Limited ad serving

To protect the integrity of the Google Ads advertising ecosystem, Google limits impressions of ads that have a higher potential of causing abuse or a poor experience for our users. This policy is specific to a certain set of ad-serving scenarios, which are detailed below. In these instances, only qualified advertisers will be able to serve ads without impression limits.

Advertisers in certain industries might separately have to Apply to advertise certain products & services using Google Ads.

On this page

• About Limited ad serving
• Advertisers with unclear brand relationships and generic ads
• Best practices
• Advertisers serving on YouTube

About Limited ad serving

Why will certain advertisers be limited?

Ads from unqualified advertisers will be limited in specific scenarios to decrease the potential for negative user experiences when interacting with these ads. This helps increase user and advertiser trust in the Google Ads platform.

Google wants to ensure that YouTube maintains a trustworthy ecosystem for advertisers and users, and may limit impressions for YouTube ads from unqualified advertisers. Initial enforcement for this policy began in September 2024 and will gradually be applied to all YouTube ads by 2026. Additional restrictions may apply to advertisers advertising in certain high-abuse verticals. Learn more about who is a qualified advertiser and what you can do to become qualified.

If you're not promoting ads within these scenarios, your ads won't be limited by this policy. Google Ads considers the following information when determining if a particular scenario has a higher potential of causing abuse or creating a poor user experience:

• User feedback
• Prevalence of abuse
• Industry trends

Who is a qualified advertiser?

Google will consider various factors to determine whether an advertiser is qualified, such as:

• Account attributes
• User activity and reports
• Account maturity
• Ad format usage
• History of policy compliance
• Advertiser industry
• Advertiser verification status

If you're a qualified advertiser, your ad impressions aren't limited by this policy.

What can I do to become a qualified advertiser?

You're required to build trust to become a qualified advertiser. You can do this by ensuring that you comply with all Google Ads policies and completing advertiser verification if your account is eligible. You should continue to build campaigns and creatives with positive user engagement while your account is assessed. Google Ads will automatically update your ad serving limits based on this assessment and review.

How will I know if my ad serving has been limited?

Unqualified advertisers who have a meaningful proportion of impressions in scope of this policy will receive an in-account notification. Individual ads will not be disapproved. To appeal this restriction, complete the Limited Ad Serving Appeals Form. Google will reinstate an advertiser once they become qualified.

We will automatically review and update advertisers' ad serving limits as we continue to monitor your accounts. Unfortunately, we can't say how long this might take.

If any issues are detected after lifting a limit, Google may need to reinstate the limit while we evaluate further.

Advertisers with unclear brand relationships and generic ads

Google wants to ensure that users know which advertisers they are interacting with. At times, users may not be seeking content related to a particular advertiser, brand, product, or service; other times they may have a specific brand in mind. In both situations, Google wants to ensure that the identity of the advertiser the user chooses to engage with is unambiguous.

While an advertiser may not intend to purposefully mislead a user or misrepresent themselves, ads that reference other brands and generic ads that have no branding at all may confuse the user into thinking they are interacting with their desired advertiser. In these cases, Google may limit impressions for all branded and generic ads for that advertiser.

Examples that reference a brand where the relationship to the advertiser is unclear include (non-exhaustive): Ads that reference another brand’s name or likeness, such as an airline or customer service department, based on a user’s search for that brand Ads that reference a name or brand closely resembling another brand based on a user’s general search of an industry like technology, travel, or customer service Situations where the user has reason to believe they're interacting with a brand other than the advertiser that's running the ad Ads that use a brand logo from an unaffiliated advertiser

Examples when a generic ad may be unclear include (non-exhaustive): Unbranded ads from third parties that are shown when users search for specific brands, products, or services

Best practices

 Clearly identify your brand by pinning your domain

Pin your domain to the front of the ad title, especially if you're a new advertiser or your brand is less well-known. This feature may not be available for all ad or campaign types. Learn more about how to Pin headlines and descriptions to specific positions.

Steps to pin your domain

1. On the Ads page in your Google Ads account, create or edit a responsive search ad.
2. For the field that contains your domain, select the Pin icon .
3. Select Show only in position 1.
4. Click Save.

To reduce user confusion and decrease the likelihood of ad serving limitations, consider these steps:

• Comply with advertising policies: Ensure your ads and landing pages adhere to our advertising policies.
• Avoid brand confusion: Don't use other brands’ names or logos. Clearly display your own brand in your ads and on your landing page.
• Use specific language: Avoid generic ad copy and landing page content.
• Maintain clear branding: Promote products or services with a clear association to your brand.
• Verify your account: Complete advertiser verification if requested.
• Build positive engagement: Maintain positive user engagement in your campaigns to aid in account assessment.
• Use a Google-certified click tracker: If you’re using a click tracker, make sure that it’s set up correctly and is on the List of certified Google click trackers.

Appeal the policy restriction

Unqualified advertisers who have a meaningful proportion of impressions in scope of this policy will receive an in-account notification. Individual ads will not be disapproved. Complete the Limited Ad Serving Appeals Form to appeal this restriction.