Negative Keywords List: Buckets You Can Use

A negative keywords list is a grouped set of terms you exclude from ad targeting so your ads stop showing on irrelevant searches. The best lists are organized by intent bucket, applied at the right account level, and reviewed often so they cut waste without blocking profitable demand.

If you searched for a big list, you probably do not need another page that dumps hundreds of words into random paragraphs. You need a resource you can scan, copy, adapt, and maintain.

This post does three things. It gives you a practical master list, shows where each exclusion belongs, and explains how to build a living workflow in code with YepAPI's Keyword API.

Negative keywords list buckets#

Use the buckets below as starting points, not as blind defaults. Search intent changes by business model, price point, sales motion, geography, and channel.

1. Jobs and hiring terms#

These searches come from people looking for employment, not your product or service.

• jobs
• job
• hiring
• careers
• career
• salary
• wages
• internship
• internships
• apprentice
• apprenticeship
• recruiter
• resume
• cv
• cover letter
• interview questions
• indeed
• glassdoor

2. Education and training terms#

These often signal learning intent instead of buying intent.

• course
• courses
• class
• classes
• training
• tutorial
• tutorials
• certification
• certificate
• degree
• college
• university
• school
• pdf notes
• syllabus
• webinar free

3. Free and no-cost terms#

These can be excellent negatives for paid products, premium services, and enterprise offers.

• free
• freeware
• open source
• no cost
• trial free
• cracked
• nulled
• download free
• template free
• generator free
• cheap free

4. DIY and self-serve research terms#

These terms often describe people who want instructions, not a vendor.

• diy
• do it yourself
• how to build
• tutorial
• guide
• instructions
• examples
• sample
• samples
• checklist
• blueprint
• formula
• script

5. Cheap and bargain terms#

Useful when you sell premium services or products with longer sales cycles.

• cheap
• cheapest
• low cost
• bargain
• discount
• discounts
• coupon
• coupons
• promo code
• deal
• deals
• wholesale cheap
• budget

6. Research-only terms#

These searches often indicate someone gathering information, not choosing a supplier.

• what is
• definition
• meaning
• statistics
• stats
• research
• review
• reviews
• comparison
• comparisons
• vs
• alternative
• alternatives
• reddit
• quora

7. Support and existing-customer terms#

These usually belong on support content, not acquisition campaigns.

• login
• sign in
• support
• help desk
• customer service
• phone number
• contact support
• cancel
• cancellation
• refund
• returns
• troubleshooting
• status

8. Geography mismatch terms#

Use these when your offer is region-limited or when local intent is wrong for the campaign.

• near me
• directions
• local
• map
• maps
• zipcode
• postal code
• city names you do not serve
• country names you do not serve
• state names you do not serve

9. Consumer-intent terms for B2B campaigns#

These help B2B advertisers filter traffic that wants a retail purchase, not a business solution.

• amazon
• walmart
• target
• ebay
• best buy
• near me
• same day
• in store
• personal use
• home use
• family
• kids

10. Student and academic terms#

These overlap with education terms but are often worth their own shared list.

• student
• students
• dissertation
• thesis
• essay
• homework
• assignment
• citation
• journal article
• lecture

11. Content-format terms#

These can indicate a searcher wants media or files instead of your offer.

• pdf
• ppt
• powerpoint
• doc
• spreadsheet
• excel
• image
• images
• video free
• mp3
• download

12. Competitor or product-fit exclusions#

These are not universal. Use them only when the search truly cannot convert.

• obsolete product names
• unsupported integrations
• incompatible platforms
• consumer-only brands
• irrelevant vertical terms

Negative keywords list examples by campaign type#

A universal list helps, but campaign context matters more. In negative keywords strategy google ads b2b, the key idea is the same: exclude by intent, not by guesswork.

1. High-ticket B2B services: jobs, free, cheap, template, course, salary, support, consumer retail names.
2. SaaS trial campaigns: jobs, support, refund, open source, crack, tutorial, pdf, competitor terms that never convert.
3. Local service campaigns: out-of-area cities, remote terms, diy, jobs, salary, free estimate forms if you do not offer them.
4. Ecommerce campaigns: repair manuals, replacement instructions, wholesale if you sell retail, retail if you sell wholesale.
5. Lead generation for enterprise software: student, definition, examples, open source, freelancer, personal use, beginner tutorial.

