Where to Add Negative Keywords in Google Ads: A Step-by-Step Guide

You're staring at your Google Ads dashboard, watching your budget drain on clicks that'll never convert. Someone just searched "free PPC tools" and clicked your premium software ad. Another person looking for "marketing jobs near me" triggered your B2B service campaign. Sound familiar? The fix is simple: negative keywords. But here's where most advertisers get stuck—they know they need to add them, but they're not sure exactly where to do it or which location makes the most sense for their situation.

Google Ads gives you three distinct places to add negative keywords, and each one serves a different strategic purpose. Add them at the wrong level, and you might block too much traffic or miss opportunities to prevent wasted spend. Get it right, and you'll watch your cost-per-click drop while your conversion rate climbs.

This guide walks you through every location where you can add negative keywords in Google Ads—from the broad account-level lists that protect your entire advertising ecosystem to the surgical precision of ad group-level negatives. We'll cover exactly how to access each option, when to use each level, and how to verify your negatives are actually working. By the end, you'll know exactly where to add negative keywords for maximum impact with minimum effort.

Step 1: Access the Keywords Section in Your Google Ads Account

Before you can add negative keywords anywhere, you need to know where Google Ads keeps them. The interface can feel like a maze when you're new to it, but once you know the path, it becomes second nature.

Start by logging into your Google Ads account. On the left side of your screen, you'll see a vertical navigation menu. Look for the option labeled "Keywords, Audiences & Content" or simply "Keywords" depending on your account setup. Click it, and you'll see a dropdown menu appear with several options.

Here's where people often get confused: you'll see both "Search keywords" and "Negative keywords" as separate options. Search keywords shows you the positive keywords you're bidding on—the terms you want to trigger your ads. Negative keywords is the section you need for blocking unwanted traffic. Click "Negative keywords" to access your central management hub.

This view gives you a bird's-eye perspective of all negative keywords across your entire account. You'll see tabs for different levels: campaign-level negatives, ad group-level negatives, and account-level negative keyword lists. Think of this as your command center for traffic control.

One quick tip: bookmark this page or keep the path in mind, because you'll be coming back here regularly. Successful PPC advertisers check their negative keywords at least weekly, adding new terms as they discover irrelevant search queries triggering their ads. The more familiar you get with navigating here, the faster your optimization workflow becomes.

Step 2: Add Negative Keywords at the Campaign Level

Campaign-level negatives are your first line of defense against irrelevant traffic. When you add a negative keyword at the campaign level, it blocks that term across every ad group within that specific campaign. This is perfect when you know certain search terms will never be relevant to your campaign's entire focus.

To add campaign-level negatives, start by selecting the specific campaign you want to modify from your campaigns list. Once you're viewing that campaign, navigate back to the Keywords section and select "Negative keywords." You'll see a blue plus button—click it and choose "Add negative keywords."

A dialog box will appear where you can enter your negative keywords. Type each keyword on a separate line, or if you've already compiled a list in a spreadsheet, you can copy and paste the entire column at once. Google Ads will accept bulk entries, which saves massive amounts of time when you're adding dozens of negatives.

Here's where match types become critical. For negative keywords, match types work differently than they do for positive keywords. When you add a negative broad match keyword like "free," you're blocking any search query that contains the word "free" anywhere in it. Negative phrase match (entered with quotation marks like "free trial") blocks queries containing that exact phrase in that order. Negative exact match (entered with brackets like [free software]) only blocks that precise query with nothing before or after it.

Most advertisers default to negative broad match for maximum coverage, but there are situations where you need more precision. If you sell premium software and want to block "free software" but still show for "software free trial" (because trials convert for you), you'd use negative phrase match for "free software" specifically. Understanding what negative keywords are in Google Ads helps you make these strategic decisions.

When should you use campaign-level negatives? Think about terms that are fundamentally incompatible with your entire campaign objective. If you're running a campaign for enterprise software solutions, you might add campaign-level negatives like "small business," "startup," "cheap," and "DIY." These terms indicate searchers who aren't your target market, regardless of which specific product ad group they might trigger.

After entering your keywords and selecting match types, click "Save." Google Ads will immediately start applying these negatives to all ad groups within that campaign. Your ads will stop showing for those search queries within minutes.

Step 3: Add Negative Keywords at the Ad Group Level

Ad group-level negatives give you surgical precision in managing your traffic. This is where you prevent ad groups from cannibalizing each other's traffic and ensure the right ad shows for the right search intent.

To add negatives at the ad group level, navigate to the specific campaign first, then drill down into the individual ad group you want to modify. Once you're viewing that ad group, go to Keywords and select "Negative keywords" from the submenu. The process for adding keywords is similar to campaign-level: click the blue plus button and choose "Add negative keywords."

The key difference here is strategic. Ad group-level negatives should address overlaps and conflicts between ad groups within the same campaign, not broad category exclusions. Let's say you're running a campaign for a software company with separate ad groups for "project management software" and "task management software." These are related but distinct products with different features and pricing.

