Managing invalid traffic

On this page

• How Google handles invalid traffic
• View credits for invalid traffic
• Increase in clicks or impressions
• Low conversion rates
• Multiple clicks from the same IP address
• Clicks from Google
• Reporting invalid traffic

Types of invalid traffic

Below are some types of clicks and impressions that are considered to be invalid:

• Accidental clicks that have no value, such as the second click of a double-click
• Manual clicks meant to increase someone's advertising costs
• Manual clicks meant to increase profits for website owners hosting your ads
• Clicks and impressions by automated tools, bots and spiders, crawlers, or other deceptive software
• Clicks that are known invalid data-center traffic or are considered irregular patterns identified through monitoring
• Impressions meant to artificially lower an advertiser's clickthrough rate (CTR)

How Google handles invalid traffic

Google’s systems continuously evaluate numerous data points to determine whether an ad interaction is valid or invalid. Invalid traffic detected by Google will appear in different ways depending on when it was detected. For invalid traffic detected before an invoice is generated, usage details will be adjusted accordingly in your reports, and you won’t be billed for such traffic. For invalid traffic detected after an invoice is already generated, Google issues customers credits for “invalid activity,” when possible and appropriate, which appear on subsequent invoices and in account transaction history reports. Learn more about Google's protection against invalid traffic.

You can monitor invalid clicks by adding the "Invalid clicks" column to your campaigns data table:

1. Sign in to your Google Ads account.
2. Select the Campaigns icon .
3. Under "Campaigns", select Campaigns.
4. Select the Columns icon above the data table.
5. Select the Search icon next to "Modify columns for campaigns" .
6. Search for “Invalid clicks”.
7. Select Apply.

View credits for invalid traffic

You’ll be credited when appropriate and possible for any invalid traffic that our systems detect after an invoice is already generated. To view these credits for invalid traffic:

1. In your Google Ads account, click the Billing icon .
2. Click Summary.

Invalid traffic credits you've received will be labeled "Invalid Activity" under the “Adjustments” dropdown in the month card.

Increase in clicks or impressions

Just because you notice a spike in the number of clicks or impressions in your account doesn't always mean your ads are affected by invalid traffic. In most cases, these spikes in traffic are caused by other things.

The following are a few examples of why you might notice an increase in traffic:

• Changes in average daily budget: If you raise the average daily budget for your campaigns, it'll allow your ads to get more impressions and more clicks.
• Changes in maximum CPC for keywords: Raising the maximum CPC (cost-per-click) for one or more of your keywords might allow your ads to show more often. It might also allow the ads to show in a higher position than before. That's also true for ads that show on the Display Network – a higher CPC can result in a higher position and therefore more impressions and clicks.
• Adding new keywords: Adding new keywords to your campaign, especially if the keywords are quite general or correspond to popular search queries, can increase the number of impressions and clicks you get.
• Ads are showing on new Display Network sites: If your ad campaign uses automatic placements and has enough average daily budget, your ads' traffic can significantly increase if it starts showing on a new publisher site.
• Changes to targeting: Review your audience targeting to ensure the right users are being shown your ads.
• Irrelevant keywords: Using relevant keywords will allow you to reach your target audience.
• Negative keywords: Ensure you're using negative keywords to prevent your ads from showing to people searching for things you don't offer.
• Seasonal trends or news events: Sometimes a sudden increase in interest in a specific topic can cause increased traffic, for example, if it's a special holiday or if someone famous blogs or talks about a particular topic.

Low conversion rates

A low conversion rate doesn't always mean that you're getting invalid interactions. A number of different factors can lead to high levels of traffic but relatively few sales. Here are some common causes of, and solutions to, low conversion rates, as well as tips for improving lead quality:

• Changes in market condition, user behavior, and web content may affect your campaign's performance: Some of our advertisers experience a lower return on investment (ROI) as their industries face increasing competition within the internet advertising marketplace. We recommend that you closely monitor the ROI for each of your keywords and ads. Also adjust your bids accordingly within the budget that's right for your business. Learn more about how to Choose a bid amount that works for you.
• Sites that are difficult to navigate may drive away potential customers: Consider evaluating your site's overall design, layout, and functionality. With Google Analytics, you can understand if visitors typically leave your website at a certain point before making a purchase.
• Your keywords and ad text may not be specific enough: If you use general keywords and ad text, someone may arrive at your site expecting to find something you don't offer. Highly targeted keywords and ad text will help ensure your ads show only to customers interested in your product or service.
• Your campaign may not be optimized for the Display Network: If your campaign is opted into the Display Network but isn't optimized, your ads may appear on Display Network sites that are irrelevant to the products or services you're advertising. Visitors are more likely to make a purchase on your website if your ads pertain to the sites they're currently browsing. For best results, it's important that each of your ad groups contains a short, specific keyword list focusing on only one product or service. Learn more about how to  Optimize Display Network ads and campaigns.

To enhance the quality of your leads, focus on these best practices:

• Data integrity and lead tracking: Implement server-side validation for web forms.
• User interest: Utilize double opt-in to confirm user interest.
• Offline conversion measurement: Use enhanced conversions for leads to track both qualified and converted leads.

Learn more about how Google protects you from invalid activity and advertising fraud

Multiple clicks from the same IP address

Multiple clicks from the same IP address don't necessarily suggest invalid activity. There are several possible reasons why this happens:

• Return visits: Individuals may click your ad more than once when comparison shopping or returning to your site for more information.
• Shared IP addresses: Multiple clicks from a single source may be due to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) assigning identical IP addresses to multiple users. Certain ISPs distribute a relatively small number of shared, rotating IP addresses to a large number of users. As a result, multiple visitors may access your site from identical IP addresses, giving the impression of repeated clicks from a single visitor.
• Web server logs: Your site's web server logs include data for all visitors to your site, not just those who arrived after clicking an ad. You may notice "Google.com" referrers from visitors who reached your site through the Google search results and not through your ad. Rest assured that your account is only charged for clicks your ads receive.
• Third-party software: We've found that some reporting software records clicks between pages as a visitor navigates through your website. As a result, it may appear that you received a large number of clicks from a single visitor in a short period of time. For a more accurate way to track only Google Ads clicks, we recommend using auto-tagging.

Clicks from Google

Clicks on ads from within Google aren't charged to your account. You may notice this activity in your web server logs, but rest assured, you aren't charged for this activity. This also applies to Google's web-crawling robots.

Reporting invalid traffic

There are many common reasons for increased traffic that don't involve invalid activity. However, if you suspect that our systems are not detecting invalid traffic that may be affecting your campaigns, you may request an invalid traffic investigation into the past 60 days of traffic. Additionally, you can manually exclude IP addresses that you believe are generating invalid clicks:

1. Sign in to your Google Ads account.
2. Select the Admin icon .
3. Select Account settings.
4. Select IP exclusions.
5. Enter the IP addresses that you want to exclude.
6. Select Save.

Our team of specialists uses a variety of different signals, including click and impression information, to identify sources of invalid traffic. Because of the large number of data points that will be analyzed, an investigation into your account may take several business days to complete. When you request an investigation, please share as much information as possible for the traffic about which you're concerned.

Learn more about requesting an invalid traffic investigation