Google's Performance Max vs Smart Shopping: What you need to know

Why Google Replaced Smart Shopping With Performance Max

Google phased out Smart Shopping campaigns at the end of 2022, and by 2025, Performance Max (PMax) has become the dominant campaign type across the Google Ads ecosystem. This shift wasn't just a rebrand. It marked a fundamental change in how advertisers access inventory, use machine learning, and control campaign structure across Google's platforms.

1. Expansion Across Google’s Entire Network

Smart Shopping was largely confined to Search, Gmail, YouTube, and Display. PMax goes much further. It runs ads across every Google channel, including Search, Maps, Display, YouTube, Gmail, and Discovery. Advertisers can now reach potential customers wherever they are, in a fully automated way.

2. Unified Budgets and Asset Group Flexibility

Smart Shopping campaigns often relied on siloed budgets and limited asset customisation. PMax changes that. It unifies budgets across all channels and allows advertisers to use a wide range of creative formats, such as images, video, headlines, logos, and descriptions, grouped by asset groups that align with campaign goals. This allows for greater creative control without needing to set up multiple campaigns.

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Key Differences Between Performance Max and Smart Shopping

1. Targeting capabilities

Smart Shopping used intent-driven targeting with limited advertiser input. PMax offers significantly more control. Advertisers can provide audience signals based on demographics, behaviours, interests, and custom segments. While Google's automation still plays the dominant role, these inputs help influence who sees your ads and when.

This shift also introduces broader geo-targeting capabilities, giving marketers more precision over where campaigns are shown and is critical for eCommerce brands, local businesses, and regulated industries alike.

2. Supported ad formats and creative flexibility

Smart Shopping ads were heavily product-based. They relied on merchant feed data, with ads showing images, titles, prices, and basic descriptions. There was little room for creative variation.

PMax campaigns support a broader range of formats: responsive display ads, video ads, and dynamic search-style formats. This enables marketers to adapt creative to suit audience preferences, placement environments, and campaign stages. It's not just about showing products; it's about storytelling, branding, and conversion all in one place.

3. Optimisation and machine learning

Both campaign types rely on automation, but PMax brings more advanced machine learning into the equation. Real-time signals are used to optimise bidding, placements, and creative delivery across all inventory types.

PMax continuously learns and adapts based on performance data, rather than relying on historical models. It prioritises conversions, ROAS, or other performance goals based on your defined objectives, and it does so without manual adjustments.

The trade-off? Less visibility into how decisions are made. But the upside is clear: performance gains, especially at scale, tend to be faster and more consistent.

4. Reporting and insights

Smart Shopping offered more granular control and insights, allowing advertisers to track product-level performance, placements, conversion value, and return on ad spend (ROAS).

PMax currently offers limited transparency, with gaps in channel-level reporting that make it harder to understand the user journey and conversion path of ad placements. While Google’s Insights page is improving, many marketers still struggle to diagnose performance drivers or extract actionable learnings.

These reporting gaps can also mask issues such as invalid traffic or bot-driven engagement. As a result, many brands running PMax campaigns use tools like TrafficGuard for advanced click fraud protection and ad verification.

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Final Thoughts: Which Is Right for You?

Performance Max for broader reach and automation

If you’re looking to scale campaigns across the entire Google ecosystem with minimal hands-on management, PMax is the way forward. It provides strong automation, wide reach, and creative flexibility, making it ideal for advertisers with robust creative assets and clear performance goals.

However, if visibility and control over performance data are essential to your strategy, you’ll need to layer PMax with click fraud prevention software and external analytics to avoid blind spots.

Smart Shopping for simpler campaigns (now sunset)

Smart Shopping was simpler and easier to manage, especially for advertisers focused solely on product-based search and display. But it’s no longer available. The transition to PMax is not optional. It is the new standard.

The key now is learning how to leverage PMax effectively while mitigating its limitations. Tools like TrafficGuard can help by exposing invalid clicks, verifying campaign performance, and improving optimisation inputs with clean data.

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FAQ & Key Takeaways

1. What changed when Google moved to Performance Max?
   PMax replaces Smart Shopping by expanding reach across all Google channels, offering creative flexibility and deeper machine learning-driven optimisation.
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2. What are the limitations of Performance Max reporting?
   PMax lacks transparency in asset-level and channel-level performance data. It makes external tools essential for tracking click fraud, bot activity, and media efficiency.
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3. How can I prevent click fraud in PMax campaigns?
   Use dedicated click fraud prevention software like TrafficGuard to detect bots, filter invalid clicks, and improve your campaign efficiency without relying solely on Google’s limited reporting.

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