Google is moving Local Services Ads into the Google Ads interface, and the change starts in August 2026 with a small group of U.S. advertisers before rolling out through 2027. Your ads will run as Performance Max campaigns built for pay-per-lead goals, but the important stuff stays the same: same top placement on Search and Maps, and you still pay for valid leads instead of clicks. What changes is how you manage the account. Bidding, budgets, and reporting all shift, and the old Local Services Ads dashboard goes away. The single most important thing to do right now is download your historical reports, because they will not transfer over. If you want help getting ready, that is what our team handles every day.
What Google Is Actually Changing
For years, Local Services Ads lived in their own dashboard, separate from the rest of Google Ads. That is ending. Google is bringing Local Services Ads into the main Google Ads platform, where you will manage your campaigns and respond to leads in one place.
The new setup runs your Local Services Ads as Performance Max campaigns with a pay-per-lead goal. The name sounds technical, but do not let it throw you. These campaigns keep the same reach Local Services Ads have always had. They stay keywordless, and they still show up only on Google Search and Maps. You are not suddenly buying display ads or YouTube spots.
The billing model does not change either. You still pay for valid leads, which means calls, messages, and bookings, not clicks. So the core promise of Local Services Ads for contractors stays intact. What moves is the workspace you log into and the controls you use to run things.
Google starts the migration in August 2026 with a limited group of U.S. advertisers. The first wave includes home services along with a few other categories like pet care, wellness, and education. More U.S. accounts follow later in 2026, and accounts outside the U.S. plus the remaining categories move in 2027. You do not pick your date. Google moves you when your turn comes up.
What Stays the Same
It helps to be clear about what you are not losing, because the headline makes this sound bigger than it is for day-to-day lead flow.
You keep top placement above regular search ads. You keep the pay-per-lead model. You keep the Google Guaranteed badge and the trust that comes with it. Your reviews, hours, and service areas still show in the ad. Your lead history comes with you. If Local Services Ads have been booking jobs for you, they will keep booking jobs after the move.
What Changes in How You Manage Campaigns
This is where you need to pay attention, because the workflow you are used to is getting reworked. Here is what moves once your account migrates to Google Ads.
Budgets switch from a weekly average to a daily average. It is the same money, just measured differently, so make sure your new daily number matches what you actually want to spend.
Manual bidding goes away. If you were setting a maximum cost per lead by hand, you will not be able to do that anymore. Google takes over the bidding.
Category-level Target CPA gets deprecated. Today you can set different lead-cost targets for different services. After the move, Google calculates one campaign-level Target CPA across everything in that campaign. This matters most if you advertise more than one service in a single campaign.
Business details sync from Google Business Profile. Your business name, physical address, and standard hours now pull straight from your Google Business Profile instead of being managed separately.
The Local Services Ads inbox is replaced by Lead Manager inside Google Ads. Same job, new tool. You will answer leads there.
BBB callouts are no longer supported. Google recommends adding at least six other callouts to replace them.
Historical performance reports do not transfer. Your lead history moves, but your old performance reports stay behind in a dashboard you will lose access to.
The Target CPA Change Is the One to Think About
Say you run plumbing and HVAC leads through one Local Services Ads campaign. Right now you can tell Google to aim for a different cost per lead on each. After the migration, Google sets one target that covers both.
That is fine for some contractors and a problem for others. If your plumbing leads and your HVAC leads cost about the same and close at about the same rate, one target works. If they are very different, a single target can push you to overpay for one service and underinvest in the other.
You do have an option. You can split those services into separate campaigns to get back that level of control. But there is a trade-off. Each separate campaign collects less lead data on its own, and Google’s automated bidding works better with more data. If you are a lower-volume contractor, keeping everything in one campaign may actually give Google stronger signals and better results. Before you split anything, look at each service’s lead volume, cost per lead, close rate, and the real value of the customer. Make the call on numbers, not habit.
Before Your Account Migrates: Download Your Reports
Account admins get a notice 14 days before the migration, then a reminder about seven days later, and a confirmation once it is done. Do not wait for the last reminder.
The biggest thing to handle before your date is your historical reports. They will not carry over to Google Ads. If you need year-over-year comparisons, records for a client, or your own performance history, download those reports while you still have access to the old dashboard. Once your account moves, that dashboard is gone.
If you manage several accounts, start backing them up now, before the first migration notices even show up. It is a lot easier to do this on your own schedule than to scramble during a 14-day window.
After Your Account Migrates: Check Your Settings
Google moves your campaign settings automatically, but automatic does not mean perfect. Once you are in Google Ads, go through and confirm each of these lines up with what you want:
- Daily budget
- Campaign-level Target CPA
- Service categories and locations
- Ad schedule
- Lead-routing phone number
- Photos and callouts
One thing to watch: because your business name, address, and hours now sync from Google Business Profile, a big change to your name or address can trigger a 24-to-48-hour verification review that temporarily pauses your campaign. Google also says some ads may start running right away, but you should give it up to two weeks for everything to settle and for performance to stabilize. Do not panic over the first few days of numbers.
Do You Handle This Yourself or Get Help?
If you run your own Local Services Ads and you are comfortable in Google Ads, you can work through this. Download your reports, wait for your migration notice, then check every setting once the move is done. The steps above cover the important parts.
If your plate is already full running the business, this is the kind of thing that is easy to put off until a campaign pauses and the phone goes quiet. That is where an agency earns its keep. Our team manages Local Service Ads for contractors day in and day out, including verification, setup, lead disputes, and the reporting that shows what your money is actually doing. We are already preparing accounts for this migration so nothing slips.
Local Services Ads also work best when they are part of a bigger plan. If you want to see how LSA fits with Google Ads, SEO, and the rest, take a look at our full paid ads services for contractors.
FAQs
When are Local Services Ads moving into Google Ads?
Google begins the migration in August 2026 with a small group of U.S. advertisers. More U.S. accounts move later in 2026, and non-U.S. accounts plus the remaining business categories follow in 2027. You cannot choose your date. Google moves your account when your turn comes.
Will I still pay per lead instead of per click?
Yes. The pay-per-lead model stays the same. You still pay for valid leads such as calls, messages, and bookings, not for clicks. Even though the new campaigns are called Performance Max, they keep the Local Services Ads billing model.
Do I lose the Google Guaranteed badge?
No. The Google Guaranteed badge stays, along with your reviews, hours, and service areas showing in the ad. Your top placement on Search and Maps also stays the same.
What is the biggest thing I need to do before migration?
Download your historical performance reports. They do not transfer to Google Ads, and you lose access to the old Local Services Ads dashboard after the move. Your lead history transfers, but your performance reports do not, so back them up first.
What happens to my separate Target CPA for different services?
Category-level Target CPA is going away. Google will calculate one campaign-level Target CPA across all services in a campaign. If you need different targets for different services, you can split them into separate campaigns, but each campaign will then have less lead data for Google’s bidding to work with.
Will my ads keep running during the migration?
Some ads may keep running right away, but you should allow up to two weeks for the migration to finish and performance to stabilize. A major change to your business name or address can trigger a 24-to-48-hour verification review that temporarily pauses your campaign, so avoid big profile edits around your migration date.
Is manual bidding still an option?
No. Manual bidding, including setting a maximum cost per lead by hand, is no longer supported after the move. Google handles the bidding based on your campaign-level Target CPA and budget.
