Google Ads wasted-spend checker
Drop in your search terms report and see which searches cost you money with no real chance of becoming a customer. Think job hunters, DIY questions, parts shoppers and towns you don’t cover. You see what they cost you and get negative keyword lists ready to paste into Google Ads. Free, and your file never leaves your browser.
Updated 7 min read
Google Ads Wasted-Spend Checker
Free. About 2 minutes. Your report never leaves your browser.
Your file and answers stay in your browser unless you choose to send us a summary.
Want us to run your ads?Free check. Negative keywords ready to paste.
Check my search termsThe short answer
Most small Irish accounts lose money on the same few kinds of search. There are people looking for jobs or courses, and people who want to fix it themselves. Then there are shoppers looking for parts, and searches for towns you don’t cover. Download your search terms report, block those searches with negative keywords, and set your location targeting to Presence. Then check again every few weeks.
- Look at what people actually typedYour keywords are what you bid on. The search terms report shows what people really searched before they clicked.
- Block the pattern, not just the searchOne negative keyword like “jobs” stops every job search, including ones that haven’t happened yet.
- Fix the settings tooLocation targeting, search partners and AI Max decide how far your ads wander from what you sell.
What wasted spend looks like
Wasted spend is money paid for clicks from searches that were never going to become a customer. The searches change from trade to trade, but the patterns are the same.
| Kind of search | Example | Why it’s waste | The fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Job hunters | “plumber jobs cork”, “electrician apprenticeship” | They want work, not a tradesperson | Negatives like “jobs”, “apprenticeship” and “course” |
| DIY and how-to | “how to bleed a radiator” | They want to do it themselves | Negatives like “how to”, “diy” and “youtube” |
| Parts and shops | “screwfix cork”, “toilet parts woodies” | They want to buy something, not hire someone | Shop names as negatives, and “parts” as an exact search |
| Other places | “plumber limerick”, when you only cover Cork | You can’t do the job | Town negatives, and location targeting set to Presence |
| Outside Ireland | “gas safe engineer”, “plumber london” | British terms and places | Negatives like “gas safe” and “london” |
| Free and cheap | “free plumbing advice”, “cheap plumber” | Often price-only, but not always | Look first, then block the exact search if it never pays |
The checker also flags searches for things a State body or utility usually handles free. Think Uisce Éireann leaks or HSE dental care. And it flags searches that only make sense in Britain or the US.
How to download your search terms report
In Google Ads, go to Campaigns, then Insights and reports, then Search terms. Pick a date range, click Download, and choose .csv, Excel .csv or .xlsx. Then drop the file into the checker above.
- Open the report. In Google Ads, select Campaigns in the left menu, then Insights and reports, then Search terms.
- Pick the dates. The last 30 days is a good start. If you spend less than about €500 a month, use the last 90 so there’s enough to go on.
- Download it. Click the download icon above the table and choose .csv, Excel .csv or .xlsx.
- Check it here. Drop the file into the checker. It’s read in your browser and never uploaded.
Running Performance Max? Its searches are on the same page: pick “Search terms and landing pages for Performance Max” from the drop-down at the top. Google says Performance Max search terms are available from March 2023 onwards.
Phrase or exact: how negative keywords work
A negative keyword stops your ads showing for searches that contain it. A phrase match negative, in “quotes”, blocks any search with those words in that order. An exact match negative, in [brackets], blocks only that exact search. A broad match negative, with no symbols, blocks a search only if it contains all of its words, in any order.
| Negative keyword | Blocks | Doesn’t block |
|---|---|---|
| “jobs” | plumber jobs cork, jobs for plumbers | plumber job cork |
| [cheap plumber cork] | cheap plumber cork | cheap plumber in cork |
| plumbing courses | plumbing courses cork, courses in plumbing | plumbing course |
Negative keywords don’t match close variants like plurals. So add both forms of a word where it matters: “job” and “jobs”, “course” and “courses”. Use phrase match for words that are never right for you. Use exact match for one search that’s wrong, when its words also turn up in good searches.
