Keyword match type
What is a keyword match type?
A keyword match type decides how close a search has to be to your keyword before the ad can show. Google Ads has three of them: broad, phrase and exact. Broad reaches the most searches and the most irrelevant ones, exact the fewest and the most deliberate, and all three allow close variants such as plurals and misspellings.
Example
The keyword is “online shop development”.
- Exact match: the same search and close variants such as “online shops development”.
- Phrase match: also “online shop development cost” or “online shop development for clothing”.
- Broad match: also “free shop platform”, “how to build a website”, “shop templates”.
One month on a €500 budget: exact returns 180 clicks and 14 enquiries, so €35.71 an enquiry; phrase returns 320 clicks and 16 enquiries, €31.25; broad with no negative keywords returns 900 clicks and 9 enquiries, €55.56. Same budget, different outcome.
Why it matters for a business
Match type sets the balance between reach and precision. Broad match stopped being literal long ago — Google reads it by meaning and uses signals such as the landing page and the other keywords in the ad group. In an account where conversions are counted properly that can work; in an account without it, broad is the fastest way to spend a budget on searches with no customer behind them.
A workable order on a small budget: start with exact and phrase on the searches with clear intent, add negative keywords from the search terms report every week, and run broad separately, once conversions are counted correctly. Long-tail keywords are cheaper and more precise, with less volume behind them.
What to ask
- Which match types is the budget running on today?
- When was the search terms report last reviewed?
- How many negative keywords are in place, and who maintains them?
- Is conversion tracking accurate enough for broad match to pay off?
Keyword structure and match types are written into the campaign plan before anything goes live, as part of our Google Ads work.