Exclude specific webpages and videos

To help you reach more potential customers, your ads will now show on content that matches any of the topics, placements or Display/Video/Search keywords that you target. For example, if you targeted 'bikes' as a topic and 'cycling' as a Display/Video/Search keyword, your ads will show on content that matches either.

You’ll also notice contextual targeting simplified into a single page in Google Ads, so you can manage all content targeting types (Topics, Placements, Display/Video keywords, and Exclusions) in a single view. The new page can be found in the 'Content' section under Campaigns Campaigns Icon on the left-side navigation menu.

Starting in March, 2024: Account-level placement exclusions will now also apply to the Search partner network. With this launch, websites on the search partner network will be excluded if an advertiser adds exclusions at the account or manager account level. This will impact all campaign types that serve ads on the search partner network, including Performance Max, App, Search, Shopping and Smart campaigns in the account.

Targeting and exclusion controls for mobile Display have been simplified to make it easier to reach the growing base of mobile users.

Content exclusion (“G-mob mobile app non interstitial” exclusion) has been replaced by simplified device targeting options of computer, tablet, and mobile.

You can control which publishers or types of content your ads appear on using:

  • Topics
  • Device targeting: computer, tablet, mobile
  • App category
  • Individual app exclusions via placement exclusions for mobile apps and individual website exclusion
  • Content exclusions

Just as you can target placements in the YouTube, search partner network and Display Network to show your ads – like specific pages, sites, mobile apps and videos – you can also exclude placements where you don't want your ads to show. You can exclude websites or domains that are inappropriate for your brand or are ineffective in promoting the sale of your products or services.

Types of placements you might exclude

  • Certain specific placements that don’t fit your brand.
  • Placements where your ads are showing, but not performing well.

Example

A travel agency has an ad group that features family camping packages and targets topics like Hiking and Camping. The agency notices that some of their ads are showing on automatic placements that are relevant to the topic but are not family-focused. They can exclude those placements from the ad group.

Exclude placements from your campaign, ad group or account

You can exclude placements from specific ad groups and campaigns from the 'Placements' page.

Note: The instructions below are part of the new design for the Google Ads user experience. To use the previous design, click the 'Appearance' icon, and select Use previous design. If you're using the previous version of Google Ads, review the Quick reference map or use the Search bar in the top navigation panel of Google Ads to find the page that you’re searching for.
  1. In your Google Ads account, click the Campaigns icon Campaigns Icon.
  2. Click the Audiences, keywords and content drop-down in the section menu.
  3. Click Content.
  4. Click Exclusions.
  5. Click the drop-down arrow to the right of the term “Exclusions”.
  6. Click Placements
  7. Click the pencil icon Edit.
  8. Select whether to “Add placement exclusion” or “Use placement exclusion list”
  9. Choose whether you’d like to exclude placements at the campaign, ad group or account level.
  10. If you’ve selected “Add placement exclusion” do one of the following.
    1. Search for a word, phrase, URL or video ID that you’d like to exclude.
    2. Click Enter multiple placements and enter the URL(s) that you’d like to exclude.
  11. If you’ve selected “Use placement exclusion list”, select an existing placement exclusion list.
  12. After you’ve entered your exclusions, click Save.

How to add your exclusion URLs

There are different types of URLs for different types of properties. From mobile apps to specific product pages, each type of property has a specific address format. Expand the sections below to understand how to enter the addresses for each type of placement.

Formatting placement exclusions for sites
There are several methods for excluding placements: by domain, subdomain, path name or individual pages, but not multi-level domains. In general, excluding domains will prevent your ads from appearing on any page on or within that domain, while entering subdomains or paths will only prevent your ads from appearing on any page on or within that subdomain or path, respectively.Note that exclusions for subdomains, subsites and subpages do not work on the search partners network.

Example

Cheryl’s company sells organic household cleaning products, and she would like to show their ads only on closely related placements. She targets a popular product review website, and adds a site exclusion for the website paths about food gadgets and home appliances so that her ads don’t appear on those pages. By refining where her ads appear, she can show them to the most interested potential customers.

The format of each entry on your site exclusion list determines how Google Ads filters sites. Here are some examples of how to exclude domains and format these exclusions:

Level

Exclusion

 
Top-level domain name example.com
Use this format if you'd prefer your ads to be excluded from a particular domain and its subdomains, directory names, individual pages and so on.
  • Ads won't appear on example.com, www.example.com, www1.example.com, www.example.com/stuff, www.example.com/stuff/page.html or placement.example.com
yes, confirmed Acceptable
First-level subdomain www.example.com
  • Ads won't appear on www.example.com or www.example.com/stuff
  • Ads may show on www1.example.com or placement.example.com
yes, confirmed Acceptable
First-level subdomain placement.example.com yes, confirmed Acceptable
Single directory name www.example.com/stuff
  • Ads won't appear on www.example.com/stuff or www.example.com/stuff/page.html
  • Ads may show on www.example.com
yes, confirmed Acceptable
Single directory name example.com/stuff yes, confirmed Acceptable
Second directory name www.example.com/stuff/extra
  • Ads won't appear on www.example.com/stuff/extra or www.example.com/stuff/extra/page.html
  • Ads may show on www.example.com or www.example.com/stuff
yes, confirmedAcceptable
Multi-level subdomains

www.placement.example.com

  • Ads may only be excluded from this specific subdomain
Not recommended
Individual page www.example.com/index.html yes, confirmed Acceptable

