Is this Google Ads audit template free?

Yes. Download the XLSX or CSV, copy it, change it, and share it with your team or clients. There is no sign-up to download it.

Does the template work in Google Sheets?

Yes. Press Copy to Google Sheets and Google makes your own copy in your Drive, with the Status and Priority dropdowns, the highlighting, and the Scorecard formulas. You can also import the XLSX with File → Import → Upload. The CSV holds the Audit tab only.

How long does a manual audit with the template take?

For a small account with a few campaigns, a careful pass usually takes a few hours. Larger accounts take longer because search terms, keywords, and ads grow with the number of ad groups. Tracking checks come first because the rest of the audit depends on them.

What is the difference between this template and the audit checklist?

The checklist guide explains twelve areas in reading order. The template breaks those areas into 54 separate checks you can mark one by one, with columns for your evidence, the fix, an owner, and a due date, plus a scorecard that totals the results.

Google Ads Audit Template (Free XLSX): 54 Checks + Scorecard

Last checked against Google’s documentation on 30 September 2026.

Download the Google Ads audit template

This is the audit template we use to review a Google Ads account by hand. It lists 54 checks in the order that matters, starting with conversion tracking, and each row says where to find the check in Google Ads and what a problem looks like. You add the evidence from your account, set a status, and the scorecard totals the results for you.

54checksOne row each, with where to look and what bad looks like

12areasFrom conversion tracking to recommendations

19high-priority checksThe ones that distort every other number

3tabsHow to use, Audit, and Scorecard

What’s inside the template

The workbook has three tabs. You only type in the Audit tab; the Scorecard reads from it.

Tab	What it holds	What you do there
How to use	The five steps below and links back to this guide	Read once
Audit	54 checks with Area, Check, Where to find it, What bad looks like, and a suggested priority	Fill in Evidence, Status, Fix, Owner, and Due for each row
Scorecard	Per-area counts of checked, OK, open issues, fixed, and open high-priority issues, with % checked	Nothing: it updates as you set statuses

Status is a dropdown with five values: Not checked, OK, Issue found, Fixed, and Not relevant. Rows marked Issue found turn orange and rows marked Fixed turn green, so the open work stands out when you scroll.

How to run an audit with it

The audit, in six steps

Pick one date rangeFor example the last 30 days, compared with the 30 before.
Start with trackingEvery later number depends on conversions being right.
Write the evidenceThe number that proves the finding, before any opinion.
Set the statusOK, Issue found, Fixed, or Not relevant.
Fix by priorityHigh first; note the date of every change.
Check backRe-open each fix after enough data to judge it.

Two habits make the difference between an audit and a list of opinions. First, keep one date range for the whole pass, so findings are comparable. Second, fill the Evidence column before you decide anything. “CTR looks low” is an opinion. “This ad group’s top five search terms took a fifth of its spend and none converted” is a finding someone can act on.

All 54 checks, by area

Here is every check in the template, grouped the same way as the spreadsheet. Conversion tracking carries the most checks because every other number in the audit depends on it.

Checks per area in the template

Conversion tracking8

Campaign settings5

Account structure4

Search terms4

Keywords5

Bidding and budgets5

Ads and assets5

Landing pages4

Targeting and audiences4

Performance Max and other types5

Change history2

Recommendations and automation3

View as table

Item	Checks
Conversion tracking	8
Campaign settings	5
Account structure	4
Search terms	4
Keywords	5
Bidding and budgets	5
Ads and assets	5
Landing pages	4
Targeting and audiences	4
Performance Max and other types	5
Change history	2
Recommendations and automation	3

Counted from the template itself. More checks does not mean more important: one broken conversion action can outweigh ten small settings.

Conversion tracking

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Primary vs secondary conversion actions	Goals → Conversions → Summary	A page view, email click, or other micro-step set as primary next to real leads or sales	High
Tracking status of every action	Goals → Conversions → Summary	Unverified, Tag inactive, No recent conversions, or Needs attention on an action you bid on	High
Duplicate counting	Goals → Conversions → Summary	The same event counted by a Google Ads tag and an imported analytics conversion, both primary	High
Count setting (One vs Every)	Conversion action → Settings → Count	“Every” on lead forms or calls, so one person can count several times	High
Conversion values	Conversion action → Settings → Value	Every conversion carries the same default value when real values differ, or no value under value-based bidding	Medium
Conversion window vs your sales cycle	Conversion action → Settings → Click-through conversion window	A window shorter than the usual time from click to purchase or sign-up	Medium
Google Ads vs your own records	Conversions column vs your CRM, shop, or backend for the same week	A large gap in either direction; stop the audit here until it is explained	High
Enhanced conversions and consent mode	Goals → Settings; your tag setup	Not set up where eligible, so conversions are under-measured	Medium

