Quick Answer
Generally, yes, on a per-click basis. Microsoft’s smaller search ecosystem and different auction dynamics often produce lower click costs than comparable searches on Google, though the gap varies widely by industry, keyword, and market. The trade-off is volume: Microsoft’s network handles far fewer searches than Google. Cheaper clicks do not automatically mean better results, so most businesses run Microsoft Advertising alongside Google Ads and judge both by cost per customer.
Why Are Microsoft Advertising Clicks Usually Cheaper?
Scale and auction dynamics. Google handles the large majority of the world’s searches, and its auctions for commercial keywords are intensely competitive. Microsoft’s search ecosystem is much smaller, and its auctions can clear at different, often lower, prices for comparable keywords. The result advertisers commonly report is lower-cost search inventory on Microsoft, with the size of the difference depending on the keyword, the industry, and the market.
Two honest qualifiers belong next to that answer. First, the discount is not a fixed number. It varies widely by industry, keyword, and match type, and in some categories where Microsoft advertisers concentrate, the gap narrows considerably. Any article quoting a precise universal “X% cheaper” figure is simplifying past what current published data supports. Second, a cheaper click is only a better click if it converts. A lower price reflects a smaller, different auction, not a discount bin; the searchers are real, but your landing page, offer, and follow-up still decide whether those clicks become customers. For context on what the Google side of the auction costs, see our guide on what Google Ads cost.
Who Actually Searches on Bing and the Microsoft Network?
More people than most business owners assume. Microsoft Edge and Bing come built into Windows, which powers a huge share of workplace computers, so Microsoft’s search tools are the preset starting point on many machines, and that distribution helps explain the network’s reach. According to Microsoft’s own current advertising materials, ads on its platform reach people across Bing, MSN, Outlook, Microsoft Edge, and Copilot, plus search partners such as Yahoo and DuckDuckGo, all from one ad account.
On who those searchers are, it is worth being careful with the sweeping demographic claims that circulate in older articles. Microsoft’s own current marketing, citing comScore qSearch data from March 2026, says its audiences are 51% more likely to be higher income and 25% more likely to add to cart than the comparison population. Those are Microsoft’s claims about its own platform, and they are best read that way, but the practical point stands on its own: Microsoft’s network is additional search inventory and audience reach beyond what a Google-only strategy covers.
What’s the Catch With Microsoft Advertising?
Volume. Microsoft’s network handles a fraction of Google’s search traffic, so even a well-built campaign has a ceiling on how many leads it can produce. Available volume differs by market and keyword: in smaller metros or narrow niches, some terms simply are not searched often enough on Bing to absorb a serious budget, and no bid increase changes that. Neither platform scales indefinitely just by adding money, but Microsoft reaches its practical limits sooner.
That makes Microsoft Advertising a complement, not a replacement. Think of Google as the busy highway and Microsoft as the well-kept side street: quieter, often cheaper to travel, and still full of real customers, just fewer of them. Businesses that expect it to replace Google end up disappointed; businesses that treat it as additional search inventory at a typically lower price tend to be the ones satisfied with it. The right expectation going in is incremental reach and efficiency, not a new primary lead source.
How Do You Get Started With Microsoft Advertising?
The fastest path is Microsoft’s built-in import tool, which transfers campaigns directly from Google Ads (Microsoft’s platform currently supports importing from Meta as well). Your keywords, ads, and settings carry over so you are not rebuilding from scratch, and Microsoft’s own guidance is to review budgets, bids, targeting, ad copy, and conversion tracking after any import, because not every setting transfers identically and Microsoft’s auction prices differ from Google’s.
Import-and-walk-away is the common mistake. Bids usually need adjusting once real auction data comes in, and some keywords deserve more or less budget than they earned on Google. Microsoft also offers something Google does not: LinkedIn profile targeting, which lets advertisers reach searchers by professional attributes such as company, industry, and job function, a genuinely useful option for B2B and professional-services campaigns. And the fundamentals that decide your Google results decide your Microsoft results too: conversion tracking that ties spend to leads, landing pages that match the ad, and follow-up fast enough to catch the lead while it is warm, the job of a connected system like NextEra’s Never Miss a Lead setup.
Is Microsoft Advertising Worth It for a Local Business?
It can be, with the right expectations and the right measuring stick. Businesses already running successful Google campaigns often find Microsoft especially easy to test, because campaigns can be imported and results compared side by side. Others may choose either platform, or both, depending on their audience, market, and economics. If your campaigns, landing pages, and follow-up are converting, extending the same setup to Microsoft’s smaller auction is a low-risk way to test additional search coverage.
Skip the arbitrary formulas, though. There is no standard percentage of budget that belongs on Microsoft. Fund it well enough to gather meaningful data in your market, give it a fair testing window, and then judge it the same way you judge every channel: qualified leads, cost per actual customer, and revenue by source in your own records. In some accounts Microsoft quietly delivers some of the cheapest customers on the books; in others, the volume is too thin to matter, and the honest move is to put that budget back into Google. Running Google and Microsoft Ads side by side with shared tracking is how NextEra Marketing, a full-service, women-owned agency based in the Oklahoma City metro, sorts one outcome from the other for clients.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How much do Microsoft Ads cost compared to Google Ads? A: Microsoft Advertising clicks generally cost less than comparable Google Ads clicks, a difference that reflects Microsoft’s smaller search ecosystem and different auction dynamics, but there is no reliable universal percentage. The gap varies widely by industry, keyword, and market, and narrows in some categories. Judge the platforms by cost per qualified lead and cost per customer in your own account rather than by any published average.
Q: Is Bing Ads the same as Microsoft Advertising? A: Yes. Microsoft Advertising is the current name for the platform formerly called Bing Ads, renamed in 2019. Ads run across Microsoft’s network, which its current materials describe as including Bing, MSN, Outlook, Microsoft Edge, and Copilot, plus search partners such as Yahoo and DuckDuckGo. Many business owners still say “Bing Ads,” and the platform works the same either way.
Q: Can I copy my Google Ads campaigns to Microsoft Advertising? A: Yes. Microsoft Advertising includes a built-in import tool that transfers campaigns, keywords, and ads from Google Ads, and the platform currently supports importing from Meta as well. Microsoft’s own guidance is to review budgets, bids, targeting, ad copy, and conversion tracking after importing, since settings do not always transfer identically and Microsoft’s auction prices differ from Google’s.
Q: Does anyone actually search on Bing anymore? A: Yes. Bing and Microsoft Edge come built into Windows, so Microsoft’s search tools are the preset starting point on many computers, particularly workplace machines. Microsoft’s network also extends beyond Bing to MSN, Outlook, Edge, Copilot, and search partners. In practical terms, Microsoft Advertising provides access to search inventory and placements that a Google-only advertising strategy does not cover.
Q: Should I switch from Google Ads to Microsoft Advertising? A: For many businesses, testing both is more useful than assuming one should replace the other. Microsoft can provide additional search inventory at often lower click costs, while Google generally offers substantially greater search volume. Fund each channel well enough to generate meaningful data, then compare qualified leads, cost per customer, and revenue by source before deciding how much budget each deserves.
See What a Smaller Auction Could Do for Your Budget
If your Google Ads are working and you are wondering whether Microsoft Advertising deserves a slice of the budget, that is a quick, low-stakes question to answer with real numbers. Reach out to NextEra Marketing and we can look at your market, your keywords, and your goals together. A short conversation, and you will know whether it is worth the test.