Search Autosuggest / Autocomplete
Search autosuggest is the list of suggested queries the App Store search bar shows as a user types, generated from real aggregate search behavior and usable as a free source of keyword candidates.
Typing a partial term into the App Store search bar surfaces Apple's own suggestions for how that search is commonly completed. Because these suggestions come from actual user search patterns, they reflect real phrasing rather than guesswork, including phrasing you might not have considered.
This is one of the lowest-effort keyword research sources available: type your core terms one at a time and record every suggestion that's relevant to your app. It costs nothing and requires no tooling beyond the App Store app itself.
Autosuggest terms still need to be scored for popularity and difficulty before you commit character space to them — the fact that Apple suggests a phrase means people search it, not that the demand or the ranking difficulty is favorable for your app specifically.
Frequently asked questions
- Is autosuggest data the same in every storefront?
- No. Suggestions reflect local search behavior in that storefront's language, which is why running autosuggest research separately per target market surfaces different phrasing than translating your primary-market findings.
Related terms
- ASO Keyword ResearchASO keyword research is the systematic process of identifying, scoring, and selecting the App Store keywords most likely to deliver organic installs given your app's current competitive position.
- Long-Tail KeywordsLong-tail keywords are multi-word, specific search phrases that individually have lower search volume than broad terms but collectively cover the majority of App Store searches and often have much lower ranking difficulty.
- Discovery CampaignA Discovery campaign is an Apple Search Ads campaign type built to surface new, unknown keywords by running Broad Match and Search Match against a wide audience rather than a fixed keyword list.
Browse the glossary
Put this into practice
Score App Store keywords by popularity and difficulty across 109 storefronts — the numbers behind search autosuggest / autocomplete.
Start keyword research