A Modern Seller’s Guide to Keyword Research for Amazon

When it comes to selling on Amazon, everything starts with keywords. They’re the foundation of your product’s visibility, shaping whether a shopper ever finds your listing in the first place.

Just like Google, Amazon operates as a search engine but instead of delivering web pages, it delivers products.

Unlike Google SEO, Amazon’s ranking system is driven by one primary goal: matching customer searches with the products most likely to convert into sales. That’s why keyword research for Amazon not just a technical step, but the very core of building a successful listing.

Amazon’s A10 Algorithm Today

If you’ve heard anything about the old A10 algorithm, you can pretty much forget it. In 2025, it’s a sophisticated machine-learning system that cares less about simple keyword matching and a lot more about predicting customer satisfaction. Its only job is to show shoppers the products they are most likely to buy.

So, how does it make that call? It rewards listings that perfectly match a shopper’s search intent with a high conversion rate.

When a customer searches for “waterproof hiking boots for women,” clicks your listing, and actually buys them, you send a strong signal to Amazon. That signal says, “This product is the perfect answer for this search.”

Key Takeaway: Your goal isn’t just to rank for keywords. It’s to convert on them. A high conversion rate on a specific keyword tells Amazon you’re the best result, which is the fast track to better organic rankings over time.

This direct link between relevance, sales, and ranking is why Amazon keyword research is non-negotiable. With over 4 billion product searches every single month, Amazon has become the world’s second-largest search engine, and nearly every one of those searches is a potential sale.

Sellers who nail their keyword research can tap into this river of traffic with incredible efficiency. For example, listings that hit a conversion rate of 20% or higher often blow past competitors, even those with more reviews. That shows how critical keyword relevance is for both your organic visibility and your ad performance. If you want to dig deeper, you can find out more about how Amazon’s evolving strategy impacts sellers in 2025 on Datahawk.

Clicks vs. Conversions: The Critical Difference

So many sellers get distracted by shiny objects like thousands of impressions or clicks. But let’s be real, clicks don’t pay the bills. Sales do.

Here’s the breakdown:

• Random Clicks: Targeting a super broad term like “kitchen gadget” might get you a ton of clicks, but most of those people are just browsing. Their buying intent is practically non-existent, your conversion rate will be low, and you’ll just be lighting money on fire with your ads.
• Ready-to-Buy Clicks: Now, targeting a specific, long-tail term like “garlic press stainless steel easy clean” attracts someone who knows exactly what they want. Their intent is sky-high, your conversion rate will be much healthier, and Amazon will start to favor your listing for that term.

This is what effective keyword research for Amazon is all about. It helps you filter out the window shoppers and connect directly with customers who already have their credit cards out, ready to make a purchase.

Understanding Different Keyword Types on Amazon

A well-rounded approach incorporates various keyword types to engage shoppers at each phase of their purchasing process.

On Amazon, keywords aren’t just “search terms”—they’re the link between how shoppers think and how the algorithm decides who gets seen. Here’s what sellers often overlook when doing keyword research:

• Search behavior tells the story – A keyword shows exactly how a buyer describes their need. “Baby bottle” and “anti-colic glass baby bottle” are completely different intents. Research helps you spot those differences before you waste spend.
• Not all keywords drive sales – High search volume looks tempting, but many of those terms are window shoppers. Keywords with mid or low volume but high purchase intent usually deliver better conversion rates.
• Rank potential > popularity – Going after the biggest keyword in your niche is like trying to rank for “shoes” on Google. Smart sellers look for terms where their product can realistically move up the ranks and stay there.
• Keywords evolve with time – Seasonality, trends, and even customer slang shift constantly. What worked six months ago may not work now. Continuous research keeps your listing aligned with real demand.
• Every keyword has a job – Some belong in titles, some in bullets, others only in PPC. Treating all keywords the same is why many listings underperform.

In practice, keyword research for Amazon is less about collecting a huge list and more about prioritizing the right ones for the right place. That’s what separates listings that just get impressions from those that consistently generate sales.

Best Amazon Keyword Research Tools for 2025

The right tools empower you to uncover hidden gems, analyze competitor strategies, and anticipate market shifts. Forget spray-and-pray tactics; the future belongs to data-driven precision.

That’s why keyword research for Amazon has become such a critical skill. To stay competitive, sellers need tools that not only reveal high-value search terms but also guide smarter decisions.

Below are the top Amazon keyword research tools for 2025—bringing together trusted platforms, new innovations, and practical strategies to get the most from them.

