Google Ads
Google Ads Audit Checklist: Complete PPC Account Review (2026)
SocialRails Team
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TL;DR - Quick Answer
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Google Ads Audit Checklist: Complete Account Review
Running Google Ads but not sure if you're wasting money? This checklist helps you find problems and opportunities in your account.
Use it quarterly, or whenever performance drops. Combine with our competitor analysis guide for a complete picture.
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Before diving into details, check these critical metrics:
Quick Knowledge Check
Test your understanding
Your search CTR is 0.8% and Quality Score averages 4. What should you fix first?
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Hint: Quality Score affects CTR, ad position, and cost. Always fix this first.
Account Structure Audit
Campaign Organization
Check:
- Campaigns organized by theme, product, or goal
- Clear naming conventions used
- No overlapping targeting between campaigns
- Separate campaigns for Search, Display, Shopping
- Brand and non-brand campaigns separated
Why it matters: Poor structure leads to budget waste and reporting confusion.
Ad Group Structure
Check:
- 10 to 20 keywords maximum per ad group
- Keywords closely related within each group
- No keyword duplication across ad groups
- Ad copy matches keyword themes
- Landing pages match ad group intent
Red flag: Ad groups with 50+ unrelated keywords.
Keyword Audit
Keyword Performance
Check:
- Identify keywords with 0 conversions (last 90 days)
- Find keywords with high spend, low conversions
- Check keywords with CTR under 1%
- Review keywords with Quality Score under 5
- Analyze keyword match type distribution
Action items:
Negative Keywords
Check:
- Negative keyword list exists
- Search term report reviewed (last 30 days)
- Irrelevant search terms added as negatives
- Negative lists applied at account or campaign level
- No conflicting negative keywords blocking good terms
Common negative categories:
- Competitor names (unless intentional)
- "Free" searches (if not free product)
- Job-related searches (hiring, salary)
- DIY/how-to searches (if selling services)
- Wrong locations
Match Types
Check:
- Mix of match types being used
- Exact match for proven converters
- Phrase match for controlled expansion
- Broad match only with smart bidding
Recommended distribution:
Quick Knowledge Check
Test your understanding
You find a keyword with $500 spend and 0 conversions in 90 days. What do you do?
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Hint: Be ruthless with zero-conversion keywords. Money saved is money you can spend on winners.
Ad Copy Audit
Ad Effectiveness
Check:
- At least 3 responsive search ads per ad group
- 15 headlines and 4 descriptions used
- Ads include target keywords in headlines
- Clear call-to-action in every ad
- No disapproved ads
- Ad strength rated "Good" or "Excellent"
Ad Extensions
Check:
- Sitelinks added (minimum 4)
- Callout extensions active
- Structured snippets relevant
- Call extensions (if phone calls matter)
- Location extensions (if local business)
- Price extensions (if applicable)
- Image extensions enabled
Impact: Extensions can improve CTR by 10% to 15%.
A/B Testing
Check:
- Multiple ad variants running
- Testing different value propositions
- Winners identified and losers paused
- New tests started regularly
Bidding & Budget Audit
Budget Efficiency
Check:
- No campaigns "Limited by Budget" with high ROAS
- Low-performing campaigns don't consume most budget
- Budget aligned with performance potential
- Shared budgets used appropriately
Red flag: Top campaign is budget-limited while poor performers have excess budget.
Bidding Strategy
Check:
- Bidding strategy matches campaign goals
- Enough conversion data for smart bidding (30+ conversions/month)
- Target CPA/ROAS set appropriately
- Bid adjustments make sense (device, location, time)
Strategy alignment:
Bid Adjustments
Check:
- Device bid adjustments reflect performance
- Location adjustments for high/low performers
- Schedule adjustments for peak hours
- Audience bid adjustments optimized
Quick Knowledge Check
Test your understanding
Your best campaign is 'Limited by Budget' but you have 3 campaigns spending money with low ROAS. What do you do?
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Hint: Never let top campaigns be budget-limited while poor performers spend freely.
Landing Page Audit
Page Experience
Check:
- Landing pages load in under 3 seconds
- Mobile-friendly design
- Clear above-the-fold value proposition
- Form length appropriate for offer
- No broken links or images
Message Match
Check:
- Headline matches ad copy
- Offer matches what ad promises
- CTA is clear and prominent
- Trust signals present (reviews, logos, security)
Impact: Message match significantly improves conversion rates. Compare your Facebook CTR benchmarks for cross-platform context.
Conversion Tracking Audit
Tracking Setup
Check:
- Conversion tracking is active
- All important actions tracked (forms, calls, purchases)
- Conversion values assigned accurately
- Attribution model appropriate for business
- Enhanced conversions enabled
- Google Analytics 4 connected
Conversion Quality
Check:
- Conversion actions still relevant
- No duplicate conversions being counted
- Conversion window appropriate
- Primary vs secondary conversions set correctly
Red flag: Conversion count doesn't match actual leads/sales.
Audience Audit
Audience Targeting
Check:
- Remarketing audiences created
- Customer match lists uploaded
- Similar audiences utilized
- Audience exclusions set (existing customers if needed)
- Observation audiences for data collection
Audience Performance
Check:
- Review audience performance reports
- High-performing audiences have bid increases
- Poor-performing audiences excluded
- Audience lists are not too small (1,000+ users)
Account Settings Audit
Location Targeting
Check:
- Correct geographic targeting
- "Presence" vs "Interest" setting appropriate
- Location exclusions set
- Location bid adjustments reflect value
Schedule Settings
Check:
- Ad schedule reflects business hours (if relevant)
- Time zone correct
- Schedule bid adjustments based on data
Network Settings
Check:
- Search Partners performance reviewed
- Display Network not mixed with Search (unless intentional)
- YouTube targeting appropriate
Wasted Spend Audit
Quick Waste Identifiers
Calculating Waste
Formula:
Wasted Spend = Spend on 0-conversion elements / Total Spend
Target: Under 10% wasted spend
Quick Knowledge Check
Test your understanding
Your audit reveals 30% wasted spend. Where do you look first?
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Hint: The search term report is your first stop for finding wasted spend. Review it weekly.
Priority Action List
After your audit, prioritize fixes:
High Priority (Fix This Week)
- Pause keywords with 0 conversions and significant spend
- Add negative keywords from search term report
- Fix broken conversion tracking
- Address disapproved ads
Medium Priority (Fix This Month)
- Improve low Quality Score keywords
- Add missing ad extensions
- Optimize bid adjustments based on data
- Create missing remarketing audiences
Low Priority (Ongoing)
- Test new ad copy variations
- Expand keyword lists strategically
- Refine audience targeting
- Improve landing page experience
Audit Frequency
Key Takeaways
- Audit quarterly minimum - More often if spend is high
- Start with wasted spend - Quick wins improve ROI fast
- Check conversion tracking first - Bad data leads to bad decisions
- Focus on structure - Good organization enables optimization
- Document findings - Track changes and results
- Prioritize by impact - Fix big leaks before small optimizations
Related Resources
Advertising Guides
- Google Ads Competitor Analysis
- Facebook CPM Benchmarks
- Facebook CTR Benchmarks
- Google Ads Competitor Analysis
Tools
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