Performance Max Campaigns: How They Work and What They Need
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Performance Max is a Google Ads campaign type that runs one campaign across all of Google's ad inventory, including Search, YouTube, Display, Discover, Gmail and Maps. You set the conversion goals, budget, creative assets and audience signals. Google's systems then decide where each ad shows, which assets to combine and how much to bid. It works best with reliable conversion tracking and varied creative. This explainer is part of our paid advertising guide.
It covers how the campaign type works, what you need to give it, how it sits next to Search campaigns, the controls you keep and what its reports show.
Key takeaways
- Performance Max runs one campaign across Google's inventory, from Search to YouTube and Maps.
- You supply conversion goals, creative assets, audience signals and a budget.
- Google's systems decide where each ad shows and which assets to combine.
- Exact match Search keywords take priority over Performance Max for identical searches.
- It needs reliable conversion tracking and varied creative to learn well.
How Performance Max works
A Search campaign is built from your choices: keywords, ad groups and ads for each search. Performance Max turns that around. You describe the goal and supply the materials, and Google decides where and how to show ads across its channels.
Google describes it as goal-based. You choose the conversion actions that matter, and optionally a target cost per acquisition or return on ad spend. Smart Bidding then bids in each auction based on how likely a conversion is. The assets you supply are mixed into ads that fit each place, from a search result to a YouTube video or a Maps listing.
That makes Performance Max only as good as what it learns from. If the conversion goal is a form fill that rarely becomes a customer, it will find more of those form fills. If the images and videos are weak, those are what it shows. As with other campaigns, Google describes a learning phase after launch, during which big changes are best avoided.
What you give Performance Max
Google's setup splits the work between what you provide and what its systems do. These are the four inputs that matter most.
| You supply | What it is | What Google does with it |
|---|---|---|
| Conversion goals | The actions you count, plus an optional target | Bids for each auction toward those actions |
| Creative assets | Text, images, logos and videos | Combines them into ads for each channel |
| Audience signals | Hints about likely customers | Uses them to guide early learning |
| Budget and safety | Daily budget, brand and placement exclusions | Spends toward inventory that's performing |
Assets are organized into asset groups. Each asset group is a set of headlines, descriptions, images, logos and videos around one theme or audience, such as one product line or service. A campaign can have several asset groups, which lets each one speak to a different part of the business.
Google can add its own material too. Text customization generates extra headlines and descriptions from your landing pages and existing ads. Auto-generated video can create videos if you don't supply them. Google notes that you remain responsible for reviewing dynamically generated assets, so check what it produces.
How it works alongside Search campaigns
Many accounts run Performance Max next to Search campaigns. Google says it's meant to complement keyword-based Search, and sets a priority order for when both could serve the same search.
An exact match keyword in a Search campaign that's identical to the search wins first. Phrase and broad match keywords and Performance Max search themes come next, and share priority when they are identical to the search. After that, Google chooses by relevance and then by Ad Rank.
In practice, this means your most important searches stay under your control if you cover them with exact match keywords in Search. Performance Max can still reach searches you haven't listed, and everything outside Search. A clear Google Ads account structure makes it easier to see which campaign is doing what.
The controls you keep
Performance Max gives Google wide latitude, but not total control. As of October 2026, Google lists these controls:
- Brand exclusions and negative keywords, to keep the campaign off searches you don't want, including your own brand if Search covers it. We explain how to choose them in our guide to negative keywords.
- Search themes, to tell the campaign which searches are relevant.
- Final URL expansion, which you can turn off if every ad must land on the page you chose.
- Placement exclusions and content suitability settings, to keep ads away from sites and content you don't want.
- Channel prioritization, to set priority tiers for search partners and the Display Network.
Reading Performance Max reports
Performance Max reports are less granular than Search reports, but they've grown. Google lists asset-level metrics, asset group reporting, channel performance, placement reports and a search terms report among the options.
Start with conversions and their value, because that's what the campaign is optimizing for. Then look at the channel report to see where spend goes, the asset reports to see which images, videos and headlines carry the results, and search terms to check for searches you'd rather not pay for. If results look strong but sales don't move, check whether the conversions being counted are the ones that matter.
When Performance Max fits
Google recommends it when you have specific conversion goals, such as sales or leads, want to reach people across all of its channels from one campaign, and don't need to restrict where ads appear. It also lists objectives it supports: sales, leads, website traffic, and local store visits and promotions.
It fits less well when tracking is weak, creative is thin, or you need to control exactly where every ad appears. In those cases, fix tracking and creative first, or start with Search campaigns. Meta's automated campaign options raise similar questions, which we cover in Meta ads campaign structure.
If you'd rather have the assets made and the campaign set up and read for you, our in-house ads team produces the video and images and runs Google campaigns.
Common questions
Is Performance Max good for lead generation?
It can be, if it learns from the right signal. Leads is one of the objectives Google lists for Performance Max, but the campaign optimizes toward whatever you count as a conversion. If every form fill counts the same, it may chase cheap, low-quality leads. Import or mark the leads that become customers where you can, and judge results on those.
Can I see which searches my Performance Max ads showed for?
Partly. Google provides a search terms report for Performance Max, alongside search terms insights that group searches into themes. Like the Search campaign report, it won't list every low-volume search. Use it with the channel and asset reports to see where the campaign spends, and add negatives or brand exclusions where you find searches you don't want.
Should Performance Max replace my Search campaigns?
Google positions it as a complement to keyword-based Search, not a replacement. Many accounts keep Search campaigns for their most important searches, because exact match keywords take priority, and use Performance Max to reach further across Google's channels. Whether it should take more of the budget depends on what your conversion data shows over time.
Do I need video to run Performance Max?
Google asks for text, images and videos, and can generate videos automatically if you don't provide them. Generated video may not match how you want your brand to look, and it represents you on YouTube. If YouTube matters to your audience, supply your own short video, made to work in the first few seconds and with the sound off.