About broad match

Learn all about the broad match type.

Note

Please note: All broad match modifier keywords for search ads now serve as broad match keywords instead of phrase match. For more information about keyword match types, see What are keyword match types, and how do I use them?

Broad match is the default keyword match type that makes your ad eligible to be displayed when someone searches words related to your keyword, which can include searches that don't contain the keyword terms. Broad match will also match synonyms and other similar keywords, including those with spelling errors.

How broad match can help you

Spend less time building keyword lists. Trying to figure out seemingly endless variations of keywords is time consuming. With broad match, Microsoft Advertising does the work for you! This way, you don't have to worry about creating keyword lists to try to cover all relevant searches.
Spend money on keywords that work. Not all keyword variations will lead to clicks for your ads, so Microsoft Advertising will stop showing your ads for those specific keyword variations. Doing so will allow you to focus on the keywords that do work and not accrue click charges for keyword variations that don't. We are constantly working to improve our broad match functionality to make sure your ads are shown only on relevant terms.

Examples of broad match at work

Broad match keyword	Ads may show on searches for
Hawaii hotels	Hawaii rentals Honolulu Hawaii hotels Hawaii Maui hotels
Best SUV	SUV comparison Best cars truck lease offers
Purple high heels	Women's high heels purple Lavender stilettos Heels on sale
Online tax filing	Taxes efile Tax filing software Pay taxes online
Ultrabook laptop	best ultrabooks thin and light notebooks laptop deals
Red flowers	Red floral arrangements Crimson flowers poinsettias gift

Keep in mind that there will be times when different options might be more helpful. For example:

If you find that some of your broad match keywords are matching on search terms that aren't relevant to your business, you can use negative keywords to fine-tune or restrict how the broad match is being applied.
If you are interested in improving your click-through rate (CTR), consider using exact and phrase match. While this means that your ads will show far less often than if you used broad match, having a higher CTR means that your ads are being more precisely targeted. Learn more about your options for keyword match type
Preferring short keywords over long keywords can also improve the quality of your matches when using broad match.
Your quality score shows you how competitive your ads are in the marketplace. A low quality score means that your competitors’ campaigns are performing better than yours – in other words, their ads are probably showing more often and more prominently on the search results page.