Due to the dynamic nature of the Display Network, we can't guarantee that you'll exclude 100 percent of related pages when you exclude a category. In our tests, however, we've found that excluding a category reduces exposure to related pages by approximately 90 percent.

Exclude individual apps from Display campaigns
Note: The instructions below are part of the new design for the Google Ads user experience. To use the previous design, click the 'Appearance' icon, and select Use previous design. If you're using the previous version of Google Ads, review the Quick reference map or use the Search bar in the top navigation panel of Google Ads to find the page that you’re searching for.
  1. In your Google Ads account, click the Campaigns icon Campaigns Icon.
  2. Click the Audiences, keywords and content drop-down in the section menu.
  3. Click Content.
  4. Click Exclusions.
  5. Click the drop-down arrow to the right of the term “Exclusions”.
  6. Click Placements.
  7. Click the pencil icon Edit.
  8. Select Add placement exclusion.
  9. Under 'Exclude from', select Campaign.
  10. Click Select a campaign and select the campaign that you’d like to exclude apps from.
  11. Click Enter multiple placements.
  12. Do one of the following:
    • To exclude iPhone apps:
      • Find the iTunes ID for the app that you want to exclude. The iTunes ID appears at the end of the app’s iTunes URL. For instance, the ID in red is the 'MechaHamster' app’s iTunes ID:
        • https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/mechahamster/id1286046770.
      • Enter 'mobileapp::1-' followed by the iTunes ID. For example, if you want to add the 'MechaHamster' app as a placement exclusion, enter mobileapp::1-1286046770.
    • To exclude Android apps:
      • In the Google Play Store, find the app that you want to exclude, then copy the app’s package name (the last part of the URL after 'id='). For example, for the app 'MechaHamster', copy the section of the URL that appears in red below:
        • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.fpl.mechahamster
      • In the field for entering placements in Google Ads, enter 'mobileapp::2-' and paste the URL that you just copied. Using the example from the previous step, the exclusion for the app 'MechaHamster' would look like this:
        • mobileapp::2-com.google.fpl.mechahamster
Excluding parked domains
Most exclusions apply only to the Display Network except for parked domain sites, which will be excluded on both the Display Network and the search partners network using content exclusions.

Note

Excluding placements is different from removing them. When you exclude placements, you’re blocking your ads from showing there. When you remove placements you’re targeting, your ad could still show there based on other targeting methods that you have in your ad group – like keywords or topics.

Schedule automated uploads of placement exclusion lists

Scheduling automatic updates to placement exclusion lists saves time on list management and ensures that placement exclusion lists in Google Ads stay up-to-date and stay in sync with list sources. Advertisers, learn how to download a list template and schedule your placement exclusion lists. List providers, learn how to create and test exclusion lists for your advertisers to use.

For Advertisers

Schedule your exclusion list by linking a placement exclusion list in a supported file format in Google Ads. This list source will be pulled periodically to manage your exclusions within Google Ads. It can be maintained by you or a third-party list provider that you trust. Schedule uploads to your placement exclusions to ensure that your exclusion list automatically updates to reflect updates made on the external source file.

Instructions to download a template and schedule a placement exclusion list

Note: The instructions below are part of the new design for the Google Ads user experience. To use the previous design, click the 'Appearance' icon, and select Use previous design. If you're using the previous version of Google Ads, review the Quick reference map or use the Search bar in the top navigation panel of Google Ads to find the page that you’re searching for.
  1.  In your Google Ads account, click the Tools icon Tools Icon.
  2. Click the Shared Library drop-down in the section menu.
  3. Click Exclusion lists.
  4. Click the plus button .
  5. Click Schedule a list
  6. If you don’t have a list source already created by you or your trusted list providers, click View templates to view supported templates and download your file, which can be added to and saved. Review a sample file by downloadng this CSV. (Learn more about how you can exclude placements at the account level.) Exclusion types supported:
    • Sites
    • Mobile Applications
    • YouTube Channels
    • YouTube Videos

Note: Exclusions are subject to shared placement exclusions list limits. Learn more about Google Ads targeting limits

