Keyword density is the percentage of times a target keyword appears on a page compared to the total word count. For example, if your keyword appears 10 times in a 1,000-word article, the density is 1%. It was heavily gamed in the early 2000s when search engines relied more on simple keyword matching, but Google's algorithm has evolved far beyond simple percentage thresholds. There's no magic number to aim for. Anyone telling you to hit exactly 2% or 3% density is recycling outdated advice. Modern Google uses semantic understanding, which means it evaluates topic relevance through related terms, synonyms, and context rather than keyword repetition. A page that mentions "Ottawa SEO services" five times but thoroughly covers local search, Google Business Profile optimization, and citation building will outrank a page that stuffs "Ottawa SEO services" twenty times with thin content. That said, the keyword still needs to appear. If you're targeting "residential roofing Toronto" and never use that phrase, you're making Google guess. We typically see the main keyword naturally appearing in the title tag, H1, first 100 words, at least one subheading, and 3–6 times in body content for a 1,000-word page. That usually works out to 0.5–1.5% density without forced repetition. The real risk is keyword stuffing, which happens when density climbs above 3–4% or when the writing feels unnatural. Google can penalize this, and even without a penalty, users bounce when copy reads like a robot wrote it. At Ottawa SEO, we write for humans first and let keyword placement happen organically through proper topic coverage. If you're explaining a service or product thoroughly, the target terms will appear enough times without counting. Bottom line: stop calculating percentages. Use your main keyword where it makes sense semantically, focus on comprehensive topic coverage with related terms, and let density fall where it falls. If the content reads well and covers what users need, density takes care of itself.