Last checked against Google’s documentation on 29 September 2026.
What is AI Max for Search campaigns?
AI Max is a set of Google Ads features that sit on top of a normal Search campaign. Turn it on and the campaign can match your ads to searches your keywords don’t cover, write extra headlines and descriptions, and send each click to the page on your site that best fits the search. Google’s About AI Max for Search campaigns page calls it a suite of targeting and creative enhancements, not a new campaign type.
AI Max for Search campaigns keeps your structure, budget and bid strategy. What changes is how far the campaign reaches and how much of the ad and landing page Google chooses. Each part can be switched off on its own, and there are controls for brands, locations and URLs. The rest of this guide explains each part, how to read its results, and how to test it before rolling it out.
The three parts of Google Ads AI Max
Google’s How AI Max for Search campaigns works page lists three features and where each is controlled. Turning AI Max on switches all three on:
| Feature | Level | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Search term matching | Ad group | Uses broad match and keywordless technology to match searches beyond your keyword list |
| Text customization | Campaign (Asset optimization) | Generates headlines and descriptions from your ads, landing pages and keywords |
| Final URL expansion | Campaign (Asset optimization) | Sends a click to a different page on your site when Google judges it a better fit |
Text customization is the feature that used to be called automatically created assets. Final URL expansion works much like the setting of the same name in Performance Max and Dynamic Search Ads.
Search term matching and your keywords
Search term matching is the part that changes reach. It combines broad match with keywordless matching, which uses your landing pages and assets to find searches. Google’s rules for which keyword wins still apply: a search identical to an exact match keyword goes to that keyword. Google’s page notes that broad keywords are not treated as exact match in prioritization, so if you want a query to keep going to one specific ad group, keep an exact match keyword for it there.
Three things carry over from a normal Search campaign:
- Negatives still apply. Google’s AI Max FAQ says negative keywords are respected. They are your main filter for expanded matches; the method is in how to find negative keywords.
- Performance Max competes on Ad Rank. When a search could match both an AI Max campaign and a Performance Max campaign, the FAQ says the one with the higher Ad Rank serves.
- You can switch it off per ad group. Search term matching must be on at campaign level to be used, but each ad group can turn it off. Brand ad groups and tightly defined offers are the usual candidates.
Text customization and text guidelines
Text customization writes additional headlines and descriptions using your existing ads, landing page copy and keywords. The FAQ says these assets are fully automated: you can’t edit them one by one, but you can remove them. It also warns that pinned responsive search ad assets are no longer guaranteed when text customization runs alongside final URL expansion or URL inclusions. If pinned text is a legal requirement, read that before turning it on.
To limit what gets written, use text guidelines, which Google labels a beta for Performance Max and Search campaigns with AI Max. There are two kinds:
- Term exclusions: words or phrases that must never appear.
- Messaging restrictions: plain-language rules, such as not generating assets with prices.
Google notes that adding guidelines also applies them to existing generated assets, which stop serving and are marked removed if they don’t comply. It also notes that a term exclusion like a currency symbol won’t stop price mentions; use a messaging restriction for that.
Final URL expansion and URL controls
Final URL expansion lets Google choose the landing page. It helps on a site where many pages are good destinations, and hurts where some pages shouldn’t get paid traffic (careers, support, blog posts, expired offers). Two controls limit it:
- URL exclusions (campaign level) block specific pages or sections.
- URL inclusions (ad group level) limit an ad group to URLs you choose.
Google’s Set up AI Max for Search campaigns page notes that URL exclusions need text customization and final URL expansion on. If you only want to stop Google from picking pages, turning final URL expansion off in the campaign’s Asset optimization settings is the simpler option.
AI Max controls: brands, locations and URLs
| Control | Level | Use it to |
|---|---|---|
| Brand exclusions | Campaign | Keep a non-brand campaign off your brand or competitors’ brands |
| Brand inclusions | Campaign and ad group | Limit a brand campaign or ad group to searches mentioning chosen brands |
| Locations of interest | Ad group | Target people by the location they search about |
| URL exclusions | Campaign | Stop final URL expansion from using certain pages |
| URL inclusions | Ad group | Limit an ad group to chosen pages |
An ad group’s brand inclusions override the campaign setting for that ad group. Brand lists are managed as in Performance Max; see Google’s brand exclusions page. Campaign settings are under Campaigns > Settings > the campaign > AI Max; ad group settings under Ad groups > the ad group > AI Max.
