A feed-only Performance Max campaign runs on your Merchant Center feed and a listing group, with no text, image or video assets added. In our ecommerce accounts it still launches the simple way: skip the assets, select the listing group, and publish. What has changed is that it is no longer guaranteed to spend only on Shopping, so we check where the money went. It is for ecommerce stores only, because it needs a product feed.
This guide covers what we do, what Google documents, which claims from other guides did not match what we see, and how to check your own campaign in a few minutes. It comes from our work on ecommerce accounts and from Google’s documentation. It is not a controlled test, and we say where the evidence is thin.
What is a feed-only Performance Max campaign?
It is a Performance Max campaign where the only input you supply is the product feed. Google’s developer documentation for retail Performance Max says that linking Merchant Center allows assets to be generated automatically, but that reach and performance will be limited. It also says that adding an asset group enables the Shopping and dynamic remarketing channels, and that you need at least one listing group.
Feed-only sits between two other options. Standard Shopping gives you more control and spends only on Shopping. Full-asset Performance Max gives Google your own headlines, images and video so it can serve on every surface. Feed-only is the version where you give it the feed and nothing else.
How do you build a feed-only campaign today?
This is how we build it in the Google Ads interface, as of October 2026:
- Create a Performance Max campaign for sales and link your Merchant Center feed.
- When you reach the asset group, do not add any assets. Select the listing group, which is the set of products the campaign will promote.
- Publish. In our ecommerce accounts, that is all it takes.
Two guides we read say something different. WP Marketing Robot (June 2026) says Google’s interface now blocks saving an asset group without headlines or images, so you must create the campaign from Merchant Center. AI Advantage Agency (May 2026) gives similar advice. That does not match what we do, and Google’s documentation asks for a listing group, not assets. Interfaces change, so test it on a new campaign before you rely on this.
Two settings are worth reviewing before you launch. Google says Final URL expansion is on by default, and that with it off, the campaign sends people only to the URLs in your page feed and asset groups. Google also says text customization was formerly called automatically created assets. Search Engine Journal recommends turning both off for a strict feed-only build.
Two publishers also say a campaign needs at least 15 products. We could not find that in Google’s documentation, so treat it as a guideline, not a rule.
Is feed-only still Shopping-only?
Not guaranteed. Search Engine Journal says that since late 2023 Google has used feed images to build YouTube and Display ads, which makes feed-only “Shopping-dominant” rather than Shopping-only. DataFeedWatch describes the same August 2023 update. In our experience the campaign sometimes drifts to YouTube or Display, but it rarely happens.
Other guides give numbers or rules we cannot confirm. WP Marketing Robot says Shopping drives 92 to 98 percent of transactions across the accounts it analysed, without saying how many. AI Advantage Agency says drift is more likely on low-volume accounts without a target ROAS, with no source. We would not plan around either one. Check your own campaign.
How do you check where the spend went?
Before Google added a channel report, we checked this with Mike Rhodes’ PMax channel script, which DataFeedWatch describes. Some guides still tell you to use a script. You no longer need to, because Google’s channel performance report shows the split inside the interface.
- Open Campaigns, then Insights and reports, then Channel performance, as Search Engine Journal described when it launched.
- Select your feed-only campaign and a date range long enough to cover your conversion lag.
- Read cost and conversions by channel. Google’s list covers Search, YouTube, Discover, Gmail, the Display Network, Search partners and Maps.
- Open the format rows. Google breaks out ads that use product data. If product-data ads appear under YouTube or Display, your feed is serving beyond Shopping.
- Check which conversion column you are reading. Search Engine Journal notes that “Results” counts primary conversions grouped by goal, while “Conversions” includes secondary actions.
Decide before you look how much spend outside Shopping you are willing to accept. Without a number set in advance, it is easy to explain away whatever you find. Google also cautions that one channel’s return over a short window does not tell the full story, so read the report over weeks, not days. We did this on a big-ticket account and wrote up what the report showed in Google Ads for big ticket products.
Feed-only, full-asset or Standard Shopping: a four-question test
Most guides pick by experience or conversion volume. We start with what the account already covers.
| Question | If the answer is yes |
|---|---|
| Do you already run Search (broad match, Dynamic Search Ads, unpinned responsive ads, optimized targeting) and Display or Video well? | Full-asset Performance Max adds little that is new and can overlap with those campaigns. Lean feed-only or Standard Shopping. |
| Do you rely on Shopping to hit your targets and want to scale it in a controlled way? | Lean feed-only or Standard Shopping. With full-asset, a bigger budget can send the extra spend to Search, Display or YouTube instead of Shopping. |
| Can you outperform automation with network-specific campaigns, and do you have the time to run them? | Run those campaigns and keep Performance Max feed-only. |
| Do you have good image and video assets for the products? | If not, do not use full-asset. Use feed-only. |
For ecommerce, our default is feed-only. Full-asset earns a place when there is a real coverage gap and the assets to fill it.
