How to Find YouTube Keyword Competition Score and SEO

If you are a YouTube content creator, then you know that the half battle of making good quality videos is one thing, and the real fight is to utilize SEO to attract views, subscribers, and to increase your channel. Keyword optimization is one of the most crucial parts of YouTube SEO. In this guide, we are going to take a closer look at how to find YouTube keyword competition scores, the tools you can use to assess them, and how to apply SEO techniques, including the use of LSI (Latent Semantic Indexing) keywords, to improve the visibility of your videos.

Understanding YouTube Keyword Competition

This document addresses the concept of what keyword competition is, and how important it’s becoming on YouTube before going into the tools and strategies that could help you understand keyword competition.

What is Keyword Competition on YouTube?

Keyword competition is the number of other videos competing for that keyword or phrase. If lots of videos have been optimized for YouTube using the same keyword, then the competition is high, and it would be tough to rank for the keyword. If not many videos have been optimized for a keyword, then the competition is low, and they have a greater chance of ranking for that term.

Why is the keyword competition in YouTube important?

This is the most important point: one aims to get more YouTube videos optimized for keywords to rank higher in search results for finding your target audience. High competition keywords are indeed harder to rank for, especially if you are a new channel or have just a few thousand subscribers. In contrast, low competition keywords will surely give you a higher chance of ranking even if you have fewer subscribers and watch time.

Knowing how to go about finding keyword competition is paramount because it aids you in the targeting of keywords that maximize chances of being visible without getting overtaken by stronger creators.

Finding YouTube Keyword Competition Scores

Now, you could find and calculate keyword competition through YouTube using any of the below different tools as well as strategies. Let us take a quick look at few of the great options available at your disposal related to keyword discovery and competition identification.

1. YouTube Auto-complete Suggestions

One of the quicker, most basic ways to discover keywords is to use YouTube auto-complete. These are the list of suggested search terms that pop up when you are typing a keyword into the YouTube search bar.

Using YouTube Auto-Complete

• Open the YouTube homepage or click on the search bar.
• Begin typing a keyword you want to be associated with your video.
• Remember the suggested search terms that pop up as you type.
• These are the most searched terms that are related to your keyword.

The auto-complete suggestions that YouTube will offer you help you understand exactly what people want to search for. Although this technique does not give you competition scores directly, you will be able to understand keywords widely in use on the platform.

Pro Tip: Use long-tail keywords (example, “how to do keyword research for YouTube” instead of simply just “YouTube keyword research”) because they are less competitive yet most relevant.

2. TubeBuddy: Keyword Explorer

TubeBuddy is another very popular YouTube optimization tool. This is a browser extension on YouTube containing detailed information about the keyword’s competition, search volume, and chances to optimize using TubeBuddy’s Keyword Explorer.

How to Use TubeBuddy’s Keyword Explorer:

• You now install the TubeBuddy add-on in your browser.
• Click on YouTube.
• Then, in the left section, navigate through to the “Keyword Explorer”
• Enter your target keyword
• You will be offered a keyword score that is assessing search volume and competition as well as an all-around optimization.

TubeBuddy’s Key Features:

• Search Volume: TubeBuddy will let you know about how many searches are going in for that specific keyword.
• Competition Score: It will indicate how many videos are competing for that keyword.
• Optimization Opportunity: TubeBuddy will also give you an idea of how well your video will rank according to the keyword you intend to use.

VidIQ has provided you with some other features like related keywords and LSI keywords which can be used to widen your keyword strategy effectively.

3. VidIQ: Keyword Research Tools

VidIQ: This is another YouTube SEO tool. This tool allows you to discover the best keywords and competition levels. VidIQ offers a much more extensive toolset for keyword research, competition analysis, and video optimization.

How to Use VidIQ for Keyword Competition:

• Download the VidIQ extension.
• Click on the VidIQ Keyword Tool in your browser.
• Enter your target keyword.
• VidIQ will give you a score based on search volume, competition, and keyword value.

VidIQ’s Key Features:

• Keyword Score: VidIQ provides the keyword score, which tells you how easy or hard it is to rank that keyword.
• Search Volume: It shows how many people are searching for the keyword.
• Competition Level: VidIQ has analyzed the videos that use the same keyword and gauges the competition level.
• Related Keywords: It gives you the list of all those related keywords, which will come with a less competitive quotient to find more opportunities in optimization.

Real time data-It makes it quite a handy tool for any YouTuber who is searching for some extra mile.

4. Google Trends: YouTube Search Insights

While Google Trends is more popular for Google search data, it does give you valuable keyword information for YouTube. With Google Trends, you will see how a keyword has been trending over time, which is very useful in understanding trending topics or seasonality in your niche.

