Smart Bidding Exploration is an opt-in Google Ads feature that uses Google AI to bid on more high-performing searches within your existing keyword and product targeting. Google AI and flexible Target ROAS goals work together to power an advanced algorithm. This algorithm helps to capture new searches, and helps secure additional conversions from traffic you already qualify for. Learn more About Smart Bidding Exploration.
This guide covers bidding logic, eligibility rules, and best practices for Search, Performance Max, and Shopping campaigns.
Benefits
- Scale performance and conversions: AI-powered bidding broadens performance by engaging a wider spectrum of distinct search categories. Smart Bidding Exploration makes the most of your existing targeting methods including broad match, Dynamic Search Ads, and AI Max, to help uncover new valuable conversions.
- Increase traffic diversity: Help broaden your overall performance by engaging a wider spectrum of search categories.
- Focus on intent-based queries: Unlike raw search term queries that include minor variations like misspellings and plurals, a Search category is a unique group of queries with meaningful semantic differentiation based on what searchers intend to find.
- Targeted algorithmic lift: Smart Bidding Exploration doesn’t raise your bids uniformly across all traffic, like clicks or impressions driven by unique search categories. Instead, it selectively raises bids on specific high-converting traffic slices.
Note: A Search category refers to a unique subset of queries grouped together based on user intent, with meaningful differentiation, compared to raw queries which would include incorrect spellings, plurals, and other variations. Traffic diversity should be the key metric to evaluate success for this beta feature. You might already know about Search categories from the "Insights" page in Google Ads. Learn more About search terms insights.
Search campaigns using Smart Bidding Exploration on average show increases of 27% more unique converting users, and increases of 19% more conversions on average.1
Compared to a similar target reduction, campaigns using Smart Bidding Exploration experience an average 13% increase in unique search categories with conversions and a 10% increase in total conversion.2
Compared to a similar target reduction, campaigns using Smart Bidding Exploration experience an average 13% increase in unique search categories with conversions and a 10% increase in total conversion.2
When to use Smart Bidding Exploration
It’s recommended that you use Smart Bidding Exploration in campaigns where you’re:
- Focusing on demand-driven expansion: This option is ideal for brands that want to diversify traffic and find hidden demand across search categories while keeping existing campaign targeting intact.
- Managing bestsellers and extra inventory: Smart Bidding Exploration helps increase the presence of vital products such as seasonal stock, low-volume stock keeping units, or consistent top sellers. Use it in campaigns built around these products.
- Maximizing seasonal peaks and holiday traffic: Turn on Smart Bidding Exploration at least 6 weeks before major holiday sales, so it has time to find new traffic before peak demand. Note: Smart Bidding Exploration is compatible with Seasonality Adjustments.
Important: Smart Bidding Exploration isn’t recommended for campaigns with heavy budget constraints. It also isn’t recommended for advertisers with rigid Target ROAS targets who don’t want to adjust for incremental volume.
Sources
Google data- Google Internal Data, [Global], [Search text ads], [Jan 1-Feb 20, 2026]
- Source: Google Internal Data, Global (Note: campaigns were operating with an allowable 10% lower ROAS)
