Complete your AdSense account setup

After you create your AdSense account, you need to set it up so that you can show ads on your site and earn money.

Account setup process

Your AdSense homepage has a list of tasks to complete before we can set up your account. You can complete these tasks in any order.

• Enter your payments information
• (Optional) See how ads look on your site
• Connect your site to AdSense

Upon completion, we review your payments information to make sure that it's correct, and your entire site to check that it complies with the AdSense programme policies. We email you when your account is fully set up. This usually takes a few days, but in some cases it can take 2–4 weeks.

Tip: While you're waiting for AdSense to set up your account, you can get your site privacy ready. It's important to make sure that you're complying with privacy regulations like the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) before you start showing ads to your users.

Verify your identity to start showing ads

Starting in June 2026, you may need to verify your identity before your account can start showing ads and receiving payments from Google AdSense. You will need to submit a government-issued photo ID. Depending on your location, you may also be asked to take a video selfie. This process confirms the accuracy of your account information and helps to protect against fraud.

What you need to know

• You have 45 days from the date on which we first asked you to verify your identity. After 45 days, if you haven't completed the verification process, we'll pause the activation of your account.
• Most publishers finish in 5–10 minutes. You'll need a current government-issued photo ID.
• If you are asked to take a video selfie, we'll use secure biometric technology for a fast match. If you'd prefer a manual review, you can opt out – just bear in mind that it takes two to three working days to process.

Note: After this, depending on your location, we may also send a PIN for you to verify your publisher address. Keep an eye out for a PIN in the post.

Account activation tips

Payments

• Enter your full name exactly as it appears on your banking information.
• Provide the full postal address of your bank account, including the postcode, so that you can get paid.
• Provide a valid phone number.

Ads

• Consider turning on Auto ads so that ads will appear on your site as soon as your account is set up.

Sites

• Your site must be live and contain enough content for our specialists to evaluate. If your site is under construction, doesn't load or is difficult to navigate, we can't set up your account.
• Make sure that you provided the correct URL when you created your AdSense account.
• Review your site to make sure it complies with our Program policies.
• Copy the code exactly as it appears on your AdSense homepage.
• Paste the code between the <head> and </head> tags of a page that contains content and gets regular traffic.

Note: You have six months to complete the steps to set up your account. If you haven't set up your account after six months, your account will be deactivated.

If we can't set up your account

If we can't set up your account, we'll send an email to explain why and what steps you can take to address the issues. Learn more about what to do if your AdSense account wasn't approved.

Next steps

• Set up ads on your site