Reviewed: September 11, 2026.
App store keyword research starts with a simple question: what would someone type when looking for an app like yours? Collect those phrases, check the results in the country you want to reach and choose words that describe what your app does.
For a receipt app, you might start with “receipt scanner,” “expense tracker” and “scan receipts.” Search each phrase and look at the apps that appear. If the results solve a different problem from yours, the phrase may be a poor fit even if it looks popular.
This guide takes you from those first ideas to a short keyword list and a reviewed listing draft. The worksheet helps you record your choices and check what happens after an update.
What Keyword Research Helps You Decide
Research gives you language your audience understands. Use it to write a clear app title, explain the main benefit and choose useful terms for the available fields.
Apple names text relevance and user behavior among the factors in search. Relevant words matter, but filling a field is only part of the work. Start with these checks:
- Audience: does the phrase describe a task your users need to complete?
- Product: can your app deliver the experience those words promise?
- Competition: which apps appear for the phrase in your target country?
- Demand: what does the available data tell you about interest in that phrase?
Record where each number comes from. A rank tells you where an app appeared; a difficulty score summarizes competition. Neither is a count of searches. The next sections explain how to use them together.
How App Store Search Works: Apple vs Google Play
Research each store and target country separately. The fields and search results can differ, so a useful term on one store may need another look on the other.
| Field | App Store | Google Play |
|---|---|---|
| Name/title | Up to 30 characters | Up to 30 characters |
| Secondary copy | Subtitle: up to 30 characters | Short description: up to 80 characters |
| Private keyword field | Up to 100 bytes | No equivalent field |
| Description | Explain the app and access requirements | Explain the app naturally using relevant task language |
Apple identifies title, subtitle, keywords and category among its relevance inputs, alongside user behavior. Its main description is not listed as a general keyword field. Use the description to explain the product clearly. Apple search guidance
The App Store Connect reference specifies 100 bytes for keywords; non-ASCII text can use more than one byte per character. Keep this separate from the name and subtitle character limits. Apple field reference
Google Play considers relevance and quality in discovery. Its metadata policy prohibits repetitive, irrelevant or misleading wording. Write for the reader instead of a keyword-density target. Google Play discovery · Google metadata policy
What Do Keyword Volume, Difficulty, and Relevance Mean?
Search demand and popularity proxies
Actual search volume counts queries in a defined store, country and period. A 0–100 score is not that count. Apple Ads popularity, web-search interest and AppDrift's result-set popularity proxy have different sources and interpretations. A low or missing score can leave demand uncertain. Our search-volume guide explains the distinctions.
Keyword difficulty
A difficulty score summarizes observed competition according to a provider's formula. Inspect the apps behind the number, the store and country, and any caching limits. Use the score to decide what to investigate, not as a pass/fail rule for choosing a term. AppDrift's iOS difficulty and popularity share review-count inputs, so they are not independent evidence.
Relevance
Ask whether your app completes the task implied by the phrase. “Budget planner for couples” is only useful if the app supports a shared budgeting workflow. If a term would create the wrong expectation, discard it even when a tool gives it an attractive score. The goal is to attract people who will find the experience they expected.
Step 1: Brainstorm Seed Keywords
Seed keywords are the broad terms that describe your app's main tasks. Start with a few, then use reviews and search suggestions to find more specific phrasing.
Think Like Your Users
The language you use while building an app may differ from the words someone uses to find it. You might call yours a "personal finance management platform." Simpler phrases to investigate include "budget tracker," "expense app," and "money manager."
Start by answering these questions:
- What problem does your app solve? (e.g., "track spending," "learn Spanish," "edit photos")
- What category does it belong to? (e.g., "fitness app," "recipe app," "meditation app")
- What features differentiate it? (e.g., "AI workout planner," "offline maps," "calorie counter")
- What would a non-technical user type into the search bar?
Read Your Reviews and Support Tickets
Your users can supply useful keyword ideas. Read through your app reviews and support tickets to find the exact language people use when describing your app. If multiple users describe your app as a "habit tracker" but your metadata never mentions that phrase, that phrase is worth investigating.
Use AppDrift's Free Keyword Suggestion Tool
Use the keyword suggestion tool to expand relevant seed phrases. Keep the ideas that describe something your app actually does.
Step 2: Analyze Competitor Keywords
Competitor listings show how other publishers explain similar products. Use the competitor keyword workflow to record useful phrases and where each came from.
Choose relevant apps
Select apps solving a comparable task for a similar audience, plus an adjacent product or category leader if it adds useful context. Record app IDs, store, country and date. A product can be a search competitor without serving every part of your audience.
Read public wording and check specific queries
- Collect task and feature phrases from the public title, subtitle or short description.
- Read descriptions and reviews for words people use to describe the task.
- Check where a specified app appears for a specified query in the target storefront.
- Record the returned depth and distinguish absence from a numeric rank.
The iOS keyword field is private. Public listings and rank checks offer clues, but they cannot show the complete field or which words caused a download.
