ReferenceGoogle Ads disapproval
Dishonest pricing practices
Google Ads disapproves ads and landing pages that hide the full price, fees or billing interval, or give a price that misleads. Show the total with taxes and fees, the payment model and any recurring cost on the page before purchase. Remove free claims that need payment, then edit the ad and save for review.
At a glance
- Where it shows
- The Status column on the Ads & assets page, as Disapproved.
- What stops
- That ad or asset stops serving until the destination and the ad are reviewed.
- How serious
- Violations do not cause immediate suspension. Google gives a warning at least 7 days before any suspension.
What it means
The policy aims to keep ads honest so people can decide. A price is misleading when the number in the ad is not what a person pays, or when the real cost is hidden until after they have committed.
Urgent service with variable pricing is not exempt. The page says an emergency service must still disclose its fees, such as a call-out charge or an after-hours surcharge, and whether an estimate is binding, even when the final price is unpredictable.
What actually triggers it
A price without its fees
A low price that leaves out taxes, fees, surcharges, late payment charges or shipping, including return shipping when the return address differs.
A subscription with no billing interval
A monthly or yearly plan shown without the billing interval or the recurring cost.
A free trial with no end date
A free trial promoted without stating its length, or that payment starts automatically at the end.
A premium-rate number with no cost shown
A premium-rate number in a call asset, with no disclosure of the charge per call or per minute.
Fix it in this order
- Open the landing page from the ad and check the total price, fees, billing interval and any recurring cost, as a buyer would see them before purchase.
- Make any cost that sits in small, light or blocked text readable on the page.
- For a premium-rate number, state the cost per call or per minute.
- Open Campaigns, then Ads, hover over the ad, select Edit, change the wording to match the page and select Save. If the destination cannot be fixed, switch the ad to a compliant one.
When to appeal
Appeal when the full cost is on the page before purchase and the flag still stands. An appeal on a price that leaves out a fee does not add the fee; the page needs it.
Often confused with
Unavailable offers is about a deal or price in the ad that the page does not show at all. Dishonest pricing is about a real price whose true cost is hidden. A price with a fee shown only at checkout is this policy; a sale that ended and still sits in the ad is the other.