Negative keywords are terms you add to a Google Ads campaign to prevent your ads from appearing when those words are included in a search. They stop your budget from being spent on searches that are irrelevant to your business.
How are negative keywords different from regular keywords?
Regular keywords tell Google which searches you want to appear for. Negative keywords tell Google which searches you do not want to appear for. If you are advertising a luxury spa in Bangkok, for example, adding "cheap" and "free" as negative keywords prevents your ads from showing to users searching for low-cost options. Without negatives, Google will match your ads to a wide range of searches, many of which will never convert.
What types of negative keywords are there?
Negative keywords follow the same match type logic as regular keywords. Negative broad match blocks searches that include the negative term in any order. Negative phrase match blocks searches that contain the exact phrase.
Negative exact match only blocks searches that match the term precisely. Most accounts benefit from a combination, using broad and phrase negatives to block the highest volumes of irrelevant traffic.
[Screenshot: Google Ads Search Terms report showing a list of actual searches that triggered ads, including irrelevant terms with spend and zero conversions highlighted. Alt text: Google Ads search terms report showing actual search queries that triggered ads, with irrelevant terms listed alongside their spend and conversion data.]
What happens if I do not use negative keywords?
Without negatives, a campaign will typically waste a significant portion of its budget on searches that will never lead to a conversion. This inflates cost-per-click figures and makes performance data harder to interpret. It also affects Quality Score over time, as Google registers low engagement rates on irrelevant searches. Reviewing the Search Terms report regularly to identify and add negatives is one of the most consistent improvements available in a Google Ads account.
Where should I add negative keywords?
Negatives can be added at campaign level, ad group level, or to a shared negative keyword list that applies across multiple campaigns. Campaign-level negatives apply to all ad groups within the campaign. Shared lists are useful for terms you want to block universally, such as competitor brand names or irrelevant product categories. We build and refine negative keyword lists as part of ongoing Google Ads management, typically reviewing the Search Terms report weekly for active campaigns.
Related KB articles:
• What is Quality Score in Google Ads and How Do I Improve It
• What is Smart Bidding in Google Ads
External links:
• Google Ads Help, negative keywords