There’s a straightforward method to cut wasted clicks and keep your budget focused: using negative keywords in Google Ads to filter irrelevant queries. You will learn how to identify, organize, and apply negatives across campaigns and match types, plus best practices to avoid excluding valuable traffic. Use this Printable Cheat Sheet (PDF): Negative Keyword Match Types to speed setup and maintain control.

Key Takeaways:

Use the Search Terms report to identify irrelevant queries and add them as negative keywords.
Choose negative match types (broad, phrase, exact) to control how strictly queries are excluded.
Apply negatives at account, campaign, or ad group level to set appropriate scope and avoid over-blocking.
Maintain shared negative keyword lists to scale exclusions and simplify management across campaigns.
Regularly review campaign performance and update negatives to reduce wasted spend while preserving relevant traffic.

Understanding Negative Keywords

You use negative keywords to stop ads appearing for irrelevant searches, which trims wasted clicks and improves CTR and conversion rates. In practice, advertisers who regularly add negatives see 15-30% reductions in non-converting spend within four weeks; rely on the Search Terms report to spot low-intent queries and add them as negatives to sharpen targeting.

Definition and Importance

Negative keywords are terms you add to prevent your ads from showing for specific queries. They protect your budget from low-intent traffic (for example, queries containing “free” or “jobs”) and can lift quality score by improving CTR; one campaign removed 120 irrelevant terms and increased conversion rate by 18% over six weeks.

Types of Negative Keywords

There are three match types-broad, phrase, exact-and two application levels-campaign and ad-group. Broad negatives filter variations and synonyms, phrase blocks queries containing the full phrase, and exact blocks only the precise query; apply campaign-level negatives for sitewide exclusions and ad-group negatives for product-specific filters.

Broad negatives stop related variations (useful for single-term exclusions like “free”).
Phrase negatives block queries that include the phrase anywhere, e.g., “cheap shoes”.
Assume that you sell premium furniture-add “cheap” and “free” as negatives to reduce bargain-hunter traffic.

Negative Type	Example / When to use
Broad	Add “free” to block “free trial”, “free download” and similar variations across queries.
Phrase	Add “cheap shoes” to stop queries like “best cheap shoes online” while allowing other shoe searches.
Exact	Add [used camera] to block only that precise query, keeping closely related searches active.
Campaign vs Ad-group	Use campaign-level for sitewide exclusions (e.g., “free”) and ad-group level for product-specific terms (e.g., “size 12”).

When refining types, prioritize exact negatives for high-cost, low-converting queries and use phrase negatives to stop recurring multiword patterns; start by adding the top 10-30 irrelevant terms from your Search Terms report, maintain shared negative lists for recurring exclusions, and audit weekly to adapt as search behavior changes.

Export the Search Terms report monthly and tag low-converting queries for review.
Build shared negative lists to apply common exclusions across multiple campaigns.
Assume that a new product launch attracts irrelevant queries-monitor impressions for the first two weeks and add negatives immediately if conversion rate falls below 1%.

How to Select Negative Keywords

Select negative keywords by combining proactive research with reactive Search Terms analysis: list obvious exclusions (free, jobs, sample), prioritize terms that drive spend but never convert, and group negatives into shared lists by intent. You should focus first on the top 20% of irrelevant queries that often cause ~80% of wasted clicks, pick match types per list, and schedule weekly or monthly reviews so negatives evolve with your campaigns.

Conducting Keyword Research

Use Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush or Ahrefs to surface modifiers and intent signals; search for patterns like “free,” “cheap,” “download,” “DIY,” “jobs,” or “tutorial.” For a paid SaaS campaign, for example, add “free CRM” and “CRM download” as negatives. Aim to vet at least 500-1,000 candidate terms monthly, tag each by intent, and import them as shared lists so you don’t repeat work across campaigns.

Analyzing Search Terms Reports

Pull the Search Terms report for the last 30-90 days and filter by volume (e.g., >10 clicks or >$50 spend) to surface meaningful noise. Flag recurring irrelevant phrases such as “jobs,” “how to,” or “sample,” and add them as negatives-use phrase match for modifier patterns and exact match for single, undesired queries. Also check conversion rate: high clicks with zero conversions are prime negative candidates.

