Google Ads Optimization Score: Does It Really Matter?

Are you also one of those advertisers who are always aiming for a perfect 100% Google Ads optimization score, believing your Google ad performance will improve with it? 

You are not alone. Many marketers treat this score as a performance benchmark as they think that it is a sign of their account’s overall health and campaign success. And the higher they keep that score, the better it will be for their overall advertising strategy. 

However, the reality is slightly different and nuanced. If you keep making attempts to improve the score without understanding how it works and what factors affect it, then very soon you will realize that you are just chasing the algorithm, and in reality, your actual campaign goals are taking a backseat. 

That’s why it is very important to understand the optimization score, how it is calculated, how you can improve, and, most importantly, what its limitations are.  

This blog will help you gain that knowledge. Through it, we will explain the Google Ads optimization score in detail and show how to use it.

What is Google Ads Optimization Score? 

The Google Ads optimization score is a real-time estimate that reflects how well your Google Ads account is set up to perform and how aligned it is with Google Ads best practices. This score generally appears in a range of 0-100%, with 100% highlighting that your account and campaigns, in Google’s view, are well-optimized and can perform at their fullest potential. 

When viewing this score on the ‘Recommendations’ tab, you will also see some personalized recommendations. Google displays these recommendations to advertisers primarily with the purpose of helping them boost their campaign performance. These recommendations are often related to adding new keywords, changing bidding strategies, etc. Essentially, the purpose of the optimization score in Google Ads is to prompt advertisers to prioritize these recommendations so that they can focus on changes that might help them improve the performance of their campaigns. 

This gets clearer by the fact that these personalized recommendations also display the percentage impact they will create on the overall optimization score when applied. 

So, for example, as we can see in the screenshot below, the current optimization score in our account is at 83.7%. 

Underneath the score, there is a recommendation by Google to add broad match keywords to certain campaigns. If we apply this recommendation, it will increase our Google Ads optimization score by 5% (highlighted by Google in blue color) taking the final value to 88.7%. 

This shows that Google quantifies these recommendations, and their impact gets reflected in the optimization score.  

What’s important for you to note is that the optimization score is not a measure of your ad’s quality, or an active factor in the ad auction. It’s more of a guiding signal that helps advertisers understand which improvements they can make either at the account or campaign level, to ensure that they are getting the best results from their advertising efforts on Google. 

Which Levels and Campaign Types are Eligible For Google Ads Optimization Score? 

Currently, the Google Ads optimization score is available at multiple levels, which include: 

1. Campaigns 
2. Account 
3. Manager Account 

Also, advertisers can only view this score for their active Search, Performance Max, Video Action, Display, App, Shopping, and Demand Gen campaigns. 

Google Ads Optimization Score Details

Along with your Google Ads optimization score, you will also notice some other details, which include: 

1. Score’s focus: The focus shows what the optimization score is trying to improve, such as conversions, clicks, impression share, etc. 
2. The basis of your score: Explains why Google is displaying that particular focus for your score. Mainly, Google’s choice of focus for your optimization score is influenced by: 

• Either a bidding strategy you configured yourself
• Or a recommendation from Google Ads 

To understand what the optimization score’s focus means and how Google decides it, let’s consider an example. 

Let’s assume that currently in your Google Ads account, you are only running two campaigns and both of them are using Target CPA bidding. 

In such a scenario, Google will conclude that your primary objective is to drive conversions, and therefore, the optimization score’s focus will also be set to “Conversions.” And as you would already have guessed, the basis of this focus will be your target CPA bidding strategy. 

3. Status icons: The status icons merely represent how well Google understands your campaigns and account’s setup. 

Currently, Google displays three types of icons, which include: 

• Green checkmark: This highlights that Google understands your bidding strategy, and your optimization score’s focus is based on that. 
• Yellow question mark: This symbol and color highlight that Google hasn’t understood your bid strategy. In such cases, it assigns a focus on the basis of its own recommendations.  
• Red minus icon: Your score has been forcefully defaulted to focus on conversions. But you can fix that by updating your bidding strategy. 