Without ad group-level negatives, someone searching "project management task tracking" might trigger ads from both ad groups, creating internal competition. Your quality score suffers, and you're essentially bidding against yourself. The solution: add "project management" as a negative phrase match keyword to your task management ad group, and add "task management" as a negative phrase match to your project management ad group.

This level of control becomes especially important when you're managing multiple product lines or service tiers. If you have separate ad groups for "beginner guitar lessons" and "advanced guitar lessons," you'd add "beginner" as a negative to the advanced ad group and "advanced" as a negative to the beginner ad group. This ensures beginners see beginner-focused ads with appropriate messaging and pricing, while advanced players see content relevant to their skill level.

Another common use case: excluding specific product models or features that don't apply to a particular ad group. If one ad group focuses on "wireless headphones" and another on "wired headphones," cross-contamination hurts your relevance scores. Add "wired" as a negative to the wireless ad group and "wireless" as a negative to the wired ad group. This approach is fundamental to keyword optimization in Google Ads.

The workflow here requires more thought than campaign-level negatives because you need to understand the relationships between your ad groups. Take time to map out your ad group structure and identify potential conflicts before adding negatives. A well-organized negative keyword strategy at the ad group level can improve your Quality Score, reduce your cost-per-click, and increase conversion rates by showing more relevant ads.

Step 4: Create and Apply Account-Level Negative Keyword Lists

Account-level negative keyword lists are your secret weapon for scaling negative keyword management across multiple campaigns. Instead of manually adding the same negatives to every campaign, you create reusable lists that apply universally wherever you need them.

To access this feature, click the wrench icon in the top right corner of your Google Ads interface to open "Tools & Settings." Under the "Shared library" section, you'll find "Negative keyword lists." Click it to view any existing lists or create new ones.

Click the blue plus button to create a new list. Give it a descriptive name that clearly indicates what it contains—something like "Brand Exclusions," "Job Seeker Terms," "Competitor Names," or "Free/Cheap Seekers." Good naming conventions become crucial when you're managing multiple lists across different campaigns.

Once you've named your list, start adding keywords. You can type them directly into the interface or upload a CSV file if you've already compiled your list elsewhere. The same match type rules apply here: broad match by default, phrase match with quotation marks, exact match with brackets. Having a solid negative keywords list for Google Ads ready to deploy saves hours of setup time.

Here's where account-level lists shine: after creating your list, you can apply it to multiple campaigns simultaneously. Click on the list name, then select "Apply to campaigns." A dialog box appears showing all your campaigns with checkboxes. Select every campaign where this list should apply, and click "Save."

Common universal negative keyword lists that most advertisers should maintain include terms indicating wrong intent, like searchers looking for jobs rather than products. A typical "Job Seeker" list might include: jobs, careers, employment, hiring, salary, resume, apply, openings, and positions. These terms rarely convert for product or service advertisers.

Another essential list: competitor brand terms. Depending on your strategy, you might want to block searches for competitor names to avoid wasting budget on brand comparison shoppers who are unlikely to convert. Add competitor company names, product names, and common misspellings to a "Competitor Exclusions" list. For more guidance, check out common negative keywords every campaign should have.

Price-sensitive searchers who won't convert often use terms like: free, cheap, discount, coupon, promo code, sale, clearance, and budget. If you're selling premium products or services, a "Price Shoppers" negative list saves significant budget.

The beauty of account-level lists is maintenance efficiency. When you discover a new universal negative term, you add it once to the appropriate list, and it immediately applies to all campaigns using that list. No need to update dozens of campaigns individually.

One important note: account-level lists don't replace campaign or ad group-level negatives—they complement them. Use account-level lists for truly universal exclusions that apply across your entire advertising strategy, then layer in campaign and ad group-level negatives for more specific traffic control.

Step 5: Add Negatives Directly from the Search Terms Report

This is where theory meets reality. The Google Ads search terms report shows you the actual queries people typed before clicking your ads, and it's the single most valuable tool for discovering new negative keywords. Every other method we've discussed tells you where to add negatives, but the search terms report tells you what to add.

To access it, go to Keywords in your left navigation menu, then select "Search terms" from the submenu. You'll see a table showing every search query that triggered your ads, along with performance metrics like impressions, clicks, cost, and conversions.

This is your goldmine for optimization. Sort the report by cost to see which queries are eating your budget. Look for patterns—terms that generated clicks but zero conversions, or queries that are completely irrelevant to your offering. These are prime candidates for negative keywords.

Here's the efficient workflow: check the box next to any irrelevant search term you want to block. You can select multiple terms at once. After selecting your unwanted queries, click the "Add as negative keyword" button that appears at the top of the table.

