- KWFinder is Mangools' keyword research tool: keyword ideas with search volume and Mangools' own Keyword Difficulty, competitor keywords by domain, volume history and local research in 65k+ locations.
- Free as of November 2026: 5 lookups per 24 hours, with 15 related and 5 competitor keywords per lookup, and no credit card. Paid access comes with Mangools Basic, Premium or Agency; the pricing page showed us no amounts, so we quote none.
- Its volumes start from Google data that Mangools post-processes to separate close variants, plus other providers, with about a one-month lag. Its difficulty score is Mangools' own metric.
- Alternatives: Google Keyword Planner for Google's own figures (free, needs a Google Ads account), Search Console for keywords you already appear for, Ubersuggest for a larger suggestion allowance, and the wider list in our keyword research tools comparison.
- MrKeyword (our product) shows Keyword Planner data through the official Google Ads API without an ads account: 10 lookups a month free, 200 on Starter at $10 a month. It has no SERP analysis and no measured competitor keywords.
Disclosure: MrKeyword publishes this page and is one of the KWFinder alternatives compared. Every Mangools fact links to the Mangools page we read it on, on 1 November 2026. Mangools' pricing page did not show us any plan amounts that day, so this page quotes no Mangools price; check mangools.com/plans-and-pricing for the current figures.
What is Mangools KWFinder?
KWFinder is the keyword research tool in Mangools' SEO suite, built to find long-tail keywords with high search volume and low SEO difficulty. You type a seed keyword, a domain or a URL, choose a location and language, and it returns keyword ideas with monthly search volume, trends and Mangools' Keyword Difficulty score, with an analysis of the current search results alongside.
According to its product page, as of November 2026 KWFinder covers four jobs:
- Keyword analysis: thousands of related keyword ideas for a seed, with difficulty and volume side by side.
- Competitor research: enter a competitor's domain or URL and see the keywords Mangools has found it ranking for.
- Search volume and trends: monthly history, for spotting seasonal keywords.
- Local research: location-specific keywords and local search results across more than 65,000 locations.
KWFinder is sold as part of the Mangools suite, alongside SERPChecker (results analysis), SERPWatcher (rank tracking), LinkMiner (backlinks), SiteProfiler (domain metrics) and AI Search Watcher, so you buy the whole suite together. Mangools' site also lists an API and an SEO MCP server.
Where does KWFinder get its search volume?
Mangools says KWFinder post-processes Google data to separate close variants that Google groups together, so every variant gets its own volume. Mangools' FAQ says it uses multiple data providers alongside its own processing, and that data usually arrives with about a one-month lag, so the latest month may be missing.
Its search volume page names the two main sources of volume used by SEO tools in general as Google data and clickstream data, and describes the figure as a monthly average over the last 12 months. It does not split KWFinder's own mix between the two, so neither do we.
Keyword Difficulty is Mangools' own metric, based on data from its SERPChecker module; its FAQ does not give the formula. Like every vendor's difficulty score, it is a model, so a KWFinder 30 and another tool's 30 do not mean the same thing. Our guide to finding keyword search volume explains why tools disagree on the same keyword.
Is KWFinder free, and what do its plans include?
KWFinder has a free plan: as of November 2026, Mangools gave 5 keyword lookups per 24 hours, with 15 related keywords and 5 competitor keywords per lookup, and no credit card. The 24-hour window starts with your first request, and one lookup counts each time you type a keyword, domain or URL into the main search box.
KWFinder free plan and paid plans, as of November 2026
| Plan | What Mangools' pages stated |
|---|---|
| Free | 5 lookups per 24 hours; 15 related and 5 competitor keywords per lookup; no credit card |
| Mangools Basic | For solopreneurs, freelance SEOs and marketers |
| Mangools Premium | For marketing teams and specialists; marked best value |
| Mangools Agency | For professional SEOs and marketing agencies; the only plan with daily rank tracking updates (weekly on the others) |
| Billing terms | Monthly or annual (the pricing page's meta description says annual plans save 35%); auto-renews; cancel any time; full refund within 48 hours of payment, which does not apply to two consecutive subscriptions |
KWFinder also limits each keyword to 2 to 80 characters and at most 10 words. Five lookups a day is enough to test the tool on a few seed keywords, but not for building a full keyword list.
Why do people look for a KWFinder alternative?
