Guides
Google Display ad creative in 2026: specs, sizes and the move to Demand Gen
Display is the oldest paid format on the web and the one with the most fixed shapes, and in May 2026 Google changed how it is bought. Standalone Display campaigns are moving into Demand Gen by 2027. The banner slots stay. What changes is the creative: loose images and headlines that Google assembles into layouts, with fixed-size banners as a second layer.
What the Demand Gen move changes for creative
Google announced the change on 26 May 2026. A migration tool reached accounts in June, new standalone Display campaigns close to creation after that, and whatever is left moves automatically, all by 2027. Google's own figures from August 2025 put the average return 9.5 percent higher for advertisers who added Display inventory to Demand Gen campaigns, and Display advertisers can still serve ads only on the Display Network from inside Demand Gen.
For creative, the shift is from a finished banner to a kit of parts. A Demand Gen image ad takes up to 20 images, five headlines, five descriptions, a business name and a logo, and Google builds the ad to fit the slot. Uploaded fixed-size banners survive inside Demand Gen as still images on the Display Network only. Uploaded HTML5 ads and third-party served creative are not supported at the start, and Google has said some of them will follow in late 2026.
- Brief the asset set first and treat fixed banners as an export from it.
- Keep anything that depends on HTML5 animation in a standalone campaign for now, or rebuild it as stills.
- Headlines are 30 characters in responsive display ads and 40 in Demand Gen, so check which type an ad is for.
The image set: four shapes and a logo
Demand Gen takes four image shapes: square at 1200x1200, horizontal 1.91:1 at 1200x628, vertical 4:5 at 960x1200, and 9:16 at 1080x1920 for YouTube Shorts. Minimums run from 300x300 for the square to 600x1067 for the 9:16, files are JPG or PNG up to 5 MB, and Google asks for three images in each orientation.
Square and horizontal are the pair that matters. Google resizes assets to fit thousands of layouts, so the subject has to sit in the middle where every crop keeps it. The logo is a 1:1 file of at least 144x144 pixels under 150 KB, and Gmail shows it inside a circle that removes about 21 percent of a square, so the mark belongs in the centre with space around it. Headlines run to 40 characters and descriptions to 90.
- Build square and horizontal first, then the verticals if Discover and Shorts matter to you.
- Supply the logo as a plain mark on a flat background that still reads inside a circle.
- Write headlines to 40 characters and check which ones survive a cut to 30.
Google wants the image clean
On Meta, TikTok and Pinterest the headline usually lives on the image. Google's best practice guide for responsive display ads says the opposite: avoid overlaid text, because it clashes with the headline assets and can be unreadable in smaller ad sizes. Text that belongs to the scene, like a photographed shop sign, is fine. The guide also rules out an overlaid logo, which repeats in some layouts, and drawn play, download or close buttons, which imply functionality the ad does not have.
Use single images rather than collages, keep blank space under 80 percent of the frame, and make the product the focus. Google prefers real physical settings with natural shadows over digital composite backgrounds, including all-white ones, and wants square edges so the image can bleed to the full aspect ratio. The layout adds the headline, logo and call to action button around your image, so a second headline baked into the pixels doubles up and shrinks to a smudge at 320x50.
- Keep words off asset images and put the message in the headline fields.
- One subject per image, centred, in a real setting with real light.
- No logo, button or badge on the photo, and no border or rounded corners.
The fixed sizes that still carry the inventory
Uploaded image ads still have three homes: standalone Display campaigns until they migrate, the uploaded option inside Demand Gen, and direct or programmatic buys outside Google Ads. Google's spec lists 20 standard sizes across square and rectangle, skyscraper, leaderboard and mobile groups, all capped at 150 KB in GIF, JPG or PNG.
The publisher side of the same network says which sizes to build. Google's AdSense size guide names five top performers: the 300x250 medium rectangle, which does well inside text and at the end of articles, the 336x280 large rectangle, the 728x90 leaderboard above main content, the 300x600 half page, and the 320x100 large mobile banner. It also gives the 160x600 wide skyscraper more advertiser inventory than other sidebar units.
- Core set: 300x250, 336x280, 728x90, 300x600, 160x600, 320x50 and 320x100.
- Every file under 150 KB, checked after export rather than in the design tool.
- Skip 468x60, 120x600 and the other small sizes unless a publisher asks, since Google says they tend to underperform.
Designing for a 300x250
A medium rectangle on a laptop screen is about the size of a business card, and it has to do the whole job itself, with no headline field to lean on. That means one subject, one line of copy in the largest type the space allows, usually three to six words, and one button.
Under the 150 KB cap, a flat colour field and one photo compress well; gradients, grain and fine texture do not. Under the Media Rating Council standard an ad counts as viewed when half its pixels are on screen for one continuous second, and Google's own 2014 study found 56.1 percent of impressions on its display platforms were never viewable. The message has to land in a second with half the ad possibly out of frame, which puts the headline and the subject in the central band rather than in the corners.
- One subject, three to six words, one button, brand mark small in a corner.
- Headline in the middle band, where it still shows when half the banner is off screen.
- Approve at 100 percent in a browser, since a layout that reads at 400 percent zoom can be illegible in place.
Producing the set without a week of layout work
Three images in four shapes is 12 assets for one Demand Gen ad, Google asks for three to four ads per ad group, and the fixed banners add seven or more files per concept. Google's Demand Gen refresh guidance is then to change a small portion of assets at a time, add new ones before removing old ones, and give each asset at least 14 days before judging it.
The asset images are the part that scales. Write a short brief, pick one of the eight built-in styles in Aduarius so every image in the set shares a look, and generate the square or horizontal creative clean, with no text on it. Reformat the one you like into the other ratio, and for the fixed banners, where the image has to carry its own words, place the headline on the creative before export, then crop the banner sizes in your export tool. Google scores the result as ad strength from Poor to Excellent and asset labels of Low, Good and Best, the same system as Performance Max.
- Brief one visual system for the whole set so assembled layouts read as one brand.
- Rotate a few assets every couple of weeks and never swap the whole set at once.
- Read asset labels after the 14 day ramp, not on day three.
Frequently asked questions
What size should a Google Display ad be in 2026?
For asset-based ads, a 1200x1200 square and a 1200x628 horizontal are the minimum pair. For uploaded banners, start with 300x250, 336x280, 728x90, 300x600 and 320x50.
Are Google Display ads going away?
No. The standalone campaign type is retiring in favour of Demand Gen, with a migration tool from June 2026 and the transition expected to complete by 2027. The inventory stays, and Google says advertisers can still serve ads exclusively on the Display Network.
Should I put text on Google Display ad images?
Not on image assets for responsive display or Demand Gen ads, where Google says overlaid text clashes with the headline assets and becomes unreadable at small sizes. Uploaded fixed-size banners are the exception, because nothing else in that slot carries the message.
What is the file size limit for Google Display ads?
Uploaded image ads are capped at 150 KB at every size. Image assets for responsive display and Demand Gen ads can be 5 MB each, logos 150 KB, and an HTML5 zip 600 KB.