I’ve run my Google Ads audit checklist on a lot of accounts. Some had been running for years, some for a few weeks, and some had been handed between three agencies. The problems are surprisingly similar.
This is the Google Ads audit checklist I actually use, in the order I use it. The order matters. There’s no point polishing ad copy if the tracking is lying to you.
Step 1: Can I trust the conversion data?
Everything else on this Google Ads audit checklist depends on this, so it comes first.
I open Goals, then Conversions, and look at every conversion action. Which are primary? Are any duplicated? Is a page view being counted as a lead? Are calls counted after a few seconds or after a real conversation?
Then I compare the last 30 days of Google Ads conversions against what the business actually received. If Google says 120 leads and the inbox says 40, we’ve found the first job. My conversion tracking guide explains how I fix it, and Google’s own conversion measurement guide covers the basics.
Step 2: Where is the money going?
Next, I sort campaigns by cost over the last 90 days and ask a simple question: is the spend sitting where the profit is?
It’s common to find one campaign quietly taking 60% of the budget with the worst cost per lead in the account. Or a brand campaign claiming credit for people who would have found the business anyway.
Step 3: The search terms report
On any Google Ads audit checklist, this is where most of the waste lives. I read the search terms line by line for each Search and Performance Max campaign, and I’m looking for:
Searches for jobs, training, salaries or courses
DIY and “how to” searches from people who want to do it themselves
Locations the business doesn’t serve
Services they don’t offer
Competitor names, which might be fine or might be burning money
Anything irrelevant goes on a negative list. My guide to Google Ads negative keywords has the starter lists I use.
Step 4: Campaign settings
Settings are boring, which is exactly why mistakes survive in them for years. This part of my Google Ads audit checklist covers:
Networks. Search campaigns with Display Network ticked by default. That’s often junk traffic you didn’t ask for.
Locations. Whether targeting is set to “Presence” or the looser default that includes people merely interested in your area.
Ad schedule. Whether ads run when the business can actually answer the phone.
Auto-applied recommendations. Whether Google has been quietly adding broad match keywords or changing bids without anyone noticing. I usually switch most of these off.
Step 5: Structure and keywords
I look at whether campaigns are split in a way that makes sense for the business. Emergency work and planned work in separate campaigns. Different services with different values kept apart. Budgets set by priority, not by habit.
I also check match types. Broad match can work with strong conversion data and smart bidding. Without that, it tends to wander off and spend money on loosely related searches.
Add your own: one line on a structural change from an audit that made the biggest difference for a client.
Step 6: Bidding strategy
Is the bidding strategy right for the amount of data the account has? Target CPA on a campaign with eight conversions a month is usually a struggle. Manual CPC on a campaign with hundreds of conversions is often leaving performance on the table. I also check whether any targets are unrealistic, which can choke delivery entirely.
Step 7: Ads and assets
I read every ad as if I were the customer. Does it match what they searched? Does it give a reason to choose this business over the three ads above and below? Are sitelinks, callouts, call assets and location assets in place?
Generic headlines like “Quality Service You Can Trust” are everywhere. Specific ones win. A real arrival time, a price, a guarantee, a number of reviews.
Step 8: Landing pages
Finally, I click the ads and go through the landing page on my phone. Is it fast? Does it repeat the search? Is the phone number obvious? Is the form short? Would I enquire?
This step often explains why decent traffic doesn’t convert. Read more in why Google Ads isn’t converting.
What I do with the Google Ads audit checklist findings
An audit is only useful if it ends with a short, ranked list. I group everything into three piles: fix this week, fix this month, and test later. Tracking fixes and big waste always go in the first pile.
If you’d like me to run this Google Ads audit checklist on your account, I offer a free Google Ads audit. You’ll get the ranked list either way, whether we work together or not. See what happens after an audit in my case studies.
FAQs
How often should I audit my Google Ads account? A full audit once or twice a year is sensible. Search terms and tracking need checking far more often, at least monthly.
Will an audit change anything in my account? No. I only need read access to review it. Nothing changes until you decide what to act on.