Google Ads Search Partners: Why Most Contractors Should Opt Out

When you turn on a Google Ads search campaign, Google automatically runs it in two places: on Google.com and on what Google calls the Search Partner Network. The partner network includes YouTube, Gmail, AOL, Ask.com, and hundreds of smaller sites that license Google’s search technology. Unless you have gone into your campaign settings and unchecked a single box, your budget is split between Google.com and this extended network right now.

For most home service contractors, that default setting is quietly draining 20 to 35 percent of campaign budget on traffic that converts at roughly half the rate of Google.com traffic. The fix takes about 30 seconds once you know what to look for. The decision to make that fix should be based on your own data, not assumption. Here is how to pull the numbers and what to do with them.

What Is the Search Partner Network, Exactly

Google does not publish a complete list of its search partners, but the network includes sites where users type a search query and Google serves the results. YouTube search results show Google Ads. Gmail search surfaces ads. Dozens of smaller shopping and comparison sites also participate. When someone types your service into the YouTube search bar or an AOL search box and your ad appears, that impression and any resulting click is billed to your Search Partner budget, not your Google.com budget.

The mechanics are the same as Google.com: you pay when someone clicks, bids work the same way, and the same keywords trigger your ads. The difference is the user context. Someone searching on Google.com is typically looking for a local business to call. Someone searching on YouTube is often watching a tutorial. Someone searching through a partner site aggregator may be doing comparison research rather than looking to book service today. That difference in intent is why Search Partner conversion rates often fall significantly below Google.com conversion rates for home service businesses.

How to Pull the Search Partner Report in Google Ads

Google Ads does not surface Search Partner performance prominently. You have to segment the data yourself. Here are the exact steps:

1. Log into Google Ads and click Campaigns in the left navigation.
2. Select the campaign you want to audit. Do this for your highest-spend campaign first.
3. Above the data table, click the Segment button (the icon looks like a funnel with lines).
4. Choose Network (with search partners) from the dropdown.
5. The table now shows three rows: Google search, Search partners, and Cross-network (if you have Performance Max running alongside).

Set the date range to the last 90 days for a statistically meaningful sample. You want at least 50 clicks from each network before drawing conclusions.

What the Numbers Actually Look Like for Home Service Contractors

Here is a representative example from a mid-size HVAC contractor running $4,500 per month in Google Ads in a competitive metro market, based on a 90-day period:

The Search Partner CPC looks cheaper at $14.80 versus $19.40 on Google Search. That lower CPC tricks many contractors into thinking Search Partners are efficient. The actual cost per lead tells the opposite story: $412 on Search Partners versus $280 on Google Search. The lower click price does not offset the lower conversion rate. The contractor in this example was spending roughly $9,000 per quarter on a channel delivering leads at 47 percent higher cost than Google Search.

Why Conversion Rates Are Lower on Partner Sites

User intent is different across search contexts. On Google.com, a homeowner searching “AC repair near me” is typically ready to call someone today. On a partner site, the same search might happen in a comparison-shopping or research context. The person is at an earlier stage of the decision, which means they are less likely to convert on first contact.

Ad quality scores are also calibrated to Google.com performance, not partner site performance. Your Quality Score is based on expected CTR, ad relevance, and landing page experience as measured against Google.com standards. Partner site audiences behave differently, and your ad copy and landing page may not be optimized for their expectations.

There is also a click fraud consideration. Partner sites generate revenue when users click ads. The incentive structures are different from Google.com, and while Google has fraud detection in place, invalid click rates tend to be higher on the partner network than on Google.com itself.

How to Opt Out of Search Partners

If your data shows a significantly higher cost per conversion on Search Partners compared to Google Search, opting out is straightforward:

1. In Google Ads, go to Campaigns and select the campaign.
2. Click Settings in the left panel.
3. Expand the Networks section.
4. Uncheck the box next to Include Google search partners.
5. Click Save.

You need to do this for each campaign individually. If you are running three service campaigns (AC repair, heating repair, duct cleaning), you will repeat these steps three times. The change takes effect immediately. Google does not require a review period for network setting changes.

After opting out, expect Google’s interface to show a drop in overall impression volume. This is expected: you have removed roughly 20 to 30 percent of your traffic sources. What matters is whether your cost per conversion improves. Give it 30 days before evaluating, and compare cost per conversion for the 90 days before the change versus the 30 days after.

When to Keep Search Partners Enabled

Not every contractor should opt out. There are three situations where keeping Search Partners makes sense:

Your cost per conversion is comparable across both networks. If your Search Partner cost per lead is within 15 percent of your Google Search cost per lead, the additional volume is worth having. Some markets and some service categories see better-than-average Search Partner performance because the partner sites draw an audience that happens to match well with contractor intent.

You are in a low-volume market and need more impressions. Contractors in smaller markets may find that Google Search alone does not generate enough clicks to sustain a meaningful campaign. Adding Search Partners increases volume, and lower volume means fewer conversions, which makes per-conversion comparison less statistically reliable. In these cases, the additional reach may outweigh the efficiency trade-off.

You are early in a new campaign and need data. Running Search Partners during the first 30 to 60 days of a new campaign helps build conversion data faster, which improves smart bidding performance. Once you have 50 or more conversions from Google Search, you have enough signal to evaluate whether Search Partners are worth keeping.

Three Actions This Week

1. Pull the Network segment report for your highest-spend campaign. Follow the steps above to segment by Network (with search partners). Calculate the cost per conversion separately for Google Search and Search Partners. If Search Partners are running 25 percent or more above your Google Search cost per lead, you have a clear optimization opportunity. Write down both numbers before making any changes so you have a baseline.
2. Opt out of Search Partners on your worst-performing campaign first. If one campaign shows dramatically worse Search Partner performance, disable it there first rather than across every campaign simultaneously. This lets you compare results between campaigns with and without Search Partners over the next 30 days. When the data is in, make the decision for your remaining campaigns based on what you actually see.
3. Set a calendar reminder to check in 30 days. Network changes take time to reflect in cost per conversion because conversion lag means some clicks take days or weeks to convert into booked jobs. Pull the same cost per conversion comparison 30 days after the change. If cost per lead dropped and call volume held steady, you have recovered the budget that was going to low-quality clicks and can reallocate it to your Google Search campaigns.

Google’s default settings are designed to maximize Google’s ad revenue, not your return on ad spend. The Search Partner Network checkbox is one of several campaign defaults that is on by default and off by advantage for most home service contractors. Checking your own numbers takes 10 minutes. Acting on what you find takes another 30 seconds. That 10-minute audit can free up thousands of dollars in annual ad spend for budget that goes to clicks that actually convert.