Paid search ads offer speed and reach, allowing your brand to appear immediately at the top of search results instead of ramping up views gradually. But one of the biggest advantages of online advertising is its precise targeting features: the ability to connect directly with the audiences that are most valuable to your brand. To reach your target customers effectively and minimize advertising costs, it’s important to choose the right platform. Is Microsoft or Google a better option for advertising?
Microsoft Vs. Google Ads in a Nutshell
When it comes to advertising, Microsoft vs. Google is like comparing a mouse to an elephant. Google’s size is impossible to deny, but that’s not the only factor that matters for ads. Microsoft can go places Google can’t and reach people Google doesn’t. Bing has over 10% of the global desktop search market —about 200,000,000 users worldwide — which is nothing to laugh at.
Microsoft Ads Partners
Microsoft Ads gives you access to the Microsoft Advertising Network — Bing, Microsoft Edge, Outlook, and MSN — plus a variety of partner networks, including:
- Netflix (ad-supported tier)
- Yahoo
- AOL
- DuckDuckGo
If your target customers use any Microsoft products, such as Windows, Office 365, or Xbox, you can reach them with the versatile Microsoft Audience Network.
Google Ads Options
Google Ads connects you with Google Search and its huge audience, plus mobile search results. The Google Display Network unlocks extra advertising options:
- YouTube ads
- Android in-app ads
- Third-party website content (banners, videos, etc.)
- Google News
Microsoft Shopping Campaigns and Google Shopping Ads both offer featured ads for product-related searches.
Advantages of Microsoft Ads for Paid Search
Is it worth investing in Microsoft Ads in 2025? For many businesses, the answer is yes. Here’s why it’s valuable.
Microsoft Ads Can Save You Money
One of the biggest reasons Microsoft ads are a good investment is that they cost less. Of course, the cost per click for ads relies heavily on your industry. On average, though, Microsoft Ads has a much lower CPC.
One study reported an average CPC for Microsoft Ads of approximately $1.50 to $1.60, compared to $2.60 to $7.25 for Google Ads. This was a few years ago, and these days, the CPC for Google Ads is closer to $3.50 to $3.65. Microsoft Ads has increased to a little over $2 or so per click.
That’s a 55% difference, which adds up (no pun intended). At that rate, a budget of $1,000 a month on Microsoft Ads would get you an average of 475 clicks. That’s nearly 200 clicks more than the same spend on Google Ads (~277).
Bing Offers Advanced Audience Targeting for B2B
Microsoft’s LinkedIn Profile Targeting features are popular with B2B companies. This partnership lets you create advertising campaigns that target certain industries, job functions, and even specific companies:
- Industries: Construction, financial services, manufacturing, technology and information, retail, healthcare, and 140+ others.
- Job functions: C-suite executives, engineers, analysts, lead product developers, and dozens more
- Companies: Lockheed Martin, General Motors, General Electric, The Cigna Group, Humana Inc., and 80,000 others
You can also adjust bid percentages for factors like location and device. By focusing on precise ad groups this way, you make it more likely for your target audience to see your ads. Microsoft Ads is an excellent source for B2B lead-gen campaigns.
It’s Easier To “Win” With Microsoft Ads
The fact that fewer businesses advertise with Microsoft Ads is a good thing for your company. It means that you have less competition for clicks. With Google, you must push harder and higher to get clicks in competitive industries.
Microsoft Offers Better Customer Service (on Average)
Based on our personal experience, we’ve found Microsoft’s ad support to be more helpful and prompt. Google is massive, so waiting for a response to ad questions can make it seem like you’re making an appointment with Sundar Pichai (slight exaggeration).
Downsides of Bing Ads Vs. Google Ads
Despite the benefits of Microsoft vs. Google, we’ve never seen a business advertise exclusively with Microsoft Ads. Paid search is usually a question of Google + other options. Here’s why.
Google Ads Have a Massive Audience
Google holds over 80% of the global search market and gets over 24 billion searches per month in the United States alone. That’s a considerable number of users, views, and clicks leading traffic to your door. Even though the CPC on Google is higher, your ads tend to get a higher volume of clicks, too. If what matters most is getting people to your store, Google Ads is one of the best ways to make it happen.
