Google is moving Local Services Ads into Google Ads as Performance Max campaigns with pay-per-lead goals. Existing advertisers migrate automatically in phases: select U.S. home and storefront advertisers from August 2026, broader groups in late 2026, and non-U.S. accounts and remaining categories in 2027. You still pay per valid lead, but budgets, bidding and reports change.
By Donnie Strompf. Updated October 2026. Every date and setting outside the press table comes from Google’s own help pages, read on October 15, 2026.
Key takeaways
- Google says existing Local Services Ads campaigns migrate automatically, so there is no campaign to rebuild.
- Performance reports do not carry over. Save them before your account moves.
- Weekly budgets become average daily budgets, and manual bidding and vertical-level Target CPA end.
- The account administrator gets an email 14 days before the move, so the address on file matters.
- New pay-per-lead campaigns cannot yet be created inside Google Ads. Google points new advertisers to g.co/localservices.
What is Google changing about Local Services Ads?
Google’s help page, Local Services Ads transition to Performance Max campaigns with pay-per-lead goals, says Local Services Ads (LSA) are moving to a self-service experience inside Google Ads while keeping the pay-per-lead model. The page carries no publication date. Here is what it says will stay the same and what will change.
| Area | Status | What Google’s page says |
|---|---|---|
| Billing | Stays | You pay for valid leads such as calls and messages, not clicks. |
| Placement | Stays | Ads keep appearing on Google Search and Google Maps. |
| Targeting | Stays | Campaigns stay keywordless and target by service category and area. |
| Where you manage it | Changes | Budgets and targeting move into Google Ads, and customers are answered there. |
| Budget | Changes | The weekly budget becomes an average daily budget. |
| Bidding | Changes | Manual bidding and vertical-level Target CPA are not supported. |
| Reports | Changes | LSA performance reports do not transition. |
| Business details | Changes | Core details sync one way from the Business Profile. |
| Callouts | Changes | BBB callouts are no longer supported. |
When will my account move?
Google’s page gives three stages and no date for any single account.
| Stage | When | Who, according to Google |
|---|---|---|
| First | August 2026 | Select U.S. home and storefront service advertisers. |
| Second | Late 2026 | Broader advertiser groups. |
| Third | 2027 | Non-U.S. accounts and all remaining categories. |
Google’s supported verticals page lists the categories in each stage. The first stage includes home services, pet care and other groups, with categories such as plumber and personal trainer. The second names service-area businesses without storefronts, professional services, and accounts with custom bidding or booking setups. The third names healthcare services and advanced-verification categories such as locksmiths.
The account administrator receives an email 14 days before the move, plus dashboard banners and a final reminder 7 days after the first email. A confirmation email follows when migration finishes. Google says many ads start running right away and asks you to allow up to two weeks for the process to complete. Its migration support line is +1-844-205-0011, Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM EST.
What happens to my budget and bidding?
On the day your account moves, Google divides your historical average weekly budget by 7 to set the daily average budget, and caps monthly spend at that daily average multiplied by 30.4. Under that formula, a $700 weekly budget becomes $100 a day and a monthly cap of $3,040.
Manual bidding is not supported in Google Ads, which includes maximum cost-per-lead settings. Vertical-level Target CPA is also unsupported. Google calculates one campaign-level Target CPA for every vertical, and says that keeping separate rules means setting up separate campaigns per vertical.
What carries over and what do I lose?
| Carries over (Google Ads Help) | Does not carry over |
|---|---|
| Locations, service types, categories, budget limits, ad schedule and photos | LSA performance reports |
| Completed verification and the Google Verified badge | Manual bidding, including maximum cost per lead |
| Past lead history, message history and older call recordings, now on the Leads page | Vertical-level Target CPA |
| Insurance and license reverification is no longer required | BBB callouts |
Google adds that new business checks appear as notifications in Google Ads, and that the phone number that receives leads can now be edited instantly. After you migrate, logging into the old LSA dashboard sends you to the Google Ads campaign overview, so old reports are no longer reachable there.
What should I do before my account moves?
You can do all six of these before Google emails you.
- Save your reports. Google tells advertisers who need reports immediately to take screenshots before migrating, and says a download page for historical reports will be available soon.
- Check who gets the notices. The 14-day email goes to the account administrator. Google also says at least one user must stay opted in to lead email notifications under Admin, then Notifications.
- Hold off on name and address edits. A significant change to the business name or address triggers a verification review that typically takes 24 to 48 hours, and the campaign may pause. Core details sync from the Business Profile, so make any needed changes there and leave a gap on either side of the move. Our Business Profile management page covers that side.
- Decide how you want Target CPA split. If you sell in several verticals and want separate rules for each, Google says to set up separate campaigns.
- Line up six callouts. Google says to select at least six other structured callouts to replace BBB callouts, such as business hours or payment methods.
- Decide who answers. Phone calls are mandatory for pay-per-lead goals, according to Google’s best-practices page, which recommends opting into message or booking leads only if you can respond within 24 hours.
What should I check in the first two weeks?
