1. Your search terms report
Google Ads → Insights and reports → Search terms → Download (CSV). Needs Search term, Cost, Clicks and Conversions; Match type, Campaign, Added/Excluded, Impr. and Conv. value are used when present. Google's title, date-range and Total rows are handled. Comma, tab and semicolon files, including the older UTF-16 export, are read.
Choose a file or paste report text, then click Analyze.
Result
Where the money went
| Bucket | Cost | Share of spend |
|---|
Negative keyword candidates
Words first (broad negative: blocks any query containing the word), then whole search terms as exact negatives. Review before adding; none of these appeared in a converting term in this file.
| Negative keyword | Type | Wasted | Why |
|---|
Converting terms worth adding as exact match
| Search term | Reached via | Conversions | Cost | Cost / conv. |
|---|
By match type
| Match type | Cost | Conversions | Cost / conv. | Zero-conversion cost | Share |
|---|
By campaign
| Campaign | Cost | Conversions | Cost / conv. | Zero-conversion cost | Share |
|---|
The model, and what it leaves out
- Wasted spend is the cost of search terms with zero conversions. Terms are combined across match types and ad groups before they are judged.
- Reconciles. Converting, proven, overspent, watch and already-excluded spend add up to your total cost, and the three waste tiers add up to the headline figure.
- Proven means enough clicks that a term converting at your account's own rate would show nothing less than 5% of the time, the fewest clicks n with (1 − rate)^n under 0.05. You can override the click count.
- Overspent means the term spent more than your target cost per conversion (or your average) with none. Watch is everything else, too little data to judge.
- Word negatives only come from words that appear in two or more terms, in no converting term, and in under a quarter of your clicks. Words you list as core are never suggested. Negatives do not match close variants.
- Not modelled: future queries, keyword bids and quality, ad copy, landing pages, assisted conversions and conversion value differences between terms. Soft conversion actions make waste look smaller than it is.
Common questions
How do I find wasted spend in my Google Ads search terms report?
Download the Search terms report from Google Ads (Insights and reports, Search terms, Download as CSV) with the Cost, Clicks and Conversions columns, and drop it here. The tool separates spend on terms that converted from spend on terms that did not, then splits the second group by how strong the evidence is: terms with enough clicks that a zero is unlikely to be luck, terms that spent more than a conversion is worth, and terms with too little data to judge. Nothing is uploaded; the file is read in your browser.
How does it decide a search term is wasted?
A term is wasted spend if it converted zero times. It is proven waste if it had enough clicks that, at your account's own conversion rate, seeing no conversion would happen by chance less than 5% of the time. That click count is worked out from your file and shown on the page. A term that spent more than your target cost per conversion (or your average, if you leave the target blank) with none is flagged as overspent. Everything else with zero conversions is a watch list, because a few clicks prove nothing.
Which words does it suggest as negative keywords?
Only words that appear in at least two search terms, in no term anywhere in the file that converted, and that are not a large share of your traffic, which usually means they are part of your core keywords. You can also list your core words to protect them. Negative keywords do not match close variants, so add plurals and misspellings yourself.
What does the tool not see?
Your keywords, bids, ad copy, landing pages, conversion values beyond what the export contains, and future queries. A word with no conversions this month may convert next month, and conversion tracking that counts soft actions makes waste look smaller than it is. Treat the output as a list of leads to review, not a list to paste in blindly.
Is this advertising or financial advice?
No. It applies arithmetic to the file you provide and does not replace your own judgement or a qualified adviser. It is independent of Google and is not affiliated with or endorsed by it.