neticGoogle removed language targeting from Search campaigns
Now Google decides the language itself, from the query and the ad text. I think that is a problem, and here is why
Six-minute read. Daniel Norets, founder of Picknetic.
Since September 2026 Search campaigns in Google Ads no longer have a campaign-level language setting. Google decides who sees the ad based on the language of the query, the language of the ad and the languages the person uses. You do not need to do anything, the change is already live.
What exactly Google changed
We used to pick a language for the campaign, and Google matched it against the user's language. Now the campaign-level language setting has been removed from Search campaigns. In Performance Max it no longer applies to ads on the Search Network, but it still applies to the other channels. Shopping ads are not affected.
Google says it gives priority to ads in the language of the search query. If the query has no clear language, for example a brand search, it uses the person's preferred language. Google counts as a user language any language the person has set, regularly uses or searches in.
Language is also a wallet
Many countries have people speaking different languages, and often only one of those audiences matters to us. Take the US, where millions of people speak Spanish. If we advertise Spanish lessons, people who already speak Spanish are no use to us. We need people who speak only English. But someone who grew up in the US speaks English, searches in English and speaks perfect Spanish too. They have no use for the lessons, and now the system will keep stumbling over them.
The same goes for Switzerland, with four languages depending on the region. And for Poland, where migrants and locals often search in different languages and have different incomes and needs. Language tells you a lot about who is on the other side, and you may be selling to only one part of the market. That used to be a setting. Now it is Google's call.
How to build a bilingual site so Google does not get confused
Making sure Google never gets confused is impossible. Google is bug upon bug. Remember that its system was one of the first truly huge ones, the advertising side included, so it always glitches. Not as badly as Meta, that is a horror show of its own, but it glitches. Without clear settings it will most likely get confused.
That is why I have always sent each ad to a specific page in a specific language. One ad group leads to the English page, another to the Spanish one. Each language has its own address, such as /en/ and /es/, and the pages are marked as versions of each other. That is how we build landing pages for clients who advertise in more than one language.
How to check which language your ad shows in
The ad always shows in the language you wrote it in. Google does not translate anything. The only question is who it shows the ad to.
The easiest place to look is the search terms report. If an English ad is showing on Spanish queries, you will see it there. The ad preview and diagnosis tool in Google Ads helps check impressions for a specific location. More on how we run Search campaigns on the Google Ads consultant page.
Quick answers
Can I still choose a language for a Google Ads Search campaign?
No. Since September 2026 the campaign-level language setting has been removed from Search campaigns. Google decides the language itself.
How does Google choose the language now?
Ads in the language of the search query get priority. If the query has no clear language, Google uses the person's preferred language.
Does the change affect Shopping campaigns?
No. Shopping ads do not depend on language settings.
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