Google asks you to review your settings on first login. Budgets and bidding targets sit under Campaigns, then Settings. Leads sit under Goals, then Conversions, then Leads, which replaces the old inbox. Google names Conversions (leads charged), Cost and Cost per conversion as the key metrics.
Google’s page on how leads work says the Leads page shows a Charge Status column with four values: Charged, Not charged, In review and Credited. It adds that Google reviews lead quality over a 30-day period and credits poor-quality or invalid leads automatically, except in European Economic Area countries. Check Google’s credits against your own call records.
Can I start a new Local Services campaign inside Google Ads yet?
Not through the Google Ads interface. Google’s transition page says you cannot create new campaigns with pay-per-lead goals directly in Google Ads at this time and points new campaigns and local accounts to g.co/localservices. Google’s pay-per-lead eligibility page says the business must be located and operate in the United States, have at least one verified Business Profile, and sit in an eligible storefront or home services category.
That page also dates features still to come: bookings as a conversion type from October 2026, professional services in late 2026, and advanced-verification categories such as locksmiths in 2027.
For agencies and tool vendors, Google’s Local Services campaigns API page (last updated October 14, 2026) says that starting in Google Ads API v26 you can create new Local Services Performance Max campaigns through the API. The release notes date v26 October 14, 2026.
Which statements come from Google and which are press reports?
| Claim | Where it comes from | How to treat it |
|---|---|---|
| Three stages: August 2026, late 2026, 2027 | Google Ads Help | Confirmed by Google |
| Existing campaigns migrate automatically | Google Ads Help | Confirmed by Google |
| Budget divided by 7, monthly cap of daily budget times 30.4 | Google Ads Help | Confirmed by Google |
| Rollout starts in early August with a small U.S. group | Search Engine Land, July 20, 2026 | Press report. Google’s vertical list is consistent with it. |
| Google is continuing to invest in LSA and is moving management gradually through 2027 | Search Engine Land, August 24, 2026, citing Google | Press report of a Google statement. No help page read for this article says it. |
| More specific categories, including restaurants | Search Engine Land, August 24, 2026 | Press report. Google’s vertical list names auto and beauty in the first stage but not restaurants. |
| Notice 14 days ahead, then a reminder, then a confirmation | Search Engine Journal, July 20, 2026 | Press report that matches Google’s page |
| A given account has already moved, or performance changed afterward | None | Unconfirmed. No Google page reports results. |
Google’s pages do not say how the campaign-level Target CPA is calculated, so nothing here predicts what your cost per lead will be after the move.
What does this mean for cost and for the agency running your account?
Google bills the leads. An agency charges for management on top. Our published ranges, reviewed October 2026, are $200 to $1,000 a month for Local Services Ads management plus Google’s per-lead charge, and $600 to $1,000 a month for Google Ads management plus ad spend. The pricing page lists both. The cost side has its own guide: How much Local Services Ads cost.
Bidding and reporting work differently after the move, so ask your agency:
- Who receives the 14-day notice, and have the reports been saved?
- Is the account split into campaigns by vertical, and why?
- How will cost per lead be compared before and after the move, given that reports do not transfer?
For how a pay-per-lead campaign compares with a keyword campaign, see Local Services Ads vs Google Ads. The SEO fundamentals cover the organic side of local visibility.
FAQ
Do I have to rebuild my Local Services Ads campaign in Google Ads?
No action is needed to start the move, according to Google, because it migrates existing campaigns for you. The work is on your side: save reports, review settings at first login and watch results for about two weeks. If an agency runs your account, ask what it plans to check.
Will I keep my Google Verified badge?
Yes, if your verification is complete. Google says your verified status and badge carry over automatically, so you do not resubmit documents. Look for the badge in Google Ads after the move. If it is missing, call the migration support line Google lists instead of starting a new application.
What happens to my old leads and call recordings?
Lead records are kept. Google says contact details, message threads and older call recordings stay available on the Leads page. If your sales team relies on them for follow-up or disputes, note what you need first. Performance summaries are different: screenshot those, because reports are not part of the move.
How will I know when my account is moving?
Watch the inbox of whoever holds the administrator role. Google addresses its notices to that person, so a former employee or an unread shared mailbox can mean a missed warning. Ask who holds the role and have them forward the notice to whoever manages your ads. That email is your cue to save reports.
Can I still set a maximum cost per lead?
No. The cap went with manual bidding, and the budget now does that job. Its best-practices page makes Maximize conversions the default and suggests a Target CPA only for campaigns with more than 15 leads a month, so set a budget you can afford to spend in full.
Will my cost per lead change after the migration?
Google’s pages describe changes to budgets and bidding but state nothing about lead prices after the move. They tell you to allow up to two weeks for performance to settle. Track cost per conversion in Google Ads against your own pre-move figures, and flag large swings to the person managing your account.
Related reading
- Google Ads Optimization Tips for Small Businesses in 2026
- How to set up Google Ads conversion tracking for a service business
- How to get Google Verified on Local Services Ads: requirements and timing
Next step
Questions about which stage your category falls into, or what to save before the notice email arrives? Book a call with Donnie Strompf, or start with the free audit, which shows where your business appears in AI answers today.
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