TL;DR
- Google has published no ideal keyword density; its SEO Starter Guide says there is no magical word count target and that keyword stuffing is against its spam policies.
- Google's spam policies list examples of keyword stuffing: phone number lists without added value, blocks of city names, and repeating words until they sound unnatural.
- Density is calculated as keyword occurrences divided by total words times 100, but tools count multi-word phrases and page sections differently, so results disagree.
- Thai has no spaces between words, so density tools that split on spaces undercount Thai word totals and return unreliable percentages.
Keyword density is the share of a page's words taken up by one keyword, usually shown as a percentage. Google has not set an ideal percentage, and repeating a keyword to an unnatural degree counts as keyword stuffing, which breaks Google's spam policies. A density figure is useful only as a warning that you are repeating yourself, not as a target to hit.
How keyword density is calculated
The basic formula is the number of times the keyword appears, divided by the total number of words on the page, multiplied by 100. As an illustration only (made-up numbers): if an article has 1,000 words and the phrase "running shoes" appears 10 times, density is 10 divided by 1,000, times 100, which gives 1%.
For multi-word keywords, some tools count the whole phrase as one occurrence, while others multiply the number of words in the phrase by the number of occurrences, so the same page can produce very different results depending on the tool. Some tools also count text in menus, footers and sidebars, while others count only the main content. The number you get is not a standard value you can compare across tools.
Does Google set a percentage?
No. Google has not published an ideal keyword density percentage in any official document. Google's SEO Starter Guide says excessively repeating the same words over and over, even in variations, is tiring for users, and states that keyword stuffing is against Google's spam policies. The same guide says there is no magical word count target, minimum or maximum, which reflects the same idea: Google does not score pages by a numeric formula.
Figures such as 1-2% or 2-3% that appear in articles and plugins were set by people in the industry as rough guidelines. They do not come from Google. Writing to hit them does not guarantee rankings, and writing below them does not directly cost you rankings.
Why a fixed number does not work
The first reason is that pages differ in length and type. With the same percentage, a 150-word product page would contain the keyword only a few times, while a 3,000-word guide would need it repeated dozens of times until it reads unnaturally. The second reason is that natural language has synonyms, abbreviations and pronouns, and good writers do not call the same thing by the same word in every sentence. The third reason is that Google's search systems are designed to understand the meaning of queries and content rather than simply matching strings letter for letter.
How many keywords per page, and where to put them
There is no fixed correct number. The more useful question is what the main topic of each page is, and whether the keyword sits where it helps both readers and Google understand that topic. A sensible approach is one main topic per page, with related secondary queries that one page can answer fully. If several pages on a site target the same keyword, you can get keyword cannibalization, which is a much bigger problem than density.
Places where the keyword, or words with the same meaning, should appear:
- The title tag: content in the <title> element is the first source Google lists for creating the title link in search results, and Google notes the title link is often the main thing people use to decide which result to click. A title that states the page topic clearly helps that decision.
- The main heading (H1): it should say what the page is about, usually in wording close to the title.
- The first paragraph: answering the main question early tells readers they are on the right page and makes the page topic clear.
- Subheadings (H2, H3): use secondary queries or related questions as subheadings where they fit naturally. The main keyword does not need to be in every heading.
- Image alt text: describe what is actually in the image. If the image relates to the topic, the keyword will appear on its own without stuffing.
The URL should be readable, but Google's SEO Starter Guide says keywords in a domain name or URL path alone have hardly any effect beyond appearing in breadcrumbs, so do not change an existing URL that already ranks just to add a keyword.
The table below compares three ways of using keywords, to show which carries risk and which helps readers.
| Approach | What it looks like | Expected outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Keyword stuffing | Repeating the same word until it reads unnaturally, or listing cities or queries in blocks | Breaks Google's spam policies, risks lower rankings or not being shown |
| Chasing a fixed percentage | Adding the keyword until it hits the number a plugin recommends | No evidence from Google that it helps rankings, and it often makes the copy stiff |
| Placing keywords by topic and using related terms | Keyword in the title, H1 and first paragraph, with synonyms and subheadings that answer real questions elsewhere | Consistent with Google's guidance and easy for users to read |
What keyword stuffing is and what it risks
Google's spam policies define keyword stuffing as filling a web page with keywords or numbers in an attempt to manipulate rankings in search results, with those keywords often appearing in a list or group, unnaturally, or out of context. Examples Google gives include lists of phone numbers without substantial added value, blocks of text listing cities and regions a page is trying to rank for, and repeating the same words or phrases so often that it sounds unnatural.
