Quality Score is a number from 1 to 10 that Google assigns to every keyword in your account. Most teams glance at it and move on. That leads to bad decisions.
Teams pause keywords that are converting because the score looks low. They chase 10 out of 10 when a 7 is already doing fine. They make budget cuts based on a number that has nothing to do with how much revenue a keyword produces.
This guide covers what a Google Ads Quality Score actually is, what it is not, and what to do about it. The data here comes from $312,000 in real PLG SaaS ad spend across two accounts: a content SaaS product with CPCs in the $2-$5 range, and a time tracking B2B SaaS with CPCs in the $30-$80 range. What we found was not always what you would expect.
What is Google Ads Quality Score?
Google assigns Quality Score at the keyword level only, on Search campaigns. It is a 1-10 number that reflects how relevant your ad and landing page are to the search query, compared to other advertisers showing up on the same search.
That is all it is. It is not a measure of how well your campaigns are performing. It is not used as an input in the ad auction. Google says this directly: Quality Score is a diagnostic tool.
There are two versions of Quality Score. The visible score is what you see in your account. The auction-time score is recalculated every time your ad enters an auction and is never displayed. Improving your visible score improves your auction-time score over time, but they are not the same thing.
If you see a dash instead of a number in the Quality Score column, that keyword has not had enough exact match searches to generate a score yet. It is not a problem. It means the keyword is new or low-volume. There is nothing to fix.
Why SaaS teams misread Quality Score
Most misreads come down to treating the number as a performance signal when it is a diagnostic signal.
Here is what that looks like in practice. A team sees a keyword with a Quality Score of 4. It is spending $2,000 a month and producing paying customers at a CPA that works. They pause it because the score looks bad. Now they have fewer paid users and no idea why.
Or a team spends hours rewriting ads on a keyword that scores 6, trying to get to 10. The keyword was already profitable. The 6 was not the problem. The time would have been better spent on a different keyword that was actually underperforming.
The mistake in both cases is the same. The number is being used to make decisions it was not designed to make. Quality Score tells you about ad relevance. It does not tell you about revenue.
Google Ads Quality Score factors: the three components
Google rates every keyword on three things. Each one is rated above average, average, or below average. The rating on each component is more useful than the overall 1-10 number, because it tells you exactly where to act.
Expected CTR
This is Google's prediction of how likely your ad is to be clicked when it shows for a particular search. It is based on your historical CTR on that keyword compared to other advertisers on the same searches over the last 90 days.
A below-average expected CTR usually means one of these things: the headline does not match what the user is searching for, the copy is not compelling, it is not speaking to the user's pain point or desired outcome, it has no specific benefits, or users cannot tell from the ad what problem it solves for them.
Ad relevance
This measures how closely your ad answers the intent of the search query.
In most cases, low ad relevance starts with your account structure. Too many different keyword themes in the same ad group means the ad cannot be relevant to all of them. The fix comes down to correct structure.
Landing page experience
This covers how relevant and useful your landing page is to someone who clicked the ad. Google evaluates factors such as:
- Relevance to the ad and keyword
- Fast page load speed
- Clear, easy navigation
- Mobile friendliness
- Transparent pricing and business information (where applicable)
- Trust signals such as customer reviews, testimonials, security badges, contact information, privacy policy, and a complete footer
- A clear, prominent call to action
The page should match the ad. If the ad says "time tracking for construction teams," the page should say that too. Even the CTA should match to a certain extent. A page that requires navigation, loads slowly, or has no trust signals (contact information, privacy policy, footer) will score below average here.
The weighted formula
Adalysis reverse-engineered how Google calculates the 1-10 number from the three components. This isn’t officially confirmed by Google, but it is the most widely accepted explanation:
Score = 1 + landing page points + ad relevance points + CTR points
Above average on any component = 3.5 points for CTR, 2 points for ad relevance, 3.5 points for landing page. Average = half those values. Below average = 0.
