How to Export and Import Keyword Lists in Google Ads Editor (Step-by-Step)

TL;DR: You can export keyword lists from Google Ads Editor as a CSV file, edit them offline, and re-import them using the built-in import function—all without touching the live interface. This guide walks you through the exact steps, what to watch out for, and how to make the whole process faster.

If you manage Google Ads campaigns at any real scale, you've probably hit a wall with the native interface. Adding or moving keyword lists across ad groups, applying match types in bulk, or migrating keywords between accounts—it's slow, repetitive work. Google Ads Editor was built to solve exactly this. It lets you work offline, make bulk edits, and push changes when you're ready.

But the export and import workflow isn't always obvious. The column headers trip people up. The file format matters. And if you import something wrong, you can end up with duplicate keywords, broken match types, or keywords landing in the wrong ad group.

This guide covers the full process: exporting keyword lists cleanly, editing them correctly, and importing them back without errors. Whether you're moving keywords between campaigns, sharing lists with a client, or building out a new account structure, these steps apply.

Step 1: Download and Set Up Google Ads Editor

Google Ads Editor is a free desktop application from Google. You can download it directly from the Google Ads support page—just search "Google Ads Editor download" and you'll land on the official page. It's available for both Windows and Mac.

Once installed, open Editor and sign in with your Google Ads account credentials. You'll be prompted to download your account data. This is where most people rush and then regret it.

Download only what you need. If you're working on a single client account or a specific set of campaigns, you don't need to pull the entire account. Select the campaigns and ad groups you're actually going to edit. This keeps things faster and reduces the noise when you're reviewing changes later.

Before you do anything else, click Get recent changes (found under the Account menu or in the toolbar). This syncs your local Editor session with whatever's live in the account. Skip this step and you're working with stale data—which means you risk overwriting changes someone else made, or uploading edits that conflict with the current account state.

In most accounts I audit, this is the step that gets skipped most often. Someone opens Editor, starts making changes from a session they had open last week, and then wonders why their upload created conflicts or reset settings they didn't intend to touch.

Once your data is downloaded and synced, you're ready to start working with keywords.

Step 2: Navigate to the Keywords Section and Select What to Export

In the left panel of Google Ads Editor, you'll see your account structure: campaigns, then ad groups nested underneath. Click on the campaign or ad group that contains the keywords you want to export.

Once you've selected the right level, click Keywords in the left navigation panel. This will populate the main view with all keywords in that campaign or ad group.

Here's a tip that saves a lot of time: if you want to export keywords from multiple campaigns at once, select the account level in the left panel before clicking Keywords. This shows every keyword across the entire account in a single view. You can then filter and select across campaigns without jumping around.

Use the filter bar at the top of the keyword list to narrow things down. You can filter by:

Match type: Useful if you only want to export exact match keywords, for example.

Status: Filter to active, paused, or removed keywords depending on what you're working with.

Labels: If you've been using labels to tag keyword groups, this is a fast way to pull a specific segment.

Once you've filtered down to the right set, select the keywords you want to export. Use the checkbox next to individual keywords, or hit Ctrl+A (Windows) / Cmd+A (Mac) to select everything in the current view.

What you see in this view is exactly what will export. So take a moment to confirm the filter is set correctly and you're not accidentally including keywords you don't want in the file. It's a small thing, but it saves cleanup work later.

Step 3: Export the Keyword List as a CSV

With your keywords selected, go to File > Export > Export Selected if you want only the keywords you've checked. If you want everything in the current view, choose Export Current View instead.

The keyboard shortcut is Ctrl+Shift+E on Windows or Cmd+Shift+E on Mac—worth memorizing if you do this regularly.

When the save dialog appears, save the file as a CSV. This is the format you'll need for re-importing. Don't save as anything else.

When you open the file, you'll see columns like:

Campaign: The campaign name exactly as it appears in the account.

Ad Group: The ad group name, also exact.

Keyword: The keyword text itself.

Match Type: Values will appear as 'Exact', 'Phrase', or 'Broad'.

Status: Active, Paused, etc.

Max CPC: The bid set at the keyword level.

Final URL: If a keyword-level URL is set.

Labels: Any labels applied to the keyword.