Campaign settings

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Networks	Campaign → Settings → Networks	Display Network on in a Search campaign without a decision, or Search partners spending with no conversions	High
Locations and location options	Campaign → Settings → Locations → Location options	The “presence or interest” default on a business that only serves people who are in the area	High
Languages	Campaign → Settings → Languages	Languages that don’t match the ads or the landing page	Low
Ad schedule	Campaign → Ad schedule	Ads running when nobody can answer or deliver, or hours that spend and never convert	Medium
Campaign goals	Campaign → Settings → Goals	A campaign optimising for account-default goals that include actions it shouldn’t	Medium

Account structure

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Overlapping campaigns	Campaigns list; Search terms by campaign	Several campaigns bidding on the same searches and competing with each other	Medium
Ad group focus	Ad groups → Keywords	Ad groups holding dozens of unrelated keywords behind one ad	Medium
Fragmentation	Ad groups list sorted by impressions	Many ad groups with a handful of impressions each, so nothing collects enough data	Low
Brand vs non-brand	Campaigns and search terms	Brand and non-brand searches mixed, hiding what new customers really cost	Medium

Search terms

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Top search terms by cost	Insights and reports → Search terms, sorted by cost	Irrelevant intent (jobs, free, DIY, wrong product) taking a real share of spend with no conversions	High
Converting searches that aren’t keywords	Insights and reports → Search terms, filter conversions > 0	Searches that convert again and again but only match through broad or phrase keywords	Medium
Negative keyword lists	Tools → Shared library → Negative keyword lists	Lists that exist but aren’t applied to the campaigns that need them	Medium
Negatives blocking your own keywords	Keywords → Negative keywords; keyword status	A negative or list that blocks a keyword you are actively bidding on	High

Keywords

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Spend without results	Keywords, sorted by cost	Keywords that spent well above your target cost per conversion with none	High
Match types vs bidding and budget	Keywords → Match type column	Broad match with manual bidding or a small budget, spreading spend thin	Medium
Quality Score on high-spend keywords	Keywords → add Quality Score columns	Below-average expected CTR, ad relevance, or landing page experience where the money goes	Medium
Status problems and duplicates	Keywords → Status column	Low search volume, policy-limited keywords, or the same keyword in several ad groups	Low
Paused keywords that converted	Keywords, filter status Paused, all time	Keywords with past conversions left paused with no recorded reason	Low

Bidding and budgets

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Bid strategy fits the data	Campaigns → Bid strategy column	Target CPA or Target ROAS on a campaign with very few conversions a month	High
Targets vs actuals	Campaigns → Target vs Cost / conv. or Conv. value / cost	A target far from what the campaign actually achieves	Medium
Budget limits on good campaigns	Campaigns → Status “Limited by budget”	A campaign converting at a good cost that runs out of budget	High
Lost impression share: budget vs rank	Campaigns → Search lost IS (budget) and (rank) columns	Budget raised when the loss is from rank, or the reverse	Medium
Leftover bid adjustments	Devices, Locations, Ad schedule, Audiences → Bid adj. column	Manual adjustments left on campaigns using Smart Bidding, where most are ignored	Low

Ads and assets

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Serving ads in every ad group	Ads → Status column	Enabled ad groups with no approved, eligible ad	High
Disapproved and limited ads or assets	Ads and Assets → Status / Policy details	Disapproved or limited items nobody has fixed	High
Ad strength and message variety	Ads → Ad strength column	Poor ad strength, repeated headlines, or pins that stop testing	Medium
Assets coverage	Assets → by type	No sitelinks, callouts, structured snippets, or images where they are eligible	Medium
Ads match the search	Ads next to their ad group’s top search terms	Generic ads that never mention what the searcher looked for	Medium

Landing pages

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Pages load and work on a phone	Open every high-spend final URL on a phone	Slow pages, errors, broken forms, or pop-ups that block the offer	High
Page matches the ad’s promise	Ad text next to its landing page	Prices, availability, or offers that differ from what the ad says	High
Landing page report	Insights and reports → Landing pages	A page with a large share of clicks and a much lower conversion rate than the rest	Medium
Test conversion end to end	Submit your own form or call, then check it was recorded	A conversion that never reaches Google Ads or your own records	High

Targeting and audiences

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Matched vs targeted locations	Insights and reports → When and where ads showed → Locations	Spend from places you don’t serve	High
Device performance	Insights and reports → When and where ads showed → Devices	A device with a far worse cost per conversion that nobody has looked at	Medium
Day and hour performance	Insights and reports → When and where ads showed → Day & hour	Hours or days that spend consistently and never convert	Low
Audiences in observation	Campaign → Audiences	No audiences added in observation, so you can’t see who converts better	Low

