Amazon backend keywords are hidden search terms entered in Seller Central that allow your listing to match search queries not covered by your title and bullet points. Amazon allows approximately 250 bytes; if you exceed this limit, Amazon ignores the entire field. Include synonyms, alternative names, and spelling variations. Omit brand names, ASINs, repetitive words, and subjective claims like "best." Below, you will find details on how the byte limit works (including for non-English characters), a "keep-or-skip" table, a step-by-step method for adding keywords to Amazon listings, and a practical example..
What Are Amazon Backend Keywords?
Backend keywords are terms you type into a field that is never visible to shoppers. Amazon's Seller Forum describes them as words entered into the generic keyword field when listing or updating ASIN-words that are indexed for matching purposes. Most sellers also refer to them as "search terms" or "hidden keywords."
They work alongside your visible copy (headline, bullets, description) rather than replacing it. Think of them as a place for useful words that do not fit naturally into the visible text.
How the 250-Byte Limit Works?
A byte is a unit of storage. For plain English letters and digits, one character equals one byte, which Amazon confirms: bytes correspond 1:1 for alphanumeric characters such as a-z and 0-9. Spaces also use one byte each.
Three points matter for Indian sellers:
- Stay a little under 250. Sources differ on the exact figure. Amazon’s forum guidance says 250 bytes, while some seller-tool sites say 249. Aim for 245 or less to be safe.
- Non-English scripts use more bytes. Devanagari letters take three bytes each in UTF-8. The word बोतल uses 12 bytes, while “bottle” uses 6. Amazon counts bytes, so Hindi script fills the field much faster.
- Limits can differ by marketplace or category. Check the field’s own counter or template on your listing screen.
To count bytes yourself, paste your terms into a byte counter or run len(text.encode("utf-8")) in Python.
What to Put in Search Terms?
Add words that help a shopper find your product but don’t already appear in your visible listing:
- Synonyms and alternate names. A “sipper,” “flask” and “thermos” may all describe the same product.
- Spelling variations. Amazon advises including spelling variations but not deliberate misspellings, because its systems already handle common customer errors.
- Use cases and audiences. Words like “gym,” “office” or “school” describe how people use the product.
- Hinglish forms.Many Indian shoppers type Hindi words in English letters. If both “mangalsutra” and “mangal sutra” are in use, include the one you haven’t used in the title. Check Amazon’s search suggestions to see which form shoppers actually type.
For ideas, start with Amazon’s own auto suggestion as it shows real search behaviour. If you run ads, your search term report shows what customers actually typed. Sellers enrolled in Brand Registry can also use Brand Analytics.
What Not to Put in Backend Keywords?
| Leave out | Why |
|---|---|
| Competitor brand names | Amazon’s seller forum tells dealers to remove competitor brand names from search terms. It risks a policy violation. |
| Your own brand and words already in the title | Amazon says redundant information already captured in the title or brand will not improve placement. |
| ASINs | Guidance summarised by SellerLogic says ASINs should not be entered as search terms. |
| Repeated words | Amazon says do not repeat words within the search terms field. Repeats waste bytes. |
| Commas, semicolons, hyphens | Amazon says spaces are enough and punctuation isn’t needed. |
| Stop words (“a,” “the,” “for,” “with”) | Amazon lists these as unnecessary. |
| Subjective or irrelevant words (“best,” “cheap”) | Amazon’s German seller guidance says to avoid irrelevant or subjective keywords, even with high search volume. |
Relevance matters more than volume. A popular term that doesn’t describe your product may bring clicks that never convert.
How to Add Keywords to Amazon Listings: Step by Step
- Make a list of words already present in your title, bullet points, and description. Since these are already covered, do not repeat them.
- Gather candidate keywords. Use Amazon Autosuggest, your advertising search term report, and your own knowledge of how customers describe the product.
- Remove any terms that already appear elsewhere. Eliminate words from Step 1 and any duplicates.
- Remove restricted items. Exclude competitor brands, your own brand, ASINs, and subjective claims.
- Write a single line separated by spaces. Do not use commas or other punctuation marks. Place your strongest keywords first.
- Count the bytes. Ensure the total is 245 bytes or fewer.
- Enter them into Seller Central. On many listing screens, navigate to the product edit page, go to the 'Keywords' tab, and use the 'Search Terms' field. On other screens, the field is labeled 'Generic Keywords' under the 'Product Details' tab.
- Review after a few weeks. Check your search term report and swap out any keywords that aren't working.
If you list many products, writing keywords one by one is slow. Barmeto’s Auto Listing tool is built for Indian sellers on Amazon, Flipkart and Meesho and generates a title, description and keywords for each product. Treat its output as a draft and run it through the checklist above, since Amazon’s rules and byte limits still apply.
Worked Example: A Steel Water Bottle
Suppose the visible title is “Stainless Steel Water Bottle 1 Litre Leakproof.” The words stainless, steel, water, bottle, litre and leakproof are already covered. A backend field could be:
flask thermos insulated sipper gym hot cold office school travel hydration kids
This string is 79 bytes in plain English, so it fits comfortably. There is room to add more terms, such as Hinglish names, but only if shoppers actually search them. Adding "बोतल" would cost 12 bytes, a fair trade if it matches real searches, but not a reason to fill the field with Devanagari.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Counting characters instead of bytes, which causes issues with the Hindi script and accented characters.
- Writing text that exceeds the limit. Amazon ignores the entire field, so a single extra word could result in all your backend keywords being disregarded.
- Habitually using commas. This wastes bytes.
- Forgetting to update. Customer search habits change with seasons and festivals, so review this field regularly.
- Adding broad terms that do not match the product. This can attract the wrong customers.