Here's the rule that matters most: do not delete or rename the column headers. Google Ads Editor uses these exact headers to map data during import. Change a header and the import will fail or misread the column entirely.

One more thing worth flagging: open the CSV in Google Sheets rather than Excel. Excel has a habit of auto-formatting cells in ways that corrupt data—especially with numbers, dates, or special characters in keyword text. Google Sheets is more predictable and keeps your data clean.

A common use case here: if you're exporting a list of exact match brand keywords to share with a new team member or duplicate into another account, this exported CSV is exactly the file you'd hand off. They can use it as a template, update the campaign and ad group names to match their account, and import it directly.

Step 4: Edit the CSV File Correctly

This is where most import errors originate. The editing step looks simple, but there are a few specific rules you need to follow or the import will break.

Open the CSV in Google Sheets (or a plain text editor if you're comfortable with that). Avoid Excel unless you have no other option.

Adding new keywords: Add new rows below the existing data. Each row represents one keyword. Fill in the Campaign and Ad Group columns with names that exactly match what's in your account—same capitalization, same spacing, no typos. If the campaign is named "Brand - Exact Match" in the account, it needs to say "Brand - Exact Match" in your CSV. Not "Brand Exact Match," not "brand - exact match."

Changing match types: Update the Match Type column to 'Exact', 'Phrase', or 'Broad'. Capitalization matters. Writing 'exact match' or 'EXACT' instead of 'Exact' can cause the import to default to Broad or throw an error. Keep it simple and consistent.

Moving keywords to a different ad group: Just update the Ad Group column value for those rows. The keyword will land in whichever ad group you specify—as long as that ad group exists in the account.

Bulk renaming campaigns or ad groups: Use find-and-replace in Google Sheets to update names across the file. This is especially useful when you're duplicating an account structure for a new client or a new market.

What usually trips people up here:

Empty rows: A blank row in the middle of your CSV can cause import errors or create phantom entries. Delete any empty rows before saving.

Extra spaces in cells: A trailing space in a campaign name means Editor won't match it to the existing campaign. Trim your data if you're copying and pasting from other sources.

Extra columns: Don't add columns that don't exist in the original export. Editor won't know what to do with them and may reject the file.

If you're building a net-new keyword list from scratch, use the exported file as your template. Replace the keyword values, update the campaign and ad group names, and keep the structure intact. You don't need to fill every column—just the required ones (Campaign, Ad Group, Keyword, Match Type).

Step 5: Import the Keyword List Back into Google Ads Editor

With your CSV ready, go to File > Import > Import CSV in Google Ads Editor. Select your edited file.

Editor will show you a preview of what's about to be imported. Don't skip this step. This preview is your last chance to catch problems before they get applied to your local session.

Look at the Errors and Warnings columns in the preview panel:

Errors will block the import entirely for those rows. Common causes include mismatched campaign or ad group names, invalid match type values, or missing required columns.

Warnings are advisory—the import will proceed, but something may not be quite right. Review these before clicking through.

Common errors I see in practice:

Campaign name mismatch: The CSV says "Brand Keywords" but the account has "Brand - Keywords." Editor can't find the campaign and flags the row.

Invalid match type: 'exact match' instead of 'Exact'. Happens constantly when people build CSVs from scratch without checking the format.

Missing required columns: If you accidentally deleted a required column header during editing, the whole import may fail.

Once you've reviewed the preview and resolved any flagged issues, click Process. This applies the import to your local Editor session. Nothing goes live yet. You're still in a safe, offline state where you can review and adjust.

If you're unsure about your CSV structure, import into a test campaign first. Create a throwaway campaign in Editor, import your file targeting that campaign, and verify the output looks right before running the real import. It's a low-risk way to validate your format without touching anything important.

Step 6: Review Changes and Post to Google Ads

After processing the import, navigate to the Keywords section and verify that the imported keywords appear correctly. Check the match types, bids, and ad group assignments. Spot-check a handful of rows against your CSV to confirm the data mapped as expected.

Then go to View > Changes to open the Changes panel. This gives you a full summary of everything that will be pushed live when you post. It's a useful sanity check, especially if you've been working in Editor for a while and want to make sure you're only posting the changes you intend to.

When everything looks right, click the Post button in the top right corner. You'll be given the option to post all changes or only selected changes. If you've made edits beyond just the keyword import, use the selected changes option to be surgical about what goes live.