What AI Max needs to work
- Conversion-based Smart Bidding. Google’s setup page says search term matching, text customization and final URL expansion require it to work effectively. The FAQ says search term matching won’t work with manual CPC. Our Smart Bidding guide covers choosing a strategy.
- A budget that isn’t limiting. Google says AI Max won’t be effective if the campaign is limited by budget.
- Conversion tracking you trust. Expanded matching finds more of whatever you count as a conversion. If that includes low-value actions, it will find more of those.
- A site that describes what you sell. Keywordless matching, text customization and URL expansion all read your landing pages.
AI Max reporting: search terms, keywords and landing pages
Google’s About reporting in AI Max for Search campaigns page describes where AI Max results show up, and says to wait at least two weeks after enabling it before making changes:
- Search terms report. The match type column shows which searches came through AI Max. Switch the view to Search terms and ad combinations (formerly Search terms and landing pages from AI Max) to see the headline and landing page used for each search. This is the report to read first; see our search terms report guide.
- Keywords report. Two total rows at the bottom separate traffic AI Max brought in: Total: AI Max expanded matches and Total: AI Max landing page matches. Compare their cost per conversion with your keyword rows.
- Landing pages report. A Selected by column shows which pages AI Max chose. You can add URL exclusions from here.
- Assets. Generated assets are marked Google AI in the Added by column, and the Expanded final URL assets tab shows asset and URL combinations.
How to test AI Max with an experiment
Rather than switching AI Max on and comparing before with after, split traffic. Google’s AI Max experiments page describes a test where part of the campaign runs with AI Max off (control) and the rest with it on (trial):
- Go to Campaigns > Experiments and click the plus button.
- Choose Campaign features and settings, then AI Max for Search campaigns.
- Pick the campaign, and optionally set text customization, final URL expansion and brand controls for the trial.
- Run it until both arms have enough conversions to compare. Judge on conversions and cost per conversion (or conversion value and ROAS), not clicks.
- If the trial wins, apply it from the Experiments table.
Google lists cases where you can’t create one: the campaign already has text customization on, targets the Display Network, uses a portfolio bid strategy or a shared budget, has bidding exploration active, or is already running an experiment.
When not to use AI Max
- Manual CPC or very low conversion volume. Search term matching needs Smart Bidding and conversion data.
- Budget-limited campaigns. Expanded matching competes for budget your core keywords already need.
- Strict wording requirements. If every ad must carry fixed text, check whether text disclaimers are available in your account first, or keep text customization off.
- Brand campaigns. Turn search term matching off in brand ad groups, or use brand inclusions, so they stay on brand searches.
- Sites with many pages that shouldn’t get traffic. Keep final URL expansion off, or add URL exclusions first.
The AI Max auto-upgrade and what’s new
Some campaigns get AI Max without anyone turning it on: Google is upgrading campaigns that used automatically created assets or the campaign-level broad match setting from September 2026, and Dynamic Search Ads from February 2027. What each group gets, and how to check and undo it, is in our AI Max auto-upgrade guide.
On 30 April 2026 Google’s AI Max anniversary post announced AI Brief (guidelines for messaging, matching and audiences), rolling out in English for AI Max for Search over the following months, and text disclaimers that keep required text in ads even with final URL expansion, rolling out in the following weeks. Both were described as rolling out, so check your account.
Boxoo’s search terms and keywords agent reads AI Max matches every day and files a case when expanded searches spend without converting, with the terms and cost behind it and a negative keyword ready to apply. The performance and structure agent notices when AI Max settings change and compares results before and after. Settings Boxoo doesn’t apply, such as switching AI Max features off, come as exact steps. Get a free Google Ads audit to see what AI Max is doing in your account.