How Google Calculates the Optimization Score (And What Factors Influence It)

In Google’s own language, its systems calculate the optimization score of any campaign or account in real-time. And this calculation is based on: 

1. Campaign and account-related statistics and performance data 
2. Campaign and account settings
3. The potential impact of the current set of available recommendations that you can view in your Google Ads account
4. Your past history of applying or dismissing recommendations given by Google 
5. Google Search volume and trends

As you may have noticed, Google’s guidance on calculating the optimization score is slightly vague (and contradictory as well, which we will learn later in the blog). It doesn’t specifically highlight which types of campaign or account settings, features, etc., impact the score. 

In fact, during our research, we came across many Google ads account managers and advertising experts who acknowledged this lack of clarity and consistency. They even went on to highlight that how the score is presented versus how it behaves in practice are very different and can be misleading. 

That said, as we know that the Google Ads optimization score gets significantly influenced by the recommendations in an ads account, it’s easy to guess what factors or what category of account or campaign improvements actually influence the score. 

Let’s look at them below:

1. Bidding strategies: Whether you are using Manual CPC bidding, or Target return on ad spend (ROAS), your bidding strategy plays a role in influencing the final value of your optimization score. 

Moreover, as per our research, we have also found that generally those accounts that are using one of Google’s smart bidding strategies tend to have a higher optimization score. This is because Google tends to favor advertisers who are using its latest AI-driven advertising solutions or products, and smart bidding aligns with this “automation-first” approach.  

2. Keywords and targeting: The keyword match type (broad, phrase, or exact), usage of negative keywords, etc., also matter. 

For example, you will often see recommendations like ‘Add broad match keywords,’ ‘Ad groups don’t have keywords,’ which, if you apply or dismiss, can increase your optimization score. 

3. Asset coverage: How many assets you use across your campaigns also decides your optimization score. If you aren’t using images, callouts, sitelinks, or any other assets for your ads, then Google will start giving you recommendations to improve your asset coverage, and simultaneously, the Google Ads optimization score. 

4. Repairs: If your account or campaigns and any of their constituent elements (such as assets, ad groups, etc.) have issues, your optimization score will be affected. Moreover, recommendations for such fixes will be highlighted by Google under the “Repairs” category. 
5. Measurement: Google also considers whether you have properly configured conversion tracking and measurement. So, whether you have set up enhanced conversions or linked Google Analytics 4 will influence the score. 
6. Usage of new features: Based on some ‘AI Essentials’ recommendations, we found that Google also analyzes whether you are adopting the latest tools and features it offers while calculating the optimization score. 

These ‘AI Essentials’ recommendations aren’t limited to, but often include, upgrading DSAs to PMax, turning on AI Max for Search Campaigns, etc.

How to Access the Google Ads Optimization Score?

Let’s now understand how you can view the Google Ads optimization score at the account and campaign levels. 

Viewing the Optimization Score at Account-Level 

1. Go to your Ads account. 
2. From the left-hand side menu, click on ‘Recommendations.’

3. At the top of the recommendations tab, you will be able to view the optimization score. 

Viewing the Optimization Score at the Campaign Level 

1. In your Google Ads account, click on Campaigns from the left-hand side ‘Campaigns’ menu. 

2. Scroll down to the table of campaigns. 
3. You will be able to see a column for ‘Optimization score.’ 

4. Click on the score of any campaign. 
5. You will again reach the ‘Recommendations’ tab, and at the top, you will be able to view the optimization score of that particular campaign. 

How to Improve Optimization Score in Google Ads? 

There are two very simple ways to Improve Optimization Score in Google Ads. 

1. Accept Google’s Recommendations: Whenever you apply any recommendation that you can see in your Google Ads account, your score will increase in real-time. 

Google displays the expected percentage increase on each recommendation card before you apply it.

2. Dismiss Google’s Recommendations: The optimization score also increases when you dismiss a recommendation from Google. This is because when you dismiss a recommendation, you remove it from your “to-do” list. You signal to Google that you have reviewed its suggestion and acted on it. Therefore, Google’s systems view this engagement as good account management, even if you reject the suggestion.

Here’s a quick example to show how this works in practice.

