ScaleyGoogle Ads Match Types: Broad, Phrase and Exact
Broad match modifier is gone. Here is what replaced it, how the 3 match types work today, and which one a store should use where.
Written and reviewed by Christopher Krassnig
Published Last checked
Match types tell Google how close a search must be to your keyword for your ad to show. Google Ads has 3: broad match (related searches), phrase match (searches that include your keyword's meaning) and exact match (same meaning or intent). Broad match modifier was folded into phrase match in 2021.
Also called: keyword match types, keyword matching options, broad match modifier (retired)
What Happened to Broad Match Modifier
If you searched for broad match modifier, here is the short story. It is gone.
Google says that "in February 2021, Google Ads began to incorporate behaviors of broad match modifier (BMM) into phrase match." By July 2021, phrase and BMM keywords had "the same updated phrase matching behavior for all languages."
So the old +keyword notation does nothing special now. Google says "new keywords can't be added using the legacy BMM notation (+keyword)", and old BMM keywords "will continue to serve, but will behave as phrase match keywords." If you edit an old BMM keyword, it turns into phrase match notation when you save.
Google also says there are "no performance benefits to converting your BMM keywords". You can leave old ones alone. If you do convert them, their past stats do not carry over to the new keyword.
The 3 Match Types That Exist Today
Google's own definitions, side by side, with the way you type each one.
| Match type | How you type it | When your ad may show |
|---|---|---|
| Broad match | tennis shoes | On searches related to your keyword, which "can include searches that don't contain the direct meaning" of it. It is the default. |
| Phrase match | "tennis shoes" | On searches that "include the meaning of your keyword". The meaning can be implied, and the search can be more specific. |
| Exact match | [tennis shoes] | On searches that "have the same meaning or same intent as the keyword". The most control and the fewest searches. |
Google puts the rule in one line: "broader match types capture all the queries of narrower match types, plus more." A phrase keyword matches everything the same exact keyword would, and broad matches everything phrase and exact would, and more.
Word order still matters for phrase match. Google's example: "moving services NYC to Boston" can match "NYC corporate moving services to Boston", but not a search about moving from Boston to New York.
Broad Match Needs Smart Bidding
Broad match reaches the most searches, so it can also spend the most on the wrong ones. Google is blunt about this: "It's critical to use Smart Bidding with broad match." Smart Bidding sets a bid for each search based on how likely it is to convert. With a manual bid, broad match pays the same for a great search and a junk one.
If you are on manual bids, start with phrase and exact. If you use Smart Bidding with good conversion tracking, broad match is worth a test, with a close eye on the search terms report.
How Match Types Work Next to Performance Max
Many stores run Search and Performance Max together. Google sets an order. If a search is identical to an exact match keyword in your Search campaign, the Search campaign wins over Performance Max. Phrase and broad keywords identical to the search share priority with an identical Performance Max search theme. After that, Google picks by relevance, then by Ad Rank.
So if you want a search to go to a specific Search ad, add it as an exact match keyword. That is the cleanest way to steer it.
Negative Keywords Match Differently
Negative keywords stop your ad showing on a search. Google notes that "negative keyword match types behave differently from positive match types." Our negative keyword answer covers the rules.
Example: A Pet Store Picks Match Types
Made-up numbers, to show the method. A pet store sells orthopedic dog beds and runs Search ads on manual bids.
It adds [orthopedic dog bed] as exact match for its best sellers, and "orthopedic dog bed" as phrase match to catch longer searches like "large orthopedic dog bed with cover". It skips broad match for now, because it is on manual bids.
After 30 days it reads the search terms report. Phrase match pulled in "orthopedic dog bed diy", which never sells. It adds diy as a negative keyword. Once it has steady conversion data, it tests broad match with Smart Bidding in an experiment on half the traffic.
Common Mistakes
Still typing +keyword
Since July 2021 the plus sign does nothing. You cannot add new BMM keywords. Use phrase match.
Broad match on manual bids
Google says Smart Bidding is critical with broad match. Without it you pay the same for every search, good or bad.
Adding the same keyword in every match type
Google says a broad keyword already covers its phrase and exact searches. Duplicates do not raise your bid. Only one keyword enters the auction.
Never reading the search terms report
Phrase and broad match reach searches you did not type. The report shows what you paid for. Add negatives for what never sells.
Questions People Ask
No. Since July 2021, broad match modifier keywords behave exactly like phrase match, and you cannot add new ones with the +keyword notation.
Google's Own Pages We Quoted
Every rule, limit and size on this page comes from these pages, read on 8 October 2026. Google changes them, so check the page itself before you act.
Where to Go Next
- What Is a Negative Keyword?The other half of match types: what to block, and how negatives match.
- What Is Smart Bidding?Why broad match and Smart Bidding go together.
- Google AI Max for SearchAI Max adds search term matching on top of your keywords.
- CPC CalculatorWork out what a click can cost before you widen your match types.
- Google Ads Keyword Research: How to Use Keyword Planner RightFind the keywords before you pick their match type.
Ask Where Your Ad Money Went
Connect read-only in under five minutes. Ask which search terms and products lost money last month. Not ready to connect? The two-minute quiz scores you with no Google Ads login.
3-day free trial. Card required. Cancel anytime