Google just published its official playbook for the Local Services Ads transition to Performance Max campaigns with pay per lead goals. The first migrations start in August 2026 for home services businesses in the United States. You keep the pay per lead model, but the Local Services Ads dashboard goes away, budgets switch from weekly to daily, and your historical performance reports will not carry over unless you save them first.
⚡ QUICK SUMMARY
Google released new help guides that explain exactly how Google Local Services Ads move into the Google Ads platform as Performance Max campaigns with pay per lead goals . Migration starts August 2026 for plumbing, HVAC, electrical, roofing, and other home services. Back up your reports now. They do not transfer.
What Did Google Just Publish About Local Services Ads?
Google published detailed help guides in early August 2026 that lay out the full plan for moving Local Services Ads into Google Ads. We covered the big announcement when it broke in July. Now we have the official details straight from Google, and they answer the questions service businesses have been asking for weeks.
The short version: your ads keep working the same way. You still pay for valid leads like phone calls and messages, not clicks. Your ads still show only on Google Search and Google Maps, in the same spots as before. Targeting stays keywordless, based on your service categories and service areas. What changes is where you manage everything.
If you missed the original news, start with our first post on the Google LSA to Performance Max migration. This post covers what the new official guides add.
What Is NOT Changing With the Local Services Ads Transition?
Google was clear about this part, and it matters. Four things stay exactly the same:
| 💰 Pay Per Lead Stays You only pay for valid leads like phone calls and messages. Never for clicks. |
📍 Same Ad Placements Your ads keep showing on Google Search and Google Maps in the same positions. |
| 🎯 Keywordless Targeting Targeting still runs on your service categories and service areas. No keyword lists to manage. |
✅ Verified Badge Carries Over Your Google Verified badge and screening status transfer automatically. No reverification of licenses or insurance. |
What Is Changing Inside the Google Ads Platform?
The Local Services Ads dashboard is going away. Once your account migrates, logging in redirects you to Google Ads. Your leads, budgets, targeting, and message replies all live inside the Google Ads platform from that day on.
Here is the change that stings: your historical performance reports do not carry over. Past impressions, weekly spend, and ad-level performance reports stay behind in the old current dashboard, and you lose access to it on migration day. Google says to download your reports before you migrate. The good news is your past customer leads DO transfer, including contact details, message history, and older call recordings.
Back up your historical data now. Once your account migrates, your old reports are gone. Google confirms this in its own help guide (Google Ads Help, 2026).
Two more changes from the guides: Better Business Bureau callouts are no longer supported. Google recommends picking at least 6 other structured callouts, like business hours or accepted payment methods. And your core business details now sync one way from your Google Business Profile into Google Ads. Change your business name or address, and Google runs a verification review that takes 24 to 48 hours. Your campaign can pause while that review runs.
When Does the Local Services Ads Transition Happen?
Google will migrate accounts in three phases, not all at once:
1 August 2026: Home services go first
The initial rollout covers select US home and storefront service advertisers: plumbing, HVAC, electrical, appliance repair, house cleaning, lawn care, roofing, pest control, and moving.
2 Late 2026: Broader groups
Service-area businesses without storefronts, plus accounts with custom bidding or booking setups.
3 2027: Everyone else
Non-US accounts and all remaining business categories move to Google Ads.
You get warning before your turn. Your account admin receives an email 14 days before your scheduled migration date, a reminder 7 days later, and banners inside your current dashboard.
How Do Budgets and Bidding Change With Pay Per Lead Goals?
This is the section every owner should read twice. Budget management moves to standard Google Ads rules on transition day:
- Weekly budgets become daily budgets. Google divides your average weekly budget by 7. Daily spend can swing on busy days, but monthly spend is capped at your daily budget times 30.4.
- Manual bidding is gone. Setting a maximum cost per lead is no longer supported in Google Ads.
- Per-vertical Target CPA is gone too. If you ran different target costs for plumbing and HVAC under one account, Google blends them into a single campaign-level target. Want separate bidding rules per service type? You need separate Performance Max campaigns for each vertical.
💡 Pro Tip
In the new setup, the metric Google labels "Conversions" means charged leads, "Cost" is total spend, and "Cost / conv." is your average cost per lead. Watch those three numbers and ignore the rest at first.
What Should Service Businesses Do Before Migration Day?
Based on Google's own guides, here is the prep list for home services owners running Google Local Services Ads today:
1 Download your performance reports this week
Export your historical data from the Local Services Ads dashboard before your migration date. This is the one step you cannot undo later.
2 Clean up your Google Business Profile now
Your Google Business Profile details feed your new campaign setup. Fix your name, address, hours, and phone number before migration so nothing triggers a 24 to 48 hour review pause. Our Google Business Profile guide walks through every field.
3 Know your real cost per lead
With manual bidding going away, you need to know what a lead is worth so you can judge the automated bidding. Pull your numbers now while your old reports still exist.
4 Pick your 6 callouts
BBB callouts are dead. Choose at least 6 structured callouts in the assets tab, like business hours, specialties, or payment methods, so your ad still stands out on Google Search.
5 Plan for a two week ramp
Google says to allow up to two weeks for performance to stabilize after migration. Make sure every lead that does come in gets answered fast. Missed calls hurt double during a slow stretch, and missed phone calls already cost home service businesses more than most owners realize.
How Is This Different From Standard Performance Max Campaigns?
Do not let the name scare you. These are not the Performance Max campaigns you have heard horror stories about. Google built a specialized Performance Max campaign type just for local service businesses, and the differences are big:
- You pay for qualified leads, not clicks. Standard Performance Max charges per click. Pay per lead goals charge only for valid leads.
- Search and Maps only. No YouTube, no Gmail, no Display Network. Your budget stays in local search where buyers are looking for your service type.
- No keywords, headlines, or videos to manage. Setup pulls from your Google Business Profile details automatically.
- The Google Verified badge stays. Eligible businesses keep the trust badge that makes these ads convert.
FAQs: What the Local Services Ads Move to Performance Max Means
Will my leads carry over to Google Ads?
Yes. Customer contact details, message history, and older call recordings all transfer to the new Lead Manager inside Google Ads, per Google's help guide (2026).
Will my performance reports carry over?
No. Past impressions, spend, and ad-level performance reports do not migrate. Download them from your dashboard before your migration date.
Can I create a new pay per lead campaign inside Google Ads?
Not yet. New campaign creation still happens through the Local Services signup flow. Google says direct creation in Google Ads comes later.
How will I know when my account migrates?
Google emails your account admin 14 days before your scheduled migration date, sends a reminder at 7 days, and shows banners in your dashboard. On migration day, your old login redirects to Google Ads.
Do small businesses need an agency for this?
Many small businesses handle the switch fine. But if nobody on your team lives inside Google Ads, the new interface has far more knobs than the old dashboard. That flexibility helps potential clients find you, or it quietly drains budget. If your local SEO and your ads are both fighting for attention you do not have, that is the signal to get help with your Google advertising and marketing systems.
| Is Your Ad Budget Ready for the Switch? We manage Google ads and local search for home service businesses every day. Find out where your marketing dollars are going before Google moves your account.
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Written for contractors, not marketers. What is working in local search and AI right now, in five minutes. No fluff, no spam, unsubscribe anytime.
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