The direct answer
Google Ads runs through several campaign types, each built for a different job. The main ones in 2026 are search, Performance Max, display, shopping, video, demand gen, app, and remarketing. Search captures people actively looking; the rest build awareness, promote products, or bring visitors back.
You do not need all of them. Most businesses start with one type that matches their goal and add others once the first is working. This guide explains what each type does and how to pick the right starting point.
Search campaigns
Search campaigns show text ads on the Google results page when someone searches for your keywords. They reach people at the moment of intent, which is why they tend to convert better than any other type. For a service business or any company whose customers actively search for a solution, this is usually where to begin.
The ad format here is the responsive search ad, where you supply several headlines and descriptions and Google assembles the best combination. We cover that format in detail in responsive search ads.
Performance Max campaigns
Performance Max is Google’s automated, goal-driven campaign. You give it your assets, your budget, and a conversion goal, and its AI places ads across search, display, YouTube, Gmail, Maps, and Discover at once. It trades manual control for reach and automation.
It works well once you have solid conversion tracking and a clear goal, but it gives you less visibility into where spend goes. For a comparison of when to use it over plain search, see Performance Max vs search ads.
Display campaigns
Display campaigns show image ads across millions of websites, apps, and Google properties. Clicks cost less than search, but the audience is browsing rather than searching, so display suits awareness and remarketing more than direct response. Use it to stay visible, not to expect immediate sales.
Shopping campaigns
Shopping campaigns show your products with an image, price, and store name directly in search results. They run off a product feed in Google Merchant Center and are the backbone of paid search for e-commerce. Because the shopper sees the price before clicking, the traffic tends to be well qualified. Our guide on shopping vs search ads covers when each fits.
Video campaigns
Video campaigns run on YouTube in formats like skippable in-stream ads, in-feed ads, and short bumpers. Video is strong for building awareness and demand rather than capturing it. It pays off when you have a message worth watching and want to reach an audience before they start searching.
Demand gen campaigns
Demand gen campaigns, which replaced the old Discovery campaigns, run visual ads across YouTube, Gmail, and Discover to create interest among audiences likely to be receptive. They sit between awareness and conversion, useful for products people buy on inspiration rather than urgent need.
App campaigns
App campaigns drive installs and in-app actions across search, Play, YouTube, and display from a single setup. You supply text, images, and video, and Google optimises the mix. If your goal is app downloads or engagement, this is the dedicated type for it.
Remarketing
Remarketing shows ads to people who already visited your site or used your app. Because these audiences know you, remarketing usually delivers strong returns for a small budget. It pairs well with almost every other type, recovering visitors who did not convert the first time.
How to choose the right type
Match the type to the job:
| Goal | Start with |
|---|---|
| Capture people searching now | Search |
| Sell products online | Shopping or Performance Max |
| Build awareness | Video or display |
| Recover past visitors | Remarketing |
| Drive app installs | App |
| Automate across networks | Performance Max |
Begin with the one type that fits your main goal, give it enough budget and time to gather data, then layer in others as you learn what works. Spreading a small budget across every type at once usually means none performs.
Bringing it together
Each Google Ads campaign type solves a different problem, and the skill is matching the type to your goal rather than running everything. Search for intent, shopping or Performance Max for products, video and demand gen for awareness, remarketing to bring people back.
If you would rather have the structure built and managed for you, see how we run Google Ads management, and read up on the common Google Ads mistakes that waste budget across every campaign type.