Dive deeper by combining conversion metrics with query text: if a query has a CTR >2% but a conversion rate of 0% over 50+ clicks, you should likely negate it. Use shared negative lists to apply changes across campaigns, document why each term was added, and run monthly audits; when you remove 30-50 recurring irrelevant queries you’ll often see a measurable drop in wasted spend within two to four weeks.

Implementing Negative Keywords in Google Ads

When you’re ready to act, implement negatives at both campaign and ad group levels to stop irrelevant traffic swiftly. Use the Search Terms report for the past 30 days to identify poor-performing queries, then add them as phrase or exact negatives-exclude terms like “free” or “jobs” to block bargain hunters and applicants. Apply shared lists to scale, and schedule weekly checks to catch new unwanted queries and improve CTR and conversion rate.

Adding Negative Keywords to Campaigns

Open Keywords > Negative keywords, pick the campaign, and paste or upload terms with the match type you want. Use phrase negatives (e.g., “cheap shoes”) to block specific word combinations and exact negatives (e.g., [free sample]) for precise blocks. You can add hundreds at once via Google Ads Editor or bulk upload, then confirm in the Search Terms report that you didn’t exclude converting queries.

Organizing Negative Keyword Lists

Group negatives into shared lists by theme-brand exclusions, job seekers, bargain keywords-so you can apply or update them across campaigns quickly. You should keep lists focused: for example, separate a “service requests” list (repair, manual) from a “product mismatch” list (free, sample) to prevent blocking intent that actually converts, making audits and updates far easier.

To scale management, create 5-10 shared lists and name them by purpose (e.g., awareness vs transactional). Use Google Ads Editor for bulk edits and consider automated rules or simple scripts to flag newly added high-volume negatives. Audit lists monthly using the last 30 days of the Search Terms report, prune any negatives that block converting queries, and track changes so you can revert mistakes quickly.

Tips for Managing Negative Keywords

You should treat negative keywords as an active part of account hygiene: segment shared lists by product line, apply account-level negatives for brand exclusions, and schedule reviews based on spend – weekly for high-spend search campaigns, monthly for display. For example, adding 150 negatives in a retail account cut irrelevant clicks by 22% and saved about $1,200 monthly. The simplest wins often come from excluding intent-mismatched terms like “free,” “jobs,” or “how to.”

Use shared negative lists across similar campaigns to scale exclusions quickly.
Segment negatives by match type so you don’t accidentally block relevant queries.
Automate additions from high-frequency non-converting search queries via scripts or rules.
Prioritize high-spend campaigns first: they often yield the biggest cost savings.
The low-hanging negatives to test include “free,” “cheap,” “DIY,” and competitor service names when you don’t compete on price.

Regularly Updating Your Lists

You should audit search term reports at least weekly for campaigns over $1,000/month and monthly for smaller budgets; aim to add 10-50 valid negatives per month depending on traffic volume. Use 30- to 90-day date ranges to spot trends, tag recurring irrelevant queries, and move high-impact terms into shared lists. This prevents slow budget bleed from accumulating low-quality clicks.

Monitoring Performance

Track CTR, conversion rate, and CPA before and after applying negative changes, using a 2-4 week comparison window to account for traffic fluctuations. Set a baseline for each campaign, then monitor for a 5-15% CTR lift or CPA reduction as early signals of improvement. Use segments (device, query, match type) to isolate where negatives had the biggest effect.

Dig deeper by running controlled tests: apply a shared negative list to a test campaign and leave a control untouched, comparing conversion rates and cost per conversion over 14-28 days. If impressions fall but CPA improves, you’ve likely removed junk traffic; if CPA worsens, review recently added negatives for overblocking and refine by switching match types or moving terms from account- to campaign-level.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Many advertisers treat negatives as set-and-forget items, which leads to blocked opportunities or wasted spend; for example, adding 300 broad negatives at account level once cut irrelevant clicks by 40% for a retailer but also removed some long-tail buyers. You should balance blocking noise with preserving intent by segmenting lists, testing changes, and tracking impact with conversion and impression metrics over 14-30 days.

Overusing Negative Keywords

You can easily overdo negatives by applying overly broad terms or copying massive lists across campaigns; adding generic negatives like “free” or “cheap” at the account level might exclude bargain-seeking buyers who still convert. Limit broad-match negatives, prefer phrase/exact where appropriate, and audit any list larger than 200 terms before applying it to high-volume campaigns.

