How to block competitor clicks on Google Ads

You can stop a specific competitor from seeing your Google ads by excluding their IP address, but it rarely works in practice. You need to know the exact address they browse from, and they only have to switch networks. Google also filters out clicks it classes as invalid, including deliberate clicks meant to raise your costs. Treat IP exclusion as a small tool for a known, repeating pattern, not as a general way to block competitor clicks.

How to do it

1. Check whether you have a problem. Look for a cluster of clicks from one network that never converts, using your web server logs or analytics. A few odd clicks are normal and not worth the effort.
2. Know what Google already does. Its help page defines invalid clicks as clicks "that don't represent a genuine interest in your business", and lists manual clicks "that increase your ad costs or inflate publisher profits" among the examples. It says you won't be charged for invalid clicks, and that if Google finds some after billing you, you get a credit on your next invoice "where appropriate and possible" (Google Ads Help).
3. If you still want to block an address, add it in Google Ads. At account level, go to Admin, Account settings, then the IP exclusions section. At campaign level, open the campaign's Settings, click Additional settings and expand IP exclusions. You can exclude up to 500 IP addresses per campaign, and an asterisk replaces the last three digits to cover a block (Google Ads Help).
4. Cover both address versions. Google notes that IP addresses can appear in different versions, so add every version you want to exclude.
5. Use the right layer. Google says account-level exclusions apply across all campaigns, including Performance Max, while campaign-level exclusions are not available for video, hotel, App, Performance Max or Smart Display campaigns.
6. Review monthly. Remove old entries and check that the block did not cut conversions.

What the old trick gets wrong

The classic advice is to find a competitor's IP from an email header or from the IP of their website's domain. Neither is the network their staff browse the web from. A mail server or web host is a different machine from the laptops staff browse on. Home connections, mobile data and VPNs change the address again.

When it backfires

• Wrong target. If the IP belongs to a shared network, such as a coworking space, a university or a mobile carrier, you also block real customers.
• Wasted time. The 500 address cap per campaign is easy to fill with entries that no longer matter.
• Hiding the real issue. If your cost per lead is high, the cause is more often keywords, ad copy or landing page than competitor clicks. Check search terms and conversion data first.
• Other platforms. The steps above are for Google Ads. Other ad platforms may not offer IP exclusion at all, so check their help pages.
• Location instead. Google suggests excluding a geographic location if your real goal is to keep ads out of certain places.

Questions people ask

How do I block competitor clicks? Rely first on Google's invalid click filtering and credits, then watch your logs for a repeating network and exclude it if you find one.

How do I exclude an IP address in Google Ads? Use IP exclusions in account settings or in a campaign's Additional settings, up to 500 addresses per campaign.

Does Google refund competitor clicks? It says it does not charge for invalid clicks and gives credits for ones it finds after billing. It does not promise to catch every competitor click.

Sources

• Google Ads Help, Exclude IP addresses, read Oct 8, 2026
• Google Ads Help, Invalid clicks definition, read Oct 8, 2026