In this article
- What is an optimization score?
- How does the new Search Ads 360 calculate optimization score?
- Personalize your optimization score
What is an optimization score?
Optimization score applies only to Google Ads campaigns and ads in the new Search Ads 360. Optimization score is an estimate of how well your Search Ads 360 account is set to perform. Scores run from 0-100%, with 100% meaning that your account can perform at its full potential.
Along with the score, you’ll see a list of recommendations that can help you optimize each campaign. Each recommendation shows how much your optimization score will be impacted (in percentages) when you apply that recommendation.
Note: Optimization score is available at the manager, sub-manager, and client account levels. Optimization score is shown for active Search, Display, Discovery, Video Action, App, Performance Max, and Shopping campaigns only.
Quick start
Check your optimization score to evaluate recommendations.
How does Search Ads 360 calculate optimization score?
Optimization score is calculated in real-time, based on the statistics, settings, and the status of your account and campaigns, the relevant impact of available recommendations, and recent recommendations history. Applying or dismissing these recommendations changes the overall optimization score of your account.
Optimization score and available recommendations can change based on many factors, ranging from your settings to trends in the ads ecosystem. You may see a different score and a new set of recommendations when these changes happen.
Details about your optimization score
At the top of the page, you’ll see a few details about your optimization score:
1. The focus of your optimization score, which can be conversions, impression share, clicks, etc.
2. The basis of your focus: either a bid strategy you set or a recommendation from Search Ads 360.
3. Status icons, illustrated below:
|
Green checkmark Search Ads 360 understands your bid strategy, and has focused on a goal based on that bid strategy. |
Yellow question mark Search Ads 360 does not understand your bid strategy and your focus is based on recommendation. |
Red minus Your optimization score has defaulted to a conversion focus, which can be remedied by setting a new bid strategy. |
Optimization score focus
Optimization score and recommendations are focused on your business objectives, such as maximizing conversions or conversion value. Recommendations are tailored to your unique campaign data and Google’s forecast models, and a recommendation will only exist for a particular account or campaign if it drives towards that business objective.
Optimization score is able to determine your campaign’s goal through your bid strategy. If your campaign is in the optimal fully-automated Smart Bidding strategy, your goal is openly expressed. If your campaign is not in such a strategy, your campaign goal is derived from the recommended bid strategy, which is based on your account and campaign data.
Example 1
If your campaign bid strategy is Target ROAS, optimization score is geared towards driving more conversion value at a similar ROAS, like expanding targeting and ensuring the budget isn’t constraining additional high value conversions.
Example 2
If your campaign is using Maximize Clicks and is reporting conversions, you may see a recommendation to adopt a performance-focused bid strategy like target CPA to help you drive more conversions.
Personalize your optimization score
You can control your performance objective through choosing max conversions, max conversion value, target CPA, target ROAS, or target IS. In other words, you can override the system's inferred strategy. You can adjust which conversions are used for optimization to match your business goals with the "Include in Conversions" setting.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much can I improve my optimization score?
Optimization score comes with recommendations on how to improve the performance of your campaign. These recommendations are based on performance history, campaign settings, and Google search volume and trends.
Each recommendation comes with a score uplift, which is a value from <0.1% to 100%. Score uplift reflects the estimated impact of the recommendation on overall campaign metrics, when possible.
It may be possible that the total score could add up to more than 100 if all individual recommendation scores were summed up 100. This is because when you apply some recommendations, they’ll invalidate a few other recommendations.
For example, when you're on the Recommendations page for your account and apply a recommendation that has a score uplift of 5%, your account’s optimization score increases by 5%. Your account can reach an optimization score of 100% by applying or dismissing all recommendations.
How can I apply recommendations?
Recommendations can help you get more out of your budget by improving your bidding, keywords, and ads, which may increase the overall performance and efficiency of your campaigns.
To apply a recommendation, go to the Recommendations page in your account. Select View on the recommendation you want to use, and then select Apply. To apply all recommendations within a specific type, select Apply all in the recommendation.
How can I dismiss recommendations?
If a recommendation doesn’t seem relevant to your ad campaign, you can dismiss the recommendation. To dismiss a recommendation, hover your cursor over the top-right corner of the recommendation, and then select the X to dismiss the recommendation.
To dismiss all recommendations within a specific type, select the 3-dot icon 
What's the difference between optimization score and Quality Score?
Optimization score is shown for active Search, Display, Discovery, Video Action, App, Performance Max and Shopping campaigns only. Optimization score is not used by your Quality Score. Quality Score is a diagnostic tool meant to give you a sense of how well your ad quality compares to other advertisers.
While both scores are meant to provide actionable feedback to help improve the effectiveness of campaigns, optimization score provides a more holistic view of your account’s health.