There is a correlation between Quality Score and actual CPC, but it's not a direct one. Advertisers with higher Quality Scores typically have lower actual CPCs because they are rewarded by the search engine for having highly relevant and engaging ads, which can result in higher Ad Rank and therefore more clicks at a lower average cost per click. A typical example are “branded” keywords. These are the keywords that include the brand or product names of an advertiser. Since these keywords are deeply relevant to the advertiser, the actual CPC would be much lower for the owners of a brand compared to their competitors.

On the other hand, advertisers with lower Quality Scores may have to pay a higher actual CPC to achieve a similar Ad Rank because their ads are not as relevant or engaging, and may receive fewer clicks. This is why simply adding the brand names and product names of your competitors to your ad campaigns is not necessarily a good idea. However, it's important to note that other factors can also impact actual CPC, such as bid amounts, the level of competition, and ad formats.

In summary, higher Quality Scores can lead to lower actual CPCs, but the relationship between the two is not always straightforward and can be influenced by a variety of other factors.