What is keyword density, and does it matter

Keyword density is the percentage of times a target keyword appears on a page compared to the total word count, and while it mattered in early SEO, it's now largely irrelevant as a ranking factor.

Keyword density became popular in early SEO days because search engines relied heavily on keyword frequency to determine relevance. Pages that repeated a keyword a certain percentage of the time often ranked higher.

Today, Google and other search engines use far more sophisticated algorithms and they don't just use keywords to rank content-the content quality itself matters more.

Overusing keywords-known as keyword stuffing-can even hurt rankings and user experience.

Here's what to focus on instead of keyword density:

• Match search intent . Make sure your content covers the information users are looking for.
• Use the target keyword naturally. Place your target keyword in title, headers, and body text where they make sense, but avoid forcing them unnaturally.
• Optimize for readability. Write content that flows well, engages readers, and provides value

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