Google Means YouTube
Google is related to YouTube (plus Fitbit and Nest), so ads on Google can put your content front and center on the popular video site. Considering three-quarters of adults in the U.S. (over 225 million) watch YouTube every month, it’s practically the equivalent of TV advertising 2.0 for businesses around the country.
Google Ads Integrates With Powerful Analytics Tools
Google Analytics, Google Search Console, and Google Tag Manager are powerful, free tools for website analytics and paid search management. They show you granular data on audiences, traffic sources, conversions, engagement metrics, and clicks, helping you calculate your cost per action and return on ad spend. These audience insights help you refine ad campaigns and improve targeting.
Google Ads Draw From a Larger Pool of Demographic Details
Google Ads seem to connect with intended customers more frequently. This probably isn’t a coincidence. Google’s massive reach means it has a larger pool of target audiences, consumer data, and user behavior to pull from. Google lets you run highly focused ad campaigns and avoid wasted clicks — if you know how to use it.
How Microsoft Ads and Google Ads Stack Up for the User Experience
Microsoft tries hard to be exactly like Google, but there are a few areas with differences we appreciate.
What Do the Paid Search Ads Look Like?
Some advertisers prefer the appearance of Bing Ads vs. Google Ads for paid search. There’s no “Sponsored” tag above the ad, just the search result or product image.
What Audience and Keyword Targeting Features Are Available?
Both Microsoft and Google have in-depth audience targeting features. Our favorites in Microsoft Ads are custom audiences, LinkedIn Targeting, device targeting, and customer match. Google shines with its audience affinity segments, custom segments, customer match, detailed demographics, and life events tracking. You can use negative keyword targeting on both platforms.
How Easy Is It To Create a PPC Campaign With Microsoft Ads?
Microsoft Ads is extremely user-friendly, even if you’re new to paid search advertising in general. There’s a keyword planner and a campaign setup wizard that walks you through each step, such as creating custom audience parameters. Google Ads has a bigger learning curve.
How Do Bing and Google Ads Compare for CTR and Conversions?
CTR and conversion rates vary on both platforms, depending on your industry and keywords. Google’s higher audience usually translates to a larger CTR and more total conversions. In some situations, Bing has greater audience engagement and a higher click-to-conversion ratio, however.
Businesses That Benefit From Microsoft Instead of Google Ads
Advertising with Microsoft can deliver great ROI for certain businesses.
B2B Companies
We can’t overstate how amazing Microsoft’s LinkedIn targeting features are for B2B campaigns. They’re a great way to add to your organic search efforts. We can also manage social media ads directly on LinkedIn for even greater reach and targeting.
Online Retailers With a Niche Audience
Microsoft users tend to be high-income, older, married, and retired Americans. If that sounds like the ideal target demographic for your products, you can get excellent results with Microsoft Ads. Healthcare, insurance, real estate, luxury automobiles, and many B2B products are good examples.
Companies With a Tight Advertising Budget
Microsoft Ads is good for discovering the possibilities of paid search cost-effectively. We especially recommend it for companies with a high customer lifetime value.
Professionals in Highly Competitive Markets
Instead of giving up on paid search because of extreme competition on Google, try Microsoft Ads instead. This strategy has helped many lawyers, IT consultants, technical schools, business software vendors, and e-commerce companies lower advertising costs and bring in valuable traffic.
Should You Advertise With Microsoft and Google Ads?
Choosing an ad platform isn’t a war. Comparing Microsoft vs. Google is like comparing a motorcycle to an SUV. Both are useful in different situations. We often recommend advertising on Microsoft for new businesses or companies with a tight budget. We aim to help you reach your target audience wherever they are, from Google and Bing to YouTube and LinkedIn.
Discover how Microsoft and Google Ads can help your business reach the right audience. We can help you design a custom PPC marketing campaign that fits your goals and budget. Contact us to learn more.