As shown in the screenshot below, the account-level optimization score for the Google Ads account in question is at 54%. For this account, Google is displaying several recommendations belonging to different categories, such as keywords and targeting, ads and assets, etc. 

For the measurement category, you can see two recommendations concerning:

1. Measuring the value for conversions, which if applied will cause an uptick of 6.5%, and; 
2. Setting up enhanced conversions, which will increase the optimization score by 5% if applied. 

What we will do is dismiss one of these two recommendations and check what actually happens: 

• For the ‘Measure values for your conversions’ recommendation, we click on the three dots menu and get to see two options: ‘Leave Feedback’ and ‘Dismiss all.’

• We will click on ‘Dismiss all’ and specify a reason for dismissing this recommendation. As soon as this action is completed, the optimization score in Google Ads jumps by 6.5%. Specifically, the jump was 6.5% because that’s how much the score would have improved if the recommendation had been applied. 

This means that whether you accept or reject a recommendation, the percentage impact on your optimization score remains the same and gets added to your total score.

The only difference is that in the progress bar, you will notice that along with the blue color, there is now a grey color as well, which highlights the increase in the score due to ‘Dismissed recommendations.’ 

Limitations of the Google Ads Optimization Score

Many advertisers blindly follow this score and always strive for a perfect 100%. But is that required, and is this score really helpful to that extent? 

The answer is no. The Google Ads optimization score has many limitations, and we have discussed them below.

The Score Doesn’t Guarantee Better Ad Performance

A higher optimization score doesn’t guarantee better RoAS or conversions for any of your ads. That’s because the optimization score has no direct effect on your Ad rank or Google Ads Quality score. It doesn’t directly change how your ads rank or how they serve in auctions alongside other advertisers. 

The score is simply reflective of how well your account aligns with Google’s recommendations and best practices for running google ads. 

Note: However, it is important to note that following certain recommendations may indirectly improve performance if they align with your goals.

It Favors Google’s New Features and AI Products

As we learned earlier in the blog, whether an advertiser is using Google’s new AI products or features is factored in when the score is calculated. 

Thus, it’s definitive that Google prompts advertisers to use its new features and ad products through recommendations to get a better score. While some of these recommendations may actually benefit your campaign’s performance, not all may be necessary or suitable for every business. 

In some cases, when you adopt a new feature or campaign type, your optimization score will improve. But in practice, it may have little or no direct effect on your specific goals.

It Overlooks your Campaign’s Unique Structure and Strategy

Google’s recommendations, which also contribute to the final score value, are generated by algorithms that mainly rely on general best practices and average account behaviors. 

They don’t consider your specific industry, audience, strategic objectives, or even your account’s past performance history. If you apply these recommendations without much consideration, they may even harm the performance of your campaigns or even your entire advertising strategy.

Yes, what we have shared above contradicts the original definition from Google regarding how the optimization score is calculated and the fact that your account and campaign settings are considered. 

But it is true. And a real-world example of this was shared by Paid Media Bros in their video. One of their Google Ads accounts had an ‘Automated campaigns’ recommendation where Google was suggesting to create a PMax campaign that would help them find customers who are more likely to convert. 

However, they had already created a PMax campaign in the past. And the leads that the campaign had generated, had turned out to be very poor quality, and completely misaligned with their goals. Despite this, Google displayed the recommendation of creating another PMax campaign, which could help them increase their score by 7.7%. 

This highlights that many times the recommendations from Google are automated with less regard for your campaign history, previous test outcomes, etc. 

The Optimization Score is Dynamic

Even if you apply some recommendations today concerning bidding, audience targeting, or any other campaign setting, there is no guarantee that Google will not recommend further improvement tomorrow. 

That’s because new trends, setting changes, features, and algorithm updates appear regularly. And as soon as Google launches a new feature or enhancement, it might prompt you to adopt it, and your score could drop until you take action.

The Score is Less Reliable

The fact that advertisers can easily increase the score either by applying or dismissing recommendations highlights that it is not a meaningful indicator of account health or campaign performance. 

Best Practices for Managing Your Optimization Score

After discussing the optimization score’s limitations above, you would be wondering how to make the best use of it without compromising your campaign or account’s current structure, settings, and goals. 