After posting, jump into the live Google Ads interface and verify the keywords appear as expected in the correct campaigns and ad groups. Check a few match types, confirm statuses, and make sure nothing landed in the wrong place.

If something does look wrong after posting, the Change History in the live Google Ads UI can sometimes help you revert specific changes. But it's far better to catch issues in the Editor review step than to chase them down after they've gone live. Spending two minutes in the preview saves you twenty minutes of cleanup.

Faster Keyword Management Without the Spreadsheet Loop

Google Ads Editor is genuinely powerful for the use cases it was designed for: large structural changes, account migrations, offline bulk editing, and sharing keyword lists with clients or team members. The export-import workflow covered in this guide handles all of that well.

But for ongoing, day-to-day optimization work, the loop gets slow. Exporting a CSV to remove a handful of junk search terms, editing the file, re-importing, reviewing, and posting—that's a lot of steps for tasks that should take seconds.

For that kind of work, staying inside the native Google Ads interface with a tool that enhances it is usually faster. Keywordme is a Chrome extension that works directly inside the Search Terms Report, letting you remove junk search terms, add negatives, apply match types, and build keyword lists with one-click actions—no CSV exports, no switching tabs, no spreadsheet formatting to worry about.

The right tool depends on the task. For structural work and bulk migrations, Google Ads Editor and the CSV workflow are hard to beat. For ongoing search term review and keyword refinement, in-interface optimization is typically faster and less error-prone.

FAQ: Exporting and Importing Keywords in Google Ads Editor

Can I import keywords into a new campaign that doesn't exist yet in Editor?

Yes, technically. If your CSV includes the campaign name and the required campaign settings columns, Editor can create new campaigns during import. In practice, it's safer to create the campaign structure first, then import keywords into it. Fewer things can go wrong that way.

What file formats does Google Ads Editor accept for import?

Google Ads Editor supports CSV files. It does not directly import Excel (.xlsx) files. If your data is in Excel, save it as CSV before importing.

Why are my match types importing as Broad even though I specified Exact in the CSV?

The Match Type column values must be spelled exactly as 'Exact', 'Phrase', or 'Broad'. Any variation—like 'exact match', 'EXACT', or 'exact'—may cause Editor to default to Broad or throw an error. Check your CSV carefully if you're seeing unexpected match types after import.

Can I export negative keywords the same way?

Yes. Navigate to Negative Keywords in the left panel instead of Keywords, then follow the same export process. The column structure is similar, and the import process works the same way.

How do I import keyword lists into multiple ad groups at once?

Include multiple rows with different Ad Group values in your CSV. Each row represents one keyword in one ad group. If you want the same keyword in five ad groups, you need five rows—one per ad group.

Is there a limit to how many keywords I can import at once?

Google Ads Editor can handle large imports, but very large files—tens of thousands of rows—may take longer to process and can occasionally cause performance issues. If you're working with a very large keyword list, splitting it into batches is a reasonable precaution.

Your Complete Workflow Checklist

Here's the full process at a glance:

1. Download Google Ads Editor (free, from Google) and sign in to your account.

2. Click Get recent changes before touching anything—this syncs your local session with the live account.

3. Navigate to the correct campaign or ad group, click Keywords, and use filters to select exactly what you want to export.

4. Go to File > Export > Export Selected (or Export Current View), and save as CSV.

5. Open the CSV in Google Sheets—not Excel. Edit your keywords carefully: match campaign and ad group names exactly, use 'Exact', 'Phrase', or 'Broad' for match types, and remove any empty rows or trailing spaces.

6. Go to File > Import > Import CSV, select your file, and review the error and warning columns in the preview before clicking Process.

7. Check the Changes panel, then click Post when you're confident everything looks right.

8. Verify the imported keywords in the live Google Ads interface.

The most common mistakes happen in step 5. Wrong match type values, mismatched campaign or ad group names, and extra blank rows account for the majority of import failures. Take your time in the editing step and the rest of the process is straightforward.

For ongoing keyword optimization—cleaning up search terms, adding negatives, applying match types during active campaign management—the export-import loop adds friction you don't need. Start your free 7-day trial of Keywordme and handle those tasks directly inside Google Ads, without ever opening a spreadsheet.