1. Helium 10 (Cerebro & Magnet) – The All-in-One Powerhouse

Helium 10 continues to lead the pack due to its comprehensive suite of tools, with Cerebro and Magnet standing out for keyword research. In 2025, its continuous updates, predictive analytics capabilities, and integration with other critical selling functions (listing optimization, inventory management) make it indispensable. Its accuracy in estimating search volume and competitive data remains a gold standard.

• Cerebro: This Reverse ASIN Lookup tool is your secret weapon for competitor analysis. Input a competitor’s ASIN, and Cerebro reveals the exact keywords they are ranking for, including estimated search volume, competing products, and the keyword’s Cerebro IQ Score (indicating opportunity).
• Magnet: A robust keyword generator, Magnet helps you discover high-volume keywords related to your product. It excels at unearthing long-tail opportunities and provides crucial data like search volume, trend analysis, and relevant phrases.

2. Jungle Scout (Keyword Scout)

Jungle Scout maintains its position as a top-tier tool, particularly for its user-friendly interface and strong data accuracy. Keyword Scout is highly regarded for its ability to provide actionable insights quickly, making it ideal for both beginners and seasoned sellers.

Its focus on product research often ties directly into understanding keyword demand.

• Keyword Scout: This tool uncovers high-ranking keywords, provides historical search volume data, and estimates the number of units you’d need to sell to rank for specific keywords. It’s excellent for identifying both broad and niche search terms.
• Opportunity Score: While not strictly a keyword tool, Jungle Scout’s Opportunity Score for products is heavily influenced by keyword demand and competition, guiding you to products (and thus keywords) with high potential.

3. DataDive – The Listing Optimization Specialist

DataDive has quickly become the go-to tool for sellers who want data clarity over data clutter. Built with a focus on actionable keyword intelligence, it integrates competitor and market-level analysis in a way that bridges product research with keyword strategy. In 2025, its ability to distill complex keyword data into practical insights is why many advanced sellers swear by it.

• Keyword Analysis Suite: Unlike most tools that simply churn out keyword lists, DataDive contextualizes them. It shows how keywords tie directly to revenue opportunities, competitor performance, and market share. By running ASIN or niche-level analysis, sellers get a detailed map of which keywords actually drive sales versus which just look good on paper.
• Listing Deep Dive: One of its standout features is the Listing Analyzer, which benchmarks your listing’s keyword coverage against top competitors. This helps identify missed opportunities, over-optimized areas, and the exact terms needed to close ranking gaps.
• Strategic Advantage: DataDive is best used when the priority is conversion-driven optimization. Instead of simply chasing search volume, it helps sellers identify the keywords that truly move the needle for ranking and sales. By uncovering competitor-listing ranking juice and tying them directly to your listing content, DataDive makes optimization more precise and effective.

4. SellerApp – The AI-Powered Optimizer

SellerApp is carving out a significant niche with its increasing reliance on AI and machine learning for more precise recommendations. As Amazon’s algorithm becomes more sophisticated, tools that can intelligently predict trends and optimize for subtle shifts will become paramount.

• Keyword Research Tool: Offers a comprehensive list of relevant keywords, search volume, PPC bids, and a “relevancy score” which helps prioritize keywords with the highest impact.
• Listing Quality Analyzer: This integrated tool uses keyword insights to suggest improvements to your product title, bullet points, and description for maximum search visibility and conversion.

5. Merchant Words – The Volume Veteran

Merchant Words has been a long-standing player, renowned for its massive database of Amazon search terms. Its strength lies in providing sheer volume of keyword ideas and global market insights. While some other tools offer more intricate analytics, Merchant Words is unmatched for raw keyword discovery.

• Accesses a vast database to provide hundreds or thousands of keyword suggestions, along with estimated search volume and seasonality.
• Offers keyword data across multiple Amazon marketplaces, crucial for international sellers.Use Merchant Words for brainstorming and broad discovery. It’s perfect for initial research phases to cast a wide net and identify unexpected keyword opportunities.
• For sellers operating across different countries, its robust international data is invaluable for localizing keyword strategies. While you might cross-reference its search volumes with Helium 10 or Jungle Scout for deeper analysis, Merchant Words remains excellent for sheer ideation.

Using keyword research tools is essential for grasping the language your customers use. These tools help improve your Amazon search engine optimization strategy by offering insights that guide your listing copy.

If you’re curious, you can find more breakdowns of these tools on platforms like RevenueGeeks.com.