Maximum possible score = 10. This means a keyword with all three components above average scores a 10.
Use the component ratings to decide what to fix. The formula explains the number. The components tell you what to do.
Why Quality Score matters more for PLG SaaS
In high-CPC environments, Quality Score improvements have a larger absolute impact than in low-CPC markets because the dollar amount behind each percentage point is larger.
A higher Quality Score means you can reach the same ad position at a lower bid, or a higher position at the same bid. At $3 CPC, a 19% CPC reduction saves about $0.57 per click. At $35 CPC, the same 19% reduction saves $6.65 per click. That's why Quality Score improvements matter even more in expensive markets.
This is from the $312,000 in PLG SaaS ad spend analyzed for this article.
Content SaaS ($2-$5 CPC range)
| QS tier | Spend-weighted avg CPC | Share of account spend |
| QS 10 | $2.95 | 33% |
| QS 7-8 | $3.43 | 50% |
| QS 5-6 | $3.64 | 15% |
QS 10 keywords produced 19% lower CPC than QS 5-6 keywords in this account. When the "annual report templates" keyword improved from QS 5 to QS 7, CPC fell from $3.65 to $2.51 (a 31% reduction) and CPA dropped from $266 to $151. When "online ebook creator" improved from QS 5 to QS 8, CPC fell from $3.50 to $2.28 (35%) and CPA dropped from $173 to $113.
Time tracking B2B SaaS ($30-$80 CPC range)
The QS-to-CPC relationship is weaker here because all keywords in this category face high bids from well-funded competitors. When the whole market bids aggressively, CPCs rise regardless of Quality Score. But Quality Score still has an effect. In a competitive market, keywords with higher QS will still have lower CPCs than equivalent low-QS keywords. The gap is just harder to see because the floor is already high.
The practical point: the more expensive your keyword environment, the more each Quality Score improvement is worth in real dollars. This is why Camel Digital checks Quality Score components on every PPC for SaaS account audit. Not to hit 10, but to find which component is below average on high-spend keywords and fix that specific thing.
Connect the Quality Score work to how you structure your overall Google Ads for SaaS campaigns. Account structure drives ad relevance. Ad relevance drives Quality Score. Quality Score drives CPC. They are connected.
How to find your Google Ads Quality Score report
Quality Score columns are not shown by default. Here is how to add them.
- Go to your Campaigns menu and click Keywords in the left navigation.
- Click the columns icon in the top right of the table.
- Under Modify columns for keywords, open the Quality Score section.
- Add: Quality Score, Landing Page Exp., Exp. CTR, Ad Relevance.
For historical data, also add: Quality Score (hist.), Landing Page Exper. (hist.), Ad Relevance (hist.), Exp. CTR (hist.).
Historical columns show how scores changed over time. If you made a landing page change or rewrote ad copy last month, the historical columns let you see whether the component rating improved after the change.
Note: you cannot see Quality Score at ad group or campaign level natively in Google Ads. The score exists at keyword level only.
Google Ads Quality Score analysis: where to start
Most guides tell you to fix the lowest scores first. That is the wrong starting point.
A keyword scoring 4 that spends $50 a month is a low priority. A keyword scoring 6 that spends $3,000 a month with a below-average landing page experience is a high priority. The question is which keyword's low score is costing you the most.
Start with spend. Sort your keywords by spend descending. Look at which high-spend keywords have a below-average component rating. Those are your priorities.
| Priority | Keyword spend | Component rating | What to do |
| High | High | Below average on any component | Fix the below-average component first |
| Medium | Medium | Below average on any component | Fix after high-spend keywords are addressed |
| Low | Low | Any score | Low impact regardless of fix |
| Do not touch | Any | All average or above | Already performing well on relevance |
One more rule: do not pause low-QS keywords that are converting. Quality Score does not factor in conversion rate. A keyword scoring 4 that produces paying customers at a CPA that works is more valuable than a keyword scoring 9 that produces nothing. Pausing it based on the score is the wrong call.
