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How to Do Pinterest Keyword Research (Step by Step, with Real Data)

Pinterest is a search engine: a pin that matches what people type keeps bringing visits for months. Keyword research is how you pick those searches before you write. Here is the method we use, with real numbers. Updated 06/10/2026.

Why Pinterest keywords work differently from Google

On Google, a page competes for months to climb. On Pinterest, a new pin can reach the top of a search in days, if the search isn't dominated by pins with thousands of saves. Three things decide whether a keyword is worth it: how many people search it (volume), how strong the pins already at the top are (difficulty), and when people search it (Pinterest is very seasonal: fall dinners peak in October, cookies in December).

  1. Step 1: List your seed topics

    Write down 10–20 broad topics your blog covers (“chicken dinner”, “fall desserts”, “meal prep”). Type each one in Pinterest's search bar and note the suggestions: they are what people actually type.

  2. Step 2: Check the search volume

    Keep searches with a real audience. A search under a few thousand monthly searches is long-tail: use it in a title, not as the main target of a post.

    Pinterest's own monthly estimate is the most reliable volume. In PinExplore, every keyword shows it, for the US and Germany; the free keyword checker gives it for any keyword, 5 times a day.

  3. Step 3: Check the keyword difficulty

    Look at the top 20 pins of the search: if they have thousands of saves and come from huge accounts, a new pin won't reach the top. Aim for easy and medium searches first.

    PinExplore's difficulty (0–100) reads the top 20 pins of a search: their saves (40%), the search volume (30%), the size of the accounts behind them (15%) and how many are over a year old (15%). Under 35 is easy, 35–59 medium, 60+ hard.

    Two real examples this month (United States)

    healthy recipes542.3M searches / monthWorth it
    birthday cake608.8M searches / monthHard

    birthday cake: Dominated by big accounts: target a longer, more precise variation. Full list: top Pinterest food keywords.

  4. Step 4: Find the right timing

    Pinterest is seasonal. Pin rising searches within days, and seasonal ones 4–6 weeks before their peak week so your pins are saved and ranking when searches take off.

    Two lists help: the searches rising this week (pin them now) and the searches about to rise next month (plan them now).

    This week's example (United States, week of 26/10/2026)

    Searchmummy hot dogs
    This week+30%
    Monthly searches18K
    Difficulty42Pin now

    Rising fast and still easy to rank for: publish this week.

  5. Step 5: Study the winning pins

    Open the most-saved pins of the search: their titles, images and angles show what the audience wants. Make something better, not a copy.

    In PinExplore, the Pins page shows the top pins of any search with their saves, and Pin Intel follows the pins taking off in your niche. Look for a pattern: the same angle (“one pot”, “for a crowd”, “copycat”) coming back in the most-saved pins is what the audience wants.

  6. Step 6: Put the keyword to work

    Start the pin title with the keyword, repeat it naturally in the first line of the description and in the alt text, save to a board named with the topic, and make 2–3 pins with different images for the same post.

    Keep the keyword exactly as people type it, at the very start of the title (“Crockpot Chicken Spaghetti – Easy Weeknight Dinner”), and use the variants for your second and third pins. More on-pin tips in our Pinterest SEO tips for bloggers.

Mistakes to avoid

  • Picking keywords by gut feeling: a search you'd type yourself may have 200 searches a month.
  • Only going for the biggest searches: they are the hardest; a medium search you can win brings more visits.
  • Pinning seasonal recipes in season: by then, last year's pins already hold the top.
  • Stuffing keywords or hashtags: one clear keyword at the start of the title works better than ten.
  • Paying for a tool you don't need: see the best Pinterest keyword tools, free and paid.

Do your keyword research in minutes

PinExplore shows the volume and difficulty of any Pinterest keyword, the searches about to rise, and the winning pins behind each one.

Try the free keyword checker