Key Metrics That Actually Matter

To distill this mountain of keywords data into a handful of golden nuggets, I filter based on a few key metrics:

1. Search Volume: I look for a healthy balance here. A good starting point is filtering for keywords with at least 200-300 monthly searches. This ensures there’s enough traffic to make it worth your effort.
2. Organic Rank: Filter for keywords where your competitor is ranking in the top 1-35 spots. This tells you these are the terms actually bringing in their sales, not just some random phrase they happen to be indexed for on page ten.
3. Competing Products: This shows you how many other products are indexed for that keyword. A lower number often signals less competition and an easier path to rank.
4. Relevancy: This last one is a manual gut-check. Does the keyword actually make sense for your specific product? A competitor might rank for a related term that doesn’t apply to your item at all. Be ruthless about cutting these out.Gather keywords used by competitors on Amazon. Evaluate the relevance of each keyword by analyzing competitor organic rank, number of competitors ranked on page 1 and relevant products appearing when you search keyword on Amazon.  Assign a relevancy score to each keyword (1 to 10, with 10 being a perfect match).This is a manual gut-check. Does the keyword actually make sense for your specific product? A competitor might rank for a related term that doesn’t apply to your item at all. Be ruthless about cutting these out.For instance, consider the keyword “Silicone baking mat.” You might score it based on metrics like search volume, competition, and relevance. If “Silicone baking mat” has a high search volume, 10 out of 10 competitors ranked, and strong relevance to your product, it would receive a score of 10, indicating its potential value for your strategy.

Key Insight: The goal here is to find that sweet spot where decent search volume, high relevance, and manageable competition all intersect. These are the high-opportunity keywords your competition is already winning, and the ones you can now strategically target in your own listing and PPC campaigns.

This focus on relevancy is more critical than ever. In 2025, Amazon’s algorithm is doubling down on keywords that perfectly match customer intent, rewarding sellers with better click-through rates and ad performance.

We’re seeing sellers who target hyper-specific long-tail keywords reap huge rewards simply because they align so perfectly with what a buyer wants.

Some reports have even shown these targeted keywords hitting click-through rates over 100%, a rare signal of just how powerful that precision is. You can see more on how keyword tools are evolving for 2025 and what’s actually working on SentryKit.com.

Organizing Your Keywords for Maximum Impact

You’re now faced with a massive spreadsheet full of potential keywords, a situation that can often lead to guesswork. However, an unorganized list is ineffective. The next step involves transforming this data into a strategic keyword hierarchy. Identify which keywords are crucial for the title, which suit the bullet points, and which fit the backend or ad campaigns.

First, Clean and Categorize

Before prioritizing, eliminate the clutter. Start by using a de-duplication filter in your spreadsheet to remove identical keywords. Then, filter out irrelevant items by scanning and deleting them from your list.

• Competitor Brand Names: You found these during your Reverse-ASIN research, and while they’re gold for PPC, they don’t belong in your organic listing. Keep them in a separate list for your ad campaigns.
• Irrelevant Terms: Your tool might have pulled in keywords that are related but not quite right for your specific product. If you sell a “silicone baking mat,” you’ll want to remove terms like “silicone muffin pan” or “rolling pin.”
• Plurals and Minor Variations: Don’t stress about having both “baking mat” and “baking mats.” Amazon’s A10 algorithm is more than smart enough to understand these are the same thing. Just keep the one with the higher search volume and ditch the other.

Keyword Research Strategies & Actionable Steps

Previously we talked about the Amazon research tools while this section would discuss all the strategies to find relevant keywords even if you do not want to use keyword tools. This guide breaks down advanced strategies, giving you exact steps to find high-impact keywords.

1. Helium 10’s Keyword Powerhouses: Cerebro & Magnet

Helium 10 provides two essential tools for deep keyword research: Cerebro for competitor analysis and Magnet for broad keyword generation.
Cerebro helps you uncover the exact keywords your top-selling competitors are using to rank and get sales. With Helium10 magnet you can search keyword with a seed keyword about your product.

How to Do It (Step-by-Step): Helium10 Cerebro

• Find Competitor ASINs: On Amazon, search for your product.
• Identify 5-10 top-selling, highly relevant competitor products. Copy their ASINs (found in the product URL or details section).
• Input into Cerebro: Go to Helium 10’s Cerebro tool. Paste your collected ASINs into the search bar.
• Analyze Results: Cerebro will generate a list of keywords these ASINs rank for.
• Filter & Prioritize: Focus on keywords with (Helium 10’s measure of opportunity).

How to Do It (Step-by-Step): Helium10 Magnet
Magnet takes a single “seed” keyword for your product and generates a massive list of related, long-tail, and buyer-intent search terms.

• Identify your core product term (e.g., “stainless steel coffee mug”).
• Go to Helium 10’s Magnet tool and type in your seed keyword.
• Magnet will show thousands of related keywords. Download the data and analyze in excel sheet to find list of relevant terms
• Min/Max Search Volume: Focus on terms with sufficient search interest.
  Word Count: Find long-tail keywords (e.g., 3+ words).

