A Practical Guide to Location Targeting in Google Ads
Choosing the geographic areas where ads can appear, and how platforms interpret a user's location and interest.
Samir Haddad
Where most projects go wrong
The usual mistakes:
- Leaving default interest-based settings
- Nationwide targeting for local businesses
- Ignoring location reports
- Radius settings that overlap badly
What good looks like instead
- Choose presence-based targeting for local services
- Exclude areas you do not serve
- Review location reports regularly
- Use radius targeting around real service areas
- Match ad copy to the location
Why it matters
Default settings can show ads far outside a service area, wasting budget on people who cannot buy.
The specs that matter
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Presence or interest | targeting can include people interested in a location |
| Presence | restricts ads to people in the targeted area |
| Exclusions | areas can be excluded from targeting |
| Reporting | location reports show where users actually were |
Knowing when to hand it over
Tip: Bring in help when local campaigns attract out-of-area leads.
Where this comes from
- Google Ads Help — About location targeting
- Google Ads Help — Target ads to geographic locations
The figures and practices above come from the sources listed.
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