NatWest Accelerator Events Free one-day marketing seminar at the NatWest Accelerator, Milton Keynes · 10 November 2026 Free marketing seminar · NatWest Accelerator, Milton Keynes · 10 Nov 2026 Free seminar · 10 Nov 2026
NatWest Accelerator, MK
Get your free invite →Invite →

Home › Blog › Google Ads

Google Ads

When Should You Pause Google Ads Keywords?

When Should You Pause Google Ads Keywords?
Read the video transcript

When to pause a keyword? What things to consider? so when to pause a keyword is when it's too expensive so you need to decide whether I should stop a keyword if it has spent three times or four times my target CPA and it is proving to be very expensive is not converting either or it is converting but at a very expensive price and you can't be profitable at that price.

So that's how or that's when you will pause that keyword.

The primary goal of running a Google Ads campaign is to sell a product. To sell, advertisers choose high converting keywords for persuading people to click on the ad and on every click, the advertiser has to pay Google. Contrary to this, the business objective is accomplished only when the visitor makes a purchase no matter how many clicks the ad gets.

If the keyword you are using for your Google Ads is getting many clicks but not making any conversions, you have reached a point where you have to decide whether or not you should pause the keyword. Coming up next, we’ll walk you through situations you’d better pause off the keyword.

Free NatWest Accelerator event

Get Found, Get Chosen, Get Your Time Back

A free one-day marketing seminar in Milton Keynes · 10 November 2026

Get your free invite →

Two Cases: When You Should Pause The Keyword

Following are two best-case scenarios to pause your Google Ads keywords

Get your free Marketing Action PlanNot sure where to start? Answer a few questions and get your plan in about a minute. No email needed.

Get my plan →
  1. Keywords that costs but do not converts
  2. Low-Quality Score Keywords

Keywords That Costs But Not Converts

Sadly, not every keyword provides you desired results when it comes to conversions. This is the most common case where your Google Ads gets many clicks but does not make any conversions. Consequently, the advertiser does not make any profit and only pays the cost. Sometimes, the ad spending violates the target CPA, and you run in the loss. If that’s your case, you must immediately pause your keyword.

But wait!

This is not the solution to your problem! What if the concerned keyword:

  • Used to provide you desired results in the past
  • Contains the best informative words
  • Does it contain untested words?
  • Works fine on low bidding?

That is the point of reconsidering your thoughts. Undoubtedly, expensive keywords should be paused immediately, but you must try to identify the problem within the points mentioned above.

Estimate the Range:

Uzair KharawalaLIVE
Free weekly YouTube live

Live every Tuesday at 2pm UK. Bring your marketing questions.

Get your Google, local SEO and AI questions answered live.

Join for free

If your ad keyword was converting fine in the past and has stopped making conversions within 7-30 days, there is no need to pause the keyword straight away. Instead, find out what changed the metrics? (Bid, text, niche or landing page)

Text Efficiency:

Observe how strong your ad copy works overall? How efficient is the text your keyword contains? Finding out these queries will help you identify the cause of different effectiveness.

Check Your Landing Page:

The same goes for the landing page efficiency testing. Contact the Google Ads dimension tab to determine how your landing page works overall? Check if your landing page functions equally well when associated with other keywords or not?

Solving these mysteries will help you make the right decision.

Low-Quality Keywords

Just like high spending keywords are harmful to your pocket, it is similar to low bidding keywords. Low bidding keywords charge less and appear cheaper than the first hard case. The advertisers do not feel the burden of paying low bidding charges even if it doesn’t make any conversions. However, the metrics show the average aggregate, which appears pretty expensive to advertisers indirectly.

If so is the case, make sure to pause it immediately.

Wrap Up

The advertisers must stick to a sole objective: to make a sale. If your ad campaign is not generating any conversions overall, it’s pretty obvious your investment is of no use. So do not “kill” the keyword immediately but inquire about the cause first. And if nothing turns out, pause the keyword right away.

Uzair Kharawala

Written by Uzair Kharawala

Partner at SF Digital Studios, a Google Premier Partner agency. Uzair has been helping businesses grow with Google Ads since 2002 and teaches it every week on YouTube.

Book A Call →Subscribe on YouTube for new videos every weekday →
Free every week

Get our best Google Ads tips by email

New articles and videos, straight to your inbox. Unsubscribe any time.

We respect your privacy at all times. Privacy Policy

You may also like

Read the blog →

Your next customers are out there. Let's go and get them.

Tell us where you want your business to be, and we'll show you how to get there.

Book A Call →or get your free Google Health Check →
Happy clients

Don't take our word for it

4.9 from 157 Google reviews, plus case studies and client videos.

See our happy clients →
"It has now been 3 months since we started and our sales have increased 300%."
Ruhi Latif Rafplay, Dubai
"Uzair and Farzana are two of the most honest, sincere and trustworthy people you will ever meet."
Gavin Morgan GDM Jewellery · Google review
"If I needed a campaign built, this is one of the rare few people IN THE WORLD I would trust to do it properly."
Hemmel Amrania Google Ads professional · Google review
Book A Call →
Chat with us on WhatsApp