How to Use Ahrefs for Keyword Research Like a Absolute  Pro

How to Use Ahrefs for Keyword Research Like a Absolute  Pro

Okay, I’ll be honest with you.
The first time I opened Ahrefs? I panicked.
Charts. KD scores. Traffic value. UR vs DR. Stuff blinking at me. My brain said: “Bro, go back to Google Docs.”

But I stuck with it.
Because everyone kept saying: “Use Ahrefs for keyword research. It’s the best.”
And you know what?
They weren’t lying — but they also forgot to explain it like you’re five.

So this post is exactly that:
A not-so-fancy guide on how to actually use Ahrefs for keyword research, like a functioning human, not a confused data scientist.

Let’s go.

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Step 1: Don’t Panic. Just Open Keywords Explorer

Log into Ahrefs. Go to the “Keywords Explorer” tab.
That’s your playground.

You’ll see a big search box. Type in something broad like:

“digital marketing”

“vegan recipes”

“freelance writing”

Whatever your niche is — start there. Don’t overthink it.
Hit enter.

Ahrefs will load a mountain of data. Ignore 80% of it for now.

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Step 2: Focus on These 3 Numbers First

All you really need to care about at the start:

1. Volume

This tells you how many times the keyword is searched per month.
100–1000? Great.
10? Meh.
90,000? Competitive hell.

2. KD (Keyword Difficulty)

How hard it is to rank.

0–10 = Easy

11–30 = Doable

31+ = You’re competing with giants

Stay below 20 if your blog is new. Seriously. Don’t act brave.

3. Clicks

Sometimes people search but don’t click. Like when Google answers stuff in snippets.
So make sure the Clicks number isn’t zero, even if volume is high.

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Step 3: Go to “Matching Terms” and “Questions”

This is the fun part.

Scroll to the tabs that say:

Matching terms — these are all variations of your seed keyword

Questions — absolute goldmine for blog titles

Let’s say you typed in “freelance writing” — you’ll now see stuff like:

freelance writing jobs for beginners

how to get freelance writing clients

is freelance writing worth it

best freelance writing platforms

That’s 4 blog posts right there.
(And yes, people are actually searching those.)

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Step 4: Use Filters (Your Secret Weapon)

See that filter bar at the top?
It’s how you turn 20,000 keywords into 20 that actually make sense for your site.

Here’s my usual setup:

KD: Max 20

Volume: Min 100 (or even 50 if your niche is small)

Include words: I’ll type stuff like “how to,” “best,” “tools,” “tips” — these show buyer intent

Apply that filter and BOOM — now you’re seeing stuff you can actually rank for.

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Step 5: Analyze Just ONE Keyword (Don’t Go Blind)

Pick a keyword that feels like a fit and click on it.

Scroll down and you’ll see the SERP Overview — a snapshot of what’s already ranking.

Look for:

Sites with low Domain Rating (DR) — like under 30

Sites getting traffic with minimal backlinks

Pages with shorter word counts or bad formatting

If you see a small blog ranking in the top 5? That’s your green light.

If it’s all Ahrefs, HubSpot, and Forbes? Bail.
You’re not gonna outrank giants on your first date with Google.

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Step 6: Save Your Winners in a List

You found good keywords? Awesome.
Now save them before you forget or start doomscrolling cat memes.

Use Ahrefs’ “Add to List” feature.
I make lists by category: “money blog,” “SEO blog,” “low-hanging fruit,” etc.

That way, when I sit to write content, I’m not scrambling.

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Real Example: How I Found 14 Blog Posts in 45 Minutes

Niche: Digital tools for creators

Seed keyword: “email marketing tools”

Filtered KD < 15, Volume > 100
Looked under Questions + Matching Terms

Found:

best free email tools for beginners

email marketing tools for small businesses

is Mailchimp still good in 2025

how to grow email list without website

ConvertKit vs Mailchimp vs Beehiiv

I didn’t guess. I didn’t “feel inspired.”
I found exact keywords with search volume and low KD.

Those posts got traffic faster than anything I wrote before. Why?
Because I wrote what people were already searching for. Shocking, right?

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Ahrefs Keyword Research Doesn’t Have to Be Scary

Forget the fancy features. Forget the “traffic potential” formulas and advanced mode dashboards.

You only need 5 things:

1. Keywords Explorer

2. Volume

3. KD

4. Filters

5. SERP overview

 

That’s your stack. That’s all you need to:

Find keywords that actually rank

Build a content plan that doesn’t suck

Stop writing posts that no one searches for

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Final Raw Thoughts (Don’t Skip This Part)

Ahrefs won’t write your blog for you.
It won’t guarantee traffic.
It won’t save you if your content is trash.

But it will give you an unfair advantage — if you use it smart.

You don’t need to be an expert. You just need:

30 minutes a week

A few smart filters

A little common sense

And please… stop trying to rank for “best SEO tools” with a 3-month-old blog.
Start with the small, weird, oddly specific keywords. Those are the ones that actually rank.

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Want a downloadable list of my 50 best low-KD blog keyword finds?
DM me or drop a comment. No opt-in, no spam. Just pure help.

Next time: I’ll show you how to turn one keyword into 5 ranking blog posts using nothing but free tools.
Let’s go.