Google is giving advertisers more say over how their campaign budgets are distributed across its advertising networks, introducing new settings that allow businesses to prioritize selected channels and place limits on spending elsewhere.
Announced on Wednesday, October 14, the controls are designed to offer an alternative to completely disabling certain advertising channels. Instead, marketers can determine which inventory receives funding first and set spending boundaries for channels they want to use more cautiously.
The features are beginning a global rollout across Google Ads campaigns for Search, Shopping, and Performance Max, with Demand Gen support also planned as part of the expansion over the coming months.
According to Tal Akabas, Google's director of product management for Google Ads, the settings are optional for most campaign types, giving advertisers the choice to adopt them according to their needs.
Advertisers Can Prioritize Where Their Budgets Go
The update introduces two complementary tools: channel prioritization and flexible budget allocation.
Channel prioritization allows advertisers to classify eligible channels or groups of inventory as either “High priority” or “Low priority.” Campaigns can then direct funding toward the higher-ranked channels before distributing any remaining budget to lower-ranked options.
For Search campaigns, marketers can assign different priority levels to Google Search, Search partners, and the Google Display Network. This gives advertisers greater flexibility to determine how these networks contribute to their campaigns.
Performance Max and Demand Gen campaigns use a different grouping structure. Google combines its Search, YouTube, Maps, Gmail and Discover inventory under a single category called “Google channels.”
The prioritization settings are available at both account and campaign levels and can also be applied to shared budgets. Advertisers can establish distinct priority tiers across Search, Shopping, Performance Max and Demand Gen campaigns.
For campaigns using Target CPA or Target ROAS bidding, high-priority channels will be funded within the campaign's target before money is directed toward lower-priority inventory.
New Limits Aim to Make Channel Spending More Predictable
The second feature, flexible budget allocation, lets advertisers set a maximum percentage of their daily budget for channels designated as low priority.
Google's systems will make a best-effort attempt to keep spending on those channels within the specified limit. The mechanism is intended to give marketers more precise control over how much they allocate to particular parts of Google's advertising ecosystem.
The distinction is important for advertisers who want to experiment with additional inventory without giving those channels unrestricted access to their budgets.
For example, a business that has previously excluded Search partners or the Google Display Network could test either network while establishing a spending ceiling. Advertisers already using these channels can also introduce allocation limits if they want tighter oversight.
Google says the budget-allocation feature may be particularly useful for campaigns using Target CPA or Target ROAS bidding that are not constrained by their budgets, because channel prioritization alone generally will not affect spending in those circumstances.
Existing Display Network Settings Will Change in 2027
Google also outlined a forthcoming change for Search campaigns that currently include the Google Display Network.
Beginning in February 2027, the existing spend-allocation configuration for these campaigns will be discontinued. Advertisers could consequently see changes in how their budgets are distributed between channels.
Businesses seeking to preserve their current configuration can designate the Google Display Network as “Low priority” and assign it a 50% budget allocation, according to Google's guidance.
The company has not presented the new controls as a blanket restriction on spending. Rather, the settings are intended to give advertisers more options for balancing performance opportunities with their preferred distribution of funds.
Google Expands Its Focus on Advertiser Control
The launch builds on other Google Ads updates, including Smart Bidding Exploration and campaign total budgets, which are intended to provide marketers with additional ways to manage campaign performance and spending.
The latest changes address a particular concern among advertisers: spending on partner networks and other inventory can fluctuate, making it harder to predict how campaign budgets will be distributed.
Akabas said Google is also examining ways to provide more detailed breakdowns of controlled spending across different search formats and AI-powered experiences.
As the rollout continues, advertisers will be able to choose whether the new settings fit their campaign strategies, rather than relying solely on all-or-nothing decisions about whether to include certain networks.
Google says the controls are intended to help marketers manage budgets with greater confidence, particularly as businesses prepare for the higher demand associated with the holiday shopping season.
Source: Google