Arabic Keyword Research for Saudi and Egyptian Customers

Arabic keyword research means finding the exact words your customers in Saudi Arabia and Egypt type into Google, not the words you use inside your business. Those words mix dialect and formal Arabic, skip hamzas, switch to English mid-phrase and change from city to city. You can collect many of them free, then group them by what the searcher wants.

Why Arabic keyword research is different from English

In English, one service usually has a handful of common phrasings. In Arabic, the same need can be typed in many ways, and Google does not always treat them as identical. A page written around the phrase your team uses internally may miss the phrase your customers actually type.

Three things drive this. People search in a mix of Modern Standard Arabic and their own dialect. Spelling on phone keyboards is loose. And many customers switch between Arabic and English depending on the product. Good keyword research starts by listening to all three before deciding what a page should target.

Dialect or Modern Standard Arabic: which do customers use?

Both, and often in the same search. You will often see formal phrasing in informational questions and dialect words in practical, ready-to-buy searches, but the only way to know for your market is to check the real phrases.

Some examples of how the same need can be typed differently:

• In Saudi Arabia, someone may search «صيانة مكيفات» or «فني مكيفات», while in Egypt the same need is more likely «صيانة تكييف» or «تصليح تكييف».
• A Saudi searcher may write «ابغى» or «وش افضل», an Egyptian one «عايز» or «احسن».
• «شقق للايجار» and «شقق للإيجار» are the same search to a person, but two different strings to type.

The practical lesson: do not guess. If you serve both countries, collect phrases separately for each, because the words that bring a customer in Riyadh may not be the words that bring one in Cairo.

Spelling variants that matter: hamza, ة and ى

Many people type quickly on a phone and skip the details of formal spelling. The most common variants are:

• Hamza: «أسعار» vs «اسعار», «أفضل» vs «افضل», «إيجار» vs «ايجار».
• Ta marbuta and ha: «عيادة» vs «عياده», «شركة» vs «شركه».
• Alif maqsura and ya: «مستشفى» vs «مستشفي», «على» vs «علي».
• Singular and plural: «سعر» vs «اسعار», which can signal slightly different intent. «سعر» often means one specific item, «اسعار» a price list or comparison.

Google is generally good at connecting these variants, but not perfectly, and the results it shows can differ between them. Search each variant yourself and compare the results. If they look the same, one page can serve both. If they differ, that tells you something about what each searcher wants. Write your page in correct Arabic; you do not need to misspell words on purpose to match variants.

English, Arabic, or both for the same service?

Many customers search for the same service in both languages. A clinic patient might search «زراعة اسنان» or «dental implants Jeddah». A business owner in Cairo might search «تصميم مواقع» or «web design company Egypt». Some searches mix both: «كورس SEO», «سعر laptop» or «شركة digital marketing», where a product or service term stays in English.

To decide where to focus:

1. Search both versions and look at who ranks. If the English results are mostly foreign sites, the Arabic version may be where local customers actually look.
2. Check which language your existing enquiries arrive in, through WhatsApp, calls or your contact form.
3. If you build pages in both languages, make them separate, properly linked language versions rather than one page mixing both. Google explains this in its guide to localized versions of pages.

What are the main types of search intent?

Search intent is the reason behind a search. Most searches fall into one of four groups, and each needs a different kind of page.

• Informational: the person wants to learn. «كيف اختار مكيف», «how to choose a dentist». A helpful article fits.
• Commercial: the person is comparing before buying. «افضل عيادة اسنان في جدة», «best furniture store Cairo». A comparison, a guide or a strong service page fits.
• Transactional: the person is ready to act. «اسعار تنظيف خزانات», «book dental cleaning Riyadh». A service or product page with clear prices or a clear way to contact you fits.
• Local: the person wants something nearby. «محل اثاث قريب مني», «عيادة اسنان في التجمع». Your Google Business Profile and a location page fit; see our guide to local SEO and Google Business Profile.

The fastest way to read intent is to search the phrase and look at what Google already shows. If the top results are articles, people want to learn. If they are shops, service pages or a map, people want to buy or visit.

How to collect keyword ideas for free

You do not need paid tools to start. Google itself shows you what people search.

• Google autocomplete: type the start of a phrase in Arabic, such as «سعر تركيب» or «افضل مطعم في», and note the suggestions. Try it with and without hamza, and with a city name.
• People also ask: the box of related questions on the results page. Each question is a candidate for a section in an article or an FAQ on a service page.
• Related searches: at the bottom of the results page. These often show the dialect versions and longer phrases people use.
• Google Search Console: if your site is connected, the Performance report shows the queries your pages already appear for, including phrasings you never thought of. Our Google Search Console guide shows where to find them.
• Your own customers: the exact words in WhatsApp messages, calls and reviews are some of the most valuable keyword ideas you will ever get.

A note on numbers: keyword tools show monthly search volume, but these are estimates, and for Arabic phrases with many spelling variants they can be rough. Use them to compare phrases against each other, not as a promise of how many people will visit.

Group keywords by intent, not one page per phrase

Once you have a list, do not create a separate page for every variant. «سعر تنظيف مكيفات», «اسعار تنظيف المكيفات» and «كم سعر تنظيف المكيف» are one need. They belong on one page.

A simple way to group:

1. Put all phrases in a spreadsheet.
2. Add a column for intent: informational, commercial, transactional or local.
3. Group phrases that a single page could fully answer. If Google shows mostly the same results for two phrases, they usually belong together.
4. Give each group one main phrase for the title and use the others naturally in headings and text.
5. Map each group to an existing page, or mark it as a new page to create.

This keeps your site clean and avoids several thin pages competing with each other. When you write the page, our guide on how to write an article that ranks covers structure and sources.

A keyword research checklist you can do today

• Write down your five most important services or products.
• For each, type the Arabic name into Google and record the autocomplete suggestions, with and without hamza.
• Repeat with the English name, and with your city name in both languages.
• Copy the People also ask questions and related searches.
• Open Search Console and export the queries your site already appears for.
• Label every phrase with an intent and group them into page-sized topics.
• Match each group to a page and note which pages are missing.

If you would rather start from data, Rankshoot gives you a free SEO audit of your site, a look at your competitors and a content plan; you create a free account and no card is needed. You can request your free preview here.

Frequently asked questions

Should I target the dialect or the formal Arabic phrase?

Write the page in clear, correct Modern Standard Arabic, and use the dialect phrases where they fit naturally, such as in headings, FAQs or examples. Google is usually able to connect the two, and readers trust correct writing. Check the results for both versions to see whether they really point to the same need.

Do I need separate pages for Saudi Arabia and Egypt?

Only if what you offer, your prices or your wording differ between the two countries. If you have branches or services in both, separate pages let you use the right phrases and details for each market. If the offer is identical, one good page is often enough.

How many keywords should one page target?

One main topic, with as many closely related phrases as naturally fit. Think in terms of one need per page rather than a fixed number of keywords. If two phrases need different answers, they need different pages.

Are search volume numbers from keyword tools accurate?

They are estimates. They are useful for comparing phrases, but for Arabic with many spelling variants they can under- or over-count. Your own Search Console data is a better signal for phrases your site already appears for.

Arabic keyword research is the foundation for everything else you publish. For the bigger picture, read our SEO guide for businesses in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, then use Google's SEO Starter Guide as a reference while you build your first keyword map.