Google Ads audit checklist: 20 things to check
Use this 20-point Google Ads audit to find wasted spend, broken tracking and missed opportunities, then fix them in the right order.
A Google Ads audit checks whether your account measures the right results, targets the right people and spends efficiently. Review conversion tracking first, then location and network settings, keywords and search terms, negative keywords, ads and assets, bidding strategies, budgets and landing pages. Fix tracking and wasted spend before optimising anything else.
Key takeaways
- Start with conversion tracking: every other decision depends on it.
- Location, network and schedule settings often hide the quickest savings.
- The search terms report shows where money is really going.
- Bidding strategies need enough accurate conversions to work well.
- Prioritise fixes by spend and impact, not by how many issues you find.
Google Ads accounts drift. A campaign set up two years ago by a previous agency, a few "recommendations" applied with one click, a website redesign that quietly broke a tag: none of it looks dramatic on its own, but together it can leave a UAE business paying well over the odds for its leads.
This is the checklist we work through when reviewing an account. You can use it yourself, in order, with the account open in another tab.
Account access and conversion tracking
1. Do you own the account?
Your business should own the Google Ads account, with admin access for at least one person inside the company. Agencies should be added as users or through a manager account, never as sole owners. Also confirm the billing profile is in the company's name and that past users who have left the business no longer have access.
2. Are primary conversions real business results?
Open Goals, then Conversions. Primary actions should be purchases, submitted forms, qualified calls, WhatsApp clicks or imported sales, not page views or button clicks.
3. Is anything double-counted?
Look for the same event tracked twice, for example a GA4 import and a Google Ads tag both set to primary, or lead actions counting "Every" instead of "One".
4. Are Enhanced conversions and offline imports in place?
Check whether Enhanced conversions are active and whether qualified leads or sales are imported from your CRM. For a full walkthrough, see setting up conversion tracking properly.
Campaign settings
5. Is location targeting set to Presence?
In each campaign's location options, "Presence: people in or regularly in your included locations" prevents ads showing to people outside the UAE who merely show interest in it.
6. Are you targeting the right emirates?
If you only serve Dubai and Sharjah, exclude the rest, or at least compare performance by location and adjust bids.
7. Are Display and Search partners switched on in Search campaigns?
Display Network expansion in Search campaigns rarely performs well for lead generation. Review Search partners separately and keep them only if the data supports it.
8. Does the ad schedule match your working hours?
Check performance by hour and day. If calls go unanswered after hours, or at weekends for B2B firms, reduce bids or pause at those times. Revisit during Ramadan when hours change.
Keywords and search terms
9. Are ad groups tightly themed?
Each ad group should cover one service or intent with closely related keywords. Large mixed ad groups weaken ad relevance and Quality Score.
10. Is broad match controlled?
Broad match can work with smart bidding and good conversion data. Without them, it often matches loosely related searches. Check match types against performance.
11. What do the search terms show?
Review the last 30 to 90 days, sorted by cost. Note searches with spend and no conversions, and irrelevant themes such as jobs, training or free. Also look for good searches that are not yet keywords; adding them as exact or phrase match gives you more control over bids and ad copy.
12. Are negative keyword lists in place and current?
Check shared lists, account-level negatives and campaign negatives, and confirm none of them block your own keywords. Our negative keywords guide includes a starter list.
Ads and assets
13. Does each ad group have a strong responsive search ad?
Look at ad strength as a guide, but also read the ads. Headlines should include the keyword theme, a clear benefit and a reason to act.
14. Are all relevant assets added?
Sitelinks, callouts, structured snippets, call assets, location assets, images and business name and logo can all improve visibility and click-through rate.
15. Are Arabic and English handled separately?
If you target Arabic speakers, Arabic keywords should trigger Arabic ads leading to Arabic pages, not English ads with mismatched landing pages.
Bidding and budgets
16. Does the bidding strategy fit the data?
Maximise conversions or target CPA need a steady flow of accurate conversions. Accounts with very few conversions may do better with simpler strategies until volume builds.
17. Are budgets limiting your best campaigns?
Check for "Limited by budget" on campaigns with a good cost per lead, while weaker campaigns spend freely. Move budget towards what works. Also check that total monthly spend matches what the business expects, remembering that Google can spend up to twice the daily budget on busy days while keeping the monthly total within the limit.
18. Which recommendations have been auto-applied?
Check the recommendations auto-apply settings. Some automatically applied changes, such as adding broad match keywords or raising budgets, may not suit your goals.
Landing pages and results
19. Do landing pages match the ads and load fast?
Click through your own ads on a phone. Check message match, loading speed, WhatsApp and call buttons and form behaviour.
20. Do the results match your CRM?
Compare Google Ads conversions with the leads and sales your team actually recorded. Large gaps mean either tracking problems or poor lead quality, and both need attention. Ask the sales team which campaigns bring the enquiries they actually want; their answer is often more revealing than any dashboard.
How should you prioritise what you find?
Rank issues by the money involved and how easily they can be fixed. An audit often turns up dozens of small issues, and trying to fix everything at once makes it impossible to see what helped.
| Priority | Examples | When to act |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | Broken or duplicated tracking, wrong location settings, account ownership | Immediately |
| High | Irrelevant search terms, missing negatives, Display expansion on Search | Within the first week |
| Medium | Ad group structure, ad copy, missing assets, landing page mismatch | Within the first month |
| Ongoing | Bidding strategy changes, budget reallocation, testing | Once data is clean |
Make changes in batches, note the date of each, and allow time for bidding to settle before judging.
Want a second pair of eyes?
An outside audit is useful even for well-run accounts, because it is easy to stop noticing familiar settings. Our PPC management team can audit your account against this list and share the findings in plain language. If you would rather hand over the day-to-day work entirely, our Google Ads management service covers it. Request an audit when you are ready.
Frequently asked questions
How often should I audit my Google Ads account?
Run a full audit at least twice a year, and whenever you change agency, redesign your website or see an unexplained change in cost per lead. Between audits, weekly search term reviews and monthly checks of conversion tracking, budgets and auto-applied recommendations catch most problems before they become expensive.
Can I audit Google Ads myself?
Yes. Most items on the checklist only need admin access and some time. Start with tracking and settings, which need little specialist knowledge, then work through search terms and keywords. An external review is useful when you are unsure how to interpret the data or want an independent view of an agency's work.
What is the most common problem found in Google Ads audits?
Conversion tracking issues are among the most frequent and most damaging, because they affect every bidding decision. Other common problems include location settings reaching people outside the target area, missing negative keywords, Display Network expansion on Search campaigns and landing pages that do not match the ads.
Should I apply Google's recommendations?
Review each one rather than applying them in bulk. Some recommendations, such as fixing disapproved ads or adding missing assets, are usually helpful. Others, such as raising budgets or expanding to broad match, may not suit your goals or data. Check the auto-apply settings so changes are not made without your knowledge.
