The Auction Insights report shows how your Google Ads account performs against the other advertisers bidding on the same keywords.
It’s the only report in Google Ads that shows what your competitors are doing, not just what you’re doing. Reviewing it regularly can tell you when a new competitor enters your market, when an existing one raises their budget, or when it’s time to adjust your own bids.
What Is the Google Ads Auction Insights Report?
You’ll find the Auction Insights report inside any Search, Shopping, or Performance Max campaign in Google Ads, under the campaign’s Insights and Reports tab. It doesn’t name your competitors, but it does show how often their ads appeared in the same auctions as yours, and how your position compared to theirs.
How Often Should You Check Auction Insights?
Most accounts benefit from a monthly review, or a check right after cost per click or conversion rate shifts for no reason you changed yourself.
If you manage paid search for more than one brand or location, check it whenever you launch a new campaign too, since that’s when a new competitor is most likely to show up in the report for the first time.
Impression share
Impression share tells you what percentage of the auctions you were eligible for actually showed your ad.
It is the number of times your ad is fetched or displayed divided by the estimated number of times your ad was eligible to be displayed. Eligibility of ads is based on target settings, quality scores of ads and approval statuses. In the auction insights report, this metric shows how often a competitor’s ad was fetched, as a proportion of the auctions in which you were also competing.
Absolute top of page rate
Absolute top of page rate tells you how often an ad, yours or a competitor’s, showed as the very first ad above the organic results, not just somewhere above them.
Google retired the old “Average Position” column in October 2019 because it only ranked your ad against your own other ads, not where it actually landed on the page. If a competitor has an absolute top of page rate of 40%, their ad held that very first spot in 40 out of every 100 auctions you both competed in.
Overlap rate
Overlap rate tells you how often a competitor showed up in the same auction as you.
This is how often your competitor’s ad was displayed when your ad was also displayed. For example, if your competitor has an “88.44%” overlap rate, it means about 88 out of 100 times when your ad was displayed, your competitor’s ad was also fetched.
Position above rate
Position above rate tells you how often a competitor beat you to a higher spot on the page.
This metric is only available for Search campaigns. It shows how often your competitor’s ad was shown in a higher position than yours on a search results page when both ads were shown at the same time. For example, if your competitor has a Position Above Rate of “83.19%”, it means their ads showed in a position above yours 83.19% of the time when both ads were displayed.
Top of page rate
Top of page rate tells you how often ads, yours or a competitor’s, showed anywhere above the organic results, not just in the very first spot.
This metric shows how often or the percentage your ads and the competitor ads were shown above unpaid (organic) search results or the top of the page.
Pair this with Absolute Top of Page Rate above: a high top of page rate but a low absolute top rate means an ad is usually showing above the organic results, just not in the very first slot.
Outranking share
Outranking share is the single best “who’s winning” number to track over time.
It is defined by Google as the number of times your ad ranked higher in the auction than another competitor ad, plus the number of times your ad showed when theirs did not, divided by the total number of ad auctions you participated in.
((Number of Times your ad ranked Higher than Competitor + Number of Times your ad showed when theirs did not) / Total number of ad auctions you participated in) × 100
Metric | What It Measures | What a Change Means |
Impression Share | Ads shown vs. ads eligible to show | A drop usually means a budget, bid, or Quality Score limit |
Top of Page Rate | How often an ad showed above organic results | Rising for a competitor signals more aggressive bidding |
Absolute Top of Page Rate | How often an ad held the very first spot on the page | The clearest read on who is winning the top position |
Overlap Rate | How often a competitor’s ad showed in the same auction as yours | High overlap with one advertiser flags a direct rival |
Position Above Rate | How often a competitor outranked you when you both showed | A rising trend means you’re losing ground on rank |
Outranking Share | How often you ranked higher than a competitor, or showed when they didn’t | The single best “who’s winning” number to track over time |
Frequently Asked Questions
What happened to the “Average Position” metric in Google Ads?
Google retired it on October 7, 2019. It only showed your ad’s average rank among your own ads, not where the ad actually landed on the page. Top of Page Rate and Absolute Top of Page Rate replaced it with a clearer picture of real placement.
What counts as a good impression share?
It depends on your budget and goals, not a fixed number. A brand campaign with strong budget support often runs 90% or higher. A competitive, budget-capped campaign might run much lower and still be profitable. Track your own trend over time rather than chasing a universal benchmark.
Does Auction Insights show me my competitors’ names?
Yes, it lists the domain of each advertiser you’re competing against in a given auction, as long as they meet Google’s minimum data threshold for that row.
Is Auction Insights available for Shopping and Performance Max campaigns?
Yes, but with fewer metrics. Search campaigns report six metrics. Shopping and Performance Max campaigns report three: Impression Share, Overlap Rate, and Outranking Share.
How often should I review my Auction Insights report?
Monthly is a reasonable default. Check it sooner if your cost per click or conversion rate shifts without an explanation, or right after you launch a new campaign.
Editor’s note: We originally published this content back in 2015. It was substantively updated on 9/9/2026 by Leah Hart.