How to Use Google Trends for YouTube Keyword Research:

• Open Google Trends.
• Input a keyword or topic in the search field.
• Go to “YouTube Search” filter to see only trends relevant to YouTube.
• Analyze interest over time and start looking for keywords which are gaining more traction.

Google Trends will show keyword popularity and also help you compare more than one keyword against one another. It can help you understand which of your keywords is trending these days as well as increase or decrease competition around that keyword.

5. Google Keyword Planner

Though Google Keyword Planner is primarily a tool for Google Ads, it can still display some competition data for YouTube keywords. Because YouTube is a Google product, there’s partial overlap between search volume for YouTube and Google. As such, Google Keyword Planner makes it easy to identify the high-volume, low-competition keywords for your videos.

How to Use Google Keyword Planner:

Now log in to your Google Ads account and click on Keyword Planner in the menu.
Here, type in a keyword or keyword phrase for your video below
Google will show you information on the volume of searches done, the level of competition around the keywords, and also ideas for other related keywords.
Although this tool is not specifically designed to be used in YouTube, its Google Keyword Planner can give one a fair insight into the competition and search volume around broad keywords that will prove handy when finally applied within the YouTube domain.

Optimizing your YouTube Video for SEO:

Now that you have got the best words with reduced competition and volume, you must make sure that your YouTube videos would be optimized following SEO guidelines. Optimization of a video on YouTube is far more challenging compared to selection of proper keywords. The increasing prospect of ranking well, optimizing various other elements of the video is an important process.

1. Optimization of Video Title

Your video title is one of the most critical ranking factors on YouTube. It’s the first thing viewers see and plays a very important role in search results. Your title has to include your target keyword, but it should also sound natural and appealing.

Optimize Video Titles

Insert your target keyword near the start of the title.
Make your title as short as possible and ideally less than 60 characters.
Make the title appealing so viewers click on it.
Do not keyword stuff-title should sound human

2. Optimization of Video Description

The description is the place where YouTube learns what the video is talking about. It is also a place where you are going to insert your keyword and your LSI keywords

How to Optimize Video Description:

• First, you start by writing a short description of your video that includes your main keyword
• You will use relevant LSI keywords throughout your description
• Your description should be 200-300 words long.

You will add links to other related videos or playlists and also some calls-to-actions (CTAs) to promote engagement.

3. Tags and Keywords

Tags enable YouTube to understand what your video is discussing, and you can also rank your video for other related keywords. After entering your target keyword, you can add other relevant keywords, long-tail phrases, and LSI keywords.

• Use a mix of short-tail and long-tail keywords.
• Variations of your main keyword and other related terms to include
• Use all the available tag slots for maximum optimization

4. Custom Thumbnails

Thumbnails do not affect rankings directly but are very important for increasing CTR, which eventually leads to a high ranking over time.

• Tips for Making Thumbnails:
• Use bright colors and clear, bold text
• Include branding or logo for consistency
• Keep it visually appealing and relevant to content.

5. Audience Engagement Signals

YouTube measures engagement through likes, comments, shares, and watch time. Videos that have good engagement rank better in the search results.

Boost Engagement

• Ask people to like, comment, and share your videos.
• Ask questions in your video so that people can comment.
• Create engaging content so that people view until the end.

Find LSI Keywords for YouTube

LSI keywords are those words semantically relevant to your targeted keyword. Such keywords provide a context to the YouTube algorithm to understand what your video is about. Using LSI keywords in your title, description, and tags of your video improves ranking.

How to Find LSI Keywords:

You can find LSI keywords using TubeBuddy and VidIQ.
Check the related search terms and videos of YouTube manually.
When searching, use the “searches related to” section at the bottom of the page by Google.
LSI Keyword Examples for “How to Find YouTube Keyword Competition”:

• YouTube SEO tutorial
• Keyword research for video optimization
• Ranking higher on YouTube
• Low competition YouTube keywords
• Best SEO tools for YouTube

Conclusion

Understanding and mastering YouTube keyword competition and SEO is the surest way for channel growth. It means not only knowing those tools that may be used for keyword competition but also how videos can be optimised for the search engine and therefore, enhancing the possibility of ranking higher significantly in search results.

Do not forget to use LSI keywords that provide more context to your videos and attract more audience. And through constant refining of your strategy and keeping updated with the latest trends, you’ll be making data-driven decisions to improve YouTube SEO over time.

By applying these strategies, you will have long-term growth, more views, and increased engagement on YouTube.