2. Amazon Brand Analytics: Top Search Terms

For registered brands, Amazon Brand Analytics (within Seller Central) offers first-party data directly from Amazon, showing real customer search and buying behavior.

This report shows the most popular search terms on Amazon, how frequently they’re searched, and crucially, which three products get the most clicks for each term.

How to Do It (Step-by-Step):

• Access Report: In Seller Central, go to Brands > Brand Analytics > Amazon Search Terms.
• Set Filters: Choose your desired date range (daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly) and filter by category (e.g., “Home & Kitchen”).
• Review the list of high-ranking search terms. Search and download relevant keywords by pasting seed keyword in “Search Term” field.
  Emerging trends or seasonal keywords.

3. Amazon Search Query Performance Report

This report, also part of Brand Analytics, focuses on how your own products perform for specific customer search queries. Unlike the Top Search Terms report, which provides a broad marketplace view of the most popular searches on Amazon, the Search Query Performance report narrows it down to your brand only.

• Top Search Terms → Shows the highest-volume keywords across Amazon, regardless of whether they relate to your brand. Helpful for understanding overall demand and trending searches.
• Search Query Performance → Connects customer search behavior directly to your ASINs, showing impressions, clicks, cart adds, and purchases your brand received from those queries.

In short, Top Search Terms tells you what shoppers are searching for on Amazon, while Search Query Performance tells you how your products are performing within those searches.

How to Do It (Step-by-Step):

• Go to Brands > Brand Analytics > Search Query Performance.
  Select Your Products: Choose your brand or specific ASINs to analyze.
• Examine the report for search queries showing:
• High Impressions, Low Clicks: Your product is visible but not appealing. Investigate your title, main image, or price.
• High Clicks, Low Adds-to-Cart/Purchases: Your product page isn’t converting. Re-evaluate your price, title, bullet points, description, images, or reviews.
• Unexpected Converters: Find new search terms that are actually leading to sales for your product. Integrate these into your listing or target them with PPC.

4. Amazon PPC Search Term Report (from Advertising Campaigns)

This report, generated from your Amazon Advertising campaigns, provides precise data on the exact customer searches that triggered your ads, leading to clicks and sales.

• Find high-converting search terms to add to your listing title or bullet points.

How to Do It (Step-by-Step):

• Access Report: In Seller Central, go to Advertising > Campaign Manager.
  Select Campaign: Choose a relevant Sponsored Products or Sponsored Brands campaign.
• Go to Search Terms Tab: Click on the “Search Terms” tab within the campaign.
• Download Report: Download the report for a specific date range.
• Analyze Data: Focus on customer search terms that generated sales. These are golden! Add them to your organic listing (title, bullet points, backend) if not already there.

Frequently Asked Questions!

Even seasoned sellers get tripped up by keyword strategy now and then. Let’s clear up a few of the most common questions that land in our inbox.

How Many Keywords Should I Actually Target?

It’s easy to fall into the “more is always better” trap, but for Amazon keywords, that’s a quick way to dilute your relevance. Quality trumps quantity every single time.

A well-optimized listing should focus on 20 to 30 core, highly relevant keywords. These are the terms you’ll weave naturally into your title, bullet points, and description, the places both customers and Amazon’s algorithm look first.

Then you’ve got your backend search terms field. It gives you 249 bytes of space, which is the perfect spot to add another 30 to 50 unique keywords. Think synonyms, common misspellings, and those long-tail variations that just wouldn’t fit gracefully into your main copy.

How Often Should I Refresh My Keywords?

Let’s be clear: keyword research is not a one-and-done task. The Amazon marketplace is a living, breathing thing. What worked last month might be old news today.

I recommend giving your keywords a quick health check at least once a month. This means diving into your search term reports and seeing what’s performing and what’s fizzling out.

Every quarter, it’s time for a deeper dive. That’s when you should really hunt for new trends, see what your top competitors are up to, and refresh your entire listing to capture any new opportunities you might have missed.

What’s the Best Keyword Research Tool Out There?

Honestly, the “best” tool really boils down to your budget and how granular you want to get with your data.

For most sellers, an all-in-one suite like Helium 10 or Jungle Scout is the smartest investment you can make. Their Reverse ASIN tools and keyword discovery features are pretty much non-negotiable for serious sellers.

But don’t sleep on the free options. Amazon’s own search bar autocomplete is a goldmine for seeing what customers are actively searching for. And if you’re Brand Registered, the Search Query Performance dashboard in Brand Analytics gives you incredible, real-world data straight from the source. It’s as direct a look into the customer’s mind as you can get.