Short answer: Smart Bidding is the group of Google Ads bid strategies that use Google AI to set a bid for conversions or conversion value in every auction. The four are Maximize conversions, Target CPA, Maximize conversion value and Target ROAS, and all of them need conversion tracking.
The four strategies
| Strategy | What you set | What Google Ads aims for |
|---|---|---|
| Maximize conversions | Your budget | The most conversions while spending it |
| Target CPA | An average cost per conversion | As many conversions as possible at that average |
| Maximize conversion value | Your budget | The most conversion value from it |
| Target ROAS | A return on ad spend | Conversion value per cost equal to that target |
From Google Ads Help, “About Smart Bidding” and the page of each strategy, read November 3, 2026.
Google is relabeling two of them from June 2026: “Maximize conversions with a Target CPA” becomes Target CPA, and “Maximize conversion value with a Target ROAS” becomes Target ROAS. Google says the bidding behind them stays exactly the same.
Enhanced CPC is no longer available for Search and Display campaigns since the week of March 31, 2025. Campaigns that weren’t moved to another strategy now effectively run on Manual CPC.
What Smart Bidding weighs in each auction
At auction time, Google Ads can adjust the bid for the device, the location down to the city, the time of day and the day of the week. It can also weigh the person’s language settings and the text of the search, not only the keyword that matched.
It learns from the data of all your campaigns, so even a new campaign without data of its own may perform better. Google adds that broad match keywords pair particularly well with Smart Bidding, since the system bids up or down on each search.
If you widen your keywords to broad match, check the searches that trigger your ads and block the ones that don’t fit. Our guide to negative keywords shows how.
How to move a campaign to Smart Bidding
- Set up conversion tracking for the actions that bring you business.
- In each conversion action, include in “Conversions” only the ones you want to bid for.
- Pick the strategy in the table that matches your goal.
- For Target CPA, start from the target Google recommends from your last 30 days.
- Make sure you’re comfortable with a day that spends up to twice your average daily budget.
- Leave bid limits off, since Google doesn’t recommend them with Target CPA.
- Click Save as experiment to compare the new strategy with your current one.
Judge the result over a month or longer with at least 30 conversions, or 50 for Target ROAS, as Google recommends. Our guide to Google Ads conversion tracking covers the first step.
What our own account counts
At 4:27 AM on November 3 we read the conversion actions of our own Google Ads account through the Google Ads API. Four website actions are switched on: form leads, call bookings, chat leads and clicks to call, message on WhatsApp or email.
Only form leads and call bookings count in the Conversions column. Those two are what a Smart Bidding strategy on our account would bid for, while chat leads and contact clicks are recorded without steering bids.
Eight more actions imported from Google Analytics are hidden and don’t count in that column either.
Before you switch it on
- Conversion tracking records real actions on your site.
- You chose one campaign or a shared portfolio strategy for several.
- The strategy matches your goal: volume, cost or value.
- Your target starts from your own last 30 days.
- Your budget can take a day at twice the daily average.
- You’ll judge the result after 30 conversions, or 50 for Target ROAS.
RememberSmart Bidding learns only from the conversions you count. Track the actions that bring you business, start from your own numbers and give the strategy a month and enough conversions before you judge it.
If you want us to set up your bidding and conversions, see our Google Ads service.
Quick answers about Smart Bidding
Can I use Smart Bidding without conversion history?
Yes. Google says you can turn it on without prior data, and Target CPA can start with no conversion history. It still recommends a minimum of conversions for each strategy, so check the page for the one you pick.
Maximize conversions or Target CPA: what’s the difference?
Maximize conversions tries to get the most conversions while spending your whole budget. Target CPA aims at the average cost per conversion you set, and Google points to it when you have a specific return on investment goal.
Is it normal for my cost per conversion to go above the target?
Yes, for single conversions. Google says some will cost more than the target and some less, and it aims to keep the average equal to it. Changes to your site or ads and more competition in the auctions can still move the result.
Do bid adjustments still work with Smart Bidding?
With Maximize conversions, existing bid adjustments aren’t used. The only exception is a device adjustment of -100%, which stops your ads on that device. With Target CPA, a device adjustment changes the target for that device instead of the bid itself.
Should I use broad match with Smart Bidding?
Google says broad match keywords pair particularly well with all four strategies, because the system bids on each search by how likely it is to convert. It sees no need to split keywords by match type.
Sources
Read on November 3, 2026. Google Ads Help: About Smart Bidding, About Target CPA bidding, About Target ROAS bidding and About automated bidding. Our own case: the conversion actions of our Google Ads account, on November 3, 2026.