Keyword proximity – what is keyword proximity and what does it consist of?

Understanding keyword proximity is key to effective SEO optimisation. How does keyword proximity affect your site’s ranking in search results and how can you use this to your advantage?

From this article you will learn:

• What is keyword proximity?
• What are the types of keyword proximity?
• What are the relationships between keyword proximity and keyword density?
• What is the relationship between keyword proximity and keyword prominence?
• How do you use keyword proximity?
• What are some examples of keyword proximity?
• What is the importance of keyword proximity in SEO?

Keyword proximity – definition

Keyword proximity refers to the distance between two or more keywords in a text. The concept is used to assess how close keywords are to each other on a website – the accepted consensus is that the closer keywords are to each other, the more related they are from a search engine perspective. For example, if a website frequently has the words ‘healthy food’ next to each other, a search engine may consider it to be more related to healthy food queries than a website where the same keywords are far apart.

Keyword proximity is a term that describes the distance between two or more keywords in the text.

Definition of keyword proximity

Keyword proximity is important because search engines try to interpret and understand the context of content on web pages in a similar way to human understanding of language. As a result, pages that use keywords in a natural, contextual way often rank higher in search results.

Types of keyword proximity

The types of keyword proximity can be divided into several categories, depending on their placement in the text:

• Direct proximity means that the keywords are next to each other, with no other words in between – an example is ‘healthy food’.
• Proximity with little separation means that the words building the key phrase are separated by others, but are still close to each other – an example would be ‘healthy, tasty food’.
• Sentence proximity means that the keywords are in the same sentence but are not necessarily close to each other – an example is the sentence “Food is healthy because it contains many nutrients”.
• Structural proximity refers to the placement of keywords in specific parts of the page, such as headings, subheadings or meta tags, which can be linked to the main content of the page.

The use of these different types of keyword proximity can help optimise texts for SEO. This is because high keyword proximity indicates greater relevance of the content for specific queries, which is one of Google’s many ranking factors.

Keyword proximity vs. keyword density

Keyword density refers to the ratio of the number of occurrences of a keyword to the total number of words in the text. It is expressed as a percentage and the value indicates how often a keyword appears on a web page. Higher keyword density used to be an important ranking factor, but its importance has diminished over time due to advanced algorithms rewarding more natural and valuable content. Excessive use of keywords, known as keyword stuffing, is now considered a negative practice that can lower a site’s ranking.

The optimum value for keyword frequency is unknown, but SEO experts agree that it should not exceed 2% of words in the text, or should not appear more than once every 200 words^[1][2]. It is calculated according to the formula:

Keyword density = (Number of occurrences of the keyword/Total number of words in the text)*100

For example, if a keyword appears 5 times in a text of 100 words, the keyword density is:

(5/100)*100 = 5%

Although both keyword proximity and keyword density relate to keyword placement, they have different functions and impacts on SEO. Density focuses on the frequency of use of keywords, while proximity focuses on their location relative to each other. Optimising for both aspects requires a balance – too much keyword density can be detrimental, while the right proximity can improve search engines’ understanding of content.

Keyword proximity vs. keyword prominence

Keyword prominence refers to the visibility or importance of keywords within a website – their placement in titles, headings, first paragraphs or meta tags. Keywords are considered more prominent when they appear at the beginning of these elements, as search engines tend to give more weight to the initial parts of content.

Effective use of keyword proximity can support keyword importance, as placing related words in strategic places (e.g. at the beginning of content) can increase their visibility and relevance. At the same time, promoting keywords in key sections of a page can support their context and relevance in search engine evaluation.

Use of keyword proximity

The use of keyword proximity requires an approach that balances the needs of Google’s and other search engines’ algorithms with users’ expectations, intent (User Intent) and experience (User Experience). Keywords should be placed close together so that the content is natural and consistent, but still signals to search engines the main topic of the page.

When creating content, make sure that keywords form logical, understandable and naturally fitting phrases. If you are writing about healthy eating, phrases such as ‘healthy meals’ and ‘nutritious recipes’ should be placed close together in a way that naturally communicates the main theme of the content. Placing them in the first paragraphs, headings or subheadings can reinforce their relevance to search engines, while also giving a clear message to readers about what the paragraph is about.

However, it is important to remember that an excessive focus on keyword proximity can result in an artificial and unnatural style, which not only reduces the quality of the content, but can also be penalised by search engines. Keywords should be used in a way that makes sense to the reader – the text should flow through the topic and incorporate keywords so that they are an integral part of the content.

It should also not be forgotten that search engines are becoming increasingly sophisticated in their understanding of context and natural language, so optimisation for keyword proximity should be balanced and done with the aim of creating valuable, interesting and, above all, readable content. Over-stuffing of keywords should be avoided – keyword stuffing is an easy route to penalisation. It is also important not to focus solely on keyword proximity, but also on other aspects of SEO, such as keyword density, keyword prominence and, above all, the overall quality and usability of the content.

Examples of keyword proximity

Here are some examples that illustrate the various uses of keyword proximity:

• Direct proximity for specific phrases, an example of which is the phrase “high-speed internet”. When these words appear next to each other in content, they form a keyword phrase directly related to searches for high-speed internet access. This helps search engines understand that the page is about high-speed internet, not just internet or speed in general.
• Proximity with little separation for contextual relevance – in this case, the words ‘healthy’ and ‘nutrition’ can be taken as examples. They may appear in a sentence as ‘Healthy eating habits are key to wellbeing’. Although they are not directly next to each other, their proximity within the sentence helps search engines understand that the page may be of value to people looking for information about healthy eating.
• Proximity of keywords within headings and sub-headings – in an article about exercise, the headline ‘Tips for effective workouts’ and sub-heading ‘How to increase exercise intensity’ contain closely placed keywords (‘workouts’ and ‘exercise’), emphasising that the content is focused on exercise.
• Proximity of keywords in different parts of the content to emphasise the topic – in an article about cooking, keywords such as ‘recipes’, ‘kitchen’ and ‘cooking’ may be scattered but still be close together throughout the text, signalling to search engines that the page contains comprehensive information about cooking.
• Use of synonyms and related phrases – proximity of keywords that are synonyms or related phrases is also important in SEO. In a text about healthy eating, words such as ‘diet’, ‘nutrition’ and ‘food’ can be used interchangeably, helping search engines to understand the context and relationships between topics.

The importance of keyword proximity in SEO

The importance of keyword proximity in SEO is not insignificant – the proximity of keywords helps search engine algorithms better understand the context and relationship between terms, which in turn helps determine how well a page responds to a user’s query.

Keywords placed close together naturally and logically allow search engines to recognise the main topic of the text or themes of the page. This can contribute to a better ranking in search results. For example, if a page contains content about healthy eating, placing the words ‘healthy’ and ‘nutrition’ close together in the text will help search engines understand that it is relevant to queries, related to this topic.

However, it is important to remember that an excessive focus on placing keywords close together can lead to forced phrasing, which degrades the user experience and can be penalised by search engines. Today’s algorithms promote content that is valuable, well-written and natural, so keyword proximity should go hand in hand with creating high-quality, readable and useful content.

Keyword proximity is an important part of an SEO strategy, but it should be used judiciously and as part of a broader content creation strategy that focuses on providing value and a good experience for users.