Usually for one of four reasons: the free limit runs out fast, they only use the keyword tool but pay for the whole suite, they want Google's own figures, or they want keyword research beside their own Search Console data.
- The free limit. Five lookups a day suits a quick check, not a research session.
- Paying for a suite to use one tool. If you never open SERPWatcher, LinkMiner, SiteProfiler or AI Search Watcher, you are paying for them anyway.
- Google's own numbers. Some people would rather see Keyword Planner's figures directly than a processed version.
- Their own data. Keywords you already rank for live in Search Console, which a standalone research tool does not show.
What are the best KWFinder alternatives?
The closest KWFinder alternatives are Google Keyword Planner for Google's own volumes, Google Search Console for keywords you already appear for, Ubersuggest for a larger suggestion allowance in a cheap suite, and MrKeyword for Keyword Planner data without an ads account. For Semrush, Ahrefs, Moz and AnswerThePublic as well, see our full keyword research tools comparison.
KWFinder and alternatives, as of November 2026
| Tool | Where volume comes from | Free allowance | Difficulty score | Competitor keywords | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mangools KWFinder | Google data, post-processed, plus other providers | 5 lookups per 24 hours | Yes Mangools' own | Yes | Long-tail ideas with difficulty, local research |
| Google Keyword Planner | Google Ads data | Free with a Google Ads account | No (ad competition only) | Ideas from a URL | Google's own figures, at no cost |
| Google Search Console | Your site's measured impressions | Free | No | No | Keywords you already appear for |
| Ubersuggest | Several sources, Keyword Planner data among them | Free account; 7-day trial on monthly plans | Not stated on its pricing page | Yes (Top Keywords report) | A cheap suite with a large suggestion allowance |
| MrKeyword | Google Ads Keyword Planner, through the official API | 10 lookups a month, no card | Yes labelled an estimate | No | Google's figures beside your Search Console data |
Google Keyword Planner
Google Keyword Planner is the free source closest to Google itself: it shows Google Ads search volume, trends, competition and bid ranges for any keyword idea. Google calls it a free resource on its Keyword Planner page, but Google Ads Help says you must complete account setup with billing information to use basic features such as keyword ideas. Accounts with little ad spend often see volume as broad ranges. It has no SEO difficulty score, and very low-volume or sensitive keywords are not shown. Our guide to using Google Keyword Planner free shows how to open it without running ads.
Choose it over KWFinder if Google's own figure is what you need and you do not mind the Ads interface. KWFinder is stronger on long-tail ideas, separated close variants and a difficulty score.
Google Search Console
Search Console is the free way to see the keywords your site already appears for, with real impressions, clicks and average position. It does not suggest new keywords or show volume for queries you do not rank for, but the queries where you sit on page two are often a better target list than any tool's ideas. Our master keyword list guide shows how to combine those queries with research.
Ubersuggest
Ubersuggest is a low-cost suite whose keyword tool gives a much larger allowance than KWFinder's free plan. As of November 2026, its pricing page listed 20,000, 50,000 and 100,000 keyword suggestions a month and 150, 300 and 900 reports a day on its Individual, Business and Enterprise plans, with prices shown in local currency and a US$29 to US$99 range in its comparison strip. Like KWFinder, it bundles rank tracking, backlinks and a site audit.
MrKeyword
MrKeyword shows Google Keyword Planner data through the official Google Ads API, so you see Google's monthly search volume without a Google Ads account, with your own Search Console queries in the same workspace. We make MrKeyword, so weigh this section with that in mind.
- Volumes: Keyword Planner figures, with the source and fetch time on every number. Where Google gives a range, you get the range, not a midpoint. No clickstream data is used.
- Difficulty: MrKeyword's own estimate, labelled as one. It starts from the keyword data (demand, Google Ads competition, cost per click and keyword length). Where MrKeyword's page index holds at least five sites targeting the phrase, it blends in how strong those sites are in MrKeyword's web graph. MrKeyword never scrapes Google, so the score is not read from live results.
- Ideas: tabs for all ideas, topic groups, matching phrases, questions and modifiers, plus Easy wins and On your site when they apply, a monthly trend chart and intent read from the wording. Bulk checks take up to 500 keywords at one lookup per 25, and every tab exports to CSV with the source on every row.
- Markets: the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, India or worldwide.
- Allowance: 10 lookups a month on the Free plan, 200 on Starter ($10 a month), 600 on Growth ($19) and 2,000 on Agency ($49). See pricing.
