Negative Keywords at Campaign Level in Performance Max

Throughout 2025, Google has been gradually opening the “black box” of Performance Max campaigns. Some features, such as channel distribution, are still only available to a limited number of accounts in beta.

However, negative keywords at the campaign level in PMax campaigns are now available to everyone. This change gives advertisers more control, better optimization, and the ability to prevent ads from appearing in irrelevant searches without relying on manual processes with Google support. It also allows you to redirect traffic to the most relevant campaign—similar to cross-negative keywords in search campaigns.

‍

Why It’s Important to Use Negative Keywords in PMax

🛡 Avoid irrelevant clicks: Don’t waste budget on searches unrelated to your business.
📈 Improve performance: Focus your budget on search terms that actually generate sales or leads, and redirect them to the most suitable campaign.
🎯 Gain more control: This feature used to be very limited—now it can be edited directly from the interface.

‍

📢 How to Add Negative Keywords at the Campaign Level in Google Ads for Performance Max

‍

1️⃣ Access your Google Ads account

• Go to ads.google.com and log in.
• In the left-hand menu, click “All campaigns” or select the Performance Max campaign you want to edit.

2️⃣ Go to campaign settings

• Inside the campaign, find the “Settings” section.
• Scroll down until you find “Negative keywords.”

‍

3️⃣ Add your negative keywords

• Click “Add.”
• Type the words or phrases you want to exclude.
• Choose the match type:
  • Broad → Blocks the word in any context.
  • Phrase → Blocks searches that include that exact phrase.
  • Exact → Blocks only that exact search.

‍

Example:

• Broad: t-shirts
• Phrase: "red t-shirts"
• Exact: [cheap red t-shirts]

‍

4️⃣ Save and review

• Click Save.
• Review your reports regularly to spot new irrelevant terms and add them to the list.

‍

Dolnai Tips:

• Do it regularly: This isn’t a one-time task; check the search terms report at least once a month.
• Use shared lists: If multiple campaigns need the same negatives, create an account-level list and apply it to all of them.
• Exclude placements and audiences for even more control.

‍