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Add a whole keyword list at once

You have a list of fifteen keywords to add to an ad group, and you want each as both an exact and a phrase match. Writing thirty keyword {} blocks by hand is a lot of typing — and a lot of diff to review later.

The keywords {} block takes the whole list at once.

One list, one match type

resource "google_ads_ad_group_criterion" "winter_boots" {
  ad_group = google_ads_ad_group.winter_default.id
  status   = "ENABLED"


  keywords {
    match_type = "PHRASE"
    texts = [
      "winter boots",
      "waterproof winter boots",
      "insulated winter boots",
    ]
  }
}

Each text becomes its own keyword on Google Ads. This is exactly the same as writing one keyword {} block per text — just shorter.

One list, several match types

Search campaigns often carry the same keyword list as both EXACT and PHRASE. Instead of two near-identical resources, set match_types (plural) and let bidsmith fan the list out:

resource "google_ads_ad_group_criterion" "winter_boots" {
  ad_group = google_ads_ad_group.winter_default.id
  status   = "ENABLED"


  keywords {
    match_types = ["EXACT", "PHRASE"]
    texts = [
      "winter boots",
      "waterproof winter boots",
      "insulated winter boots",
    ]
  }
}

Three texts × two match types = six keywords, from one block.

Negative keyword lists

negative_keywords {} is the same shape and marks every keyword negative for you:

resource "google_ads_ad_group_criterion" "winter_negatives" {
  ad_group = google_ads_ad_group.winter_default.id
  status   = "ENABLED"


  negative_keywords {
    match_type = "BROAD"
    texts      = ["free", "diy", "repair"]
  }
}

The same negative_keywords {} block works on google_ads_campaign_criterion (for campaign-wide negatives) and google_ads_shared_set (for negative lists shared across campaigns).

It’s the same keywords either way

The compact form is purely an authoring convenience. Each (text, match type) pair is still a separate keyword on Google Ads, so:

  • plan shows the same per-keyword diff whether you wrote the compact form or the long form.
  • Deleting a text from a list that still has other entries plans as exactly that one keyword removed — a - destroy row that apply acts on — while its neighbours are untouched. (The remaining list is treated as the complete set, so the dropped keyword is actually removed from Google Ads, not just left behind.)
  • You can mix forms freely: a keywords {} block and a couple of individual keyword {} blocks can live in the same resource.

See also