If you need more expansion ideas before building exclusions, start from a seed set and get keyword ideas. Then separate buying phrases from waste.

negative keyword list generator workflow#

The missing part in most guides is the operating system behind the list. A good negative keyword list generator is not a one-time spreadsheet. It is a loop.

Step 1: Pull candidate queries#

Start with your search terms report from Google Ads or Microsoft Advertising. Then expand around those themes with keyword ideas, related keywords, and search intent data from YepAPI's Keyword API.

Step 2: Classify by exclusion bucket#

Map each term into one bucket: jobs, education, free, DIY, cheap, research, geography, support, consumer mismatch, or format mismatch. If you already group positives by topic, what is keyword clustering is the same operational mindset applied in reverse.

Step 3: Score before you block#

Do not auto-block every non-converting query. Review impressions, clicks, cost, downstream conversion rate, and semantic fit. A query can have zero conversions because it lacks volume, not because it lacks intent.

Step 4: Decide where the negative belongs#

Put global waste into a shared list. Put campaign-specific waste at campaign level. Put tight message mismatches at ad group level.

Step 5: Recheck conflicts weekly#

Broad exclusions can cancel useful traffic. Review blocked queries and compare them with active targets before syncing changes.

Step 6: Refresh from new variations#

Search language changes. New products, seasonal modifiers, and channel-specific terms appear constantly, so rerun expansions and append new candidates.

For teams doing this at scale, YepAPI's Keyword API is the code path. You can pull volume-oriented terms with the Keyword API, enrich a seed list with keyword overview data, and track trend shifts with search trends.

Campaign-level vs ad-group-level vs shared lists#

Where a negative lives matters as much as the word itself.

In Google Ads, shared lists are powerful because they centralize account-wide junk traffic. In Microsoft Advertising, the same idea exists, but conflict checking becomes even more important when keyword routing is already complex.

A simple rule works well:

1. Shared list: universal waste.
2. Campaign level: audience or offer mismatch.
3. Ad group level: routing and message precision.

How to add negative keywords in Google Ads#

If you already know what are negative keywords, implementation is straightforward. The harder part is choosing the right level and avoiding over-blocking.

1. Open the campaign or ad group.
2. Go to Keywords, then Negative keywords.
3. Choose ad group, campaign, or shared list.
4. Paste one term per line.
5. Save, then watch search terms and blocked traffic.

Google documents HTML tables as structured data for tabular content in standard markup, and the semantic reason to use a real table is the same here: a placement table is easier to scan and parse than dense prose, as MDN explains in its table element reference.

Match types and over-blocking prevention#

Negative match behavior is stricter than positive matching, but conflicts still happen. The practical issue is not theory. The practical issue is suppressing good searches with broad-looking exclusions.

Use exact negatives for narrow disqualification#

Use exact exclusions when the problem is a specific query, product model, or incompatible variant.

Use phrase negatives for repeatable waste patterns#

Use phrase exclusions when one modifier reliably makes a search irrelevant, such as jobs, tutorial, or refund.

Be cautious with broad concepts#

Even when platforms simplify matching, broad semantic concepts can still create accidental conflicts in the way humans maintain lists. That is why a human review loop matters.

Run a conflict review checklist#

• Compare new negatives against top converters.
• Check whether a blocked modifier also appears in winning long-tail queries.
• Test exclusions at campaign level before pushing to shared lists.
• Revisit seasonal terms before peak periods.
• Keep a changelog with owner and reason.

If your keyword coverage is already mapped into themes, keyword research and strategy gives you a cleaner base for deciding what is truly irrelevant.

negative keywords in digital marketing#

Negative keywords in digital marketing are not just a cost-control trick. They shape audience quality.

Done well, exclusions can improve click-through rate by reducing mismatched impressions. They can improve conversion rate by removing low-intent traffic. They can also protect cost per click efficiency by keeping spend away from curiosity searches, job seekers, existing customers, and unsupported regions.