Make a gap list
A gap is a relevant query where competitors were observed and your app was less visible or absent within the returned depth. Check whether people search for it and whether your app meets their needs. Discard gaps for features your app does not offer.
Step 3: Use Autocomplete and Suggest Tools for Long-Tail Ideas
Long-tail keywords describe a more specific task or audience. They can give you useful wording to research, though a longer phrase is not necessarily easier to rank for.
App Store Autocomplete
Type a relevant seed into store search and note the suggestions. Use them for ideas; their order is not a search-volume ranking.
Example phrases to research for a budgeting app:
- "budget planner for couples"
- "budget tracker with categories"
- "budget app no subscription"
- "budget calculator for students"
Keep a phrase only if its specific promise fits your app.
Systematic Long-Tail Expansion
Try adding a letter or a relevant modifier to a seed to find more ideas.
You can also append common modifiers to your seed keywords:
- Task modifiers: research meaningful terms such as “shared,” “offline” or “receipt” when the corresponding capability exists. Avoid promotional “best” or “free” claims in restricted metadata fields.
- Use cases: "for beginners," "for kids," "for business"
- Features: "with AI," "offline," "no ads"
- Platform: "for iPhone," "for iPad," "for Android"
Step 4: Evaluate Keyword Difficulty vs Opportunity
Use the free difficulty checker to inspect a chosen query and market. AppDrift summarizes top-ten review strength, ratings, title match and publisher diversity. Responses may use cached observations or older fallback data after collection failure, so a new request does not imply a fresh search.
Create a research worksheet
| Column | What to record |
|---|---|
| Query and audience | Exact phrase, task, store, country and language |
| Relevance evidence | The available feature that satisfies the query |
| Demand evidence | Named metric/provider/period, or unknown |
| Observed competition | Returned apps and tool-defined difficulty, with source/time limits |
| Your baseline | Observed rank or absent within the returned depth |
| Decision | Investigate, test, monitor or discard |
Prioritize a manageable test
First remove misleading or irrelevant phrases. Then compare the remaining candidates on audience fit, observed competition, demand evidence and the cost of changing the listing. Keep the underlying observations beside the scores so you can explain each choice.
Keep the wording existing users need to recognize your app. For anything you change, write down what you expect to improve and how you will assess it.
Step 5: Map Keywords to Metadata Fields
iOS keyword mapping
Use the title for a recognizable identity and a useful descriptor when it fits. Use the subtitle for a clear complementary benefit. Choose the wording for clarity and relevance; Apple does not publish a title-versus-subtitle weight that predicts the effect of moving a word.
Use the private keyword field for additional relevant terms. Separate entries with commas, preserve spaces inside meaningful phrases, and avoid duplicate words already present in the name, subtitle or category. Do not add competing app names, unauthorized trademark terms or misspellings intended to capture a competitor's brand. Apple keyword guidance
Illustrative draft: if a budgeting app already uses “money tracker” in its title, research complementary terms such as spending, saving or bills only if those tasks are supported. Check each candidate in the intended storefront before using it.
Use the keyword space calculator to review duplicate terms and field length, then confirm the final draft in App Store Connect. Use it to spot avoidable duplication before submitting.
Google Play keyword mapping
State the app's purpose in the title and short description, then explain supported features and access requirements in the full description. Use relevant vocabulary naturally. Repeat a term only where it helps explain the feature. Google metadata policy
AppDrift's metadata generation can draft copy from selected terms. Before submitting, check the draft for accuracy, natural wording, field limits and store rules.
Step 6: Track Your App Store Keyword Rankings and Iterate
Set a consistent baseline
Use the rank checker for a snapshot or daily keyword tracking for repeated observations. Keep the app, query, store, country and collection method consistent. Record the date the approved update became visible.
- Track observed positions and missing results separately.
- Log product releases, campaigns and important competitor changes.
- Label popularity trends with the provider and proxy definition.
- Review store acquisition and conversion within comparable source/territory segments.
A rank history shows positions over time. Revenue by organic query requires separate data, which may not be available for your app. The Analytics scope guide explains the separate reports and limits.
Review the hypothesis before replacing a term
Choose a review schedule your team can maintain. Allow enough time to compare the change with ordinary rank movement and your app's traffic. Keep a useful term when the evidence does not yet justify replacing it.
- Check collection and availability issues before interpreting a missing rank.
- Compare repeated observations in the same market and inspect other changes.
- Ask whether the wording remains accurate and helps people understand the app.
- Decide whether to keep, revise or replace the term, and record why.
- Record inconclusive results rather than calling every rising keyword a winner.
Move a word into the subtitle when it makes the visible copy more useful. Treat the resulting rank change as something to observe, not an expected bonus for the new position.
iOS App Keywords: Store-Specific Strategies
Use the 100-byte field for relevant terms
The iOS keyword-field guide covers the byte limit, duplicates and phrase formatting. Check the exact phrases you care about in the relevant storefront; separate words may not match in every combination.
