"Keep keyword density around 2-3% for best rankings."

"Keep keyword density around 2-3% for best rankings."

That number was invented and Google has never used it.

Keyword density is a ratio that made sense for 2003 search engines counting term frequency. Modern ranking runs on vectors and language models that understand "running shoes," "trainers," and "footwear for runners" as related concepts. There is no dial in the algorithm set to 2.7%.

Here's what actually happens when you hit a density target: you write unnaturally, repeat the phrase where a synonym belongs, and trip the exact pattern Google's helpful-content systems were built to demote.

The page that ranks isn't the one that says "best CRM" eleven times. It's the one that covers what someone searching "best CRM" actually needs — pricing, migration, integrations — using whatever words those subtopics naturally require.

Write for the question. Count nothing.

(That study you keep quoting with the density chart? It's a tool vendor selling you a density checker.)