What is a good search impression share?

It depends on the campaign. For brand campaigns, high share is usually worth having. For broad prospecting, lower share at a good cost per conversion can be the better result.

Why is lost IS (rank) missing on my ad group tab?

Google says it won't show there if the campaign ran out of budget at any point in the date range.

How often does impression share update?

Google says within 1 to 2 days.

What is the difference between impression share lost to budget and lost to rank?

By Tom Claydon, Co-founder, Nudge · Updated 22 Oct 2026

Lost to budget means your ads stopped showing because the budget ran out. Lost to rank means they did not show because your Ad Rank was too low in the auction, from bids or ad and landing page quality. Fix budget loss with budget, but only on campaigns that convert profitably. Fix rank loss with bids or quality.

What do the terms mean?

Metric	Google's definition
Search impression share	"The impressions you've received on the Search Network divided by the estimated number" of impressions you were eligible to receive
Search lost IS (budget)	The percentage of time your ads "weren't shown on the Search Network due to insufficient budget"
Search lost IS (rank)	The percentage of time your ads "weren't shown on the Search Network due to poor Ad Rank in the auction"

Google adds that lost IS (budget) "is available at the campaign level only".

Where do you find the columns?

In Campaigns, open Columns, then "Competitive metrics", and tick Search impression share, Search lost IS (budget) and Search lost IS (rank). Google says the metrics update within one to two days, so do not judge yesterday.

Which should you fix first?

Check the campaign is worth more traffic. If it does not convert at an acceptable cost, more impressions only buy more waste.
High lost to budget, good results: raise the budget, or move budget from weaker campaigns.
High lost to rank: look at bids and quality. Google lists six factors in Ad Rank, including your bid, the quality of your ads and landing page, and competition in the auction.
Both high: our view is to fix rank first, because paying for more budget on weak ads raises cost.

Why not just aim for 100%?

Google says impression share estimates can "include auctions where your ad could show at twice its current bid", and "Small fluctuations over time don't necessarily indicate that action is needed." Chasing 100% often means paying for the least valuable searches. Google also advises against using top impression rate (Impr. (Top) %) as a bid target.

How do you check this across accounts?

With Google Ads connected to Claude, ask: "For each campaign, show impression share lost to budget and to rank over the last 30 days, with cost per conversion. Which are profitable and limited by budget?"

Questions

What is a good search impression share?: It depends on the campaign. For brand campaigns, high share is usually worth having. For broad prospecting, lower share at a good cost per conversion can be the better result.
Why is lost IS (rank) missing on my ad group tab?: Google says it won't show there if the campaign ran out of budget at any point in the date range.
How often does impression share update?: Google says within 1 to 2 days.

Sources

All read on 22 October 2026, Google Ads Help:

Get impression share data: support.google.com/google-ads/answer/7103314
About impression share: support.google.com/google-ads/answer/2497703
Top and absolute top metrics: support.google.com/google-ads/answer/7501826
About Ad Rank: support.google.com/google-ads/answer/1722122
Improve impression share: support.google.com/google-ads/answer/7103386