Upgrade to Performance Max
Stay organized with collections
Save and categorize content based on your preferences.
When getting started with Performance Max, you can use existing knowledge and
information from your current advertising to assist setting up new
Performance Max campaigns.
If you already manage campaigns using the Google Ads API you may be able to
use your existing campaigns, depending on the campaign, to help you configure a
Performance Max campaign rather that create a new campaign from scratch.
This guide goes over the available options to help you plan your upgrade
to Performance Max.
Reasons to upgrade
Here are a few reasons
to upgrade to Performance Max:
- Unlock new audiences across Google's channels and networks
- Drive better performance against your goals
- Get more transparent insights
- Steer automation with your campaign inputs
- Simplify campaign management and optimize your ads
You can find more information about Performance Max in this
article.
Steps to upgrade
The steps to upgrade broadly involve the following:
- Identify which existing campaigns can be upgraded to Performance Max
- Check the requirements and eligibility
- Create a Performance Max campaign based on an existing campaign
- Enhance the campaign for Performance Max
- Compare and optimize campaign performance
- Finalize the Performance Max campaign
Each step can differ depending on the upgrade route. For more details on each
step, check out the respective sections of the
upgrade eligibility guide.
Manage your upgrade
Teams at Google have developed processes to help you understand how and when to
upgrade as well as tools to help you provide input to assisted upgrades.
Depending on how many accounts and campaigns you would like to upgrade, there
are different options you should consider:
- Assisted
- You are provided with an assisted workflow to help you upgrade a
campaign. By providing a few inputs, Google is able to create the campaign
and help you measure its performance before finalizing the process.
- Fully-automated
- Certain campaigns will be upgraded to Performance Max
automatically by Google. You should understand which campaigns this applies
to, when this is due to happen, and what actions (if any) you will need to
take.
- Manual
- You want to expand your reach by adding Performance Max to your
portfolio of campaigns. You can choose when and how this happens and how you
will measure the success of this campaign compared to your other campaigns.
With this option, make sure you understand how the assisted and
fully-automated options might affect your plan.
These options depend on the campaign you are planning to upgrade.
For more details, see the
upgrade eligibility guide.
Except as otherwise noted, the content of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, and code samples are licensed under the Apache 2.0 License. For details, see the Google Developers Site Policies. Java is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.
Last updated 2025-08-25 UTC.
[null,null,["Last updated 2025-08-25 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eLeverage existing Google Ads campaigns and knowledge to seamlessly transition to Performance Max.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003ePerformance Max offers enhanced reach, performance, insights, and simplified campaign management across Google's network.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eChoose from assisted, fully-automated, or manual upgrade paths based on your campaign needs and preferences.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eUnderstand the eligibility criteria and step-by-step process for upgrading your campaigns to Performance Max.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eOptimize and compare Performance Max campaigns with existing ones for better results.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],[],null,["# Upgrade to Performance Max\n\nWhen getting started with Performance Max, you can use existing knowledge and\ninformation from your current advertising to assist setting up new\nPerformance Max campaigns.\nIf you already manage campaigns using the Google Ads API you may be able to\nuse your existing campaigns, depending on the campaign, to help you configure a\nPerformance Max campaign rather that create a new campaign from scratch.\nThis guide goes over the available options to help you plan your upgrade\nto Performance Max.\n\nReasons to upgrade\n------------------\n\nHere are a few reasons\nto upgrade to Performance Max:\n\n- Unlock new audiences across Google's channels and networks\n- Drive better performance against your goals\n- Get more transparent insights\n- Steer automation with your campaign inputs\n- Simplify campaign management and optimize your ads\n\nYou can find more information about Performance Max in this\n[article](//support.google.com/google-ads/answer/10724817).\n\nSteps to upgrade\n----------------\n\nThe steps to upgrade broadly involve the following:\n\n1. [Identify which existing campaigns can be upgraded to Performance Max](/google-ads/api/performance-max/upgrade-eligibility)\n2. [Check the requirements and eligibility](/google-ads/api/performance-max/upgrade-eligibility#campaign_types_eligible_for_upgrade)\n3. [Create a Performance Max campaign based on an existing campaign](/google-ads/api/performance-max/upgrade-create-campaign)\n4. [Enhance the campaign for Performance Max](/google-ads/api/performance-max/upgrade-enhancements)\n5. [Compare and optimize campaign performance](/google-ads/api/performance-max/upgrade-comparison)\n6. [Finalize the Performance Max campaign](/google-ads/api/performance-max/upgrade-complete)\n\nEach step can differ depending on the upgrade route. For more details on each\nstep, check out the respective sections of the\n[upgrade eligibility guide](/google-ads/api/performance-max/upgrade-eligibility).\n\nManage your upgrade\n-------------------\n\nTeams at Google have developed processes to help you understand how and when to\nupgrade as well as tools to help you provide input to assisted upgrades.\nDepending on how many accounts and campaigns you would like to upgrade, there\nare different options you should consider:\n\nAssisted\n: You are provided with an assisted workflow to help you upgrade a\n campaign. By providing a few inputs, Google is able to create the campaign\n and help you measure its performance before finalizing the process.\n\nFully-automated\n: Certain campaigns will be upgraded to Performance Max\n automatically by Google. You should understand which campaigns this applies\n to, when this is due to happen, and what actions (if any) you will need to\n take.\n\nManual\n: You want to expand your reach by adding Performance Max to your\n portfolio of campaigns. You can choose when and how this happens and how you\n will measure the success of this campaign compared to your other campaigns.\n With this option, make sure you understand how the assisted and\n fully-automated options might affect your plan.\n\nThese options depend on the campaign you are planning to upgrade.\nFor more details, see the\n[upgrade eligibility guide](/google-ads/api/performance-max/upgrade-eligibility)."]]
