Google Ads glossary

Quality Score

In one sentence

Quality Score is a 1 to 10 rating given to each keyword: it estimates the quality of your ads and landing page compared with other advertisers.

The three components

Google rates each component “above average”, “average” or “below average”, by comparing you with other advertisers.

Expected click-through rate: How likely your ad is to be clicked when it shows for this keyword.
Ad relevance: How closely the ad matches the intent behind the search.
Landing page experience: How useful and relevant the page is, and how easy it is to navigate.

Google says Quality Score is a diagnostic tool, not a metric to optimize in itself, and that it does not feed the auction directly. Its three components count in the quality assessed at each auction.

Why it matters in Google Ads

Better quality can lower the price you pay to win a position. By contrast, keywords unrelated to your offer give weak ads and wasted clicks.

Intent matters: an ad that answers a buying search is more relevant than one that answers curiosity. Our Quality Score guide explains how to read it.

A concrete example

An ad reading “Plumber Quote in 24 Hours” that shows on “plumber quote Denver” and leads to a quote form is likely to have strong components. The same ad on “how to unclog a sink” gets few clicks, and the page does not answer the search.

Free tool: Ad preview

Write an ad that includes the keyword

The ad preview shows the desktop and mobile layout, counts characters and checks that the keyword appears in a headline.

Open the ad preview