🎯Keyword Match Type Generator

About this tool

Paste keywords, one per line or separated by commas, and tick the match types you need: broad, "phrase", [exact], and negative broad, phrase or exact. Legacy +modified +broad is also available. The tool lowercases them, strips characters ad platforms reject, removes existing brackets and quotes, drops duplicates and outputs a list ready to paste into the editor. Nothing is stored.

How keyword match types work

Match types tell Google Ads or Microsoft Ads how closely a search must match your keyword before your ad can show. Broad match (running shoes) is the widest: your ad can appear for related searches, including ones without your words. Phrase match ("running shoes") shows for searches that include the meaning of your phrase, such as "best running shoes for women". Exact match ([running shoes]) is the narrowest, for searches with the same meaning or intent. Negative keywords do the opposite and block searches: a minus sign before a word or phrase (-free, -"jobs", -[running shoes repair]) keeps your budget away from irrelevant clicks. Many advertisers start with phrase and exact match for control, then test broad match with smart bidding and a strong negative list. Ad platforms ignore most punctuation and reject some symbols, so the tool cleans them out, along with duplicates: the example's five lines become four keywords. Honest limits: Google retired modified broad match in 2021, so it's included only for older accounts and other platforms. Match type behaviour keeps changing, so check your platform's current documentation and review search terms reports regularly. The keyword combiner, the keyword density checker and the UTM builder are related.

Frequently asked questions