KDP keyword planner
Fill your seven keyword boxes without wasting a character or breaking a KDP rule.
185 / 350
- Boxes filled
- 6 of 7
- Different words
- 16
- Characters wasted
- 88
- Things to fix
- 14
No search volume here, on purpose. We have no Amazon search data, so this planner does not show or estimate how often anything is searched, competition or rank. It checks your boxes against KDP's keyword rules and your own book details. To test a phrase, search for it on Amazon and look at the suggestions.
What KDP says to keep out
From KDP's help pages- Information covered elsewhere in your book's metadata (title, contributors, and so on)
- Words already mentioned in your book categories
- Subjective claims about quality, such as "best novel ever"
- Time-sensitive statements, such as "new", "on sale" or "available now"
- Information common to most items in the category, such as "book"
- Spelling errors
- Variants of spacing, punctuation, capitalization and pluralization, such as "computer" and "computers" (words translated more than one way are the exception)
- Anything misrepresentative, such as the name of an author not associated with your book
- Brands you do not own or are not authorized to use
- Quotation marks in search terms
- Amazon program names, such as "Kindle Unlimited" or "KDP Select"
- HTML tags
- References to other authors
- References to books by other authors
Rather have a pro handle this? Our studio can: book marketing.
Short answer
KDP gives you 7 keyword boxes. Fill each with a short phrase readers would type, such as a setting, character type or theme. Leave out words already in your title, subtitle, series, author name or categories, repeats and plural variants, quotation marks, "free", "bestselling" and program names like Kindle Unlimited.
How to use it
- Type a phrase in each of the seven boxes, the way a reader would search: a setting, a character type, a theme or a tone.
- Under Check against your book details, enter your title, subtitle, series, author and the categories you chose.
- Fix what each box lists: words already in your details, repeats, and terms KDP says to avoid.
- Use the freed characters for new words, and watch each meter stay under the limit.
- Copy the keywords, one box per line, and paste each line into its box in KDP.
How it works
The planner splits every box into words and brings each word to a simple base form, so "stories" matches "story" and "e book" matches "ebook". KDP asks you to avoid those spacing, capitalization and plural variants. It then looks for each word in your title, subtitle, series, contributor names and categories, and in the boxes before it. Short linking words like "the" and "of" are ignored. Separately, each box is checked for the terms on KDP's avoid and prohibited lists.
Box length = every character, spaces included, compared with the 50 character limit
Wasted = a word already in your book details or in an earlier box, plus the space after it
No search data is used, so nothing is ranked or scored by popularity
Worked example: with the title "The Keeper of Gull Rock" and the category "Mystery > Cozy", the box "cozy mystery lighthouse keeper" is30 characters, and the planner finds: "cozy" is already in your categories; "mystery" is already in your categories; "keeper" is already in your title. The next box, "lighthouse ghost story", gets: "lighthouse" repeats a word from box 1. That is 31 characters, about a quarter of one box, that could hold new words such as a setting or a character type.
Reference
Keyword types KDP suggests, with its own examples.
| Type | KDP's examples |
|---|---|
| Setting | Colonial America |
| Character types | single dad, veteran |
| Character roles | strong female lead |
| Plot themes | coming of age, forgiveness |
| Story tone | dystopian, feel-good |
Questions authors ask
How many keywords can I add on KDP?
Seven. KDP asks for up to seven keywords or short phrases, one per box, and says to keep an eye on the character limit in the field. Each box can hold a phrase of several words, and KDP recommends phrases of 2 to 3 words.
What is the character limit for each KDP keyword box?
50 characters, spaces included, is the limit the field enforces as reported by Reedsy and other publishing guides. KDP's own help page does not print the number. If your KDP field shows a different limit, change it in the tool and every meter follows.
Should I repeat words from my title or categories?
No. KDP lists information already in your metadata (title, contributors and so on) and words already in your categories as keywords to avoid. Those words already count, so repeating them spends characters you could use on something new. The planner marks them in every box.
Does this tool show search volume?
No. We have no Amazon search data, and Amazon does not publish search volume for books. Any tool that shows it is estimating from its own data. This planner only checks your keywords against KDP's rules and your book details. To test a phrase, search for it on Amazon and study the suggestions and results.
Should I use commas or quotation marks between keywords?
Leave out quotation marks: KDP says only readers who type every quoted word would find you. Commas are not on KDP's list, but they use characters, so a space is enough between words.
Can I put another author's name in my keywords?
No. KDP prohibits references to other authors and their books, along with sales rank claims such as "bestselling", promotions such as "free" and anything unrelated to your book. Breaking these rules can get a book's metadata changed or the book removed.
How often can I change my keywords?
As often as you like, KDP says. Updates to keywords on a published book show up within about 72 hours.
Is my keyword plan sent anywhere?
No. The planner runs in your browser and nothing you type is sent to a server. The share link holds only the box limit, never your keywords or book details, so use Copy or Download to keep your plan.
Before and after this step
- Previous stepKDP description formatter
- Next stepBook metadata checklist
Related tools
Sources
Last verified against KDP's help pages, and one publishing guide for the box limit KDP does not print. Help pages change, so check the source before you publish.
KDP
- KDP Help: Make Your Book More Discoverable with Keywords kdp.amazon.com
- KDP Help: Metadata Guidelines for Books kdp.amazon.com
- KDP Help: Timelines kdp.amazon.com