Ad Position and Ad Rank – The Full Guide

Ad Rank determines whether and where your ad appears. The system sets it at auction time using your bid, ad quality, the expected impact of assets, and context. Ad Position is the spot your ad earns on the results page for that auction. Improve Ad Rank by increasing relevance, strengthening landing page experience, using high-quality assets, and bidding strategically.

What is Ad Rank?

Ad Rank is the score Google’s ad system calculates at auction time to decide if your ad can show and where it appears on the page. It’s not a fixed number. The platform recalculates it for every search, using your inputs and the context of that specific auction.

The quick list:

• Bid: How much you’re willing to pay for a click or conversion.
• Ad and Keyword Relevance: How closely your ad matches the user’s query and intent.
• Expected CTR: How likely people are to click your ad based on past signals.
• Landing Page Experience: Relevance, clarity, speed, and ease of use after the click.
• Expected Impact of Assets: Sitelinks, callouts, images, and other assets that can improve results.
• Context and Thresholds: Device, location, time, competition, and minimum Ad Rank needed to show, especially at the top of the page.

Just remember, Ad Rank updates for every auction. Two searches, conducted just a minute apart, can yield different ranks and positions, even for the same keyword.

What is Ad Position?

Ad Position is the order in which your Google ads appear on the results page for a single auction. Think of it as your rank at that moment. Position 1 shows above the other ads. Lower positions follow beneath it or at the bottom of the page.

Top placement is not a simple bidding war. To show at the top, your ad must meet Ad Rank criteria for that query and context. That means a strong bid is not enough. You also need relevant keywords and copy, a solid landing page experience, and helpful assets, such as sitelinks or images. If you miss the threshold, you can still show, but you may appear lower on the page or not appear at all.

Context matters. Mobile vs desktop, time of day, location, and competitor quality all change those thresholds. That is why you may see your ad’s position shift throughout the day, even when your bids remain the same.

You win better positions by improving Ad Rank, not by raising bids alone.

Ad Rank vs Quality Score

The Quality Score is a diagnostic number on a 1-10 scale, specific to the keyword level. It summarizes three things: expected CTR, ad relevance, and landing page experience. You can use it to spot weak areas and prioritize fixes. It is not a live input in the auction.

Google calculates Ad Rank in real time for every auction. It uses your bid, relevance signals, expected CTR, landing page experience, and the expected impact of assets in the exact context of that search.

Improve relevance, and you lift both. Tighten keyword-to-ad-to-page alignment, speed up the page, make the offer clear, and add strong assets. Those changes raise the real-time signals that set Ad Rank and will also improve your Quality Scores over time.

Treat Quality Score as a guide. Optimize for auction-time relevance to increase Ad Rank and secure better positions at a more efficient cost.

How the Auction Sets Ad Position

Every search triggers a fresh auction. Here is the simple version.

1. Someone searches.
2. The system pulls in all ads that match the keyword, audience, and policy rules.
3. It calculates Ad Rank for each eligible ad using your bid, relevance, expected click-through rate, landing page experience, and the expected impact of any assets. It also considers factors such as device, location, and time.
4. It applies minimum Ad Rank thresholds, especially for the top of the page.
5. It orders ads by Ad Rank and assigns positions. You usually pay just enough to beat the next best Ad Rank, not your full bid.

• Why the highest bid doesn’t always win

  Bids matter, but quality ultimately determines the winner. A well-matched ad with strong relevance, fast and helpful landing pages, and good historical engagement can outrank a higher bid. That is why improving copy and page experience often lifts position at a lower cost than simply raising bids. It’s all user-first.

• How ad assets help

  Complete, high-quality assets raise your expected impact. Add sitelinks, callouts, structured snippets, images, and other formats that make the ad more helpful and engaging to audiences. Better assets improve Ad Rank, which unlocks higher positions and more asset visibility in those positions. Write assets that echo your headline and landing page to keep relevance high. Assets include headlines, images, phone numbers, descriptions, etc. (useful information about the business).

• What about Microsoft Ads?

  Microsoft Advertising runs a similar auction. It uses your bid, ad quality, landing page experience, and the expected effect of assets to set Ad Rank at auction time. The same playbook applies. Improve relevance and page quality first, then set bids to match your goals.

