Search partners cost estimator
Enter one campaign's numbers for Google Search and for search partners. You'll see the cost per conversion of each, and how much partners cost beyond what the same results would have cost on Google Search.
Where to find these numbers
- In Google Ads, go to Campaigns and pick a date range of at least 30 days.
- Click the Segment icon above the table and choose Network (with search partners).
- Each Search campaign now has a row for Google search and one for Search partners. Copy the cost and conversions of both rows into the estimator.
(If you can't find it, search for "segment" in the Google Ads search bar.)
How the estimate works
Search partners are other websites and apps that show Google search ads. They're switched on by default in new Search campaigns. Clicks there cost real money, but they often turn into customers less often than clicks on Google Search.
The estimator uses the same rule as the SpendCanary scan:
- If partners brought no conversions, everything they cost counts as waste.
- If partners cost at least twice as much per conversion as Google Search, the waste is what partners cost minus what the same number of conversions would have cost at the Google Search price.
- Otherwise partners are doing a fair job, and nothing is counted.
- Below $20 of partner spend in the period (or the same in your currency), there isn't enough data to judge.
The monthly figure scales your period to 30 days and is rounded down. It's a rough guide, not a promise: some of those people might have found you another way.
What to do with the result
If partners look like a leak, you can turn them off per campaign under Settings, thenNetworks, or test it in one campaign first. Our guideShould you turn off Google search partners? walks through the steps and the softer options.