A common rule is to wait for 30 conversions a month before moving to full-asset, which AI Advantage Agency states. We could not find that in Google’s documentation. Google’s published minimum for Search and Shopping Target ROAS is 15 conversions in the past 30 days. Use your conversion volume as one input, not the whole test. Our own Smart Bidding benchmarks show why thin conversion data matters.
On a small budget or under 30 conversions a month, which one?
It depends on the objective. Performance Max is built to find conversions, so if the aim is conversions with little setup, we lean feed-only. If the budget is small and you need control over what you pay for, Standard Shopping is the better tool. Dotidot notes that Standard Shopping gives you search term reports, product-level performance and auction insights, while Performance Max gives you less visibility.
Keep in mind that overlapping products compete. Google’s help page on how Performance Max interacts with other campaigns says that when Performance Max and Standard Shopping target the same products, the campaign with the higher Ad Rank serves. If you use both, give each a clear job. For diagnosing a Standard Shopping campaign that loses auctions, start with impression share lost to rank.
Which hybrid setups hold up?
One setup from our playbook is full-asset Performance Max for best sellers, with feed-only or Standard Shopping for the rest of the catalogue. For how to split products inside Performance Max, see our guide to Performance Max segmentation.
DataFeedWatch suggests letting the same products run in both an all-assets and a feed-only campaign for a while, then removing the duplicates. Mike Ryan of Smarter Ecommerce gives different advice in his Performance Max Q&A. He says that when you advertise the same products in both, you should pick the campaign type to lead with and give each meaningfully different targets and budgets. Because Google decides overlapping products by Ad Rank, planned overlap is hard to control, and the simpler approach is easier to reason about.
What do we not know yet?
- This is not a controlled test. It reflects our experience across ecommerce accounts, not a dataset, and it contains no spend split by channel.
- The late-2023 change comes from secondary sources. We relied on Search Engine Journal and DataFeedWatch, and did not find Google’s own announcement.
- Whether adding assets later helps or hurts is open. AI Advantage Agency recommends starting feed-only and layering assets in after two to four weeks. DataFeedWatch warns against adding assets to a feed-only campaign, and suggests a feed-only asset group inside an all-assets campaign instead. We have not tested either.
- Interfaces change. Test any build step on a new campaign first.
Who this is for, and who it is not for
This is for ecommerce store owners and marketers with a working Merchant Center feed who want conversions from Shopping surfaces without much setup, and for agencies deciding how to structure Performance Max.
It is not for lead generation or service businesses, because there is no product feed to run on. It is not for stores without a reliable feed. It is not for brands whose goal is awareness or video reach, where full-asset or another campaign type fits better. And it is not for anyone who needs a guarantee of Shopping-only spend. That is what Standard Shopping is for.
What should you do next?
Open the channel performance report for your Performance Max campaigns today and write down what share of cost sits outside Shopping. If you want a second pair of eyes on what you find, send us your report through our free audit form. For how we run these campaigns in general, see our Performance Max management and Google Shopping management pages.
Frequently asked questions
What is feed-only Performance Max?
It is a Performance Max campaign with a Merchant Center feed and a listing group but no text, image or video assets of your own. It is meant for ecommerce stores, and Google says assets generated this way come with limited reach and performance.
Can you create feed-only Performance Max in Google Ads without Merchant Center?
You need a linked Merchant Center feed either way. In our ecommerce accounts, you build it directly in Google Ads by skipping the assets and selecting the listing group. Some guides say you must start in Merchant Center. We have not found that to be true.
Does feed-only Performance Max only spend on Shopping?
Not guaranteed. Since late 2023, Google has used feed images to build ads for YouTube and Display, so it is better described as Shopping-dominant. In our experience drift is uncommon, but check the channel performance report.
How do I see where my Performance Max spend goes?
Open Campaigns, then Insights and reports, then Channel performance. It shows cost and conversions by channel, with format rows for ads that use product data. Before it existed, we used Mike Rhodes’ script.
Should a small store use feed-only Performance Max or Standard Shopping?
It depends on the objective. If you want conversions with little setup, we lean feed-only. If the budget is small and you need control, Standard Shopping gives more visibility and levers.
Written by Anand Soni, River Stone Marketing Solutions. This guide reflects our experience on ecommerce accounts and Google’s documentation as of October 2026. It is not a controlled test, and Google changes these features often. Last reviewed October 2026.
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