Does Quality Score affect Smart Bidding campaigns?

Yes. Quality Score influences Ad Rank, which matters in every auction regardless of bidding strategy. A higher Quality Score means Smart Bidding can achieve better positions at lower costs.

June 14, 2026

Google Ads Quality Score: How to Improve It Fast

By Conversite · 5 minute read

If you've ever wondered why two advertisers bidding the same amount end up with completely different ad positions and costs, Quality Score is usually the answer.

A high Quality Score means Google rewards you with better placements at lower costs. A low one means you pay more for worse positions — even if your bid is competitive.

This guide explains exactly what Quality Score is, how each component is calculated, and the fastest ways to improve it.

What Is Google Ads Quality Score?

Quality Score is Google's rating of the quality and relevance of your keywords, ads, and landing pages. It's scored on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the best.

It directly influences two things:

Ad Rank — where your ad appears on the page relative to competitors
Actual CPC — how much you actually pay per click

The formula works like this: Ad Rank = Bid × Quality Score × Expected Impact of Extensions. So a Quality Score of 8 with a $2 bid can outrank a Quality Score of 3 with a $5 bid — and pay significantly less per click.

The Three Components of Quality Score

Google calculates Quality Score from three components, each rated as "Above average", "Average", or "Below average":

1. Expected Click-Through Rate (CTR)

How likely your ad is to get clicked when shown for a given keyword. Google compares your expected CTR to other advertisers competing for the same keyword. This is the most heavily weighted component.

2. Ad Relevance

How closely your ad copy matches the intent behind the keyword. If someone searches "google ads for small business" and your ad talks generically about digital advertising, relevance suffers.

3. Landing Page Experience

How relevant, useful, and trustworthy your landing page is for people who click your ad. Google evaluates load speed, mobile-friendliness, content relevance, and whether users find what they were looking for.

How to See Your Quality Scores

Sign in to Google Ads
Click Campaigns → Keywords → Search keywords
Click the Columns button → Modify columns → Quality Score
Add: Quality Score, Landing Page Exp., Ad Relevance, Exp. CTR
Click Apply

Now you can see exactly which component is dragging down each keyword's score.

How to Improve Expected CTR

Expected CTR is about making your ads more compelling for the keywords you're targeting. These improvements have the fastest impact.

Use the keyword in your headline

If someone searches "google ads campaign structure" your ad headline should include that phrase or a close variant. Matching the search term to your headline increases both relevance and CTR dramatically.

Test multiple headlines aggressively

Responsive Search Ads (RSAs) let you add up to 15 headlines and 4 descriptions. Google tests combinations and serves the best performers. Use all 15 headline slots — the more variety you give the algorithm, the better it optimises.

Use numbers and specifics

"Improve your CTR by 40%" outperforms "Improve your CTR." Specific claims are more credible and clickable.

Add a strong call to action

"Get a free audit", "Download the guide", "Start your free trial" — clear CTAs consistently outperform vague ones like "Learn more" or "Click here."

Use ad extensions (assets)

Sitelink, callout, structured snippet, and call extensions all increase the visual footprint of your ad, which improves CTR independent of Quality Score — but higher CTR feeds back into better expected CTR scores over time.

How to Improve Ad Relevance

Ad relevance suffers when your ad groups are too broad. The fix is tighter grouping.

Use Single Keyword Ad Groups (SKAGs) for high-value terms

For your most important keywords, build dedicated ad groups with tightly themed ads written specifically around that keyword. One keyword per ad group means your ad can be 100% relevant to the search query.

Match ad copy to keyword intent

Break keywords into intent buckets:

Informational ("what is quality score") → educational headline, "learn how" CTA
Commercial ("improve quality score") → benefit-led headline, specific outcome CTA
Navigational ("google ads quality score tool") → feature-focused, direct CTA

Writing different ads for different intent types lifts relevance scores significantly.

Include the keyword in the description

Don't just use the keyword in the headline — mention it or a close variant in the description too. This reinforces relevance signals.

Use dynamic keyword insertion carefully

Dynamic keyword insertion (DKI) automatically inserts the search term into your ad. It boosts relevance mechanically but can produce awkward copy if your keyword list is broad. Use it only on tightly themed ad groups.

