Quality Score

Definition

Quality Score is Google's rating (1-10 scale) of the quality and relevance of your keywords, ads, and landing pages in Google Ads campaigns. It affects ad position and cost per click: higher Quality Score means better ad placement at lower cost, while low Quality Score means you pay more for worse positions (or can't compete at all). Components: Expected CTR (40% weight) predicts how likely people are to click your ad based on historical performance, Ad Relevance (30% weight) measures how closely ad matches search intent, and Landing Page Experience (30% weight) assesses page relevance, usefulness, and UX. Score meanings: 8-10 is excellent (you'll pay less than competitors for same position), 4-7 is average (neutral impact), and 1-3 is poor (very expensive or unable to compete). Quality Score benefits: 10 vs. 1 can mean 50% lower CPC for same position, better ad rank (position 1 vs. position 4), and lower cost per conversion. Improvement strategies: improve CTR with compelling ad copy, ensure keyword-ad-landing page alignment (same terminology throughout), enhance landing page (fast load, mobile-friendly, relevant content), use specific keywords (not overly broad), and pause low-performing keywords dragging down account score. Quality Score rewards relevance: Google wants users to click ads and be satisfied with landing pages, creating better user experience and more revenue for Google.