What is the average CTR on Google Ads?

What is CTR in Google Ads?

Each ad, listing and keyword has its own CTR, which you can see in your account (Google’s definition of CTR). Clickthrough rate also contributes to the expected CTR of your keywords, which is taken into account in Ad Rank.

CTR is one of the five steering metrics presented in our SEA guide; the other acronyms (CPC, CPA, ROAS) are defined in our SEA lexicon. Do not confuse it with Search Console CTR, which covers your organic results.

What is the average CTR on Google Ads in 2026?

There is no single average CTR for Google Ads, but several benchmarks published by tool vendors and one agency, based on their customers’ accounts. In 2026, their figures range from 4.64% to 21.85% depending on what they count.

These figures come from LocaliQ’s 2026 benchmarks (June 1, 2026), Optmyzr’s CTR analysis (August 28, 2026) and Seer Interactive’s 2026 study (April 24, 2026, updated on May 21, 2026). They describe the accounts of each publisher’s customers, not all advertisers. Elev8 Lab has no commercial relationship with the vendors mentioned.

Why these averages cannot be compared

Five differences in method separate these figures:

• Campaign or account: LocaliQ calculates on campaigns, Google Ads and Microsoft Ads combined. Optmyzr takes the median of each account’s values: every account weighs the same, whatever its size.
• Average or median: LocaliQ refers to an “average CTR” without detailing the calculation on the page consulted; Optmyzr publishes medians.
• Search only or all types: at Optmyzr, the median goes from 4.64% for all campaign types to 8.88% for Search only.
• Tracked queries: Seer Interactive measures the CTR of a cohort of queries present every month in 53 accounts, not an account CTR.
• Account size: Optmyzr reports a median of 5.10% for small businesses and 2.43% for enterprise accounts (Q2 2026).

Between the lowest figure (4.64%) and the highest (21.85%), the ratio is about 4.7 (Elev8 Lab calculation). Comparing your CTR with one of them without reading its method means comparing different units.

Figures to stop repeating

Is there an average Google Ads CTR for France?

No, not with a published method. As of October 19, 2026, we found no public source giving an average Google Ads CTR for France along with its sample, its period and its calculation method.

LocaliQ, Optmyzr and Seer Interactive do not specify the country of the accounts on the pages consulted. We therefore do not know which markets their figures cover: do not apply them as they are to a French account.

Does CTR vary by campaign type and industry?

Yes. At Optmyzr, the median for Search campaigns (8.88%) is almost double that of all campaign types combined (4.64%). The industries below come from two series that cannot be compared: 2026 Search CTR of LocaliQ customer campaigns, and Optmyzr per-account medians in Q2 2026.

LocaliQ publishes 23 industries, of which only extracts are shown here.

For the Display Network, YouTube and Performance Max campaigns, we found no 2025 or 2026 benchmark published with its method. Google points out that a good CTR depends on the networks you use: these campaigns are not judged on Search figures.

Even in Search, read search partners separately. Google does not include them in location segmentation, and targeting them does not affect the quality of your ads on Google.com.

How do you know if your Google Ads CTR is good?

By comparing it with benchmarks that measure the same thing: the expected CTR of your keywords, your history and your conversions. Google sets no threshold.

1. Add the “Exp. CTR” and “Exp. CTR. (hist.)” columns to the keywords report. A dash in the Quality Score column means there are too few searches that exactly match the keyword.
2. Separate brand and non-brand campaigns. This is an Elev8 Lab recommendation: an overall CTR that mixes the two does not tell you which one is moving. Optmyzr also studies these two segments separately.
3. Segment by network, then by location on the page: according to Google, top and absolute top metrics explain changes in CTR caused by ad location; Google advises against using them as a bidding target.
4. Compare with your own history, over equal periods. Google tries to filter invalid clicks out of your reports; the invalid clicks column shows them.
5. Read CTR together with conversions: according to Google, a more specific ad can have a lower CTR and a better conversion rate. To link clicks to value, see how to calculate your ROAS; the Google Ads audit method covers the rest of the account.

LocaliQ’s 2026 benchmark quotes Amy Bishop on this point: CPC and CTR are “health metrics”, not KPIs.

Expected CTR, the only comparative benchmark Google provides

Each component gets a status: “Above average”, “Average” or “Below average”. Google calculates it by comparison with other advertisers whose ads showed for the same search over the last 90 days (Quality Score help page). In the help pages we read, this is the only “compared with the average” benchmark Google provides.

Expected CTR is normalized for the ad’s actual position, as well as for the assets and formats shown (ad quality help page). A better position therefore does not raise it.

Auction-time quality, however, differs from the 1 to 10 Quality Score shown in the account. That displayed score is not used in the auction. The full calculation of Quality Score is detailed in our dedicated article.

Do AI Overviews lower ad CTR?

Published data show a lower paid CTR when an AI Overview appears. They do not specify a country and establish a correlation, not a cause. Google launched AI Overviews and AI Mode in France on July 22, 2026; its announcement does not mention ads.

According to the same study, this paid CTR stays between 13 and 16% throughout 2025 and into early 2026. An earlier study by the agency (November 4, 2025, 3,119 queries, 42 client organizations) covers informational queries with an AI Overview. Paid CTR there drops from 19.70% in June 2024 to 6.34% in September 2025, in monthly averages.

In Q1 2026, Optmyzr reports a higher CTR and fewer impressions year over year. The vendor attributes this to AI Overviews and changing search results pages, without proving it.

How AI Overviews work and their effect on organic results are covered separately. To choose between ads and organic search on informational queries, see SEO and SEA.

How do you improve a low Google Ads CTR?

By working on the ad rather than the bid, since expected CTR is normalized for position. When it is “Average” or “Below average”, Google suggests five avenues:

• make the offer more compelling;
• match the details of the ad to the intent of the keyword;
• highlight a unique benefit;
• add calls to action;
• write more specific ad text.

Google also looks at the clickthrough rates of assets (formerly extensions) to estimate their impact. For headlines, descriptions and assets, see how to write your ads.

Before rewriting, check that the low CTR does not come from ad location, search partners or a mix of brand and non-brand. An average Google Ads CTR published by a vendor remains an order of magnitude: the gap with your own benchmarks is a better guide for optimization.