The term « most popular word » in SEO can be interpreted in two ways:
- The actual top search queries (keywords) used by the public.
- The most important concepts and terminology within the SEO industry itself.
Here is a breakdown for 2025 based on search data and emerging trends:
1. Most Popular General Search Queries (Keywords) in 2025
The words searched most frequently by the general public are often major brands and navigational terms. As of the data from 2025, the top global keywords continue to be:
- youtube
- amazon
- gmail
- wordle
- chatgpt
- weather
- translate
- news
- restaurants near me
- nfl (or other major sports leagues)
These generally represent Navigational and Informational intent and tend to stay consistent year-to-year.
2. Most Popular SEO Industry Terminology/Concepts for 2025
In the world of SEO strategy, the most popular and critical concepts for success in 2025 revolve heavily around Generative AI and Content Quality:
| Term | What it Means for SEO in 2025 |
| AI Overview / SGE | Google’s new Search Generative Experience (SGE) provides AI-generated summaries at the top of the search results, leading to « zero-click » searches. Optimizing content to be included in these summaries is critical. |
| E-E-A-T | Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. This is Google’s core quality rater guideline. Demonstrating real-world Experience is a major focus for 2025 to differentiate human-written content from generic AI content. |
| Search Intent | Understanding why a user searched for a query (e.g., to buy, to learn, to navigate). Matching your content format perfectly to the user’s intent is more important than simply including a keyword. |
| Zero-Click | A search result where the user finds the answer directly on the Google search results page (often via an AI Overview or a Featured Snippet) without clicking on any website. SEO efforts are shifting to gain visibility even in these non-click results. |
| Conversational Keywords | Optimizing for the natural, long-form questions people ask, especially due to the rise of Voice Searchand generative AI queries (e.g., « How do I make a sourdough starter? » instead of just « sourdough starter recipe »). |
| Core Web Vitals | A set of metrics (Loading, Interactivity, and Visual Stability) that measure the actual user experience of a website, remaining a critical technical SEO factor. |