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Microsoft Advertising as a Paid-Search Alternative

Redaktion ·

Microsoft Advertising is the ad platform behind Bing search — until 2022 it was called Bing Ads. If you only think of Google Ads when it comes to paid search, you are leaving a second channel on the table that works almost identically under the hood but brings a different audience and often cheaper clicks. Is it worth the effort? It depends — and that is exactly what we will sort out here.

What Microsoft Advertising is

Microsoft Advertising places ads in the search results of the Microsoft Search Network. That is not just Bing: it also includes Yahoo, AOL, DuckDuckGo (in part) and the default search in the Microsoft Edge browser. On top of that come placements on MSN, in Outlook and through partners such as Ecosia. So you are buying into a whole network, not just a single search engine.

The logic is the same as Google Ads: you bid on keywords, pay per click (CPC), structure things into campaigns and ad groups, write text ads and measure conversions. If you can run Google Ads, you will find your way around Microsoft Advertising in minutes.

The network and its reach

This is where the biggest difference sits: volume. As of 2026, Google holds roughly 90 percent of global search market share, while Bing sits around 4 to 5 percent. In the US, Bing is stronger at about 10 percent, and once you add Yahoo, AOL and DuckDuckGo — all of which run on the Bing network — the combined network reaches roughly 30 to 40 percent there.

These numbers are a snapshot (June 2026) and vary noticeably by source and market. For Germany, the Bing share tends to be lower than in the US. The honest takeaway: you reach fewer people with Microsoft Advertising than with Google — but the ones you do reach often never see your competitors.

Differences from Google Ads

Three points make the channel interesting:

Cheaper CPCs. Because fewer advertisers bid on the same inventory, click prices are often lower than on Google. Blanket percentage claims are dubious — it depends heavily on industry and keyword — but the pattern is stable: less competition, less bidding pressure.

Higher-spend audience. The Bing audience tends to skew older and, on average, higher-income. Microsoft itself markets the network with a nod to “high-spend audiences.” For some industries (B2B, finance, higher-priced products) that is a genuine advantage.

LinkedIn targeting as a unique selling point. Microsoft owns LinkedIn — and only Microsoft Advertising lets you target search ads by LinkedIn profile data: job title, company, industry. No other search platform offers this. For B2B campaigns it is often the single reason to get started at all.

The Google Ads import

Microsoft deliberately makes the switch easy: the import tool pulls your existing Google Ads campaigns over — including ad groups, keywords and ads — either once or as a recurring sync.

But beware of one-to-one copying. Two things do not come along: conversion tracking has to be set up fresh, because Microsoft uses its own Universal Event Tracking (UET tag) instead of the Google pixel. And audiences — remarketing lists, customer match, in-market segments — do not transfer, because both platforms run separate audience infrastructures. The import is a starting point, not a finished setup.

When the channel pays off

In most cases Microsoft Advertising is a complement, rarely the main channel. It is worth it when your Google campaigns run cleanly and profitably — then you pick up additional, cheaper volume with manageable extra effort. The entry point is especially worthwhile in B2B because of LinkedIn targeting, and for audiences that fit the higher-spend Bing crowd.

Less worthwhile: as your first and only channel on a tight budget. For many niches the volume simply is not enough to draw reliable data from it alone.

FAQ

Is Microsoft Advertising the same as Bing Ads? Yes. Bing Ads was renamed Microsoft Advertising in 2022. It is the same platform, just with an expanded network and a new name.

Are click prices on Microsoft Advertising really cheaper? Often yes, because fewer advertisers bid. How big the difference is depends heavily on industry and keyword, so treat blanket percentages with caution.

Can I simply import my Google Ads campaigns? Yes, via the import tool. But note: conversion tracking (UET tag) and audiences do not transfer and have to be set up again.

What is LinkedIn profile targeting? A Microsoft-exclusive feature: you can target search ads by job title, company and industry using LinkedIn data. Not available on any other search platform — ideal for B2B.

Is Microsoft Advertising worth it in Germany? As a complement to Google, often yes, especially in B2B. As a standalone channel, search volume in Germany is usually too low for reliable scaling.

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