Ads Examples (Keyword Research) | Serpstat Knowledge Base

Ads Examples (Keyword Research)

Browse real ad examples containing your target keyword and discover the keywords that trigger each ad.

Written by Mike
May 28, 2026

Study Real Competitor Ads for Any Keyword

The Ads Examples report shows every ad currently running that contains your target keyword in its text — along with the full list of keywords each ad is triggered by. Use it to analyze competitor messaging, discover what copy is performing in your market, and collect keyword sets behind successful ads to inform your own campaigns.

What you can achieve:

Reverse-engineer competitor ad copy: See exactly how competitors position their offer for your target keyword — headlines, descriptions, and value propositions all visible in one place.
Discover keyword sets from working ads: Each ad links to the full list of keywords that trigger it. Instead of building a keyword list from scratch, you can extract proven keyword clusters directly from ads that are already running.
Identify messaging gaps in the market: When you see what everyone else is saying, you can spot the angles and claims that nobody is making yet — your differentiation opportunity.

Getting Started

Navigate to Keyword Research → PPC Research → Ads Examples in the left sidebar.
Enter your target keyword and select your regional database.
Click Search. The report loads all ads containing your keyword in their text.
Click the Keywords count next to any ad to expand the full keyword list that triggers it.
Use the CPC filter to focus on keywords within your budget before exporting.
Export the report in various formats. To export to Google Sheets or BigQuery, connect your Google account in Settings.

Key Metrics Explained

Ad text: The full ad creative as it appears in search results — headline and description. This is your competitive intelligence on messaging, offer framing, and calls to action.
URL: The destination landing page for this ad. Clicking through reveals where the advertiser sends paid traffic — useful for understanding their conversion funnel and offer structure.
Keywords: The number of search queries that trigger this ad. A high keyword count means the ad is running across a broad semantic cluster. A low keyword count means it's tightly targeted.

Pro Tip: Build Your Keyword List and Ad Brief Simultaneously

Most PPC workflows treat keyword research and creative development as separate steps. Ads Examples lets you do both at once.

Find the ad with the highest keyword count for your target keyword — this is the ad your competitors trust to perform across the broadest range of queries.
Expand its keyword list. These keywords form a proven semantic cluster — add the relevant ones directly to your PPC campaign.
Note the messaging pattern in the ad text: is it benefit-led, price-led, urgency-led, or feature-led? The dominant pattern in the top ads tells you what the market currently responds to.
The goal: You leave with two deliverables at once — a keyword list validated by real ad spend, and a creative brief built from proven market messaging.


⚠️ Important: Ads Examples shows ads recorded in Serpstat's last database crawl for the selected region. Very recently launched or paused ads may not appear immediately. Most column indicators are clickable — click any metric to see a detailed breakdown report.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I see ads from a specific competitor domain?
A: Use the URL filter to narrow results to a specific domain. This lets you focus your analysis on the ads of a single competitor rather than the full market.

Q: Why do some ads show keywords I wouldn't expect?
A: Advertisers often run broad match or phrase match campaigns, which means one ad can be triggered by a wide range of related queries — some of which may seem loosely connected to the ad text. This reveals how broadly a competitor is casting their net.

Q: How is Ads Examples different from Ads Landing Pages?
A: Ads Examples focuses on the creative — the ad text and the keywords that trigger it. Ads Landing Pages focuses on the destination — which pages competitors send paid traffic to. Use Ads Examples to research messaging; use Ads Landing Pages to research conversion pages.

Next Steps

Ads Landing Pages — Explore the destination pages behind these ads and see which landing pages receive the most paid traffic.
PPC Keywords — Dive into the full paid keyword set for your target term with volume, CPC, and competition data.
PPC Competitors — See the full list of domains competing in paid search for your keyword.