Keyword guide
Apple Ads match types explained
Exact match prioritizes control, broad match expands around a keyword, and Search Match lets Apple match the app to searches. Strong accounts use discovery and control campaigns together.
7 min readUpdated Aug 4, 2026
Exact match is the control layer.
Use exact match for queries you want to bid and measure deliberately. It is still important to inspect close variants and performance by country and audience.
Broad and Search Match are discovery layers.
They can reveal language and intent you did not predict. Keep discovery budgets bounded and mine search terms frequently so proven queries can graduate into controlled exact targets.
Negatives prevent overlap and irrelevance.
Negative exact can block one query; negative broad can block a broader pattern. Use them to route traffic between discovery and exact campaigns and to exclude irrelevant intent.