Localize for a supported audience
Choose locales from audience evidence and your ability to support the app experience. Research local task wording and have a fluent speaker review the draft. Do not add unrelated English localizations just to multiply keyword space. Apple does not publish a complete, stable map of which locale fields contribute to search in each market.
A translated listing should accurately explain any remaining in-app language limits. To check a competitor's listing languages, inspect its storefront text directly; its supported app languages answer a different question.
Use quality metrics to improve the product
Apple describes text relevance and behavior including downloads, ratings and reviews. Use those signals to investigate product problems and follow acquisition. Apple does not disclose exact weights for retention, session length or conversion. Apple search overview
Google Play-Specific Keyword Strategies
Write a useful description
Explain the task, supported features and access requirements. Use headings and bullets to make the text easier for people to scan. A density checker can highlight repeated words; read the sentences to decide which repetitions are useful.
Treat external links as discovery paths
A useful website, review article or social post can refer people to the listing. Measure the visitors those links bring and whether they complete a useful task. Google Play does not publish a general ranking weight for backlinks or social mentions.
Common Keyword Research Mistakes
1. Treating a proxy as measured demand
A tool score can organize research, but it does not count searches or predict installs. Keep the source and limitations visible in your worksheet.
2. Copying competitor brands or hidden-field guesses
Use competitor observations to learn task vocabulary. Do not assume their terms were tested successfully, infer their private field exactly or add misspelled competing brands to your keywords.
3. Translating without checking product support
A local-language listing must set accurate expectations about the app's functionality and languages. Verify actual market need before expanding.
4. Editing on a rigid schedule
Keep the listing current and investigate sustained changes. A fixed six-week swap or monthly rewrite can remove useful wording without evidence.
5. Repeating terms to hit a formula
Remove unnecessary duplication and write natural copy. An arbitrary density or repetition target is not an official ranking rule.
6. Assuming a long phrase is an easy win
Check the results and available demand evidence for a specific phrase just as you would for a broad one. Length alone cannot tell you whether it is worth targeting.
How AppDrift Helps With Keyword Research
AppDrift can support a defined research and listing workflow:
- Keyword checks: inspect observed competition and app positions in a chosen store and country.
- Daily tracking: maintain a selected keyword set and review its history.
- Suggestions: collect candidate wording for review.
- Metadata drafts: turn selected terms into editable listing copy that still needs approval.
Free accounts include one app, five daily tracked keywords and 50 AI tokens once. Start with the free difficulty checker for one relevant query, then save a small keyword set if you want to follow it over time.
Free Keyword Research Tools and Resources
- Keyword suggestions: phrases to investigate.
- Density checker: a count of repeated words, not an ideal density recommendation.
- Keyword space calculator: a way to check draft length and duplicates.
- Store autocomplete: ideas for relevant phrases; order is not a monthly volume ranking.
- Apple Ads: use available popularity or paid-campaign metrics with their defined scope.
- Google Trends: web interest that can suggest research questions, not a direct app-store demand measure.
Putting It All Together: A Keyword Research Workflow
- Write the app's main tasks and collect the language real users use.
- Expand a small seed list through public metadata and suggestions.
- Record store, country, relevance, observed competition and separate demand evidence.
- Choose a manageable set and draft accurate metadata within platform limits.
- Review, approve and log the update when it becomes visible.
- Compare repeated observations and comparable acquisition segments before making the next decision.
By the end, you should have a short keyword list, a reason for each choice and a record of what changed. Use that record to decide which wording to keep or revisit; list length and scores alone cannot predict growth.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many keywords fit in the iOS keyword field?
The limit is 100 bytes, not a fixed number of keywords. Separate entries with commas and preserve spaces within meaningful phrases. Check the final draft in App Store Connect.
Can extra localizations triple my keyword capacity?
Do not assume so. Apple does not publish a universal cross-localization map guaranteeing that all active keyword fields are indexed for overlapping storefronts. Localize for supported audiences and verify the results.
Can I include a misspelled competitor brand?
Do not use misspellings to target competing app names or evade trademark restrictions. Select relevant task language that truthfully describes your own app.
Should I move a rising keyword into the subtitle?
Only when it produces useful, accurate copy and a clear hypothesis. There is no published universal field weighting that guarantees an improvement from that move.
When should I replace an underperforming keyword?
Investigate relevance, data quality, traffic and the observation window first. Six to eight weeks without a rank increase is not an automatic removal rule.
Does Google Play need a particular keyword density?
No published ideal density or repetition count applies. Use accurate, readable copy and follow Google's metadata policy.
How do I check search volume?
Look for direct query metrics where available, and keep them separate from Apple Ads popularity, web interest and third-party scores. A low or missing score can leave demand uncertain.
Should I use the same terms on both stores?
Start from the same real product tasks, then research each store and country separately. Results, audience behavior and available fields can differ.