Performance Max and other types

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Channel mix	Performance Max campaign → Insights and reports → Channel performance	Most spend on a channel that brings few conversions, or channel statuses that need attention	Medium
Brand overlap with Search	Performance Max search terms; brand exclusions	Performance Max taking your own brand searches that Search would get more cheaply	Medium
Asset groups	Performance Max → Asset groups	Low ad strength, missing images or videos, or audience signals that don’t describe your customers	Medium
Search terms and negatives	Performance Max → Insights and reports → Search terms; campaign negatives	Irrelevant searches with spend and no exclusions	Medium
Placements for Display, Video, and Demand Gen	Campaign → Where ads showed / placements	Sites, apps, or channels you would never choose, taking real spend	Low

Change history

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Changes around each shift	Campaigns → Change history	A drop or spike that lines up with a change nobody reviewed	Medium
How often things change	Campaigns → Change history, filter by bidding and budget	Targets or budgets changed every few days, or changes by users or tools nobody recognises	Low

Recommendations and automation

Check	Where to find it	What bad looks like	Priority
Auto-apply settings	Recommendations → Auto-apply	Keyword, match type, or bidding recommendations applied automatically without review	High
Automatically created assets and AI Max	Campaign → Settings → AI Max / Automatically created assets	Text, URL, or search term expansion switched on without anyone deciding it	Medium
Open recommendations	Recommendations	Recommendations accepted to raise the optimization score without checking the numbers	Low

Menu names follow Google’s current help pages, for example the search terms report, the landing page report, change history, and auto-apply recommendations. Google moves menus from time to time; if a path has changed, search for the report name in your account.

Reading the scorecard

The Scorecard tab counts, for each area, how many checks you have looked at, how many are OK, how many issues are still open, how many you have fixed, and how many open issues are high priority. The last row totals the whole account. A data bar shows the share checked, so you can see at a glance which areas you haven’t reached yet.

Status of every check, one week into an auditIllustrative example

OK or not relevant57%31
Issue found17%9
Not checked yet26%14

For example: after the first sessions, most checks are OK, nine issues are open, and fourteen checks are still to do. The scorecard shows this split per area.

Resist turning the scorecard into a grade. An account with three open issues can be in worse shape than one with ten, if one of the three is a broken conversion action. Use the counts to track progress, and the priority column to decide order.

What to fix first

The template suggests a priority for each check: 19 high, 25 medium, and 10 low. Treat it as a starting point and re-rank each issue by what it costs your account and how hard it is to change.

A simple way to order the open issues

Impact ↑

Do firstHigh impact · low effort

Fix a broken or duplicated conversion action
Exclude clearly irrelevant search terms
Turn off networks nobody chose

PlanHigh impact · more effort

Rebuild a campaign that mixes brand and non-brand
Change bid strategy to fit conversion volume
Rework a landing page that doesn’t match the ad

BatchLower impact · low effort

Add missing sitelinks and callouts
Remove leftover bid adjustments
Tidy paused and duplicate keywords

Skip for nowLower impact · more effort

Restructure ad groups that already perform
Chase optimization score points
Rewrite ads that are working

Effort →

Common findings placed by typical impact and effort. Your own account decides the final order.

Using it in Google Sheets or Excel

Excel: open the XLSX. The Audit tab is filtered and frozen on the header and first columns.
Google Sheets: press Copy to Google Sheets and Google puts your own copy in your Drive, dropdowns, highlighting, and Scorecard included. Or import the XLSX with File → Import → Upload.
CSV: the Audit tab only, for other tools or project trackers. Status starts as “Not checked” on every row.

If you audit client accounts, make one copy per account and name it with the account and the date range. The Owner and Due columns turn the finished audit into a work plan you can share. Our guide on auditing a prospect’s account covers access and how to present findings.

Running the checks every day

A spreadsheet audit is a snapshot. Search terms change every day, budgets run out on busy days, and a tag can stop firing after a site release. The checks that move fastest, like search terms, spend against budget, and conversion volume, are worth looking at weekly or daily.

Boxoo Fix list with Level 1 open, showing case cards such as three search terms that spent with zero conversions — Boxoo’s Fix list: each finding from the daily review is a case, grouped into levels so the most important comes first.

That is the job Boxoo’s agents do. They go through checks like these on your live account every day and file each finding as a case. Each case opens with the evidence behind it, like the search terms below, and most come with a fix you can apply in one click once you have read it.

Google Ads audit template: free download with 54 checks