The risk comes at two levels. First, Google's automated systems may rank the page lower or not show it. Second, Google's team may issue a manual action, which is reported in the Manual actions report in Search Console and has to be fixed before you submit a reconsideration request. Beyond rankings, stuffed copy also makes readers trust the page less and leave sooner.
Patterns common on Thai sites include a footer paragraph that strings together "service... Bangkok, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Samut Prakan" at length, or the same keyword in every sentence of a product description. If you want a page to show in several areas, a safer route is to create genuinely useful information for each area, or to use Google Business Profile for branches that actually exist.
How synonyms and entities replace repetition
Google's SEO Starter Guide points out that varied wording gives you more chances to show up in search, because different searchers use different words. One person may search "running shoes", another "marathon running shoes", another the Thai term. A page that uses these terms naturally has a better chance of matching a range of queries than a page repeating one word.
An entity is a clearly identifiable thing, such as a brand, place, person, product or concept. Covering the entities related to a topic thoroughly, for example an article on running shoes that discusses surface types, cushioning, foot sizing and choosing by distance, helps the content answer questions more fully and makes the page's meaning clear without repeating the main keyword.
A simple practice is to write the first draft without thinking about density, then read it aloud. If the same word shows up so often it jars, swap in a synonym, a pronoun or a more specific detail. Then check that the main keyword is still in the title, the H1 and the first paragraph.
Why counting words in Thai is harder
Thai is written with words joined together and no spaces between them. Spaces usually separate phrases or sentences instead. A keyword density tool that counts words by splitting on spaces will struggle here. Applied to Thai, a long phrase can be counted as a single word, so the total word count comes out far lower than reality, and the calculated density is off as a result.
Tools that segment Thai words with a dictionary get closer, but segmentation is still ambiguous, since some compound words can be split in more than one way, so figures from different tools still disagree. Another catch is that Thai keywords often have several spellings, or mix English and Thai, such as writing "keyword" in Latin script. Searchers can type any of these variants, so reading the actual queries in the Search Console Performance report is more useful than chasing a density figure.
Should you use a keyword density checker?
Yes, as a check, not as a target. Its real value is spotting words repeated unusually often: if one word appears far more than others and the text jars when read, that is a cue to revise. It can also confirm whether a page really covers its main topic, in cases where the main keyword barely appears at all.
What you should not do is edit an article until a plugin shows a green light, because the plugin does not know what readers need and does not use Google's criteria. A systematic content review across the whole site through an SEO audit finds problems that matter more, such as pages competing for the same keyword, pages that are too thin, or titles duplicated across many pages.
What this means for Thai businesses
Writing to a set density percentage, or judging writers by how many times the keyword appears, does not match anything Google publishes about how it evaluates content. If you commission content, set criteria based on fully answering searchers' questions, accuracy and readability, not density.
For sites in both Thai and English, each language should read naturally in that language. Translating literally while keeping the same keyword count as the original usually makes the Thai stiff and repetitive. Check the real queries of each language's users separately. If you want a content approach that answers Thai searchers, see our content marketing service or our SEO Thailand service.
FAQ about keyword density
What is a good keyword density percentage?
There is no percentage set by Google. Figures like 1-2% are guidelines the industry made up. What matters is that the keyword sits in the important places and the content reads naturally.
Does keyword density still affect SEO?
As a target number, there is no evidence from Google that it helps rankings. But repeating words so much that it becomes keyword stuffing has a negative effect, because it breaks Google's spam policies.
Will using the keyword too few times stop me ranking?
It can be a problem if the page never clearly addresses the topic, but that does not mean you need to hit a set count. Put the keyword, or words with the same meaning, in the title, main heading and first paragraph, then write content that fully answers the question.
Are keyword density tools accurate for Thai?
Usually not, because Thai has no spaces between words. Tools that count words by spaces miscount the total, so treat the density figure only as a way to see whether a word is repeated abnormally.
Write for readers, then place keywords where they count
Keyword density is a number that can warn you, but it should not dictate how you write. A page that answers the question fully, places the keyword in the key positions and uses natural language is far closer to Google's guidance. If you want a team to plan the keyword and content structure across your site, see the SEO services from Relevant Audience.
