How to Find Wasted Spend in Google Ads
The average Google Ads account wastes 25–30% of its budget. Here’s where that money usually leaks.
1. The search-terms report
Shows what people actually typed. Irrelevant terms = wasted spend. Add them as negative keywords.
2. Loose location targeting
Default settings often target far beyond your service area. Tighten it.
3. Broad match without negatives
Powerful — or a budget sink without a strong negative list.
4. Fake conversions
If page views count as conversions, Google optimises toward cheap, useless clicks. (Here’s how that happens.)
Run your free Google Ads audit
Kestrel flags all of this automatically. Connect your account and Kestrel runs all 40 checks in plain English — your health score, wasted spend, and the fixes that matter. It’s read-only, free forever, and needs no credit card.
Work through the full audit checklist next.