Key points
- Channel Prioritization and Budget Allocation roll out globally over the coming months across Search, Shopping, Performance Max and Demand Gen; API support is available at launch.
- Advertisers tag channels High or Low priority and cap Low-priority spend as a share of daily budget, down to 0%; Google treats caps as best-effort.
- Every channel defaults to High priority. In February 2027 Google retires the current Search-over-Display allocation, so unchanged accounts may see spend shift.
- Google suggests Display set to Low priority with a 50% allocation to keep today's behavior; a one-click migration will be offered.
Why it matters for marketers: Marketers get a way to test Search Partners or Display with a spending ceiling, and Search accounts with Display on must review settings before February 2027 to avoid shifts.
Google Ads is introducing Channel Prioritization and Budget Allocation, two controls that let advertisers decide where budget goes first and how much can flow to lower-priority inventory. According to Search Engine Journal, which saw an early demo, the features will reach Search, Shopping, Performance Max and Demand Gen campaigns globally over the coming months.
Advertisers mark channels as High or Low priority, then can set a percentage cap on Low-priority spend, including 0% to block a channel or grouping. Google says it will try to honor the caps on a best-effort basis, so they are not guaranteed hard limits. In Performance Max and Demand Gen, Google-owned channels such as Search, YouTube, Discover, Gmail and Maps are grouped, so they can't be ranked individually. Settings can be applied at the account level or overridden per campaign.
The practical upside is lower-risk testing. Teams wary of Search Partners or the Display Network because of traffic quality can now give them a small slice of budget instead of excluding them. The caution: for campaigns already hitting Target CPA or Target ROAS goals, restricting inventory could narrow what bidding has to work with.
The date to note is February 2027, when Google retires its current Display spending allocation for Search campaigns. Because all channels default to High priority, accounts that do nothing could see spend move between networks. Google recommends Display at Low priority with a 50% allocation to match current behavior, and a one-click migration will be available.
Also watch for expanded Search channel reporting expected in the first quarter of 2027, account-level budget allocation insights, and campaign experiments, which have no date yet. Limited Demand Gen testing is expected to start in November.
Sources
This brief is our own summary. Read the full reporting at the source.