Here are some best practices for that: 

1. Use the score as a guide and not as a goal or KPI: Using the score as a KPI is a big mistake. Rather, we recommend that you view this score as a directional guide which helps you understand how you can improve your campaign’s performance further.

2. Don’t accept all recommendations: Just for boosting your optimization score, don’t accept all recommendations. Review them carefully, and if you believe that a particular suggestion will help you improve your campaign’s performance, only then accept it. 

For example, some good recommendations to accept can be “Add images to your ads” (as it can help you improve your CTR) or even “Set up enhanced conversions” (as that can help with improving data accuracy and conversion modelling).  

On the other hand, if you are running Dynamic Search Ads (DSAs) and all your metrics are in line with the industry benchmarks, and the RoAS and conversions are also meeting your expectations, then it would make no sense to accept a recommendation like ‘Upgrade DSAs to PMax’ just to boost your optimization score. 

3. Avoid auto-applying recommendations unless you’ve tested them: Google also allows you to auto-apply recommendations at the account level. However, that’s not advised, even if you think those recommendations will help your account or campaigns and simultaneously improve the score. 

Rather, test features or settings in a controlled way before allowing Google to apply them automatically. 

For example, if Google recommends turning on text customization (automatically created assets) for your PMax campaign, you can create specific experiments for that. This way, you can evaluate its impact on performance before allowing Google to roll it out across your campaign(s) automatically.

Conclusion and Key Takeaways 

The Google Ads optimization score can be a metric to check once in a while to understand if any of your campaigns or account-level settings need to be revisited and optimized. However, treating it as the ultimate benchmark for success is neither accurate nor advisable.  

Some important takeaways from this blog include: 

• The optimization score purely highlights how well your ads account or campaigns are aligned with Google’s recommendations and general best practices for advertising.
• It doesn’t in any way reflect or forecast the performance of your ads..
• As per Google, the score is calculated by considering your account or campaign settings, status, past history of accepting or dismissing, and the impact of recommendations currently available. 
• However, this is not entirely true. Many Google ad agency experts have highlighted specific scenarios where Google didn’t simply consider their past campaign performance history and offered automated, generic recommendations that could improve their score but had already proven ineffective. 
• In general, the score is quite dynamic and based on how ad trends evolve, what type of new features and ad products Google rolls out, and other factors. 
• The score increases whenever you apply or dismiss any recommendations from Google. As the score can easily be influenced without even making any changes to your existing account or campaign settings, it cannot be trusted as a reliable metric. 
• It should also not be treated as a KPI, but just a guiding signal to make improvements to your account or campaign setup.

Good luck! 

FAQs

1. Is a 100% optimization score always best?

No, not always. A 100% score means you’ve applied or dismissed all recommendations, but that doesn’t mean your campaigns are performing at their best. 

2. How often should you check recommendations and implement them?

Ideally, you should review the Recommendations tab once a week which is what most industry experts suggest.  

3. What is Brand Optiscore, and who is it for?

Brand Optiscore is a new scoring system for YouTube brand campaigns with awareness or consideration goals. It helps prioritize branding-specific recommendations. If you manage both brand and performance campaigns, Brand Optiscore gives a fuller picture of your account’s health and strategy alignment.

4. Can I personalize my optimization score setup?

Yes. You can manually set your performance goal (e.g., max conversions or target ROAS) and control which conversion actions are counted using the “Include in Conversions” setting. This ensures that the recommendations and your optimization score align more closely with your business goals.

5. What’s the difference between Google Ads Optimization Score and Google Ads Quality Score Optimization?

Optimization Score reflects how well your account aligns with Google’s recommended best practices. It’s a real-time guide to help improve campaign setup, targeting, bidding, and use of features.

Quality Score, on the other hand, is a diagnostic tool that measures ad relevance, landing page experience, and expected CTR, comparing your ad quality against competitors in real-time auctions.

Check Out These Related Articles:

• Google Ads Landing Page Optimization Tips
• Google Ads Search Terms Report
• How to improve Google Ads Quality Score
• Optimizing Google Ads Audience Targeting in 2025
• Ultimate Guide to Google Ads A/B Testing