How to Improve Landing Page Experience

This is often the most neglected component — and the one with the biggest improvement potential.

Match the landing page to the ad promise

If your ad says "Free Google Ads Audit" your landing page must prominently feature that offer. Mismatches between ad copy and landing page content are the #1 cause of poor landing page experience scores.

Speed is non-negotiable

Google measures page load time as part of landing page experience. Use Google PageSpeed Insights to check your score. A page that loads in under 2 seconds significantly outperforms one that takes 5+.

Make the page mobile-first

More than 60% of Google searches happen on mobile. If your landing page isn't optimised for mobile, your Quality Score will suffer regardless of how good your ad copy is.

Use clear, relevant content above the fold

The first thing visitors see should directly relate to their search intent. Don't bury your offer below a long hero section. The headline on your landing page should echo the promise in your ad.

Remove navigation and distractions on dedicated landing pages

If you're running ads to a dedicated landing page (not a blog post or general website page), remove the main navigation. Fewer distractions = lower bounce rate = better landing page experience signal.

Use HTTPS

Pages without HTTPS get an automatic landing page experience penalty. Confirm your page is serving over a secure connection.

Quality Score Benchmarks

Score	Status	What it means
8–10	Excellent	You're paying below-average CPC for your position
7	Good	Solid — small improvements possible
5–6	Average	Room for improvement, likely paying market rate
3–4	Below average	Paying a premium CPC penalty
1–2	Poor	Significant issues — ad relevance or landing page problems

For branded keywords (your own brand name), scores of 9–10 are achievable and expected. For competitive generic keywords, a 7+ is strong for a newer account.

Common Quality Score Mistakes

Checking Quality Score and doing nothing with it. The number itself is a symptom — the diagnostic value is in the component breakdown. Always check which of the three components is "Below average."
Pausing low Quality Score keywords immediately. A keyword with a score of 4 can be fixed with better ad copy and a landing page update. Pausing it destroys any historical data. Fix it first; pause only if the economics don't work after optimisation.
Using one ad group for too many keywords. The more keywords in an ad group, the harder it is to write ad copy that's relevant to all of them. Tighter ad groups with fewer, more related keywords improve relevance scores across the board.
Ignoring mobile. A desktop-optimised landing page will drag your landing page experience score down even if the desktop experience is good.
Measuring Quality Score at a single point in time. Quality Score is dynamic — it changes as your ads accumulate impressions and Google updates its models. Track trends over weeks, not single snapshots.

Quick Action Checklist

Run through this for each keyword showing "Below average" on any component:

Expected CTR below average → Rewrite headline to include keyword. Add 3+ new headline variants. Check extension coverage.
Ad relevance below average → Create a tighter ad group. Write ad copy specifically for this keyword's intent.
Landing page below average → Check PageSpeed score. Ensure headline matches ad promise. Remove navigation on landing pages. Confirm HTTPS.
All three below average → This keyword may be too broad or mismatched to your offering. Consider whether it belongs in the campaign at all.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take for Quality Score to improve? Quality Score updates as your ads accumulate impressions. Meaningful changes typically take 1–2 weeks of active traffic to show up, though significant landing page improvements can reflect faster. Campaigns with low impression volume take longer.

Does Quality Score affect my Smart Bidding campaigns? Quality Score influences Ad Rank, which matters in every auction regardless of bidding strategy. Smart Bidding doesn't override the Quality Score calculation — it just adjusts your bid. A higher Quality Score means Smart Bidding can achieve better positions at lower costs.

Can I have a high Quality Score on a high-competition keyword? Yes — Quality Score is relative to your own ad group setup, not the keyword's competition level. A well-structured ad group with highly relevant copy and a fast landing page can achieve 8–10 even on competitive terms.

Why does my Quality Score show as a dash (—)? A dash means Google doesn't have enough data yet to calculate a score for that keyword. This happens with new keywords or very low-volume terms. Continue running the keyword until it accumulates enough impressions.

Does a higher Quality Score guarantee a higher ad position? No — ad position is determined by Ad Rank, which combines bid, Quality Score, and the expected impact of extensions. A very high Quality Score with a very low bid can still result in a low position.