Broad match vs. Exact match keywords in 2026: What's giving you lower Cost-Per-Click?

[BettyGarcia]

Ad platforms keep pushing automated broad match biddings, but I’m worried about wasting budget on irrelevant searches. Are you letting smart bidding handle broad match keywords, or sticking to strict exact match phrases?

 

[fiona.bennett]

I wouldn’t treat it as an all-or-nothing choice in my opinion. If I had a tight budget, I’d keep most of the spend on exact and phrase match as usually that works best. However, I'd then give broad match a small, separate test budget just to see how it pans out. Then and only then, would I give broad match more room if and when results actually justify it. If not, just go back to exact match phrasing.

 

[Jake]

I think it really does depend on the situation – how much data you have, and how much you don’t. Broad match can help you find new keywords that you never thought of, and exact match can give you more power over what you are looking for. As for which one I prefer, I think it’s important to look at the search terms report regularly, whichever match type you are using. The bottom line is finding new sources of profitable traffic.

 

[andrewcollins.]

I think it really does depend on the situation – how much data you have, and how much you don’t. Broad match can help you find new keywords that you never thought of, and exact match can give you more power over what you are looking for. As for which one I prefer, I think it’s important to look at the search terms report regularly, whichever match type you are using. The bottom line is finding new sources of profitable traffic.

Yeah, checking the search terms report regularly is probably one of the most useful things to do. It can show you what people are actually searching for and help you see which keywords are bringing in the better traffic.

 

[jayonmarketing]

Starting with exact match seems more practical since it gives you a clearer picture of which searches bring in relevant traffic. Once there's enough data to work with, testing broad match becomes less of a guessing game and more of a calculated decision.