Quality Score Checker: see what holds each Google Ads keyword back

Google does not set a target number, and it says Quality Score is a diagnostic, not a key performance indicator. A low score is a sign to look at its three parts: below average expected CTR, ad relevance or landing page experience tells you whether to work on the ad, the keyword grouping or the page. Judge changes by conversions and cost per conversion, not the score.

A dash means there is not enough data yet. New keywords start without a score, and a score needs searches that exactly match the keyword, so a keyword with plenty of impressions can still show "—" if few were exact matches. A keyword also needs recent exact match impressions to keep its score. If it gets almost no searches, Google suggests Keyword Planner to find better ones.

Google suggests matching the language of your ad text more closely to what people search for, and splitting ad groups that hold keywords one ad cannot answer into tighter groups, one theme per ad group. If braces and clear aligners share an ad group, give each its own ad group with ads that use its words, so every ad speaks to every keyword in its group.

Send each ad group to the page that shows exactly what was searched for, not your home page, and keep the offer and wording of the ad on the page. Google also lists making the page easy to use on a phone and improving loading speed. Conversion rate is a useful guide, although Google says it does not change the landing page status itself.

This tool does not promise savings, because Quality Score itself is not used in the auction. Google uses real-time versions of expected CTR, ad relevance and landing page experience, together with your bid, when it works out Ad Rank. Fixing the weak part makes your ads more useful to searchers, so measure the effect in your own account by cost per click and cost per conversion.