How to Check if You’re Wasting Money in Google Ads

Google Ads can be an incredibly powerful tool to drive leads and sales for your business – but only if your budget is being used wisely. If you’ve ever wondered why your results aren’t stacking up, or why your spend feels high without much to show for it, you might be wasting money without realising it.

The good news? There are a few simple checks you can run to identify wasted spend and improve your performance fast.

1. Start With Your Keywords Tab

The first place to look is your Keywords tab. This is where you can see exactly what search terms your ads are targeting – and how each one is performing.

2. Filter for Non-Converting Keywords

Click the filter icon and choose Conversions → Less than 1. This shows all keywords that have generated zero conversions in your selected date range.

These are the terms where your ads are getting clicks but not results. If you’ve spent $50, $100, or even more on a keyword that’s not delivering any return, it’s time to take a closer look.

3. Check the % of Spend Going to These Keywords

Now, look at how much of your total budget is being spent on these non-converting keywords. You might be surprised. It’s not uncommon for 30–50% of ad spend to go to keywords that haven’t led to a single conversion.

This is where budget leaks happen and fixing them can drastically improve your return on ad spend (ROAS).

4. Pause, Refine, or Replace

Once you’ve identified underperforming keywords, take action:

• Pause irrelevant terms that don’t align with your product or offer

• Refine match types – broad match terms often attract low-quality traffic

• Add negative keywords to block irrelevant searches

• Improve landing pages or ad copy for relevant but underperforming terms

5. Check Search Terms (Not Just Keywords)

Go one step deeper by looking at the Search Terms Report. This shows you the exact phrases people typed into Google that triggered your ads.

You might notice patterns like:

• Irrelevant search intent (e.g. free, DIY, jobs)

• Competitor brand names

• Location-based searches that don’t apply to you

Use these insights to add negative keywords and clean up the traffic coming through your campaigns.

6. Review Your Locations & Devices

Are you advertising in locations that don’t convert? Are mobile clicks spending but not converting?

Head to your Locations and Devices reports to spot:

• Suburbs or states where conversion rates are low

• Devices (e.g. mobile vs desktop) with poor performance

You can reduce bids or exclude underperforming segments to focus budget where it matters.

7. Set Up Proper Conversion Tracking

Sometimes, it’s not the ads; it’s the tracking. If your conversions aren’t set up correctly in Google Ads or GA4, you might think your campaigns aren’t performing, when in reality you're just not measuring them properly.

Double-check that:

• Conversions are tracking on key pages (thank you, purchase, lead confirmation)

• You’re not double-counting actions

• You’re not tracking non-valuable actions like time on site or page views as conversions

8. Use Automated Rules to Catch Issues Early

Google Ads lets you set automated rules, like pausing a keyword once it hits $100 with no conversions. These tools help you manage performance on autopilot and avoid unnecessary spend slipping through the cracks.

Final Thoughts

If you’re not checking in regularly, your Google Ads account could be silently bleeding budget on keywords, locations or devices that don’t deliver results.

The good news? Most accounts have quick wins hidden inside. With a few smart filters and regular reviews, you can stop wasting money and start getting more from every dollar you spend.

Need a second set of eyes on your campaigns? We audit accounts every week and can help you uncover what’s holding your performance back – and how to fix it.