Can someone explain google keyword planner?

it's the free keyword tool inside google ads. you give it a seed phrase, it gives back related phrases with a monthly search volume and how competitive the ads are. you need a google ads account, but you don't have to run ads, just skip the campaign setup when it pushes you. catch: without spend it shows ranges like 1K to 10K rather than exact numbers. still fine for working out which of two phrases is bigger, and you can filter by country or city, which is what makes it useful for a small local client.