- From an AI assistant: the same research runs from Claude or Cursor through MrKeyword's MCP server; see the Keyword Planner MCP guide.
Where KWFinder is stronger: it shows the current results page and its metrics for every keyword, finds the keywords a competitor ranks for, covers more than 65,000 locations for local research, and resets its free lookups every day instead of every month. MrKeyword does none of those.
Check a keyword with Google's own figureMrKeyword's free keyword research tool reads Keyword Planner through the official API and shows the source and time on every number.
Open the free keyword research toolWhich KWFinder alternative should you choose?
Choose by the part of KWFinder you actually used.
| If you used KWFinder for… | Use instead | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Search volume for a list of keywords | Google Keyword Planner, MrKeyword | Both show Google's own Keyword Planner figures |
| Long-tail ideas with a difficulty score | MrKeyword | Related, question and modifier ideas with a labelled difficulty estimate |
| Keywords a competitor ranks for | KWFinder, Ubersuggest, or a full suite | MrKeyword and Google's tools do not measure other sites' rankings |
| Local keywords in a specific city | KWFinder, Google Keyword Planner | Both target locations below country level |
| Keywords your own site almost ranks for | Google Search Console, MrKeyword | Search Console holds your measured queries and positions |
| The whole Mangools suite, including rank tracking | Stay with Mangools, or see our rank tracker alternatives | Replace the parts you use, not the bundle |
Many people combine two: a research tool for new ideas and Search Console for the keywords Google already shows them for. That pairing covers most of KWFinder's daily use at no cost, and the keyword research feature puts both in one workspace.
What MrKeyword does not do
MrKeyword is not a drop-in KWFinder replacement if you rely on results-page analysis or competitor keywords.
- It does not show the live search results page or SERP metrics for a keyword, because it never scrapes Google.
- It does not measure which keywords another domain ranks for.
- It covers six markets, not city-level locations.
- It does not give exact volumes: Keyword Planner publishes rounded figures and ranges, and that is what you see.
- Its difficulty score is an estimate, and it declines to give a number when there is not enough to go on.
Questions and answers
KWFinder alternatives questions
What is Mangools KWFinder?
KWFinder is the keyword research tool in Mangools' SEO suite. It finds keyword ideas with search volume, trend, cost per click and Mangools' own Keyword Difficulty score, shows the keywords a competitor's domain ranks for, and supports local research in more than 65,000 locations.
Is KWFinder free?
It has a free plan. As of November 2026, Mangools gave 5 lookups per 24 hours, with 15 related and 5 competitor keywords per lookup, and no credit card required. More lookups come with the paid Mangools Basic, Premium and Agency plans.
Where does KWFinder get its search volume data?
Mangools says it uses multiple data providers plus its own processing, and that KWFinder post-processes Google data to separate close variant keywords. Its FAQ says data usually arrives with about a one-month lag. Its Keyword Difficulty score is Mangools' own metric based on its SERPChecker data.
What is the best free alternative to KWFinder?
Google Keyword Planner is free with a Google Ads account and shows Google's own search volume. Google Search Console is free for keywords your site already appears for. MrKeyword's Free plan gives 10 Keyword Planner lookups a month with no card and no Google Ads account.
Is KWFinder better than Google Keyword Planner?
They do different jobs. Keyword Planner shows Google's own advertising data but no SEO difficulty, and low-spend accounts often see ranges. KWFinder adds a difficulty score, separated close variants, competitor keywords and results analysis, at a price once you pass the free limit.
Can MrKeyword replace KWFinder?
For search volume, keyword ideas and a difficulty estimate, yes, and it adds your own Search Console data. It cannot replace KWFinder's results-page analysis, competitor keyword lists or city-level local research.
Sources
- Mangools KWFinder — checked 1 November 2026; features, free limits, plan names
- KWFinder search volume — checked 1 November 2026; data sources and processing
- Mangools FAQ — checked 1 November 2026; free plan, data lag, Keyword Difficulty, lookups
- Mangools plans and pricing — checked 1 November 2026; billing and refund terms; no amounts shown to us
- Use Keyword Planner (Google Ads Help) — checked 1 November 2026; billing information, limits
- Google Keyword Planner — Google: a free resource for advertisers
- Ubersuggest pricing — checked 1 November 2026; keyword suggestions and reports per plan
- About Search Console — Search Console Help: a free service offered by Google
- MrKeyword pricing — our own plans and limits
