Google Ads Demand Gen Campaigns: Where They Run and What's Changing

Search ads catch people who are already looking for you. Demand Gen does the opposite job: it puts your visuals in front of people while they scroll, watch and read, before they've typed anything. Google says these campaigns can reach up to 3 billion monthly active users, with more than 50 billion daily views on Shorts alone. That's a big audience, and it's exactly why the setup choices matter so much for a small budget.

Where Demand Gen ads appear

Google's overview lists YouTube, Discover, Gmail, Maps and the Google Display Network as places Demand Gen captures engagement. When you pick channels inside the campaign, these are the surfaces Google names:

Surface	Where the ad appears
YouTube	Shorts, in-feed, Home feed, watch next and YouTube Search
Discover	The Discover feed
Gmail	Gmail
Google Display Network	The Google Display Network, now part of Demand Gen

You don't have to run everywhere. Google gives the example of a vertical creator video set to serve on YouTube Shorts only, which is handy if you've made something that only looks right on a phone screen.

Display campaigns are moving into Demand Gen

This is the change most advertisers haven't clocked yet. Google says Display campaigns are moving to Demand Gen, with the Google Display Network becoming one of its channels. The timeline, as of October 2026, has two stages:

1. June 2026: eligible advertisers can start moving existing Display campaigns voluntarily, using the migration tool in their account.
2. Coming later: new campaigns can only be created within Demand Gen, and any remaining eligible campaigns will be moved automatically.

If you've got a Display campaign that's ticking along, my advice is to move it yourself while you can still choose when. An automatic switch on Google's timetable is the worst moment to discover your images are the wrong shape.

How much control you keep

Demand Gen leans on Google AI to combine your visuals, messages and placements, but you aren't left with no levers at all:

• Channel Prioritization lets you favour Google's own channels or the Display Network. Google described daily budget allocation by channel as coming later.
• Lookalike segments reach new people who resemble those who made a past purchase, visited your website or watched your YouTube videos.
• A/B experiments let you test creatives against each other.

The creative you'll need before you start

Demand Gen is visual first, so the assets do most of the selling. Google's specs include:

• Images in horizontal 1.91:1, square 1:1 and portrait 4:5, plus a square 1:1 logo (and 4:1 on some formats).
• Text: a headline, long headline, description, final URL or URL path, business name, call to action and sitelink descriptions.
• Carousel ads using 2 to 10 image cards.
• Video in several formats.
• Promotion assets for YouTube Shorts and in-stream if you use a Merchant Center product feed.

If you've already made short videos for other platforms, my guide to Facebook video ads covers how to plan clips that work on mobile, and the same thinking carries over to Shorts.

Budget and bidding: the 10 times rule

Google lists value-based bidding and Maximize Clicks among the bidding options. If you use target CPA bidding, Google recommends a budget of at least 10 times your target CPA. So if you want leads at a set cost each, your budget needs room for ten of them, or the campaign has too little to learn from.

When you reach the review page, a Budget Panel shows up to three daily budget suggestions, labelled Low, Medium and High, along with a performance forecast. Treat those as Google's suggestions, not a target you have to hit.

Measurement and reporting

For measurement, Google lists Brand Lift (available through an allowlist), Search Lift and Conversion Lift, along with data-driven attribution. Reporting goes down to the asset level, so you can see which image or headline is pulling its weight and which one to replace.

How to set up a Demand Gen campaign

1. Install the Google tag on your website and set up conversion tracking first. Google suggests optimising for lightweight events such as add to basket or a site visit, with a counting option that suits the campaign.
2. Choose your goal and bidding. If you use target CPA, set a budget of at least 10 times that target.
3. Pick your channels and audiences, and add lookalike segments if you have customer or website data.
4. Upload your images, videos, headlines and logo in the sizes listed above.
5. Check the Budget Panel suggestions on the review page, then launch.
6. Once it's had time to gather data, use asset-level reporting to swap out weak creatives.

Restrictions for sensitive categories

If your business sits in a sensitive category, read this before you build anything. Google says these campaigns are generally restricted to YouTube inventory and aren't eligible for Gmail or the Display Network. Most sensitive categories, except gambling, alcohol and political content, may serve on Discover, but only if they don't target personalised audiences or predefined Google audiences, and they can only use predefined audiences such as affinity or in-market. Alcohol advertisers can't use product feeds at all.

Demand Gen or Search: which comes first?

For most small businesses, Search comes first. Someone typing your service into Google has already raised their hand, and that's the easiest click to turn into a sale. Demand Gen is a push channel: it builds interest with people who weren't looking yet, which is valuable, but it asks more of your creative and your patience. If you're working out how to split a small budget, my guide to Google Ads for PPC walks through the basics, and my piece on where small business Google Ads budgets leak shows what to check before you add a new campaign type.

My verdict

Demand Gen is worth testing once your Search campaigns and conversion tracking are solid, and it's no longer optional if you run Display ads, because that's where Display is going. Go in with good vertical video and clean square images, give target CPA campaigns at least 10 times the target as budget, and judge it on conversions, not views. It won't replace Search, and it isn't meant to.

None of it can be judged without conversion tracking, so set that up first.

Frequently asked questions

What is a Demand Gen campaign in Google Ads?

It's a visual campaign type that serves image and video ads across YouTube (including Shorts), Discover, Gmail and the Google Display Network.

Is Google Display moving to Demand Gen?

Yes. Google says eligible advertisers can move Display campaigns voluntarily from June 2026, and later new campaigns can only be created within Demand Gen.

How much budget does Demand Gen need?

For campaigns using target CPA bidding, Google recommends a budget of at least 10 times your target CPA.

Can I run Demand Gen ads only on YouTube Shorts?

Yes. Google says you can choose channels, for example serving a vertical creator video on YouTube Shorts only.

What image sizes does Demand Gen use?

Google lists horizontal 1.91:1, square 1:1 and portrait 4:5 images, with a 1:1 logo and 4:1 on some formats.