Metrics to Use Now that “Average Position” is Gone

“Average position” was once used to estimate where your ad appeared on the page. It did not indicate whether you appeared above or below organic results, and this often led to confusion about true visibility. Google removed the metric in September 2019 and introduced prominence metrics that report how frequently you show at the top of the page or as the very first ad. Microsoft Advertising followed with its own deprecation to align reporting.

Search Top Impression Rate: Shows the percentage of your ad impressions that served above the organic results. If this drops, improve relevance and the landing page experience, add strong assets, and then adjust bids accordingly.

Search Absolute Top Impression Rate: Shows how often your ad was the very first ad on the page. Use it to judge accurate top-of-page visibility. To secure the #1 spot more often, prioritize raising Ad Rank with better relevance, page experience, and assets before you start raising bids.

Impression Share and Lost IS (Rank): Impression share (IS) is a metric that defines your ad’s number of impressions divided by the number of eligible impressions. Pair it with Search Lost IS (Rank) to see how often you missed impressions due to low Ad Rank versus budget limits. Act by fixing quality and relevance if you’re losing to rank, or by pacing and budgeting if you’re losing to budget.

Ad Rank Diagnostics and the Recommendations Page: Use Google’s Ad Preview and Diagnosis tool to check if an ad or asset is showing and why it might not be. Then review the Recommendations page for system-identified fixes that can raise relevance, strengthen assets, and improve eligibility. Prioritize items tied to ad quality and landing page experience before bid-only changes.

What each of these metrics tells you & When to act:

• Low top or absolute top rates with healthy budgets usually mean an Ad Rank problem. Improve ad–keyword–page alignment, speed up the page, and add valuable assets. If quality is solid, raise bids.
• A low impression share with a high Lost IS (rank) indicates that competitors are outperforming you in the auction. First, fix relevance and page experience, then revisit bidding.
• If invites or eligibility appear fine, but an ad still rarely shows, confirm status and eligibility with Google’s Ad Preview and Diagnosis tool before adjusting bids.

Treat these metrics as visibility signals. They advise you on whether to prioritize quality and relevance first or to adjust the budget and bids after quality is established.

How to improve Ad Rank today

Improve relevance:

• Align keywords, ad text, and the landing page to ensure consistency. Use the same core terms and promise in all three.
• Use Responsive Search Ads with distinct headlines and benefits. Avoid near-duplicates. Cover pain, outcome, proof, and CTA.

Strengthen landing page experience:

• Speed up the page by compressing images and removing blockers.
• Match the headline to the ad, repeating the offer and key terms.
• Keep the content focused with one primary CTA and no clutter.

Use the right assets:

• Add sitelinks, callouts, structured snippets, and images where available.
• Keep assets specific and current by updating promos, pricing, and features as they change.
• Write asset text that supports the main headline and offer.

Clean up your targeting:

• Add negative keywords to cut irrelevant traffic.
• Layer audiences for intent (remarketing, in-market, customer lists).
• Check your location, schedule, and device settings to ensure the clicks you’re paying for are coming from the right audience. 

Bid and budget choices:

• Ensure budgets are benefitting, not hurting, your top performers. Fund winners first.
• Use Target CPA or Target ROAS when you have steady conversion data.
• If data is thin, start with manual or Maximize Clicks to gather signals, then shift to conversion bidding.

Monitor and iterate:

• Watch Search top impression rate, Absolute top impression rate, and Lost IS (rank).
• Refresh ads and assets before performance starts to fade.
• Review weekly, act on what moved the numbers, and repeat.

Google Ads vs Microsoft Ads nuances

Both use auction-time Ad Rank
Each search runs a fresh auction. Both platforms weigh your bid, relevance, expected CTR, landing page experience, and the impact of assets to determine if and where your ad will show.

Naming and asset options differ
Google refers to them as assets in most instances. Microsoft used “extensions” and now also uses “assets.” Both support sitelinks, callouts, structured snippets, images, and more. Microsoft also offers unique options, such as Action assets and Multimedia ads. Check what is available in your ads management account and enable the ones that fit your goal.

LinkedIn profile targeting in Microsoft Ads
Microsoft lets you layer company, industry, and job function targeting sourced from LinkedIn data. Use this to sharpen B2B reach without narrowing keywords too far.

