Definition
What is Google Ads Quality Score?
Quality Score is the rating from 1 to 10 that Google Ads gives to assess how relevant an ad is to the searches it targets. It combines three components: expected click-through rate, ad relevance and landing page experience. Together with the bid, those components weigh on the position obtained and the cost actually paid per click.
The three components
- Expected click-through rate estimates how likely someone is to click on the ad when it shows.
- Ad relevance measures how closely the ad text matches the intent of the search.
- Landing page experience assesses whether the page the ad leads to is useful and delivers what the ad promises.
Google rates each one on three levels: above average, average or below average. The 1 to 10 score sums them up.
Where to find it in Google Ads
The score shows at the keyword level, in the keywords report, once the Quality Score columns are added. Google only calculates it when there are enough searches that exactly match the keyword: a keyword with little search volume can stay without a score.
What the score says and what it does not
Google presents Quality Score as a diagnostic tool. At each auction, the system assesses quality in real time using the same components: the displayed score is an average that shows where to look, not the exact figure used at that moment.
It says nothing about sales. A keyword rated 10 can bring in no customers; a keyword rated 5 can be the most profitable in the account.
Two accounting firms bid on the same search, “accountant for self-employed”. The first sends clicks to its homepage, and its ad talks about “financial services”. The second sends clicks to a page dedicated to self-employed workers, whose title echoes the words of the ad.
At an equal bid, the second has a better chance of winning a higher position and paying less for its click.
We read Quality Score as a diagnostic indicator, not a target. In the order of the numbers we track on a Google Ads account, it ranks fifth, after cost per acquisition, ROAS, conversion rate by ad group and impression share lost to budget. It shows where the cost can come down, not whether the channel is profitable.
The component we work on first is the landing page. A page whose title echoes the ad's promise acts on both the cost paid and the conversion rate. It is the most often neglected component.
Not to be confused with
- Ad Rank
- Ad Rank decides the position at each auction. It combines the bid, quality assessed in real time and other factors, whereas Quality Score is an average rating displayed for diagnosis.
- CTR
- CTR (click-through rate) is the rate actually observed on your ads. Expected click-through rate, which feeds into Quality Score, is a forecast by Google.
Related concepts
Further reading
- Google Ads: structure, exclude, measure
- Landing pages: message continuity before design
- Google Ads ROI: from the reported ROAS to real profit
- Google Ads keywords: the real lever is no longer the list, it is the exclusion
Related services
Frequently asked questions
How do I improve my Quality Score?
By tightening the link between the search, the ad and the page. Ad groups built around one intent and a landing page that echoes the ad's promise act on all three components at once.
Why does my keyword have no Quality Score?
Google only shows the score when there are enough searches exactly matching the keyword to assess it. A keyword with little search volume can therefore stay without a score.
