Google Ads offers several different types of ad campaigns, each designed for specific marketing goals and audience targeting strategies. Understanding which Google Ads campaign type to choose is essential for ecommerce store owners who want to drive sales, increase brand awareness, or promote their app. Below is a comprehensive guide to all major Google Ads campaign types available in 2026, including when and how to use each one.
Search Campaigns
Search campaigns display text-based ads on the Google Search results page when users search for keywords related to your products or services. These are the most common type of Google Ads campaigns and are ideal for capturing high-intent traffic. When someone searches "buy running shoes online," a well-targeted search campaign places your ad directly in front of a ready-to-buy customer. Search campaigns are best for driving sales, leads, and website traffic from users who are actively looking for what you offer.
Shopping Campaigns
Shopping campaigns display product listings with images, prices, and store names directly in Google Search results and the Google Shopping tab. They pull product data from your Google Merchant Center feed, making them particularly powerful for ecommerce businesses. Shopping ads appear alongside or above search results, giving shoppers a visual preview of your products before they even click. For Shopify store owners, Shopping campaigns are one of the highest-converting ad types available because they match commercial search intent with rich product information.
Performance Max Campaigns
Performance Max is Google's AI-powered campaign type that runs ads across all Google channels from a single campaign: Search, Display, YouTube, Gmail, Maps, and Discover. Using machine learning, it automatically optimizes your ad delivery to find the best-performing placements and audiences based on your conversion goals. Performance Max campaigns are ideal for advertisers who want broad reach with automated optimization. They require a set of creative assets (text, images, video) and Google's algorithms handle the rest, including audience targeting and bid adjustments in real time.
Display Campaigns
Display campaigns serve visually rich banner and image ads across the Google Display Network, which includes millions of websites, apps, and Google-owned properties. These ads are effective for building brand awareness, reaching new audiences, and running retargeting campaigns to bring previous visitors back to your site. Display ads support responsive formats that automatically adjust their size and appearance to fit available ad placements, making them a cost effective way to expand your reach beyond search.
Video Campaigns
Video campaigns deliver video ads on YouTube and across Google partner websites. They support several ad formats, including skippable in-stream ads (played before or during YouTube videos), non-skippable ads, bumper ads (6-second clips), and in-feed video ads that appear in YouTube search results. Video campaigns are powerful for brand awareness, product demonstrations, and storytelling. With YouTube being the second-largest search engine, video ads can reach audiences at scale while driving both awareness and conversions.
App Campaigns
App campaigns are designed to promote mobile applications. Google uses machine learning to create and optimize ads across Search, Google Play, YouTube, Discover, and the Display Network. Advertisers provide text, images, and budget, and Google automatically generates ad combinations and targets users most likely to install the app or take specific in-app actions. App campaigns simplify the process of driving installs and engagement for mobile apps.
Demand Gen Campaigns
Demand Gen campaigns (which replaced Discovery campaigns) serve visually engaging ads across YouTube, Gmail, and the Discover feed. These campaigns are designed to capture attention and drive demand among users who are browsing content but may not be actively searching. They support image ads, carousel formats, and short video creatives. Demand Gen is ideal for mid-funnel marketing goals like consideration and engagement, helping you reach your target audience during their content consumption moments.
How to Choose the Right Google Ads Campaign Type
Selecting the right campaign type depends on your marketing goals:
- Drive immediate sales: Shopping campaigns and Search campaigns deliver the highest-intent traffic for ecommerce.
- Maximize reach across channels: Performance Max campaigns use AI to find conversions across all Google properties.
- Build brand awareness: Display campaigns and Video campaigns provide broad visibility at competitive rates.
- Retarget website visitors: Display campaigns with remarketing audiences bring previous visitors back to complete purchases.
- Promote an app: App campaigns are the dedicated solution for driving installs and in-app engagement.
- Generate mid-funnel demand: Demand Gen campaigns engage potential customers across YouTube, Gmail, and Discover.
For Shopify store owners who want to run Google Ads campaigns without the complexity of manual setup and optimization, Adwisely automates Google campaign management using AI. The platform handles Shopping, Search, and Performance Max campaigns, automatically optimizing bids, audiences, and creatives to maximize your return on ad spend. Get started with a free trial.
Last updated: April 2026