Google Ads search partners: cheap clicks that did not convert
Updated June 15, 2026
Search partners are non-Google sites that show your Search ads; they're included by default and you can opt out in campaign settings. Their clicks come cheap and abnormally often — on one real campaign, a 15.4% CTR (against 2.8% on Google Search) at $1.70 a click, with zero conversions for $117. Google itself says partner CTR doesn't affect Quality Score, so the one flattering metric is hollow. For most lead-gen Search campaigns the honest default is off; if you keep partners, read the placement report (per-site impressions since August 2025) and judge by conversions, not CTR.
A real incident: a 15% CTR that converted nothing
On one B2B search campaign — the same DB Access Control campaign that was leaking onto the Display Network — the "search partners" line ran a 15.4% click-through rate over 30 days: 69 clicks from 447 impressions, $117.23 spent, zero conversions. The campaign's own Google-search line, over the same period, ran 2.8% — 31 clicks from 1,110 impressions at $10.02 a click. Search partners delivered more than twice the clicks of Google Search proper, from a third of the impressions, at a sixth of the price per click. None of it converted.
What "search partners" are
Search partners are non-Google sites that show Google ads. Google's Search Network documentation describes ads appearing "in different locations and placements, such as a list of search results... site directory pages, product detail pages, YouTube search results and Watch pages." They are part of the Search Network, separate from Google Search itself, and "search partners are included by default. You can opt out of these networks at any time through your campaign settings."
So, like the Display leak, this is an opt-out you probably never made. The difference is the disguise: partner traffic is still text ads on search-like surfaces, so it reads as search in every report that doesn't split it out.
Why the clicks look great and convert badly
A 15% CTR would be a triumph on Google Search. On search partners it is a warning. Partner sites place ads where they earn clicks — directories, autocomplete-style results, low-attention pages — so the click rate runs high and the price runs low: $1.70 a click here against $10.02 on Google. What that buys is the open question, and on this campaign the answer was zero conversions for $117.
Google all but says the number is hollow: "the clickthrough rate (CTR) for ads on search partner sites doesn't impact your Quality Score." The one flattering metric partners produce is the one Google itself discounts.
What to do about it
- Decide whether you want partners at all. For most lead-gen Search campaigns the honest default is off. Opt out in the campaign's Networks settings — the same card that holds the Display toggle.
- If you keep them, read the placement report. Since August 2025, full placement reporting lists "all SPN sites your campaigns served on, along with impression data for each site" — the visibility advertisers asked for over years. It is impression-level, so it tells you where, not yet how much.
- Exclude the junk. Placement exclusions set in the Content Suitability Center "apply to Display Network, YouTube and SPN," so one list scrubs partner placements across campaigns.
- Judge by conversions, never CTR. On partners the click rate is both inflated and excluded from Quality Score. Cost per conversion is the only honest read.
How the fix ships
The account runs on Adjar: each campaign's network setting is config in a git repo, continuously compared against what's live, so "which campaigns still serve on partners?" is a query, not a hunt through tabs.
Google search 1,110 impr 31 clicks $310.60 0 conv
Search partners 447 impr 69 clicks $117.23 0 conv
Turning partners off is one line, reviewed as a diff:
[[campaigns]]
name = "DB Access Control | SEARCH | 2026-Q2"
- networks = ["search", "search_partners"]
+ networks = ["search"]
It's the same one-line move that took Display off this campaign. Removing Display got the campaign down to the Search Network; removing partners gets it down to Google Search — which, for a campaign that converts on intent, is the only surface that was ever earning its keep.
Frequently asked questions
- What are Google search partners?
Search partners are non-Google websites and apps that show Google Search ads — search results pages, site directory pages, product detail pages, and YouTube. They make up the part of the Search Network that isn't Google Search itself. Your text ads can appear there alongside the ones on google.com.
- Should I turn off Google search partners?
For most lead-generation Search campaigns, yes — or at least measure them separately first. Partner clicks are cheap and frequent but often low-intent; on the campaign in this article they ran a 15.4% CTR with zero conversions. If partners drive conversions at an acceptable cost for you, keep them. If they only drive clicks, opt out.
- How do I turn off search partners in Google Ads?
Open the campaign's settings, expand the "Networks" section, and uncheck the search partners option (Google includes them by default). It's the same Networks card that controls the Display Network. Search partners can be opted out per Search campaign at any time.
- Can I see which search partner sites my ads showed on?
Yes, since August 2025. Google added full placement reporting for the Search Partner Network on Search, Shopping, and App campaigns: a list of every SPN site your campaign served on, with impressions per site. It's impression-level, not cost- or conversion-per-site, so it tells you where your ads ran, not yet how much each site cost.
- Why is the click-through rate on search partners so high?
Partner sites place ads where they earn clicks — directories, autocomplete-style results, low-attention pages — so CTR runs high and cost per click runs low. A high partner CTR isn't a quality signal: Google says the CTR on search partner sites doesn't affect your Quality Score. Judge partners by conversions, not clicks.