Negative keywords are one of the simplest yet most powerful ways to prevent wasted ad spend in Google Ads. By telling Google which searches you don’t want your ads to appear for, you can focus your budget on clicks that are far more likely to convert.
In this article, we’ll break down what they are, how they work, and how using them strategically can improve your ROI and campaign performance.
What Are Negative Keywords?
In Google Ads, negative keywords are terms or phrases you add to your campaigns to block your ads from showing on irrelevant or low-value searches. They act as a filter—ensuring your ads only appear for queries that align with your offer, and not for those that are unlikely to convert.
Think of it like telling Google, “These are the searches I don’t want to pay for.” By removing irrelevant impressions and clicks, negative keywords can help advertisers:
- Avoid wasting budget
- Increase click-through rates
- Attract a more qualified audience
For example, if you sell premium leather shoes, you might add “cheap” or “free” as negative keywords. This way, your ads won’t show for bargain-hunting searches that are unlikely to match your product positioning. Over time, this fine-tuning can lead to more efficient spending and stronger ROI.
Adwords Negative Keywords Match Type
When fine-tuning your Google Ads campaigns, understanding negative keyword match types is crucial for controlling which search queries your ads do not appear for. Google offers three levels:
- Negative Broad Match: Blocks any search query that includes all the terms you specify, in any order, even with extra words added (e.g., a negative broad match for running shoes would block “blue running shoes” and “shoes running”).
- Negative Phrase Match: Prevents your ads from showing when the exact phrase appears in the same order within the search, though it may appear alongside other words (e.g., “running shoes” excludes “best running shoes near me” but not “shoes running”).
- Negative Exact Match: Most restrictive – your ad is only blocked if the search query exactly matches the negative keyword (e.g., [running shoes] blocks only that phrase and not “best running shoes”).
Choosing the right match type helps ensure you block irrelevant traffic without unintentionally excluding valuable searches.
How to Identify Negative Keywords
Finding the right negative keywords starts with looking at the actual searches that trigger your ads. In Google Ads, you can check the Search Terms Report to see which queries led to impressions and clicks. If you notice terms that don’t match your product or service, or that tend to bring in unqualified traffic, add them as negatives.
To speed up the process, use a free negative keyword tool to uncover irrelevant or low-converting search terms. These tools can scan your existing keyword lists, search term reports, or even competitor campaigns to suggest phrases worth excluding. Combining this with regular campaign monitoring ensures that your ads reach the most relevant audience while filtering out the noise.
You can check out these free negative keyword tools:
How to Add Negative Keywords
Knowing which terms to block is only half the job – adding them correctly in Google Ads ensures they work as intended.
Add from the Search Terms Report
In Google Ads, open your campaign and navigate to “Search Terms”. Review the list of queries that triggered your ads and identify any that are irrelevant or unlikely to result in conversions.
Select those terms, click “Add as negative keyword”, and choose whether to apply them at the ad group, campaign, or negative keyword list level.
Add at the campaign or ad group level
In Google Ads, open the specific campaign or ad group where you want to block certain searches.
Go to Keywords → Negative keywords and click the “+” button. Enter one negative keyword per line, then choose the match type: broad, phrase, or exact to control how strictly the term will block related searches.
Use a negative keyword list (scale across campaigns)
To manage exclusions more efficiently, go to Tools & settings → Shared library → Negative keyword lists and click the “+” button to create a new list.
Add your negative keywords, then apply the list to one or multiple campaigns so the same exclusions are enforced consistently across your account.
Set account-level negatives (Search & Shopping inventory)
If there are terms you never want your ads to show for, no matter the campaign, add them as account-level negatives.
In Google Ads, click the Admin icon, go to Account settings, and select Negative keywords. Add your “always-block” terms here once, and they’ll automatically apply to every Search and Shopping campaign in your account.
Shopping and Performance Max specifics
- Shopping campaigns – Go to your campaign, open Search keywords → Negative search keywords, and add the terms you want to exclude.
- Performance Max campaigns – Use Brand exclusions to block branded queries you don’t want your ads to appear for, or rely on account-level negatives to filter out non-brand terms.
Benefits of Negative Keywords
By filtering out irrelevant searches, you’re ensuring every click has a higher chance of turning into a sale or lead. This means you’re not paying for traffic that was never going to convert in the first place.
They also help improve your click-through rate (CTR) by showing your ads only to people who are actually interested in what you offer. Higher CTRs can lead to better Quality Scores, which in turn can lower your cost per click (CPC) and improve ad positions.
Additionally, negative keywords help keep your targeting sharp and your audience relevant. This creates a better experience for the people seeing your ads, because they’re not being shown offers that don’t match their search intent. Over time, this precision targeting can lead to stronger ROI, more consistent results, and a campaign that’s easier to optimize.
To Sum Up
Negative keywords are one of the simplest yet most impactful tools in Google Ads for improving ROI. By deliberately excluding searches that don’t align with your offer, you protect your budget, sharpen your targeting, and attract clicks that are far more likely to convert.
When used strategically alongside regular search term reviews and the right match types, they can transform a campaign from wasteful to efficient.
Use them the right way, and you’ll see the value of every advertising dollar.
FAQs on Negative Keywords
No. Negative keywords are mainly used for Search and Shopping campaigns. For Display and Video campaigns, they work differently, often using topic and placement exclusions instead.
Yes. Positive keywords target the searches you want, while negative keywords filter out the ones you don’t. This combination helps refine targeting for better results.
You should review and update it regularly (at least once or twice a month) based on your Search Terms Report and campaign performance.
Yes, if overused. Adding too many broad or poorly chosen negatives can block valuable traffic. Always check search intent before excluding terms.
