The essentials
- Definition: Google Ads is Google's advertising platform; the advertiser pays per click (or per impression, per view) to show ads on the search engine, YouTube, Gmail, Maps and a network of partner sites.
- How it works: at every search, an instant auction ranks the ads according to the bid, the quality and the assets; the price paid depends on the ad ranked just behind.
- 2026 cost in France: average CPC of €0.50 to €15 depending on the sector, conversion rate of 2 to 7% on the Search Network.
- Profitability condition: a cost per conversion lower than the value of a customer, measured with reliable conversion tracking.
Google Ads is the largest digital advertising expense for French companies. The principle is simple: show an ad at the moment someone is looking for what you sell, and pay only if they click. The mechanics behind that principle are less simple, and they are what separates a profitable campaign from an evaporated budget. This article defines the system, explains the auction, presents the campaign types available in 2026 and gives the cost benchmarks for an SME.
Definition and scope
Google Ads (formerly AdWords, renamed in 2018) is the platform for buying advertising space across all of Google's properties and those of its partners. The advertiser sets a budget, an objective, a target (keywords, audiences, products) and ads; Google serves them and bills according to the result obtained: click, impression, video view or conversion depending on the format. The term SEA (Search Engine Advertising) refers to the search side of this activity, as opposed to SEO, which targets the free organic results.
| Network | Where the ad appears | Format | Billing model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Search | Google results, search partners | Responsive search ads, Shopping | Per click |
| Display | More than 2 million partner sites and apps, Gmail | Banners, responsive ads | Per click or per thousand impressions |
| YouTube | Before, during or beside videos | Skippable video, bumper, in-feed | Per view or per thousand impressions |
| Shopping | Shopping tab, Google results with image and price | Product listings from the Merchant Center | Per click |
| Maps | Local results, directions | Local ads, pins | Per click |
How the auction works
At every search, Google runs an instant auction between the advertisers whose keywords match the query. Each ad receives a ranking (Ad Rank) calculated from three elements: the maximum bid, the expected quality of the ad and of the page (the Quality Score), and the expected effect of the assets. The price paid is not the maximum bid: it is the amount just high enough to beat the ranking of the next ad, plus one cent. Two practical consequences:
- A higher-quality ad can rank ahead of an ad with a higher bid and pay less per click.
- The actual CPC of the same keyword varies from one search to the next depending on the competitors present, the device, the time and the location.
Since 2021, most advertisers no longer set bids by hand: automated strategies calculate a bid for each search from the estimated probability of conversion. This mechanism is covered in detail in Smart Bidding.
Campaign types in 2026
| Type of campaign | Targeting | Advertiser control | Main use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Search | Keywords | High: keywords, ads, pages, bidding | Capture expressed demand |
| Performance Max | Conversion goal, audience signals, product feeds | Low: assets and exclusions, no keywords | Serve across every network with a single budget |
| Standard Shopping | Product feeds | Moderate: product groups, bidding | E-commerce needing control by product |
| Display | Audiences, topics, placements | Moderate | Awareness, remarketing |
| Video | Audiences, channels, topics | Moderate | Awareness, consideration |
| Demand Gen | Audiences, custom segments | Moderate | Create demand on YouTube, Discover, Gmail |
| App | Automated | Poor | App installs and in-app actions |
For an SME, the Search campaign remains the entry point: it is the one that captures an expressed intent and whose results are the easiest to read. Performance Max comes next, once conversion tracking is reliable and volume allows the algorithm to learn.
Cost and performance benchmarks in France
The figures vary widely by sector, because the CPC reflects the value of a customer for the advertisers competing. Orders of magnitude observed on the Search Network in 2026:
- Average CPC: €0.50 to €1.20 in general e-commerce, €1.50 to €4 for local services, €2.50 to €6 in B2B, €5 to €15 in insurance, credit and legal services.
- Click-through rate: 4 to 8% on well-built text ads, 15 to 30% on brand queries.
- Conversion rate: 1.5 to 3% in e-commerce, 3 to 7% in lead generation.
- Cost per lead: €15 to €40 for a tradesperson, €50 to €150 in B2B, €100 to €300 in insurance or property.
- Monthly budget for SMEs: €500 to €1,500 for a micro-business, €1,500 to €5,000 for an SME, above €10,000 for an established e-commerce business.
The average CPC on the Display Network is ten times lower (€0.10 to €0.60), but so is the conversion rate; comparing networks on CPC alone makes no sense, only the cost per conversion counts. Its definition and its calculation are in the CPA.
The five conditions for a profitable campaign
- A measured conversion: form, call, purchase, imported into Google Ads. Without that, neither you nor the algorithm knows what works.
- A known value: what a customer brings in, so you can set an acceptable cost per conversion.
- A coherent budget: enough clicks per day (at least 20) to accumulate data within a month.
- A suitable landing page: one page per offer, fast, with a clear call to action; that is where the conversion rate is decided.
- Regular management: search terms, negatives, ads and bidding reviewed every week; the common mistakes are listed in 10 Google Ads mistakes.
How GreenRed helps
Rather than juggling several tools, GreenRed's Google Ads module brings these metrics together in a single dashboard, compares them over time and tells you which actions come first. You can try it free, with no card, from the Pricing.
Frequently asked questions
Is Google Ads suitable for a small business?
Yes, provided you have an offer that people search for on Google, a page that converts and a minimum budget of around 20 clicks per day. A small local services business gets measurable results from €500 to €1,000 per month. Without conversion tracking or weekly management, however, the budget is dispersed whatever its size.
How long before you get results on Google Ads?
The first impressions arrive within 24 to 48 hours, the first conversions within the week if the budget is sufficient. A stable cost per conversion takes 60 to 90 days: the search terms must be cleaned up, the ads must have been tested and the bidding strategy must have finished its learning phase.
What is the difference between Google Ads and SEO?
Google Ads buys immediate visibility, billed per click, which stops when the budget stops. SEO builds visibility that is free per click but slow to obtain, and that lasts. The two complement each other: Google Ads data reveals the queries that convert, and SEO eventually reduces the dependence on buying clicks.
Can you manage Google Ads without an agency?
Yes for a simple account, provided you train yourself and devote a few hours a week to it. The interface pushes default settings that favour broad serving; you need to know which ones to change. Above €1,500 to €2,000 of monthly budget, a provider generally pays for itself through the savings it makes.