The Paid Search Podcast | A Weekly Podcast About Google Ads and Online Marketing

New Bidding Change Explained (Episode 522)

July 20, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

Google Ads is making a change to its bidding system that has the paid search community unsettled. Starting August 17, 2026, campaigns using target-based bid strategies (Target CPA or Target ROAS) that are also limited by budget will be adjusted so that performance more consistently matches the target you set—even if your campaign was previously overperforming. If your actual CPA was $5 on a $10 target, Google will deliberately push performance toward $10. The host, Joey Bidner, explains why this seemingly small update matters, what it reveals about Google’s incentives, and how advertisers should prepare.

The change and why it feels different

The core update is straightforward: for campaigns that are both limited by budget and using a target-based bid strategy, Google will stop allowing the algorithm to overdeliver relative to the target. If your campaign was efficiently beating its CPA or ROAS goal, performance will now drift toward the target you set. That means you lose the “free” efficiency you had been getting. Google frames this as making scaling more predictable—when you increase budget, the system will hold your target steady rather than letting performance degrade. But Bidner points out that limited by budget is not a KPI; it is simply Google’s indicator that there is more available volume. “Limited by budget is not a thing you optimize towards,” he says. The chan

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What you'll learn

1 (00:21) **The Big Bidding Change Introduced** - Joey explains a new Google Ads bidding update that has the community upset, and why this one feels different because it pulls back the curtain on Google's profit-centric motives.
2 (03:28) **What the Change Is: Reading Google's Announcement** - Starting August 17th, 2026, campaigns limited by budget using target-based bid strategies (tCPA, tROAS) will deliver more consistently to the set target, stripping away any overperformance.
3 (06:16) **Joey's Core Problem with the Change** - He explains why he prefers loose targets (high tCPA or low tROAS) to allow algorithm flexibility and exploration, and how this update removes that lever.
4 (08:27) **The Strange Root: "Limited by Budget"** - Joey questions why budget limitation is the trigger for this change, since it's not a KPI or something to optimize toward.
5 (10:04) **Concerns About Aggressive Targets and New Customer Pipeline** - Joey worries that setting aggressive targets will cause spend issues long-term and force the algorithm to chase short-term low-hanging fruit instead of new customers.
6 (12:11) **New Tool #1: Maximized Conversion Value in Standard Shopping** - Google announced maximize conversion value is now available for standard shopping campaigns, potentially offering a less aggressive bidding workaround.
7 (14:10) **New Tool #2: Smart Bidding Exploration** - A bolt-on tool that allows bidding wiggle room for exploration without lowering tROAS or raising tCPA, with a sliding scale for aggressiveness.

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Guests on this episode

Joey Bidner

Show Notes

Google is changing TCPA bidding and this will affect everyone!

Try Opteo for free for 28 days - https://opteo.com/psp

Joey Bidner guest hosts this week's podcast and explains what changes are coming with bidding and why it has so many people upset.

Joey Bidner - https://joeybidner.com/

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