Keyword research
Etsy Keyword Research: A Free-Tool Workflow
A keyword workflow that uses Etsy search, NicheKite’s listing counts, and the public difficulty check. Search volume stays empty unless you can cite it.
Published 2 October 2026 · Last reviewed 2 October 2026 · 2 min read
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This is the workflow I use before I write a listing. It stays inside tools that show their inputs. It does not start from a volume number I cannot source.
1. Write the phrase the way it will be tagged
Keywords 101 says buyers search in phrases, and that a tag should be a phrase of up to 20 characters. I draft ten phrases with that cap in mind. The niche test is in how to find low-competition niches. Digital files get their own pass in keyword research for digital products, because variations are unavailable and you only get five files.
2. Count what is already for sale
Look the phrase up on Etsy, or in NicheKite’s keyword lookup. Write down the number of active listings and one sentence on what the titles say. That count comes from listings. It is not a rank, and it is not how often the phrase is searched.
How Etsy Search Works says exact matches can rank higher, and that search reads the title, tags, attributes, description, first photo, and reviews. So I keep a phrase when I can put it in the title or in a tag without breaking the limits, and when page 1 is not already that exact product.
3. Use difficulty as a label, not a demand number
The keyword difficulty checker is public and runs in the browser. The score is an estimate from the competition count and an optional save rate. How our data works says so in those words: keyword difficulty is an estimate, and Etsy-native search volume is a dash unless you paste Marketplace Insights.
If a spreadsheet column says “volume” and the cell is empty, leave it empty. Filling it from memory is how the research becomes fiction. The full argument is does Etsy show search volume?.
4. Stop when you can fill one listing
You need one title and 13 tags, not a keyword dump. The title can be 140 characters, and Etsy says to consider fewer than 15 words. Each tag can be 20 characters. When the keepers fit those boxes, move to the listing checklist and the SEO guide.
I do not add a fifth step for “export 500 keywords”. Thirteen specific phrases you can defend beat a file you will never read.