Google is changing how Target CPA and Target ROAS work — here's how to prepare

From August 17, 2026, Google is changing how target-based bidding strategies work. What does it mean for budget-constrained campaigns, and what should you review now?

Google has announced that from August 17, 2026 it is changing how target-based bidding strategies work. The change primarily affects campaigns that hit their budget cap while using Target CPA or Target ROAS bidding.

What is changing?

Google's goal is for the system to align more consistently with the targets advertisers set, even when the campaign budget is limiting performance.

As part of this, a new Bid Target Adjustment Tool will appear, which helps you review and, if needed, adjust your CPA or ROAS targets before the new behavior takes effect.

Why does it matter?

Many campaigns deliver better results than their set target for long stretches of time. For example, a campaign with a 10,000 HUF target CPA might actually be running at a 5,000 HUF CPA.

Under the new behavior, however, Google will put more weight on the campaign actually meeting the target you set. That can mean a campaign previously running at an effective 5,000 HUF CPA will drift closer to the 10,000 HUF target over time. That's clearly unfavorable if the campaign manager doesn't review the target value in time.

What should you do?

If you use Target CPA or Target ROAS bidding, it's worth reviewing your campaigns before the August change. Pay special attention to campaigns that are:

• budget-constrained
• consistently outperforming their CPA or ROAS targets
• running on unchanged target values for a long time

Google is expected to notify the ad accounts that may be affected by the change.

Summary

While the change may seem small at first, in practice it can have a meaningful impact on some campaigns' performance. So it's worth checking your target values before rollout and adjusting them where needed.

My personal take

For now, I'm curious to see how much real-world impact this change will have. What's certain is that this is yet another move that further strengthens the role of Google's automated bidding strategies.

What I'll find particularly interesting is what happens to campaigns running in a portfolio bidding strategy with tCPA or tROAS targets and a CPC cap. With these setups you've always had to find a balance between automation and cost control without choking the campaigns.

This article is based on information available as of June 22, 2026. If Google shares more details or practical experience accumulates, I'll update the post.

Sources

• Search Engine Land: Google Ads updates target-based bidding for budget-limited campaigns — https://searchengineland.com/google-ads-updates-target-based-bidding-for-budget-limited-campaigns-480752
• Google Ads Help: https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/17061251