A dialog box opens asking where you want to add these negatives. You'll see options for campaign level, ad group level, or adding to an account-level negative keyword list. This is where strategic thinking matters. If the term is irrelevant to just this specific ad group, add it at the ad group level. If it's wrong for the entire campaign, choose campaign level. If it's something that should be blocked everywhere, add it to an account-level list.

The match type decision happens here too. Google Ads will suggest a match type based on the query, but you can adjust it. If someone searched "free project management software" and you want to block anything with "free" in it, change the suggestion to negative broad match "free" instead of the exact phrase.

Make reviewing your search terms report a weekly ritual, especially for active campaigns spending significant budget. New irrelevant queries appear constantly as Google's algorithm tests different variations and as search behavior evolves. Agencies managing client accounts often schedule specific times each week dedicated to search term review and negative keyword additions.

Pro tip: when you spot an irrelevant query, don't just add that exact phrase as a negative. Think about the root problem. If you see "project management software for students," the real issue might be "students" rather than the entire phrase. Adding "students" as a negative broad match blocks that term across all variations, preventing future waste from related queries like "student project management tools" or "project management for college students." This approach aligns with the best way to add negative keywords in Google Ads.

This reactive approach to negative keywords complements the proactive strategy of building universal lists. You can't predict every irrelevant query before launching campaigns, but you can systematically eliminate them as they appear in your search terms data.

Step 6: Verify Your Negative Keywords Are Working

Adding negative keywords is only half the battle. You need to confirm they're actually blocking the traffic you intended to block and not accidentally preventing legitimate clicks from reaching your ads.

Start by returning to the negative keywords section where you added your terms. Navigate to Keywords, then Negative keywords, and select the appropriate level (campaign, ad group, or account-level list). Your newly added negatives should appear in the table. If they don't, something went wrong during the save process—go back and add them again.

Check that match types are set correctly. This is where mistakes often hide. If you intended to add negative broad match but accidentally selected phrase match, you might not be blocking as much traffic as you thought. Click on any keyword to view or edit its match type.

The real verification happens in your search terms report over the following days. Wait 48-72 hours after adding negatives, then return to the search terms report and filter by date range to show only recent queries. Search for the terms you blocked—if you added "free" as a negative broad match, search the report for "free" to see if any queries containing that word still appear.

If blocked terms still show up, you've encountered one of several common issues. First, check which level you added the negative. If you added it at the ad group level but the query is triggering a different ad group, it won't be blocked. Similarly, campaign-level negatives don't affect other campaigns.

Match type confusion causes problems too. Negative exact match only blocks that precise query, so if you added [free software] as negative exact match, "free software download" will still trigger your ads. You'd need negative broad match or phrase match to catch variations. Learning how to read Google Ads reports properly helps you catch these issues faster.

Another verification method: use Google Ads' keyword planner or the "Search terms" preview tool to test whether your ads would show for specific queries. While not perfectly accurate, it gives you a quick sense check before spending real budget.

Watch your metrics over the next week after adding significant negatives. You should see your click-through rate improve as irrelevant impressions decrease. Your cost-per-click might rise slightly (you're removing cheaper, low-intent clicks), but your conversion rate should improve because you're attracting more qualified traffic. If you see the opposite pattern—conversion rate dropping after adding negatives—you may have been too aggressive and blocked relevant terms.

Common mistakes to watch for: adding negatives to the wrong campaign or ad group, forgetting to click "Save" after entering keywords, using the wrong match type for your intent, and accidentally blocking variations of your own product names. Always double-check your entries before saving, and review performance data after making changes to catch unintended consequences early. Avoiding these pitfalls is part of understanding common mistakes in Google Ads optimization.

Your Negative Keyword Action Plan

You now have the complete roadmap for adding negative keywords at every level in Google Ads. Start with your highest-spend campaigns—that's where negative keywords deliver the fastest ROI. Pull up your search terms report, sort by cost, and identify the top budget-wasters. Add those as negatives at the appropriate level based on how broadly they should apply.

Build out your account-level negative keyword lists next. Create lists for universal exclusions like job seeker terms, competitor names, and price-sensitive queries that never convert for your business. Apply these lists across all relevant campaigns to establish a baseline of protection against irrelevant traffic.

Then get granular with campaign and ad group-level negatives. Look for overlaps between ad groups within the same campaign and add cross-negatives to prevent cannibalization. Review each campaign's focus and add negatives that don't fit that specific objective.

Make this a weekly habit. Every Monday morning, spend 20 minutes reviewing your search terms report from the previous week. Add new negatives, refine existing ones, and watch your campaign efficiency improve week over week. The advertisers who consistently maintain their negative keyword lists are the ones who achieve the lowest cost-per-acquisition and highest return on ad spend.

The difference between amateur and professional PPC management often comes down to negative keyword discipline. Anyone can add positive keywords and launch campaigns. The pros systematically eliminate waste by knowing exactly where to add negative keywords and doing it consistently.

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