  1. Once you have a list source saved in the correct file type, you can schedule automatic uploads of placement exclusions reflected in the list source.
    1. Enter the “Schedule name”.
    2. Enter the 'List name', which will appear as the name in the 'Placement exclusion list' columns.
    3. In the 'Source' drop-down menu, select how the file will be delivered
      • Google Sheets
      • HTTPS
      • SFTP
    4. Ensure that the file is public or that you provide the permissions to access the file
      1. Google Sheets must be public or you will need to share it with the Google Ads account you see listed when you select “Google Sheets” as the “Source”, then click Link an existing sheet.
      2. HTTPS/SFTP may require credentials (username/password). If required, enter the username and password to access the file.
        Note: If you select SFTP and get a "File not found" error, try placing a double-slash ("//") between the file path and name. For example: SFTP://sftp.mysite.com/exclusions.csv
    5. Use the 'Frequency' and 'Time' fields to choose how often and when the source you selected should be uploaded and applied to your placement exclusions.
    6. Click Save.
    7. Ensure that your source file uploaded correctly by checking that it’s in the 'Placement exclusion list' column on the Placement exclusions page that you navigate to from the Tools Google Ads | tools [Icon] menu. It may take up to 10 minutes for the list to appear.
  2. To cancel or modify your scheduled placement exclusions, follow these instructions:
    1. Click the Tools icon Google Ads | tools [Icon].
    2. Under “Bulk Actions”, select Uploads.
    3. Click the Schedules tab.
    4. Hover over the coloured dot to the left of the scheduled item in the “Schedule” column.
    5. You can choose to 'Enable', 'Pause' or 'Remove'.
    6. You can also edit by clicking Edit in the 'Actions' column.

Note:

  • If you’re using a file created by a trusted list provider, ensure that the file is in the supported format so that it uploads correctly.
  • As long as uploads are scheduled, any exclusions in the source file will continuously be uploaded to your list. You’ll want to update the source file directly or work with your third-party list provider to update the source file.
  • Once the exclusion list is created, you'll apply the placement exclusion list to a campaign to begin excluding placements.
For list providers

Create an exclusion list for use by your advertisers by downloading a supported external file source in Google Ads. Once scheduled by your advertisers, this list source will be pulled from to manage exclusions within Google Ads and the list can be maintained by you. Your advertisers can schedule uploads using your placement exclusions file. Their lists will automatically update to reflect changes made to your source files.

Instructions to download a file template and test a placement exclusion file

Note: The instructions below are part of the new design for the Google Ads user experience. To use the previous design, click the 'Appearance' icon, and select Use previous design. If you're using the previous version of Google Ads, review the Quick reference map or use the Search bar in the top navigation panel of Google Ads to find the page that you’re searching for.
  1.  In your Google Ads account, click the Tools icon Tools Icon.
  2. Click the Shared Library drop-down in the section menu.
  3. Click Exclusion lists.
  4. Click the plus button .
  5. Click Schedule a list
  6. Click View templates to view supported file types and templates and download your file, which you’ll use to build placement exclusion lists. Review a sample file by downloadng this CSV. (Learn more about how you can exclude placements at the account level.) Exclusion types supported:
  7. Once you have a list source saved in the correct file type, test that your exclusion file is formatted correctly by uploading to your account.
    1. Enter the “Schedule name”
    2. Enter the 'List name', which will appear as the name in the 'Schedule' and 'Placement exclusion list' columns.
    3. In the 'Source' drop-down menu, select how the file will be delivered.
      • Google Sheets
      • HTTPS
      • SFTP
    4. Ensure that the file is public or that you provide the permissions to access the file
      1. Google Sheets must be public or you will need to share it with the Google Ads account you find listed when you select “Google Sheets” as the “Source”, then click Link an existing sheet.
      2. HTTPS/SFTP may require credentials (username/password). If required, enter the username and password to access the file.
      3. These permissions also apply to any advertisers who receive access to your file
        Note: If you select SFTP and get a "File not found" error, try placing a double-slash ("//") between the file path and name. For example: SFTP://sftp.mysite.com/exclusions.csv
    5. Use the “Frequency” and “Time” fields to choose how often and when the source you selected should be uploaded and applied to the advertiser's placement exclusions.
    6. Click Save.
    7. Ensure that your source file uploaded correctly by checking that it’s in the 'Placement exclusion list' column on the Placement exclusions page that you navigate to from the Tools Google Ads | tools [Icon] menu. It may take up to 10 minutes for the source file to appear.

Best practices:

  • Before sharing a file with advertisers, it’s best to schedule your list with your own account and test that the file is being uploaded correctly. Keep this schedule running for a few days to test that your updates are being uploaded.
  • Remember that lists are subject to the standard shared placement exclusion limitation of 65,000 exclusions maximum per list. Note that advertiser accounts are subject to additional exclusion limits based on their targeting usage. Learn more about Google Ads targeting limits
  • Work with advertisers on making permanent changes to lists directly on list source files, since advertisers cannot make permanent changes to scheduled lists from Google Ads.

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