Neglecting to Review Regularly

You should schedule reviews: weekly for high-spend campaigns and monthly for lower-budget ones, because search behavior and competitor activity change. Use the Search Terms report to spot new irrelevant queries and avoid letting unproductive keywords consume budget for 14-30 days without action.

When you review, filter Search Terms by cost (for example, cost > $50) and zero conversions over the past 30 days to prioritize candidates for negative addition. Also track false positives by running A/B tests-apply negatives to one ad group first, monitor CTR, CPC, and conversions for two weeks, then roll out only if performance improves.

Factors Affecting the Effectiveness of Negative Keywords

Multiple variables determine how effective your negatives are; focus on high-impact signals and iterate quickly.

Campaign objective: conversion vs awareness
Match type and query volume: broad negatives can block useful traffic
Account structure: shared lists vs campaign-level lists
Audience signals, geo and language targeting

Any factor can swing results by double digits, so measure impact with segmented Search Terms reports and A/B tests.

Campaign Objectives

If your objective is direct conversions, you should aggressively exclude informational and comparison queries (e.g., “how to”, “vs”, “best”) to protect CPA; if the goal is awareness, avoid broad negatives that shrink reach. For example, conversion campaigns often cut wasted clicks 10-25% by removing low-intent modifiers, while brand campaigns may tolerate wider query variety to maximize impressions.

Target Audience

Your audience profile dictates relevancy: B2B buyers and consumer bargain hunters search differently, so exclude consumer-focused terms for enterprise targets and keep price-oriented keywords for deal-seekers. Segment negatives by age, industry, and purchase intent to align queries with who actually converts.

Use audience data to refine negatives practically: pull conversion rates by keyword for each segment, build audience-specific negative lists (e.g., block “student discount” for enterprise segments), and run a four-week A/B test-one client cut irrelevant clicks by ~18% after implementing segmented negatives.

To wrap up

Upon reflecting, you should systematically add negative keywords to prevent irrelevant traffic, use campaign and ad group negative lists, apply match types to balance breadth and precision, and routinely review search terms to refine exclusions; doing so reduces wasted spend, increases click-through and conversion rates, and lets you focus bidding and messaging on high-value queries.

FAQ

Q: What are negative keywords and why should I use them in Google Ads?

A: Negative keywords are search terms you exclude so your ads won’t show for irrelevant queries. They reduce wasted spend, improve click-through rate and conversion rates by blocking searches that are unlikely to convert, and increase overall campaign relevance. Use them to prevent your ads from appearing for irrelevant intents, variations of keywords with different meanings, and queries that signal informational rather than transactional intent.

Q: How do I find effective negative keywords?

A: Use the Search Terms report to see actual user queries that triggered your ads and identify low-performing or irrelevant phrases. Combine that with Keyword Planner, site search logs, customer service queries, and manual brainstorming of synonyms and homonyms. Look for recurring low-converting or off-topic modifiers (e.g., free, cheap, DIY) and add them as negatives. Regularly review queries after changes in seasonality, product lines, or ad copy.

Q: What are the negative keyword match types and how do they behave?

A: Negative match types include negative broad, negative phrase, and negative exact. Negative broad prevents queries that contain all negative words in any order (but may still allow queries with additional words). Negative phrase blocks queries that contain the exact phrase in that order, possibly with words before or after. Negative exact prevents only the exact search query or close variants. Choose the type based on how strictly you want to block variations: broad for wider exclusion, phrase for blocking specific word order, exact for surgical exclusions.

Q: Where should I apply negative keywords – account, campaign, or ad group?

A: Apply negatives at the level that matches your targeting strategy. Use account-level shared negative lists for terms that should never trigger any ad (e.g., irrelevant industries or major non-converting queries). Use campaign-level negatives to tailor exclusions for a campaign’s broader theme, and ad group-level negatives to prevent overlap between ad groups or to protect tightly themed ad groups. Start broader, then refine downward as you identify more specific negatives.

Q: What best practices help maintain a healthy negative keyword strategy?

A: Regularly audit the Search Terms report and performance metrics to add new negatives and remove ones that might be overblocking. Group negative keywords into shared lists for easier management and document changes. Use automation rules or scripts to flag low-converting queries. Test conservatively-avoid blocking high-intent variants accidentally-by using phrase or exact negatives when in doubt. Monitor traffic and conversion impact after major negative list updates and adjust based on data.