Monthly Google Ads report template: a section-by-section outline

How to use this template

Copy the outline into the tool you already use: a document, a slide file, or a spreadsheet tab. Replace every bracketed placeholder. Delete any section that has nothing true to say this month, except the summary, the scorecard, and the plan. Those three appear every month so the client can compare one report with the last.

Keep the section order fixed. A client who reads the report on a phone should find the result in the first screen and the decision they need to make in the second. The order of work is different: our monthly reporting workflow explains why you write the summary last even though it sits at the top.

Section 0: Header block

Put this at the top of the first page. It prevents the most expensive mistake in reporting, which is a client reading the wrong account or the wrong month.

• Account: [client name], Google Ads account [123-456-7890]
• Period: [1–30 September 2026], compared with [1–31 August 2026]
• Time zone and currency: [America/New_York], [USD]
• Lead or sale means: [primary conversion actions: Calls from ads, Contact form submit]
• Data pulled: [6 October 2026]. Prepared by: [name]

Section 1: Summary

Four to six sentences, in this order: the result against the target, the main reason, the main risk, and the decision you need. Use numbers with a comparison in every sentence that states a result. Do not list tasks here.

Placeholder text:

“[Month] brought [N] [leads/sales] at [$X] each, against a target of [$T]; that is [N more/fewer] than [previous month]. [Most of the change / The main reason] was [campaign or cause], which [what happened, with the number]. [Risk: what could go wrong next month, with the number that shows it.] We propose [one change], with [budget effect]. Please [approve/confirm] by [date] so it runs for [N] full weeks before the next report.”

Section 2: Scorecard

One table. The first rows are the outcomes the client pays for. The last rows are cost and one or two context figures. Use the same rows every month; if you change a row, say so in the data notes.

Calculate every ratio from totals. Cost per lead is total cost divided by total leads, never an average of campaign cost per lead. The metric calculator is a quick way to check the arithmetic.

Adapting the scorecard by business type

• Lead generation: Conversions, Cost / conv., and qualified leads from the client's records. Label the CRM row with its source and the date it was exported.
• Ecommerce: Conv. value, Conv. value / cost, Conversions, and Cost. Write next to Conv. value that it is the value Google Ads recorded, which can differ from revenue in the shop system.
• Local services with calls: split calls and forms into two rows if the client treats them differently.
• Rates such as Conv. rate or Search lost IS (budget): show the change in percentage points, not percent. The period comparison calculator shows both.

Section 3: What changed and why

Start with a campaign table that shows how much each campaign added to or removed from the account change. The rows should add up to the account total. Then write two or three findings. Each finding has the observation, the evidence, how sure you are, and what you will do.

Placeholder table:

Finding placeholder

• Observation: “[Campaign] [metric] went from [X] to [Y].”
• Evidence: “[Change history entry, search terms, impression share, or landing page data, with numbers].”
• Confidence: “[Confirmed: we can see the cause directly] or [Likely: the timing and the numbers match, but other factors also changed].”
• Action: “[What we will do], [by date]. We will report the result in [month].”

Section 4: Work done

List only changes that matter to the result or to next month's plan. For each one, give the date, so the client can match it to the numbers. Mark a change as too recent to judge when it has run for less than two full weeks.

Placeholder rows:

Section 5: Next month's plan

Two to five actions. Each has an owner on your side or the client's side, a due date, and the number you will use to judge it. Put the client's tasks in this table too, such as confirming lead quality or sending a price list. The next report starts by reviewing this table.

Placeholder rows:

Section 6: Data notes

This section is short and it protects you. It tells the reader what could make a number look different next time.

• “Conversions are dated by the day of the ad click. Late conversions from [month] can still raise these totals for several days.”
• “[Conversion action] was [added / changed / removed] on [date]. Totals before and after are not directly comparable.”
• “[Month] has [30] days and [previous month] had [31]. Daily average cost was [$X] against [$Y].”
• “Qualified leads come from [client CRM], exported on [date], and are not part of Google Ads data.”
• “[Campaign] was paused on [date] and is included for the days it ran.”

What to leave out of the template

A template grows every time a client asks a one-off question. Resist that. Answer the one-off question in an email or as a short extra section that month, then remove it.

Leave out impressions and CTR as headline rows unless the campaign goal is awareness. Leave out Quality Score tables, device and hour charts, and long keyword lists unless a finding uses them. Leave out a section titled “Insights” with no numbers in it. If you need ideas on what a client without PPC knowledge actually reads, see our guide for business owners; for running the same template across several clients, see the agency reporting workflow.

Sources

• Google Ads Help: Understand your conversion tracking data
• Google Ads Help: Get impression share data
• Google Ads Help: About change history