Best Free Pinterest Keyword Tools (2026): 7 Compared, Plus How to Use Them

By Haku · Updated September 2026 · 8 min read

Pinterest is a search engine, so the words in your pin decide whether anyone finds it. You don't need to pay for keyword research to do it well. Below are seven free Pinterest keyword tools compared on what is actually free, where each one gets its data, and what it is best for, followed by a step-by-step way to use a free tool on your next pin.

Disclosure: some links below are affiliate links. If you subscribe through them, PinRank may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It never changes what we recommend; the free tools come first for a reason.

Free Pinterest keyword tools compared

"Free" means different things across these tools: fully free, free with an account, or a free tier with the most useful data kept for paying users. The table shows what you actually get without paying.

1. Pinterest's search bar (free, native)

The simplest keyword tool is the one already on Pinterest. Start typing a topic and the suggestions that drop down are phrases people are really searching. Search a broad term and the related ideas shown above the results point to the next layer of long-tail phrasing.

Pros: free, live and straight from Pinterest. Cons: no numbers, no export, and it is slow to work through by hand. Treat it as your final check: if a phrase autocompletes, people search it.

2. Pinterest Trends (free with a business account)

Pinterest Trends shows how interest in a term rises and falls over up to the last two years, by region, along with related trends. According to Pinterest's help center, it shows relative interest rather than raw search counts, and you log in with a Pinterest business account, which is free to set up.

Pros: official Pinterest data and the best way to see seasonal timing, so you can publish weeks before demand peaks. Cons: it is built for exploring trends, not for workflow, and long-tail niche phrases often come back thin. Use it to confirm timing, then build titles elsewhere.

3. PinRank (free, no login)

PinRank is the free tool we build. It covers the part of keyword work the native tools don't: turning one seed into long-tail ideas, then checking that your finished title and description actually use them. Everything runs in your browser with no account.

Pros: keyword ideas, a pin SEO score and a description writer in one place, plus separate free generators for titles, descriptions and board names. Cons: it does not have Pinterest's search volume. Each idea carries an estimated competition label to help you compare options, so confirm your shortlist in Pinterest search or Trends.

4. Keyword Tool (keywordtool.io)

Keyword Tool's Pinterest version queries Pinterest's autocomplete live, adding letters and numbers around your seed to surface hundreds of suggestions.

Pros: a long list of real Pinterest phrasing in seconds. Cons: full search volume and trend data sit in the paid Pro plan, and a long list still needs sorting before it is useful for a single pin.

5. Tailwind Keyword Finder

Tailwind is best known as a scheduler, but its free Keyword Finder takes a different approach: you enter your homepage or a specific page, and it returns trending Pinterest keywords matched to that content.

Pros: ideas tailored to what your site is actually about. Cons: you have to sign up for a Tailwind account to see the results, and it starts from a URL rather than a keyword you already have in mind.

6. PinClicks (free tool plus a free trial)

PinClicks is the deepest Pinterest-specific research tool here. For free, it offers a Pinterest keyword tool covering the top 20,000 interest keywords, plus a 5-day trial of its full plan with no credit card. Paid plans add search volume from Pinterest, the top-ranking pins for any keyword and keyword rank tracking.

Pros: the closest thing to real Pinterest search volume, and the trial lets you check your most important keywords before paying. Cons: the depth is in the paid plans, which only make sense once you publish at volume.

7. eRank (Etsy, not Pinterest)

eRank often shows up in Pinterest tool lists, but it is an Etsy SEO tool. Its keyword data covers marketplaces such as Etsy, Amazon and eBay, and its pricing page does not list any Pinterest data. The free plan includes 5 keyword lookups a day.

Pros: genuinely useful for the Etsy side of a shop. Cons: no Pinterest search data, so pair it with a Pinterest tool for your pins (see Pinterest for Etsy sellers).

How to use a free Pinterest keyword tool, step by step

Here is the workflow with PinRank, from a blank page to a pin that is ready to publish. The same steps work with any of the free tools above.

1. Enter one broad seed. Open the free Pinterest keyword tool, stay on the Keyword ideas tab, type a seed such as "small bedroom" and press Get ideas.
2. Shortlist long-tail ideas. You get up to 12 ideas, each tagged High, Medium or Low. That tag is an estimated competition label to help you compare, not search volume. Tap an idea to copy it, and favor specific phrases over broad ones.
3. Check the shortlist on Pinterest. Type each phrase into Pinterest's search bar; if it autocompletes, people search it. For seasonal topics, look it up in Pinterest Trends to see when interest starts to rise.
4. Write the title and description. Put the keyword near the front of the title. The Description writer tab takes your focus keyword, what the pin is about, an optional audience and a goal (saves, blog clicks, shop sales or followers) and writes three descriptions. For titles, the Title Generator gives 16 ideas from one keyword.
5. Score the pin before you publish. Paste your focus keyword, title and description into the Pin SEO score tab. It checks that the keyword is in the title and the description, that the title is 40–100 characters and the description 100–500, that the keyword isn't overused, that there is a call to action, and that you have 2–5 relevant hashtags. Fix anything it flags, then publish.

When a paid Pinterest keyword tool is worth it

Free tools are strong at finding real phrasing and seasonal timing. What they mostly don't give you is search volume and ranking data. That is where paid tools earn their price: PinClicks shows search volume from Pinterest, the pins ranking for a term and your own keyword rankings. It is worth it once you publish at volume and need to choose between many keywords with confidence.

If your real bottleneck is posting consistently rather than finding keywords, a scheduler such as Tailwind will usually help more than another keyword tool. Compare options in Pinterest schedulers compared.

Which free tool should you use?

• Just starting and spending nothing: PinRank for ideas and the pin score, Pinterest's search bar to confirm phrasing, Pinterest Trends for timing.
• You want a long list fast: Keyword Tool's free Pinterest version, then trim the list with the search bar.
• You want ideas based on your own site: Tailwind Keyword Finder (account required).
• Etsy seller: eRank for listings, a Pinterest tool for pins.
• Ready to look at volume: start the PinClicks free trial with your most important keywords before paying for anything.

Most people over-tool this. A free idea tool plus Pinterest's own search and Trends is enough until publishing volume forces the question, and then pay for depth, not before.

Frequently asked questions

What's the best free Pinterest keyword tool?

No single tool does everything. Pinterest's own search bar and Pinterest Trends show real Pinterest data for free, and PinRank turns one seed into long-tail ideas and scores your pin with no login. Using all three covers most people.

Is there a free Pinterest keyword tool with search volume?

Not a complete one. Pinterest Trends shows relative interest over time rather than raw search counts. Keyword Tool's free version focuses on suggestions and keeps full search volume for its Pro plan, and PinClicks shows search volume from Pinterest on its paid plans, with a 5-day free trial. PinRank shows an estimated competition label, not search volume.

Does Tailwind have a free keyword tool?

Yes. Tailwind's Keyword Finder suggests trending Pinterest keywords based on a website URL you enter. It is free, but you need to sign up for a Tailwind account to see the results.

Is eRank good for Pinterest?

eRank is built for Etsy. Its keyword data covers marketplaces such as Etsy, Amazon and eBay, and its pricing page does not list Pinterest data. Use it for Etsy listings and a Pinterest tool for your pins.

Do I need a paid keyword tool to grow on Pinterest?

Not to start. Free tools cover finding phrasing, checking timing and scoring pins. A paid tool such as PinClicks makes sense once you publish at volume and want search volume and ranking data to choose between many keywords.