How to Find Etsy Keywords for Free (2026)
You don't need a paid subscription to find good Etsy keywords. Between Etsy's own search, your competitors' listings, and a free keyword tool, you can build a strong keyword list for any listing without spending a cent. Here's the whole free workflow, start to finish.
First, what a "good" Etsy keyword actually is
A keyword is worth using when it has two things: real demand (shoppers actually type it) and beatable competition (you're not up against a million listings). The sweet spot is a specific, multi-word phrase — a "long-tail" keyword — with steady searches but relatively few sellers. Free tools are perfectly good at surfacing these; you don't need paid data to start.
1. Etsy's own search bar (autocomplete)
This is the best free source there is, because it comes straight from Etsy. Start typing what you sell and read the suggestions that drop down — those are real searches real shoppers are making right now.
Try it
Type soy candle and Etsy might suggest soy candle gift set,
soy candle for men, scented soy candle. Type
tote bag and you'll get tote bag canvas,
tote bag aesthetic, tote bag for teacher. Every one of
those is a phrase people search.
Do this for a few variations of your product — the material, the style, the occasion, who it's for — and you'll have a page of real phrases in a couple of minutes.
2. The filters and related searches on the results page
Run one of those searches and look at the page itself. Etsy's left-hand filters (style, colour, material, occasion) are effectively a list of the attributes shoppers narrow by — each one is a ready-made tag idea. Scroll to the bottom, too: Etsy often shows "related searches" that give you even more phrases.
3. What your competitors are already ranking for
Open the top few listings for your product — the ones on page one are there because Etsy thinks they match popular searches. Read their titles closely. A title is packed with the exact phrases that shop is targeting, so it's a free window into keywords that are already working in your niche.
Don't copy a competitor's title word for word — you'll just compete head-on with an established shop. Instead, pull out the phrases, then look for the more specific, lower-competition versions they aren't using.
4. A free Etsy keyword tool (to see demand + competition)
Autocomplete tells you what people search, but not how crowded each phrase is. That's where a keyword tool earns its place — and you don't need a paid one to start. Our free Etsy keyword tool takes what you sell and returns real, in-demand tag ideas with a Low / Medium / High competition read on each, so the low-competition "gaps" — the phrases you can actually rank for — rise to the top. No sign-up, no credit card.
Feed it the phrases you gathered from autocomplete and competitors, and let it flag which ones are worth targeting first.
5. Turn your keywords into a title and 13 tags
Research only pays off when it lands in the listing. Once you've got a shortlist:
- Put your single strongest phrase at the front of your title — Etsy weights the start most, and it's what shows on mobile. (More on this in how to write an Etsy title that ranks.)
- Fill all 13 tags with different multi-word phrases — never single words, never duplicates. (See how to choose all 13 Etsy tags.)
- Lean on the low-competition long-tails for the tags where a newer shop has the best shot at ranking.
Free vs. paid — when free is enough
For most sellers, the free workflow above is genuinely enough to research a listing. Paid tools mainly add two things: exact search-volume numbers (instead of a Low/Medium/High read) and automation — doing the research and writing the listing for you at scale. If you're listing occasionally, free covers it. If you're publishing often and your time is the bottleneck, that's when paid starts to pay for itself.
Questions
Is there a truly free Etsy keyword tool?
Yes — Listogics has a free Etsy keyword tool with no sign-up, and Etsy's own search autocomplete is free too. Between them you can do real keyword research without paying.
How do I find Etsy keywords without eRank?
Etsy's search autocomplete, the results-page filters, competitor titles, and a free keyword tool cover the whole workflow at no cost — no paid subscription required to get started.
Does searching keywords for free work as well as paid?
For researching a single listing, yes. Paid tools mostly add exact numbers and automation. The free approach finds you the same low-competition long-tail phrases; it just takes a little more hands-on work.
Keep reading: How to do keyword research for Etsy · The complete guide to Etsy SEO · Why your listings aren't getting views
Skip the manual work
Listogics turns one product photo into a full Etsy listing — all 13 tags ranked by opportunity (real demand weighed against competition), plus an SEO title, description, and translations, published to your shop after you approve. Or just use the free keyword tool to find your phrases. There's a free plan to start.
Try Listogics free — no credit card