Google Ads Is Changing How Automated Bidding Works
WEST PALM BEACH, FL – If your business advertises on Google, an important change is coming on August 17, 2026 that could affect how your advertising budget performs. Google is updating its automated bidding system for campaigns using Target CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) and Target ROAS (Return on Ad Spend), two of its most popular Smart Bidding strategies. While the update won’t affect every advertiser, businesses running campaigns that are limited by budget should review their bidding targets before the change takes effect.
Target CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) is a bidding strategy designed for advertisers whose primary goal is generating conversions, such as phone calls, contact forms, appointment requests, or other customer inquiries. Rather than manually setting bids for every keyword, advertisers simply tell Google the average amount they’re willing to pay for each conversion, and Google’s automated bidding system adjusts bids in real time to achieve that goal.
Until now, Google has often delivered results that exceeded an advertiser’s target whenever a campaign was limited by budget. If you set a Target CPA of $50 but your campaign consistently generated leads for $25, Google would frequently continue delivering those lower costs because the campaign couldn’t afford to compete in every auction. It became extremely selective, choosing only the searches it believed were most likely to convert.
Beginning August 17, Google says it will follow advertisers’ bidding targets much more consistently, even when campaigns are budget constrained. Using the same example, a campaign with a $50 Target CPA that has recently been averaging $25 per lead may gradually begin producing results closer to the $50 target unless the advertiser updates the bidding strategy. Google says this change will make campaign performance more predictable, particularly when advertisers increase or decrease their budgets.
That doesn’t necessarily mean advertising will become more expensive, nor does it mean businesses should panic. Many advertisers already have bidding targets that closely match their actual performance and may notice little or no change. However, companies whose campaigns have quietly been outperforming their targets should review those settings before August 17. If your campaign consistently generates leads for substantially less than your Target CPA, or your return on ad spend is significantly higher than your Target ROAS, it may be time to adjust those targets so Google’s bidding system continues optimizing toward the performance you’ve come to expect.
One easy way to determine whether this update could affect your account is to look for campaigns that are labeled“Limited by Budget” while also using Target CPA or Target ROAS. Those campaigns are the primary focus of Google’s announcement. Businesses that aren’t sure how their campaigns are configured should ask their marketing agency to review their bidding strategies, compare their actual performance against their current targets, and recommend any adjustments before the update rolls out.
At SEARCHEN NETWORKS, we expect this change to have the greatest impact on accounts that have been running successfully for months or years without much attention to their bidding settings. As Google’s advertising platform continues to rely more heavily on automation and artificial intelligence, it’s becoming increasingly important to ensure the goals you give Google’s bidding system accurately reflect the results you want your business to achieve. A simple review today could help avoid unexpected changes in campaign performance after August 17.
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