KDP Keyword Guide
Practical guides on Amazon KDP keyword research — how to write phrases that get your book found, how ghost categories work, and how to diagnose why your current keywords are underperforming.
Amazon KDP gives every author 7 keyword fields, each up to 50 characters. Those fields are your primary signal to Amazon's search algorithm — the mechanism that determines which reader queries surface your book. Most authors fill them in quickly during upload and never revisit them. Most authors also wonder why organic discovery never comes.
The guides below cover the specific mistakes that kill keyword performance, how to research phrases that actually match reader search behavior, and how Amazon's category system works beyond the 2-category limit most authors accept by default.
Guides
Why Your KDP Keywords Aren't Ranking — 5 Mistakes to Fix
If your KDP keywords aren't driving discovery, one of five specific mistakes is usually the cause. Here's how to diagnose which one is hurting your listing.
Read guide →KDP Keyword Banned Terms — What Amazon's Policy Prohibits
Amazon silently strips prohibited KDP keywords without warning. Here's what Amazon's policy actually covers, what sits in a grey area, and what to use instead.
Read guide →How to Find Amazon Ghost Categories for Your Book
Ghost categories exist in Amazon's browse tree but don't appear in the KDP publisher interface. Here's how to find them and request placement through KDP support.
Read guide →KDP Category Limit — How Many Categories Can You Actually Choose
KDP lets you pick 2 categories during upload, but the real limit is 10. Here's how to request additional categories through KDP support and how to choose which ones to target.
Read guide →KDP Backend Keywords vs Amazon Search Terms — What's the Difference
KDP backend keywords are one input into Amazon's search term profile — not the whole thing. Here's how both work, what you control, and how to optimize each.
Read guide →For KDP browse category selection — including ghost categories and the keyword-category gating system — see the KDP category keywords guide.
Get keywords for your specific book
The KDP Keyword & Category Finder generates 7 long-tail keyword phrases tailored to your genre, comparable titles, and target reader — plus ghost category paths you can only access by emailing KDP support.
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