Practical workflow
Copy what proves relevant in Google to Microsoft and vice versa. Keep the core message, keywords, and landing page alignment the same. Then, tune per network by adjusting bids, schedules, audiences, and assets based on each platform’s costs and reach. Monitor top impression rates and Lost IS (rank) in both accounts and move budget to the channel that earns stronger visibility at a better effective CPA or ROAS.

Troubleshooting Drops in Ad Position

Problem: Your ads are eligible, but they rarely appear at the top.

Our Advice:

• Improve relevance first. Align the keyword, headline, and landing page headline.
• Strengthen assets. Add sitelinks, callouts, structured snippets, and image assets.
• Check Ad Strength, Ad Preview, and Diagnosis for issues.
• After quality improves, consider raising bids or loosening targets to clear top-of-page thresholds.
• Monitor the Search top impression rate and the Absolute top impression rate as you iterate.

Problem: Your top impression share fell after implementing changes.

Our Advice:

• Check your ad budget. Make sure pacing or a new cap isn’t impeding delivery.
• Review the change history. Look for new negatives, match-type edits, bid adjustments, or tighter locations and schedules.
• Test the landing page. Fix slow load speed, broken tracking, or mismatched headlines.
• Confirm policy and asset approvals. A disapproved asset can drag performance.

Problem: Your ads have an excellent CTR, but they have a weak position.

Our Advice:

• CTR shows the hook works. Position depends on Ad Rank.
• Improve your landing page experience. Match the promise, speed up the page, and focus the CTA.
• Add or update assets to increase expected impact.
• Check Lost IS (Rank). If it’s high after quality fixes, increase bids or adjust targets.

Problem: Automation changed bids, causing your ads’ position to fall.

Our Advice: 

• Re-evaluate your Target CPA or Target ROAS. Set goals that reflect real performance, not wishful numbers.
• Give the strategy enough data. Use stable conversion tracking and a reasonable learning period.
• Add bid floors or use portfolio settings to prevent underbidding on proven terms.
• If performance remains weak, switch to a simpler strategy while rebuilding clean data, and then return to automated bidding.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What determines ad position in Google Ads?

  Ad Rank determines your ad position. Google calculates it at auction time using your bid, ad, and keyword relevance, expected CTR, landing page experience, the predicted impact of assets, and the search context.

• Does raising bids improve Ad Rank?

  Sometimes. A higher bid can increase Ad Rank, but quality signals are just as important. Improve relevance, page experience, and assets first, then raise bids if you still need more visibility.

• What’s the difference between Ad Rank and Quality Score?

  Ad Rank is a real-time score that determines whether and where your ad appears in each auction. The Quality Score is a diagnostic score ranging from 1 to 10 at the keyword level, helping you identify areas for improvement. Use Quality Score to guide improvements that lift the signals used in Ad Rank.

• Which metrics replace Average position?

  Use Search top impression rate, Search absolute top impression rate, Impression share, and Search lost IS due to rank. These show how often you appear at the top, how frequently you are the first ad, and how much visibility you’ve lost to rank.

• Why is your ad not at the top, even with a high bid?

  You may not meet the top-of-page Ad Rank threshold. Boost relevance, speed up and tighten the landing page, add strong assets, and confirm policy approval. If quality is solid, then increase bids.

• How do ad assets affect Ad Rank?

  Useful assets improve the expected impact of your ad. Add sitelinks, callouts, structured snippets, and image assets that support your headline and offer. Better assets raise Ad Rank and unlock more prominent layouts.

• How often should you refresh ads to protect your position?

  Refresh when top impression rates slide, frequency climbs, or CTR drops. Review weekly, rotate new headlines and assets, and keep the landing page message in sync with the ad.

Need Help with Your Ads’ Rank or Position? 

Our digital advertising specialists at Uptick Marketing have you covered!

Perhaps your existing ads aren’t ranking as you need them to, or you’d like us to create a brand-new ad campaign for you. Either way, our team is ready to step in with a data-backed strategy that’ll yield the successful and measurable results you’re after. Reach out to us today! We can’t wait to get to know you and lead your business to valuable growth. 

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