How to improve Google Ads Quality Score
Each component has a specific fix. The component rating tells you which fix to apply.
Improving expected CTR
Write ads that match what the user is searching for. If the keyword is "time tracking software for construction," the headline should say that. Generic headlines like "Automated Timesheets for Every Team" or "Employee Scheduling Software" shift the focus away from what the user searched for. The closer your headline matches the search intent, the more relevant your ad will be.
For PLG SaaS, specific ICP language in the headline converts at a higher rate and signals higher relevance to Google at the same time. "Construction Time Tracking" is more relevant to that search than a broad headline like "Track Time Easily."
Check each headline and description in your RSA assets. Look at which ones Google is giving low impressions to. That is a signal those assets are underperforming. Rewrite them.
Check what competitor ads say for your core keywords. What do most of them have in common? Make sure your ad covers those bases. Then add something they are not saying. A unique benefit, a specific outcome, a proof point.
Keep 2-3 ads active per ad group. Test them against each other. Pause the ones with lower CTR. Do not run one ad with no comparison.
Improving ad relevance
Each ad group should contain only keywords that can be answered by the same ad and sent to the same landing page. If a keyword in your ad group would need a different ad or a different page to convert well, it belongs in its own ad group.
Below-average ad relevance is almost always a structure problem. If you have "project management software" and "helpdesk software" in the same ad group, users searching for a helpdesk will see a project management ad. That is not relevant to them. The fix is to split the ad group and rewrite the ad copy so it matches that specific set of keywords.
Use the keyword in the headline. Answer the search intent in the copy. If someone is searching for "project management tool for healthcare," the ad should say that. Match what they want.
Improving landing page experience
The page must match the ad. If the ad says "time tracking for construction teams," the page headline should say the same thing or close to it.
Remove navigation from PPC landing pages. High CPCs mean you are paying for every click. A navigation menu gives users somewhere to go other than the CTA.
Check page speed with Google PageSpeed Insights. Under 3 seconds is the target.
Make sure the page has trust signals: contact information, privacy policy, footer, logos, reviews. Google looks for these when rating landing page experience.
Mobile matters even for desktop-first products. Google crawls mobile versions of pages. A page that breaks on mobile will score below average on landing page experience even if most of your users are on desktop.
What Quality Score won't tell you
Quality Score measures ad relevance and user experience signals. It does not measure revenue. Making keyword decisions based on Quality Score alone produces the wrong outcomes. The data from the $312,000 in PLG SaaS spend analyzed here shows this clearly.
1. It does not include conversion rate
A keyword with a QS of 4 that converts at 15% trial-to-paid is more valuable than a QS 9 keyword that converts at 1%. The score does not know that.
2. It does not capture device, location, or time of day
These factors affect actual auction performance and are factored into the auction-time Quality Score. But they are not reflected in the visible score you see in your account.
3. Branded keywords almost always score 9-10
That does not mean your campaigns are performing well. Branded ROAS reflects people who were already going to buy. It’s not acquisition performance.
4. The landing page data tells a counterintuitive story
From the time tracking B2B SaaS account (non-branded keywords, 2026 data):
| Landing page experience | Spend | Clicks | Conversions | Avg CPC | CPA |
| Above average | $1,107 | 23 | 0 | $48.13 | — |
| Average | $24,079 | 602 | 38 | $40.00 | $633.67 |
| Below average | $41,145 | 1,533 | 104 | $26.84 | $395.63 |
The keywords rated below average on landing page experience drove more conversions at a lower CPA than the keywords rated average. The above-average bucket had almost no volume and zero conversions.
This doesn’t mean bad landing pages are good. It means Quality Score components don’t reliably predict which keywords will convert. In this case, the keywords with the most search volume and intent sat in the below-average bucket, simply because the page wasn’t perfectly optimized for Google's crawl signals. They still converted at a lower CPA than the rest.
