What is keyword density?
"Keyword density" refers to how often your keyword (the search term you want to target) appears in the text content on a given page.
Keyword density is typically measured as a percentage — that is, how many times per 100 words your keyword or focus word appears.
A concrete example could be a landing page where you want to rank for the keyword "Bed". If the text content on that page totals 1,031 words, and the word "bed" (in all its forms) appears 23 times, then your keyword density on that page is 23 / 1,031 * 100 = 2.23%.
Keyword density (KWD) is therefore calculated as follows:
KWD in % = Number of keyword mentions / Total number of words * 100
How high should my keyword density be?
The right keyword density will always depend on your industry, competition, the natural flow of the text, and how aggressive you "dare" to be.
The ideal keyword density is a balancing act — it should not be excessive or come across as spammy (which can result in penalties from search engines), while still giving search engines enough signals to work with in order to rank your page.
A conservative estimate, where the risk of being penalised is very low, would be a keyword density of 1.5%–3% — the most important factor, however, is always the natural readability of the text.
Are you unsure how to work with keyword density on your website?
Contact us at 30 12 42 72 and we'll help you find the optimal balance for your SEO texts!
