# Best KDP keyword and category research tools

> Which tools are best for researching KDP keywords and categories?

Publisher Rocket ($199 once) covers keyword search, category search and Amazon Ads keywords; KDSPY ($79 once) shows category and keyword estimates while you browse Amazon; BookBeam (from $47 a month) adds history, rank tracking and trademark checks. Amazon's Best Sellers lists are the free first-party baseline, and Manuscript Report researches a finished manuscript for $69.

## How we chose

- Built for books, or clearly useful for KDP's seven keyword slots and three categories
- Labels estimates and says where its numbers come from
- Price checked on the vendor's page
- Covers Amazon's Books and Kindle stores, not only product categories

## Picks

1. **Publisher Rocket** (One-time keyword and category research). Keyword search, category search across 19,000+ categories, a competition analyzer and an Amazon Ads keyword generator across eight stores, for $199 once with a 30-day refund. Made by the founder of Kindlepreneur. Price: $199 one-time. https://kdp123.com/t/publisher-rocket/
2. **KDSPY** (Research while you browse Amazon). Category breakdowns with estimated revenue and sales needed to rank, keyword and competitor analysis, and 30-day tracking, for $79 once with a 60-day refund. Desktop browsers only. Price: $79 one-time. https://kdp123.com/t/kdspy/
3. **BookBeam** (Research plus ongoing tracking). Keyword and niche research, category history, book and keyword-rank tracking and a USPTO and EUIPO trademark checker. From $47 a month or $29 billed yearly, with a free Chrome Extension Lite. Price: From $47/mo. https://kdp123.com/t/bookbeam/
4. **Amazon Best Sellers** (Free first-party baseline). The top 100 and Hot New Releases for every category, straight from Amazon. Rank only, so pair it with a tool that estimates sales. Price: Free. https://kdp123.com/t/amazon-best-sellers/
5. **ManuscriptReport** (Research for one finished manuscript). Upload a manuscript and get category suggestions, seven backend keyword fields with search estimates and comparable titles for $69 per book. Much of the copy is AI-written, so edit it. Price: $69 one-time. https://kdp123.com/t/manuscript-report/

## Considered, not picked

- KDPTop: Run by the same team as kdp123, so we leave it out of our own ranking. Its listing shows what it does and costs.
- Helium 10: Most of the price pays for physical-product seller tools, and it is reported to return little keyword data for Kindle ebook ASINs.
- Data Dive: Groups keywords well, but has no book-specific features and assumes a Seller Central account.

Last reviewed: 2026-11-09. Page: https://kdp123.com/best/kdp-keyword-and-category-research-tools/. No vendor paid to be listed.