Criteria

  • Targeting and exclusion of various criteria are supported by the CampaignCriterionService, AdGroupCriterionService, and CustomerNegativeCriterionService.

  • The CampaignCriterionService allows for campaign-level targeting and bid modifiers for various criteria types.

  • The AdGroupCriterionService enables targeting and exclusion at the ad group level for a range of criteria.

  • Negative targeting at the account level is supported by the CustomerNegativeCriterionService for specific criteria types.

Targeting criteria can be set at three different levels:

Not all criteria types can be set at all levels: some, for example, can be set only at the campaign level.

Additionally, some criteria can only be used for negative targeting, and some can only be used for positive targeting.

The following table describes the allowed usage of all criterion types:

Type Positive? Negative? Available levels Notes
Ad schedule ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
Age range ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
App payment model ✅ ❌
  • Ad group
Audience ✅ ❌
  • Ad group
 Refer to the audience targeting guide for Demand Gen campaigns.
Brand list ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
Carrier ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
Combined audience ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
 See the Help Center article about combined audiences.
Content label ❌ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Customer
Custom affinity ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
 Defined by CustomInterest resources. See the article about custom audiences.
Custom audience ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
 Defined by CustomAudience resources. See the article about custom audiences.
Custom intent ✅ ❌
  • Ad group
 Defined by CustomInterest resources. See the article about custom intent criteria.
Device ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
Extended demographic ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
Gender ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
Income range ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
IP block ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Customer
Keyword ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
 At the campaign level, you can only exclude keywords.
Keyword theme ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
Language ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
Life event ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
Listing group ✅ ❌
  • Ad group
 Tree-based structure for Hotel Ads and Shopping campaigns. See the guide.
Listing scope ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
Local service ID ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
 Represents a service type for Local Services Campaigns.
Location ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
 See the guide about location targeting.
Location group ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
 Target multiple geographic regions using a distance radius. See the guide about location targeting.
Mobile app category ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
  • Customer
Mobile application ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
  • Customer
Mobile device ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
Negative keyword list ❌ ✅
  • Customer
Operating system version ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
Parental status ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
 At the campaign level, only negative targeting is supported.
Placement ❌ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
  • Customer
 Limits on URL length (250 chars) and depth (2 levels). adsenseformobileapps.com not allowed.
Placement list ❌ ✅
  • Customer
 Lets you manage a list of placements to exclude across multiple campaigns.
Proximity ✅ ❌
  • Campaign
 Created using an address or latitude-longitude and a radius. See the guide about location targeting.
Topic ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
User interest ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
 Verify the availabilities are compatible with the campaign type. Some user interest options are only available for specific campaign types.
User list ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
 Use the ID of the user list.
Video lineup ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
Webpage ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
YouTube channel ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
  • Customer
YouTube video ✅ ✅
  • Campaign
  • Ad group
  • Customer
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