# Negative keywords for contractors: the list that stops wasted spend

By Banish Angural · Published October 4, 2026 · Updated November 9, 2026

> Negative keywords stop your ads from showing on searches that will never become jobs. Home-service businesses should block job seekers, DIY and how-to searches, parts and suppliers, free and cheap searches if you are premium, services you don’t offer, and places you don’t serve, then add more every week from the search terms report.

Most wasted ad spend we find comes from searches that should have been blocked. Negative keywords are the cheapest fix in Google Ads.

## A starter list for trades

- **Jobs:** job, jobs, hiring, career, salary, wage, apprentice, apprenticeship, course, school, training, certification, resume.
- **DIY:** how to, diy, yourself, video, youtube, tutorial, guide, diagram, manual.
- **Parts and retail:** parts, supply, supplies, wholesale, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Rona, Canadian Tire, Amazon, kit.
- **Price shoppers (optional):** free, cheap, cheapest.
- **Other:** rent, rental, used, reddit, forum, definition, meaning.

Adjust for your business. If you sell parts, keep "parts". If you rent equipment, keep "rental".

## Match types matter

A negative keyword blocks searches containing it, depending on its match type. Broad negatives block searches with all the words in any order; phrase negatives block the exact phrase; exact negatives block only that exact search. Start with broad for single words like "jobs".

## Use lists across campaigns

Create a shared negative keyword list in the Shared Library and apply it to every campaign, so you only maintain it once.

## Keep adding every week

Open the search terms report weekly, sort by cost, and block anything that will never be a customer. This one habit often saves more than any bid change.

## Want us to check your search terms?

In a [free audit](https://banishmedia.com/free-audit) we read your search terms report and show exactly how much went to searches that could never book a job. Our [Google Ads management](https://banishmedia.com/services/google-ads-management) prunes them every week.

## Sources

- [About negative keywords](https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/2453972), Google
- [Google Ads Help Center](https://support.google.com/google-ads/), Google

## Questions readers ask

### What are negative keywords in Google Ads?

Words or phrases that stop your ads showing on searches containing them, so you don’t pay for clicks that will never become customers.

### How often should I add negative keywords?

Weekly for active accounts. Review the search terms report and block anything irrelevant.