Full Definition
A negative keyword is a word or phrase you add to a Google Ads campaign to prevent your ads from showing when that term is part of a search query. If you're a paid SEO agency and someone searches 'how to do SEO yourself,' you probably don't want to pay for that click — add 'yourself' or 'DIY' as negatives. Negative keywords are arguably the most overlooked optimisation lever in Google Ads. Without them, Google's broad and phrase match keyword types will trigger your ads for increasingly irrelevant searches — draining your budget on clicks that will never convert. Types of negative keywords: - **Negative exact match**: Blocks only that precise search. [-free SEO audit] won't block 'affordable SEO audit.' - **Negative phrase match**: Blocks any search containing that phrase in order. [-'SEO tutorial'] blocks 'best SEO tutorial 2026.' - **Negative broad match** (least restrictive): Blocks searches containing all words in the phrase, in any order. Common negative keyword categories to add immediately: - Intent negatives: 'free,' 'cheap,' 'DIY,' 'how to,' 'tutorial,' 'course,' 'jobs,' 'salary' - Competitor names (unless you specifically want conquesting campaigns) - Irrelevant locations - Unrelated product variants Actionable tip: Check your Search Terms report weekly for the first month of any campaign. Any search query that triggered your ad but shouldn't have is a candidate for a negative keyword. Building a robust negative keyword list takes 4–6 weeks but pays dividends for years.