If you’re moving Google Ads successful 2026, you’ve astir apt heard of “Search Partners.” It’s often checked by default successful your run settings, promising to widen your scope beyond Google Search. Sounds for illustration an easy measurement to get much traffic, right?
Traffic, yes. Quality traffic? Not truthful much.
Most advertisers shouldn’t advertise connected Search Partners. Read connected to study why and what you should do instead.
What are Google Search Partners?
Google Search Partners are third-party sites pinch hunt results powered by Google. When personification searches connected those sites, your advertisement tin appear. This includes YouTube, on pinch a monolithic database of different sites, directories, and moreover parked domains.
As you mightiness ideate — aliases whitethorn person knowledgeable firsthand — the postulation from these partner sites is often poor. You whitethorn get plentifulness of clicks, and the costs per click (CPC) is often overmuch cheaper than Google Search, but you usually get what you salary for. Real conversions aliases meaningful business worth from these placements are rare.
If you’re utilizing conversion-focused Smart Bidding, you’ll often spot Search Partners walk people driblet to zero complete time. Your bidding algorithm figures retired it isn’t uncovering conversions there, truthful it stops spending your fund connected those sites.
How are Google Search Partners different from the Google Display Network?
People often confuse Search Partners pinch the Display Network. Websites tin beryllium portion of both, truthful let’s explain the difference.
The Google Display Network is simply a postulation of millions of websites and apps that usage AdSense. You tin show ads to users while they browse content. The GDN is simply a placement action successful Demand Gen, Video, wherever it’s called “Video Partners,” and PMax campaigns.
Search Partners are specifically for search-based intent. That’s why they’re only compatible pinch Search, Shopping, and Performance Max campaigns.
How to audit your Search Partner performance
Don’t return my connection for it. See what Search Partners are doing successful your Google Ads campaigns.
For Search aliases Shopping campaigns
In your Google Ads account, spell to your run position and click Segment. Choose Network (with hunt partners). This breaks capacity into 2 rows: Google Search and Search Partners.
You’ll typically spot plentifulness of impressions and clicks from Search Partners, pinch little CPCs than Google Search. Conversions? Only if you’re search thing shallow aliases bot-susceptible, for illustration a page position aliases easy shape fill.
For Performance Max campaigns
Performance Max is different. Search Partners are required for this run type; you can’t opt out. However, you tin still show activity done your Channel Performance report.
If you spot precocious Search Partners walk successful a PMax campaign, it often indicates an rumor pinch your conversion search aliases bid strategy settings.
Search Partner transparency: The Content Suitability report
For much transparency, cheque the Content Suitability study nether Insights and reports. It shows the existent websites aliases YouTube channels wherever your ads appeared connected the Search Partner network. Review that list, and you’ll apt work together that overmuch of it is junk and spam.
In Google Ads, the reply to almost each mobility is “it depends.” This is 1 of the fewer exceptions.
If you’re building a caller Search aliases Shopping campaign, time off Search Partners unchecked. Once the run performs good and you person coagulated conversion data, you tin see testing Search Partners for much volume. Until then, support your ads connected the main Google SERP.
This article is portion of our ongoing MCP series, Everything you request to cognize astir Google Ads successful little than 3 minutes. In each edition, Jyll highlights a different Google Ads feature, and what you request to cognize to get the champion results from it – each successful a speedy 3-minute read.
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