Keyword metrics explained
How to read Volume, Difficulty, Relevance, Chance, Rank and the other keyword metrics in ASO Agent.
Updated September 30, 2026
Every keyword in ASO Agent comes with a set of metrics that help you decide whether it's worth targeting. Here's what each one means and how to read it.
The metrics
| Metric | What it means | How to read it |
|---|---|---|
| Volume | How often the keyword is searched. | From 5 to 100, when data is available. The scale is exponential, so higher values represent much bigger differences in searches. |
| Difficulty | How difficult it is to get a high position for the keyword. | 0–100. Lower is easier. |
| Relevance | How relevant the keyword is to your app. | 0–100. Higher is better. Shown for your app. |
| Chance | Your app's Chance score for the keyword. | Shown for your app. Click the history icon to see how it changed over time. |
| Rank / Position | Your current position for the keyword, if ranked. | Lower is better. Unranked means the app isn't in the results. |
| Top Apps | The top 5 apps ranked for the keyword. | Calculated daily, so it may not match the store right now. Click More to open Live Search for up-to-date results. |
| Density | How often a keyword appears in the metadata being analyzed. | Shown for descriptions in the Core keywords view in Store Preview. |
Rank changes
In keyword tables, the rank cell shows how the position moved:
- Green with an up arrow – the rank improved.
- Red with a down arrow – the rank dropped.
- Blue with "=" – no change.
- Unranked (grey) – the app doesn't rank for the keyword.
When a value is missing, you'll see N/A or —.
Ranking bands
Summary cards and charts group keywords by position: Top 1, Top 2-3, Top 4-5, Top 6-10, Top 11-30 and Top 31-100. Moving keywords into higher bands is what increases your visibility.
Visibility
On Keyword Performance, App Visibility shows a percentage per app based on its ranked keyword footprint. Use it to compare your overall search presence with competitors over time.
Family metrics
On Keyword Family, parent rows also show:
- Total Volume – the combined volume of the family.
- Combinations – how many related keyword combinations the family contains.
How to use the metrics together
A good target usually combines high Relevance, meaningful Volume and a Difficulty your app can realistically compete at. Very high-volume keywords with high difficulty are often dominated by the biggest apps – look at Top Apps and Keyword Teardown to judge whether you can break in.
Metric history
Click the icon next to a value to open its history:
- Volume history – from the Volume column.
- Ranking history – from a Rank cell. It also lists Combinations of the keyword; click one to switch the chart to it.
- Chance history – from the Chance column on Keyword Performance.
History charts can be downloaded as PNG. How far back you can go depends on your plan.
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