Google Ads vs Microsoft Ads (Bing): Should PH Brands Run Both?

Microsoft Ads — formerly Bing Ads — runs across Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo, AOL, and partner sites. Search volume is much smaller than Google, but CPCs are usually 30–50% cheaper.

For PH brands, the question is whether Bing's lower CPCs offset its smaller audience. Here's the honest take.

TL;DR

For most PH brands:

Microsoft Ads is a small additive layer (5–10% of Google's volume).

Worth running ONLY if Google Ads is already optimized.

Don't expect Bing to drive primary acquisition.

Use it as a cheap supplement.

Microsoft Ads in PH context

PH search market share (rough estimates):

Google: 95–97%.

Bing: 2–4%.

Yahoo, DuckDuckGo: <1%.

Bing's audience skews older, more Windows-heavy, more enterprise. Younger and mobile-heavy users are almost entirely on Google.

For ecom in PH: Bing's audience is small but real. ₱500–₱1,000/day on Bing might bring 5–10 conversions/month at lower CPA than Google.

Pros of Microsoft Ads

Lower CPCs

Typical 30–50% cheaper than Google for the same keywords.

Less competition

Many advertisers ignore Bing. Easier to dominate.

Older / business demographic

If your product targets professionals, Bing's audience can be valuable.

Easy import from Google Ads

Microsoft Ads has a "Google Import" feature. Import campaigns from Google in 5 minutes.

Good Microsoft Audience Network

Reaches LinkedIn (yes, Microsoft owns LinkedIn) — useful for B2B.

Cons of Microsoft Ads

Tiny PH volume

You'll struggle to get >₱50K/month meaningfully running on Bing.

Newer features lag Google

Smart Bidding, asset variety, and reporting tools are 1–2 years behind Google.

Conversion tracking less reliable

UET (Universal Event Tracking) works, but not as battle-tested as gtag.

Bing Shopping setup is clunky

Compared to Google Merchant Center, less polished.

When to add Microsoft Ads

You should consider Bing when:

1. You've maxed out Google scaling (CPC creeping, brand keyword saturation).

2. B2B or older demographic (LinkedIn audience available via Microsoft Audience Network).

3. Service businesses in markets where Bing has nontrivial share.

4. Your category has cheaper Bing CPCs that outweigh the smaller audience.

When NOT to bother

Brand-new account with limited budget.

Younger consumer audience (Bing's audience skews older).

Mobile-heavy categories (Bing is desktop-skewed).

Very small budget (you'll get <10 conversions/month).

Setup process

Step 1: Create Microsoft Ads account

Go to ads.microsoft.com → Sign up. Use the same email as your business setup.

Step 2: Import from Google

Microsoft Ads → Import → Google Ads → Authorize → Import.

Pulls:

Campaign structure.

Keywords.

Ad copy.

Bid strategy.

Audiences.

Some elements (PMax campaigns, certain extension types) may not import. Manual cleanup needed.

Step 3: Install UET

Microsoft Ads' equivalent of gtag.

In Microsoft Ads → Tools → UET tag → Generate.

Install on your site (similar to Google's gtag).

For Shopify: install via Microsoft Ads' Shopify integration (separate app).

Step 4: Set up conversion tracking

Same as Google: track Purchase event with value.

Step 5: Adjust budgets

Bing budgets should be smaller. Even 10% of your Google budget is often plenty.

For a brand running ₱30K/day on Google: ₱2K–₱3K/day on Bing.

Microsoft Audience Network

Beyond search, Microsoft Audience Network places ads on:

MSN.

LinkedIn.

Outlook.

Microsoft Edge.

For B2B, the LinkedIn audience is valuable.

For B2C, treat it like Google Display — useful for retargeting, weak for cold prospecting.

Bing Shopping

Microsoft Ads has Shopping campaigns analogous to Google Shopping.

Setup:

Microsoft Merchant Center.

Submit feed (often easier to use Google's feed via Multi-Channel Promotion).

Create Shopping campaign.

Volume in PH: low. Worth running only if Google Shopping is dialed in.

Reporting

Microsoft Ads reporting is similar to Google's older interface. Expect:

Less granular attribution.

Slower reporting refresh (4–24 hour lag vs Google's near-real-time).

Fewer audience insights.

Common Microsoft Ads mistakes

1. Treating Bing like Google

Bing is smaller. Don't expect same volume or velocity.

2. Ignoring Bing-specific tweaks

Some keywords convert differently on Bing. Audit and adjust.

3. Using Google's exact ad copy

Bing's audience is older. Different language often resonates.

4. Skipping UET tracking

Without UET, conversions don't track.

Sample budget

For a PH brand spending ₱50K/month on Google:

₱5K/month on Microsoft Ads (10% allocation).

Expected: 10–25 conversions.

Expected ROAS: comparable to Google (lower CPC, lower volume balances out).

If Bing ROI is comparable: keep allocating.

If significantly worse: pull back to ₱2K/month or pause.

When Bing surprises

Some categories outperform Google on Bing. Common ones:

High-value B2B services.

Older-skewing products.

Microsoft-related products (Office tools, accessories).

Less-saturated niches.

Run a 30-day test before deciding.

Want help with multi-platform paid?

Multi-platform setups need coordination. My Google Ads Specialist service includes Microsoft Ads where appropriate. Or learn the system in the Google Ads Course Philippines.