Quality Score

Definition

Quality Score is a Google Ads metric that measures the relevance and quality of your ads, keywords, and landing pages. Scored from 1 to 10, it reflects how well your ad experience matches user intent. Higher scores signal to Google that your ad is useful to searchers, which can improve ad placement and reduce cost per click.

Why It Matters

Quality Score isn’t just a vanity metric, it has a direct impact on how well your campaigns perform and how much you pay. A higher score can land your ads in stronger positions for less money, helping you reach more of the right people without burning through budget. On the flip side, a low score means higher costs and less visibility, which makes it harder to stay competitive.

Example

Say you’re running Google Ads for a digital marketing agency. You target the keyword “PPC strategy consulting.” If your ad copy matches that intent and sends people to a relevant, well-optimised landing page, Google could reward you with a Quality Score of 8 or 9. That bump means lower CPCs, better rankings, and stronger click-through rates. But if the ad feels off-target or the landing page isn’t aligned, your score could slip to a 4 or 5, and suddenly you’re paying more for fewer results.

Additional Insights

Quality Score isn’t fixed, it shifts based on factors like expected click-through rate, ad relevance, and the quality of your landing page. The good news is, you can actively improve it. Regularly testing ad copy, fine-tuning keyword targeting, and making landing pages faster and more user-friendly all help push your score up. Think of it as a pulse check for your Google Ads account: the better the experience you deliver, the more efficiently your campaigns will perform.

Bottom Line

Quality Score is a critical lever for efficiency in Google Ads. Optimising it means better visibility, lower costs, and campaigns that actually connect with the right audience. High-quality ads aren’t just rewarded by Google — they reward your business.