Keyword Metrics, Intent & Quotas
Understand the search volume, difficulty, CPC, intent and Search Console metrics shown for each keyword, plus your monthly AI suggestion limits.
Every keyword in RankTurn comes with a set of metrics that help you decide what to write about and in what order: search volume, difficulty, CPC, search intent and your live Google Search Console figures. There are also monthly limits on how many keywords AI can suggest. Here's what each one means.
For how to add or import keywords, see Adding Keywords Manually, AI Keyword Suggestions and Importing Keywords from Search Console.
Core Metrics
These three metrics are estimates based on Google search and ads data. RankTurn fetches them automatically when you add a keyword (and refreshes them whenever you edit the keyword text), so the exact numbers may differ from what you see in your own tools.
| Metric | What it shows | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Volume | Estimated monthly search volume | A small sparkline next to the number shows the last 12 months of search volume; hover it to see the month-by-month figures. A green line trends up, a red line trends down. |
| Difficulty | How hard it is to rank, on a 0–100 scale | Higher numbers mean stronger competition. Lower-difficulty keywords are usually faster wins. |
| CPC | Estimated cost-per-click for paid ads | Shown in your currency. A higher CPC signals stronger commercial value. |
When there's no data for a keyword, these fields show a dash (-) rather than a guessed value. Click any column header to sort — handy for surfacing your highest-volume or lowest-difficulty keywords.
Search Intent
Intent describes why someone searches a term, which tells you what kind of content will satisfy them. RankTurn classifies each keyword into one of four types:
- Informational — The user wants to learn something (e.g. "how to optimize images for web"). Best served by guides and explainers.
- Commercial — The user is researching before a purchase (e.g. "best SEO tools 2026"). Best served by comparisons and round-ups.
- Transactional — The user is ready to buy or act (e.g. "buy SEO software"). Best served by product and pricing pages.
- Navigational — The user is looking for a specific site or page (e.g. "RankTurn login").
RankTurn assigns intent automatically, but you can override it. Edit a single keyword to change its intent, or select several keywords and use Set Intent in the bulk action bar to reclassify them all at once. Use the intent filter above the table to focus on one type.
Search Console Metrics
When you connect Google Search Console, four extra columns appear in the keywords table with live data from your own property. These columns only show while Search Console is connected.
| Metric | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Position | Your average ranking position for the keyword (lower is better) |
| Change | The 7-day movement in your average position |
| Clicks | How many times users clicked through to your site |
| Impressions | How many times your site appeared in search results |
The Change column compares your current average position with the figure from seven days earlier. A green up-arrow means you moved up the rankings (your position number got smaller), a red down-arrow means you slipped. A dash means there's no comparison data yet, or your position didn't change. Keywords without Search Console data for a metric also show a dash.
These same figures power the optimization opportunities surfaced on the Insights & Competitor Analysis page.
AI Suggestion Quotas by Plan
AI keyword suggestions draw from a monthly quota that resets on the 1st of each calendar month. The quota is counted by how many AI-suggested keywords are actually saved, not how many times you click generate — so a failed or empty run never burns your allowance.
| Plan | Monthly AI keyword suggestions |
|---|---|
| Free | None (no AI suggestions) |
| Text | 100 |
| Standard | 100 |
| Pro | 200 |
Two reduced allowances apply outside a normal paid month:
- 3-Day Trial — 30 AI keyword suggestions for the duration of the trial. See 3-Day Trial.
- Onboarding preview — Before you reach the paywall during onboarding, a free account gets a one-time batch of up to 10 AI-suggested keywords so you can see the feature in action. See The Onboarding Wizard.
Manually added and imported keywords do not count toward this quota — only AI suggestions do. For the full picture of what each plan includes, see Plan Details and Usage Quotas.
When Your Allowance Resets
Your AI suggestion allowance is monthly, based on the calendar month:
- It resets at the start of each calendar month, giving you your full plan allowance again.
- Once you reach the limit for the month, RankTurn stops adding new AI keywords until the reset.
- Only saved keywords count, so retrying after an error never double-charges your allowance.
If you need more keyword research within a single month, you can upgrade your plan or wait for the next monthly reset. To see how much you have left, check the AI-suggestion counter above the keywords table on the Keywords page.