process:

• Used AnswerThePublic for question keywords in personal finance
• Filtered Ubersuggest for KD under 30, volume over 100
• Found 50+ low-competition keywords: “how to save money on groceries in Dhaka” (KD 12), “best budgeting app for couples” (KD 18), “what is compound interest simple explanation” (KD 8)
• Wrote one 1,500-word article per keyword (well-researched, better than existing results)
• Added internal links between related articles
• No backlinks built (earned naturally over time)

Results after 9 months:

• Traffic: 0 → 100,000+ monthly visitors
• Keywords ranking: 250+ keywords on page 1
• Domain Authority: 1 → 22
• Email list: 8,000+ subscribers
• Revenue: ৳3,00,000+/month (affiliate + ads)

Key takeaway: Low-competition keywords (KD under 30) are winnable for new sites. Question keywords and long-tail phrases are the secret. See more keyword research success stories.

Free Tools for Finding Low Competition Keywords

AnswerThePublic</td;

Question keywords</td;

3 free searches/day</td;

❌</td;
AlsoAsked.com</td;

People Also Ask extraction</td;

5 free searches/month</td;

❌</td;

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a good keyword difficulty score for a new website?

Under 30 (KD 0-30). These keywords are winnable with good content and basic on-page SEO. For competitive niches, under 20 is ideal. Aim for volume over 100 searches/month.

Can I rank for keywords with zero backlinks?

Yes — for low-competition keywords (KD under 10-20), you can often rank without backlinks. Focus on creating the best content on the topic. Internal linking helps distribute authority.

How many low-competition keywords should I target?

Start with 10-20 keywords for your content plan. Write one comprehensive article per keyword (1,500-2,500 words). Interlink between related articles. Add more keywords as you grow.

Do low-volume keywords (under 100 searches/month) matter?

Yes — stack many low-volume keywords. 100 keywords with 50 searches/month each = 5,000 monthly visitors. Low-volume keywords also tend to convert better (specific intent).

Can Rafirit Station do keyword research for my business?

Yes — Rafirit Station’s SEO team provides comprehensive keyword research, including difficulty analysis, search volume, intent mapping, and content planning.

The Bottom Line

Finding low-competition keywords is the difference between ranking on page 1 and being invisible. Most sites target keywords they’ll never rank for. You win by finding keywords your competitors ignore.

Your next step (today):

1. Brainstorm 5 seed keywords for your niche
2. Use Ubersuggest to generate keyword ideas (3 free searches)
3. Filter keywords with difficulty under 30
4. Pick 5-10 keywords with decent volume (100-1,000+)
5. Create content for your top 3 keywords this month

👉 Professional Keyword Research Services →
👉 Complete SEO Solutions →
👉 SEO Content Writing →
👉 See Ranking Results →
👉 📅 Book Your Free Keyword Research Consultation on Calendly →

Want a free Low Competition Keyword Tracker + Difficulty Scoring Spreadsheet? Drop “LOW KD” in the comments — I’ll send you a Google Sheets template to track keyword difficulty, search volume, and content status for 100+ keywords.