App Store Keyword Research
Paste your app's App Store link and get the 3 keywords worth going after first: how many people search them, how hard page one is, and where your app ranks today. Or type any keyword to explore. No sign-up needed.
Three keywords worth your title, not thirty to sort through
We read your App Store listing, collect what people type into App Store search around it, and check the top 30 apps for every phrase. Then we keep the three where your app has the most to gain.
To find keywords for an iPhone app, start with what the app does, then check what the App Store suggests as you type those words: the suggestions are real searches. For each one, look at the top 30 apps. A keyword you already rank for near page one, or an easy one you don't rank for at all, is usually worth more than the biggest keyword in your category. Put the best one in your title or subtitle and the rest in the 100-character keyword field.
Find your best App Store keywords in three steps
Paste your App Store link
Copy your app's App Store link (apps.apple.com/…/id…) and paste it in. A plain keyword works too, if you are still exploring an idea.
We read your listing and the store
We read your title, subtitle and description, pull the App Store's own search suggestions around them, and check the top 30 apps for each keyword.
Get your best 3
Each keyword is scored on demand, how hard page one is, and where you rank today. The three with the most to gain come first, each with the reason it was picked.
What makes a keyword worth it on the App Store
The App Store matches a search against three places: your app name (30 characters), your subtitle (30) and the hidden keyword field (100). Unlike Google Play, the long description is not used for search ranking. So every keyword has to earn one of very few slots.
That makes choosing the words the whole game. The biggest keyword in your category is held by apps with tens of thousands of ratings. A phrase with real searches and a softer page one, or one where you already sit at #13, usually pays back faster.
This tool does that triage for you. It reads your listing, gathers the phrases people really type into App Store search, checks the top 30 for each, and shows the three with the best mix of demand, difficulty and your current position.
App Store keywords at a glance
- The App Store ranks on your app name (30 characters), subtitle (30) and keyword field (100).
- The App Store description is not used for search ranking.
- The keyword field is hidden from shoppers; separate terms with commas and no spaces.
- App Store search suggestions are ordered roughly by how often each phrase is searched.
- Results differ by country, and each storefront has its own keyword field.
What decides a keyword's value for your app
Three numbers per keyword, and the one that most tools leave out: where you stand today.
Common App Store keyword mistakes
Most listings that never rank make one of these.
Worked example: reading a result
Here is how to read a result for an illustrative iPhone habit app with a strong ratings count. The numbers are made up to show how to read the output; run the tool above for your own app.
| Keyword | What you see | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| habit tracker | You're #13 · difficulty 43 | Close, and you out-rate page one. Make sure it is in the name or subtitle. |
| to do list | Not in top 30 · difficulty 40 | Popular and fits the app, but you are invisible for it. Add it to the subtitle or keyword field. |
| habit forming | Not in top 30 · difficulty 20 | Easy and nobody has it in their name. A cheap win for the keyword field. |
Reading it: one keyword to push onto page one, one bigger one to start ranking for, and one easy one to claim. Three slots well spent beat ten keywords picked by feel.
Picking keywords by hand vs with this tool
You can type phrases into the App Store and scroll, one at a time. Here is what changes.
| Searching the App Store yourself | This keyword research tool | |
|---|---|---|
| Finding phrases | Type and note what autocomplete shows, one by one | Your listing and App Store suggestions collected for you |
| Difficulty | Open each result and judge by feel | A 0 to 100 score from the apps on page one |
| Your rank | Scroll until you find your app, or give up | Your position in the top 30 for every keyword |
| Choosing | Gut feel | The best 3, each with the reason |
| Cost | Free but slow | Free, about 15 seconds, no sign-up |
Who uses App Store keyword research
Anyone writing an App Store listing that should be found.
App Store keyword terms, defined
The vocabulary behind the numbers, in plain English.
- Search demand
- How often a phrase is searched. Estimated here from App Store search suggestions; Apple shares popularity scores only inside Search Ads.
- Keyword difficulty
- How hard it is to reach page one for a phrase, from 0 (open) to 100 (locked up by big, established apps).
- Subtitle
- The 30-character line under your app name. It is indexed for search and shown to every shopper.
- Keyword field
- A hidden 100-character list of search terms, separated by commas. Only Apple sees it.
- Long-tail keyword
- A longer, more specific phrase ("habit tracker widget") with fewer searches but far less competition.
- Top 30
- The first thirty results for a search. Most installs from search come from the first few rows.
Questions, answered
Keep optimizing
- App store keyword research: How to pick keywords you can actually rank for, on iOS and Android.
- App Store Optimization: the complete guide: Where keywords fit among the other ranking signals.
Turn keywords into installs
This tool stays free. ReachFront Max, with 7 days free, picks the keywords that fit your app, tells you where each one goes in your listing, and tracks your rank every day on both stores.