How-to · Updated October 12, 2026
Pause Google Ads for a few weeks without losing your setup
Updated October 12, 2026
15 minutes
Pause at the campaign level only. Label the campaigns first so you can turn the same set back on, and leave ad groups, ads and keywords alone: resuming a campaign does not restart anything paused inside it. Never choose Remove or cancel the account. A one-time automated rule can resume on your return date.
Before you start
- Standard or Admin access to the Google Ads account. Pausing, labels and rules are all campaign edits, which Read-only access does not allow.
- Your return date, if you want the campaigns to come back on their own.
- A note of anything already paused before the break, so it stays off when you turn the rest back on.
Label the campaigns you are about to pause
A label marks exactly which campaigns this break turned off. Without one, turning everything back on can also restart campaigns that were off for a reason.
- Click Campaigns, then Campaigns in the section menu. Click the filter icon, choose Status under Attributes and tick Enabled, so only running campaigns show.
- Tick every campaign you want to stop. Click the Label drop-down in the blue banner, click New label, name it after the break, such as Paused for break, click Create, then Apply.
Pause the campaigns, and nothing below them
Pausing at the campaign level stops every ad in those campaigns and keeps all settings and history for the restart.
- With the same campaigns ticked, click Edit and choose Pause. For one campaign, click the colored status dot beside its name and choose Pause. The campaign now shows as Paused.
- Leave ad groups, ads and keywords as they are. A paused campaign already stops every ad inside it. Google says resuming a campaign won't start ads you also paused at the ad group or keyword level; each one has to be enabled by hand.
- Do not click Remove. Google calls removal permanent: a removed campaign cannot be resumed or restored, only rebuilt or copied into a new campaign. Its past numbers stay viewable.
- Do not cancel the account to stop spend. Google says cancelling closes the account's remarketing lists, Customer Match included, and about a month later empties them. Pausing campaigns keeps those lists.
- For a Smart campaign, click its name, click its status under the name, click Pause campaign, then Pause campaign again to confirm. Choose Temporarily, pick the pause and resume dates in the calendar and click Pause. Google turns it back on for you.
Schedule the restart (optional)
A one-time automated rule turns the labelled campaigns back on at a date and time you choose. Skip this if you would rather restart by hand.
- On the Campaigns page, tick the labelled campaigns, select Edit above the table and select Create an automated rule. Google's older help opens the same panel from the three-dot icon above the table.
- Under Action, choose Enable campaigns (Google's older help calls this the type of rule). Under Apply to (Apply to campaigns in the older help), choose Select campaigns and tick the campaigns with your break label.
- Under Frequency, choose Once and set your return date and time. Google says a scheduled rule usually runs within 2 hours after the time you set, so pick a time a couple of hours before you want ads live.
- Name the rule and click Save rule.
- Click Tools and open Rules (under Bulk actions if your menu shows it). Look for any other rule that enables or pauses campaigns on a schedule. A recurring rule left over from earlier can turn your campaigns back on in the middle of the break; pause it until you return.
Check it worked
The next day, filter Campaigns by your label. Every campaign should show Paused, and the Cost column for that day should be zero. Change history under Campaigns lists each pause.
When you return (or the morning after your rule's date), filter by the label again. If the campaigns still show Paused, tick them, click Edit and choose Enable, which Google's help also calls resuming. If a campaign is enabled but its ads still do not run, Google's checklist is the budget, the bid strategy, disapproved ads in the Status column, and ad groups or keywords left paused.
Will there be a bill during the break?
A paused campaign adds no new charges. Google's Smart campaign help says you may still receive a bill for charges from before the pause, so leave the payment method in place until that bill clears.
How long a break can last before the account closes
Google cancels an account automatically once it has had no spend for more than 15 months. A break of a few weeks or months is nowhere near that. An account cancelled this way can be reactivated by an Admin, though Google warns it may not be possible after an extended period.
What happens to Smart Bidding while campaigns are paused
The campaigns keep their settings and history. You may see a short settling period after you resume. Google does not say outright that a restart triggers one; the FAQ linked below covers what it does say, and why a lower budget can be a better choice than a pause.