ReferenceGoogle Ads disapproval
Text or graphic overlay
Google disapproves an image asset when text, a graphic or a logo sits over the picture, and it also disapproves a logo used as the image itself. Remove the overlay and upload a clean version. Performance Max is the one place overlays are allowed, and only if at least one image without an overlay is supplied for each aspect ratio.
At a glance
- Where it shows
- The image asset's status, marked disapproved for text or graphic overlay.
- What stops
- The disapproved image stops serving. Other assets in the same ad keep running.
- How serious
- One asset at a time. The cost is the lost image, not the whole campaign.
What it means
The rule is about the picture itself. The disapproval wording covers images with text or graphic overlay, including brand logos, or a brand logo used as the image asset.
A headline printed on a photo, a button drawn on it or a logo stamped in a corner each count, even when the photo is otherwise good.
What actually triggers it
A headline or price baked into the photo
Text added in an image editor or a design tool, such as a price or a slogan, is an overlay.
A logo stamped in a corner
A small logo in a corner is still an overlay. A logo used as the whole image also fails, under the same wording.
A button or badge drawn over a product photo
Buttons and badges drawn on top of the image count as graphic overlays, including ones added by a template.
Templates that add text on every export
Some image makers add text to every export by default. The overlay is in the file, so resizing the same export does not remove it. Export again from the original photo.
Fix it in this order
- Open the disapproved image at full size and look for any text, logo, button or graphic on top of the picture.
- Export the same photo with the overlay removed, and keep the original file so the overlay version is still available.
- For Performance Max, keep at least one image without an overlay for each aspect ratio: square, horizontal and vertical. Overlays are allowed on the rest.
- For other campaign types, replace the asset with the clean image and check that it is approved.
In real accounts, a disapproved asset left in the library kept its status for years, because nothing expired it. Remove or edit the old asset once its replacement is approved.
Often confused with
Image has too much blank space
That is about empty space around the subject, so the fix is cropping closer, not removing text. An image can carry both problems, and each needs its own check.
Blurry or unclear image
That is about sharpness. Removing an overlay does not make a soft photo sharp, so check focus and resolution separately. Google's recommended sizes are 1200 by 1200 for square and 1200 by 628 for landscape.