Done badly, they hide demand. That is why the best practice is not “add more negatives.” The best practice is “add better negatives, at the right level, with conflict checks.”

negative keywords list for youtube#

YouTube campaigns need many of the same exclusions, but video intent adds extra noise. People on YouTube often want education, entertainment, music, or free walkthroughs rather than a product demo or lead form.

Common YouTube-specific negatives include:

• song
• lyrics
• karaoke
• mp3
• free movie
• full episode
• reaction
• tutorial
• compilation
• meme
• kids
• gaming
• livestream

Treat these as starting points, not universals. A software tutorial channel, for example, may want tutorial queries but still exclude kids, lyrics, or entertainment-only traffic.

If you want to inspect what searchers and creators are actually using around a topic, YepAPI exposes YouTube search data and YouTube suggest data for building channel-specific exclusions.

How to maintain a living list from search terms data#

A negative keyword list should age like code, not like a PDF.

Weekly#

• Export search terms.
• Tag candidates by bucket.
• Check cost and conversions.
• Apply only reviewed exclusions.

Monthly#

• Merge duplicates.
• Move repeat offenders into a shared list.
• Audit conflicts against active targets.
• Remove exclusions that no longer fit new offers.

Quarterly#

• Rebuild your universal list from scratch.
• Compare blocked themes against new campaigns.
• Revisit geo filters, support terms, and pricing language.

If your team needs repeatable enrichment in scripts or apps, YepAPI's Keyword API is built for that workflow. You can combine keyword ideas, keyword intent, and the main Keyword API to generate, classify, and maintain exclusions in code instead of editing static sheets forever.

A practical starter list to copy#

If you want one compact starter set, begin here and customize:

• jobs
• careers
• salary
• internship
• course
• training
• tutorial
• free
• cheap
• coupon
• diy
• definition
• meaning
• support
• login
• refund
• pdf
• download
• near me
• map
• student
• homework
• personal use
• kids

This starter set is intentionally conservative. Add only what your search terms data proves is waste.

Common mistakes#

Copying someone else’s entire list#

A universal list is a shortcut, not a strategy. What is irrelevant for a premium B2B SaaS company may be core traffic for a training business or a freemium product.

Using shared lists too early#

If you promote exclusions to account-wide lists without enough evidence, you can block future campaigns that target different audiences.

Ignoring long-tail exceptions#

A term like free can be bad in many campaigns, but not all. Someone searching “free consultation” may be highly qualified if consultations are part of your sales process. See how to find long tail keywords using google keyword tool when you need to inspect intent at the query level before excluding broad modifiers.

Never revisiting old negatives#

Product lines, geographies, and sales motions change. Your exclusions should change with them.

CTA#

Pull, expand, and classify exclusions in code with YepAPI's Keyword API. It is the practical way to maintain negative keyword lists at scale with $5 free credit and no card.

FAQ#

What are examples of negative keywords?#

Common examples of negative keywords include jobs, careers, free, cheap, tutorial, pdf, support, refund, near me, student, and personal use. The right examples depend on your business model and campaign goal. A premium B2B advertiser may exclude free and jobs, while a training company may keep tutorial and course terms.

What are some examples of keywords?#

Positive keywords are the searches you want to match, such as crm software for manufacturers, emergency plumber chicago, or payroll software demo. Negative keywords are the searches you want to block, such as jobs, free, tutorial, support, or irrelevant cities. Good account structure uses both together to improve traffic quality.

What are negative keywords in Google search?#

Negative keywords in Google search are words or phrases you tell Google Ads not to match for your campaigns or ad groups. They help reduce irrelevant traffic, wasted spend, and poor-fit clicks. They do not improve results by themselves; they work best when reviewed against real search terms and conversion data.

How do I add a negative keyword list in Google Ads?#

In Google Ads, open the campaign or ad group, go to Negative keywords, and paste one exclusion per line. For broader control, create a shared negative keyword list and apply it to multiple campaigns. Start with proven waste terms, then review blocked traffic regularly so you do not suppress valuable long-tail searches.