Use Quality Score to diagnose. Use CPA and trial-to-paid rate to decide.
Use Quality Score to diagnose instead of decide
Quality Score is useful when you use it correctly. It tells you where your ads and landing pages are less relevant than competitors. That is a specific, actionable signal.
It doesn’t tell you which keywords are producing revenue. It doesn’t tell you which campaigns are worth scaling. Those answers come from CPA and trial-to-paid rate.
Camel Digital's free audit shows you what is hurting your Quality Score and how to fix it. You share your screen, we share what we see. No pitch, no follow-up pressure.
FAQs
Quality Score is a 1 to 10 rating Google gives each keyword in your Search campaigns. It measures how relevant your ad and landing page are to a search, compared to other advertisers showing up for the same query. Google treats it as a diagnostic signal, not a grade on how well your account is performing. A low score on a converting keyword isn't a reason to pause it.
Quality Score is a useful diagnostic signal. It tells you how relevant Google thinks your ads and landing pages are compared to competitors on the same searches. It doesn’t tell you which keywords are producing revenue. Teams that use Quality Score to make budget or keyword decisions without looking at conversion data often pause profitable keywords or spend time on fixes that do not move CPA.
Go to your Campaigns menu, click Keywords, then click the columns icon in the top right. Under Modify columns for keywords, open the Quality Score section and add Quality Score, Landing Page Exp., Exp. CTR, and Ad Relevance. For historical data, add the history versions of each column. These show how scores changed over time so you can measure whether changes to your ads or landing pages improved the component ratings.
A score of 7 or above is generally considered good. A score of 5 or 6 on a high-spend keyword is worth investigating. The number matters less than the component ratings. A score of 6 with one below-average component tells you exactly what to fix. Across the content SaaS and time tracking SaaS accounts analyzed for this article, some of the most efficient keywords held scores between 5 and 7 and produced better CPA than higher-scoring keywords with less relevant traffic.
Google rates each keyword on three components: expected CTR, ad relevance, and landing page experience. Each is rated above average, average, or below average. Adalysis reverse-engineered the formula as: 1 + landing page points + ad relevance points + CTR points, where above average on each component adds 3.5, 2, and 3.5 points respectively. Average adds half those values. Below average adds zero. This is not officially confirmed by Google but is the most widely referenced calculation.
The most common causes are a mismatch between the keyword and the ad headline, too many unrelated keywords in the same ad group, or a landing page that does not match the search intent. Check which component is below average. Below-average expected CTR points to the ad copy. Below-average ad relevance points to the account structure. Below-average landing page experience points to the page itself. Fix the component that is rated lowest on your highest-spend keywords first.
Expected CTR is Google's prediction of how likely your ad is to be clicked for a particular search. It is based on historical CTR for that keyword compared to other advertisers on the same searches over the last 90 days. A below-average expected CTR usually means the ad copy is not matching the search intent, the headline is too generic, or the ad is not speaking to what the user actually wants. Rewriting headlines to match the search query more closely is the most direct fix.
Fix the component that is rated below average on your highest-spend keywords. For expected CTR: match the headline to the search query and rewrite ads with low impressions. For ad relevance: split ad groups so each one covers one keyword theme with its own ads and landing page. For landing page experience: make sure the page matches the ad, loads in under 3 seconds, has trust signals, and removes navigation. Work on the highest-spend keywords first. A fix on a $3,000/month keyword matters more than a fix on a $50/month keyword.
The formula, as reverse-engineered by Adalysis (not officially confirmed by Google): Quality Score = 1 + landing page experience points + ad relevance points + expected CTR points. Above average on each component adds 3.5 points for CTR, 2 points for ad relevance, and 3.5 points for landing page experience. Average adds half those values. Below average adds zero. A keyword with all three components rated above average scores a 10.
