Match types — when to use which
Match types decide how exactly a shopper's search has to match your keyword for your ad to show up. Three options, three use cases. Once you understand them, you waste less money on irrelevant clicks.
The three match types in one sentence each
- Exact — only this exact search term (or a close variant) triggers the ad.
- Phrase — the search must contain these words in this order, but can have more words before or after.
- Broad — the search must contain these words in any order, or synonyms, or related terms.
Example with one keyword
You sell stainless steel water bottles and bid on the keyword stainless steel water bottle:
Exact: [stainless steel water bottle]
Triggers on:
- stainless steel water bottle ✓
- stainless-steel water bottle ✓ (hyphen variant)
- stainless steel water bottles ✓ (plural — "close variant")
Does NOT trigger on:
- stainless steel water bottle 1 liter ✗
- large stainless steel water bottle ✗
- water bottle stainless steel ✗ (different word order)
Phrase: "stainless steel water bottle"
Triggers on:
- stainless steel water bottle ✓
- stainless steel water bottle 1 liter ✓
- large stainless steel water bottle ✓
- stainless steel water bottle bpa free ✓
Does NOT trigger on:
- water bottle stainless steel ✗ (word order broken)
- stainless steel flask ✗ (synonym, no match)
Broad: stainless steel water bottle
Triggers on:
- stainless steel water bottle ✓
- water bottle stainless steel ✓ (reversed order)
- stainless steel flask ✓ (synonym)
- thermos stainless steel ✓ (related term)
- steel bottle outdoor ✓ (loosely related)
- aluminum water bottle ✗ (can show up — very loose)
Which match type when?
Just starting out: phrase + broad
Phrase and broad give you the most data in the first weeks. You see which search terms shoppers actually type. The Search Term Report becomes your gold mine — it shows the exact phrases that led to clicks.
Once you find valuable search terms: exact
As soon as a search term in the Search Term Report has converted multiple times (e.g., 3+ orders below 25% ACoS), you book it separately as exact. This lets you:
- Set a higher bid because you know this search term is profitable.
- Pull traffic out of your phrase/broad campaigns where the bid is generally lower.
- Win the auction more often — your match is more relevant and your bid is higher.
When you want to scale: broad + negative keywords
Broad often produces a lot of traffic, but also a lot of noise. If you can't sell aluminum water bottle, add it as a negative keyword. Your ad won't show for that term anymore — regardless of any other match-type setting.
Negative match types
Negative keywords have their own match types:
- Negative exact — blocks only this exact search term.
- Negative phrase — blocks any search containing this phrase.
Negative broad doesn't exist on Amazon (unlike Google). So if you don't want to show up for aluminum, add aluminumas a negative phrase — that blocks every search containing the word "aluminum".
A safe default structure
For a new product, this structure often works:
- One auto campaign with a low bid — Amazon finds search terms for you.
- One manual phrase campaign with your 5-10 main terms — mid-range bid.
- One manual exact campaign with the terms that actually converted in (1) and (2) — higher bid.
These three run in parallel. Sellerwerk helps via the Harvester: it watches the Search Term Report from (1) and (2) and suggests moving profitable terms into (3).
Common beginner mistake
Booking all three match types for the same keyword in the same campaign — that causes self-cannibalization: your own ads bid against each other and you pay more than necessary. Separate match types into different ad groups or campaigns.
More on auction mechanics: What is Amazon PPC?. For questions: support@sellerwerk.de.