Google Ads New Features & Changes in June 2026

June 2026 has brought a flurry of updates to Google Ads. While some are just technical housekeeping, others require a bit of strategic reshuffling to keep your campaigns running smoothly.

What You Need to Know About June 2026 Google Ads Updates

• The forced migration of Dynamic Search Ads to AI Max is delayed until February 2027, restoring your ability to create new legacy DSA campaigns.
• New tools for bidding and audience targeting are rolling out to help manage seasonal demand.
• New terms of service shift legal liability for AI-generated ad content onto the advertiser.
• Granular reporting data is now capped at a 37-month retention window.
• Google now relies on hardcoded website consent banners, decoupling advertising data from Google Analytics settings.

AI Max and Campaign Migrations

Google has adjusted its migration timelines and introduced new tools to help manage automated campaign performance:

DSA to AI Max Migration Delay

The forced migration of Dynamic Search Ads to AI Max has been pushed back to February 2027. This is genuinely good news. It gives us a bit of breathing room to test things properly against legacy campaigns rather than rushing into the unknown. You can now create new Dynamic Search Ad campaigns again, so use this time to build out the negative keyword lists that keep automated spend honest.

Unbranded Search Controls

Google is piloting a setting to restrict AI Max campaigns to unbranded searches. Cannibalisation of brand terms has been a major headache for many, as it can artificially inflate ROAS while obscuring true incremental growth. Once this control is widely available, we can finally force the algorithm to hunt for discovery traffic instead of just claiming credit for people who were going to find you anyway.

Limited Ad Serving Updates

Google is expanding its Limited Ad Serving policy to address brand confusion in search results. If your brand name is distinct and isn’t easily confused with generic search terms or major competitors, you should be fine on this one, it is likely to affect affiliates and resellers more. To avoid this, ensure your ad copy is not too generic, consider pinning your domain to the front of your ad, make sure your brand has clear associations with the product you’re advertising, don’t mention other brands in your ads, and become a Qualified Advertiser.

Bidding and Audience Features

New bidding controls and automated audience tools are now available to help manage seasonal demand and targeting:

Smart Bidding Exploration and Promotion Mode

Google is rolling out Smart Bidding Exploration globally, which lets the algorithm test unproven queries without you having to lower your return on ad spend targets. Additionally, the new Promotion Mode beta allows for temporary adjustments to both budget and return on ad spend for short sales. It is a useful lever for things like flash sales where you want a temporary push without permanently skewing the baseline learning phase of your campaign.

Automated Customer Lists

Starting 18 August 2026, Google will automatically enable conversion-based customer lists for eligible accounts. While automation can be helpful, we prefer to keep a hand on the steering wheel. If you want to manage these segments manually, check your account settings to opt out of automatic enrollment before the August deadline.

Data, Consent, and Policy Updates

Recent changes to privacy and legal terms mean it is time to audit your account configuration to maintain compliance and data integrity:

The 15 June Consent Shift

Google has moved to using consent signals from your website as the sole gatekeeper for advertising data. Privacy settings are rarely the highlight of a meeting, but it is worth auditing your Google Consent Default parameter now to avoid any nasty surprises in your data next month.

Data Retention Changes

Google has capped granular reporting data, including hourly, daily, and weekly metrics, at 37 months. If you rely on multi-year seasonal modeling for long-term planning, you can no longer depend on the Google Ads interface for that depth. We recommend exporting your historical data to an external warehouse to help prevent the permanent loss of your insights.

Updated Terms of Service

Google recently updated its Ads Terms of Service to clarify that advertisers carry legal liability for any AI-generated ad outputs. It is a bit of a wake-up call to keep a closer eye on your automated assets. We recommend ensuring there are guardrails in place for your AI Max such as URL exclusions and negative keywords, but also ensure your wider ads and website copy is up to date to improve the AI’s training source materials. If you are branching out from original imagery into using AI generated assets, these will need a review process in place.

Keeping Up-to-Date

Keeping track of these platform shifts can help you keep ahead and make sure your paid campaigns are prepared for the coming months. If you would like help with a full account audit, get in touch with our team to have a chat.