Google Ads

The largest advertising platform in the world and the default first channel for any advertiser with existing demand. Google Ads sells Search, YouTube, Display, Shopping, Discover, Gmail, and Maps inventory through one account, and its automated campaign types now buy across all of them at once.

Where ads run

• Search results (text ads, Shopping ads)
• YouTube (skippable and non-skippable in-stream, bumpers, Shorts, in-feed)
• Google Display Network (responsive display, uploaded HTML5 and image)
• Discover and Gmail (Demand Gen)
• Google Maps and local surfaces
• Google Play (App campaigns)

Campaign types

• Search
• Performance Max
• Demand Gen
• Video (YouTube)
• Display
• Shopping (Standard)
• App

Targeting

• Keywords with exact, phrase, and broad match
• Audience segments: affinity, in-market, life events, detailed demographics
• Customer Match (hashed CRM lists) and website or app remarketing
• Custom segments built from search terms, URLs, and apps
• Optimized targeting and audience expansion on Display, Video, and Demand Gen
• Location, language, device, schedule, and household income (US)

Buying

Auction-based, priced by click, impression (CPM and vCPM on Display and Video), view (CPV on skippable video), or conversion targets. Smart Bidding (Target CPA, Target ROAS, Maximize Conversions, Maximize Conversion Value) is the default for nearly every campaign type; manual CPC survives only on Search and Display. There is no minimum spend. Reservation buys on YouTube (masthead, some CTV packages) go through Display & Video 360 or a Google sales representative.

Measurement

Conversion tracking through the Google tag, Google Analytics 4 import, Enhanced Conversions (hashed first-party data sent with the tag) and Enhanced Conversions for Leads, offline conversion import keyed on the gclid, and data-driven attribution by default. Brand Lift and Conversion Lift studies are available on YouTube and Demand Gen above spend thresholds. Reporting is by campaign, ad group, keyword or asset group, and search term, with the search terms report limited by a privacy threshold since 2020.

Watch

Performance Max is where most of Google's development effort has gone since 2022; expect continuing pressure to move Search budgets into it, and use brand exclusions, search themes, and channel reporting to keep control. Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode in Search have begun carrying ads, which changes where Search impressions appear without changing how they are bought. Consent Mode v2 is required for conversion measurement and remarketing in the EEA and UK. In April 2025 a US federal court found Google liable for monopolizing the publisher ad server and exchange markets; remedies affect Google Ad Manager and AdX rather than Google Ads itself.

Documentation

https://support.google.com/google-ads/

See also: benchmarks for typical costs, and the glossary for any term used above.