Settings that stop waste before it starts
Negative keywords fix the searches you can see. These settings stop the next lot.
- Location targeting: PresenceGoogle’s default, “Presence or interest”, also shows your ads to people elsewhere who show an interest in your area. In each campaign’s settings, open Locations, then Location options, and pick Presence.
- Search partnersGoogle includes search partner sites by default in new Search campaigns. Compare them with Google Search using Segment, then Network (with search partners), and untick them if they bring clicks but no leads.
- AI Max and broad matchSince 1 September 2026, Google has been switching some campaigns over to AI Max. It affects campaigns that used automatically created assets or the campaign-level broad match setting. AI Max matches searches beyond your keywords. You can turn its search term matching off for each ad group.
- Conversion trackingWithout call and form tracking, nobody can tell a good search from a bad one: not you, not Google, and not this checker.
- Account-level negativesWords like “jobs” are wrong for every campaign. Add them once under Admin, then Account settings, then Negative keywords, and check each one is set to phrase match. You can have up to 1,000 there, and they cover Performance Max too.
How often to check
Weekly for the first month of a new campaign, then every two to four weeks. New searches turn up all the time, so one clean-up is never the end of it.
Check again after any big change, like switching on AI Max or moving to broad match. Google suggests waiting two weeks after switching AI Max on before adding negatives, so it has time to show what it’s matching.
When to get help, and what it costs
It’s worth handing it over in three cases. A big share of your spend is going on waste. You have no conversion tracking. Or you simply don’t have time to check every few weeks.
We run Google Ads for Irish businesses from €250 a month for 1–2 of your services. Or it’s €400 a month for as many services as you want. You pay Google directly, with no markup on your ad spend and no minimum term. Prices exclude VAT. Not sure yet? Ask for a free Google Ads check and Essa will look over the account and tell you what to fix.
Questions people ask
Something else on your mind? Email info@leadsireland.com.
What is wasted spend in Google Ads?
Money paid for clicks from searches that were never going to become a customer. Think people looking for jobs or courses, or people who want to do it themselves. It also covers shoppers looking for parts, and searches for places you don’t cover.
Is my search terms file uploaded anywhere?
No. The checker reads the file in your browser and never uploads it. It keeps a short summary (the date, the totals and your answers) in your browser, so it can compare your next check. You can delete that with one click. Nothing is sent to us unless you use one of the forms. Even then, only a short summary and the negative keywords you ticked are sent, not the file.
How much wasted spend is normal?
Some is unavoidable, because Google matches searches loosely. What matters is whether it shrinks. If the same kinds of search keep turning up month after month, your negative keywords and settings need work.
Should I use phrase or exact match negative keywords?
Use phrase match for words that are never right for you, like “jobs” or “diy”. Use exact match for a single search that’s wrong for you but whose words also appear in good searches.
Can I add negative keywords to Performance Max?
Yes. You can add up to 10,000 negative keywords to each Performance Max campaign. Account-level negative keywords, up to 1,000, apply to Performance Max too.
Why are some searches marked “worth a look”?
They might be waste, but they can also bring good customers, like “cheap plumber” or a town name that’s also an everyday word. You decide. If you tick them, they’re added as exact searches, so nothing else is blocked.
What are “Other search terms”?
Searches Google doesn’t show you one by one. The checker counts what they cost in your total, but it can’t check them, which is why account-level negatives and tight match types matter.
Can I check again next month?
Yes. Download a fresh report and run it again. On the same device, the checker fills in your answers from last time. It shows how much of your spend went to waste then and now. So you can see whether the clean-up worked.
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Rather someone checked it for you?
Essa looks at what you’re paying for and what it brings in: search terms, location settings and tracking. Or book a free 20-minute call to talk it through.
- Search terms, location settings and tracking checked
- A reply within one working day
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