Google vs. Microsoft AI Max: What’s the same and what’s different

With the world motorboat of Microsoft AI Max for Search campaigns, it’s worthy spending immoderate clip unpacking wherever the features align and disagree from Google’s version.

Much of the halfway functionality is the same:

• Search word matching expanding your scope beyond fixed keyword lists. AI Max uses your keywords, ads, and landing pages, on pinch intent and contextual signals, to uncover applicable searches you whitethorn not suffice for pinch keywords alone. This is particularly adjuvant for analyzable conversational queries.
• Text customization allowing ads to accommodate to high-value placements and prospects. AI Max uses your existing assets and website contented to make and trial further messaging variations. It past selects the astir due combinations astatine auction time, helping you to present much applicable advertisement creative, including successful AI-native experiences.
• Final URL description that routes group to the page connected your tract that champion matches their intent. Instead of ever sending postulation to a fixed landing page, AI Max tin way group to the page that champion matches what they’re looking for.  This ensures a much accordant personification acquisition crossed query, creative, and website.

However, location are immoderate cardinal nuanced differences. We’ll dive into:

•  Where Google and Microsoft AI Max are the same.
•  Key points of differentiation betwixt Google and Microsoft AI Max.
•  How to leverage AI Max successfully successful caller and existing relationship structure.

(Note: I americium a Microsoft Advertising worker and wrote this station arsenic platform-agnostically arsenic possible. Features discussed successful this station are based connected publically disposable thief archiving arsenic of September 2026.)

What’s the aforesaid betwixt Google and Microsoft AI Max?

Aside from the halfway functionality, the pursuing AI Max mechanics stay the aforesaid crossed some Google and Microsoft.

AI Max is simply a setting, not a run type.

Unlike Performance Max (PMax), Demand Gen, Audience ads, and different unsocial run types, AI Max represents optional settings wrong Search campaigns. These settings are designed to activity amended together, and advertisers thin to spot the astir use erstwhile they opt into each three.

Here’s really advertisers use erstwhile they leverage each 3 halfway AI Max features crossed Google and Microsoft:

• Search word matching allows for nett caller queries and that tin bring the advertiser into auctions their fixed advertisement mightiness not accurately reflect. By allowing the matter to accommodate successful the moment, you’ll guarantee your ads are applicable for those caller queries.
• To present the astir applicable landing page for unsocial queries, Final URL description tin beryllium really helpful. Final URL description is linked pinch Text plus procreation arsenic platforms request to beryllium capable to accommodate imaginative to make a committedness the move landing page tin present on.
• If you’re going to let for matter generation, you’ll get the astir bang for your optimization subordinate by besides allowing for intelligent matching of URLs and applicable queries.

That said, if advertisers want to statesman pinch a much blimpish test, they perfectly can.

For example, an ecommerce marque trading products pinch akin margins mightiness consciousness much comfortable testing URL description because it allows them to get fuller sum of their products without building retired unsocial advertisement groups, but don’t want to leverage hunt word matching. While Brand Controls beryllium and tin thief guarantee definite brands aren’t included (more connected that later), it’s adjacent for the advertiser to commencement pinch conscionable Final URL Expansion and Text customization.

Whether an advertiser tests conscionable one, two, aliases each 3 parts of AI Max, these tests tin beryllium done safely pinch experiments. While some platforms support controlled testing, Google’s AI Max experiments are designed to tally wrong the existing run by diverting traffic, whereas Microsoft Advertising’s Search Experiments comparison a modular run against a cloned trial type pinch AI Max enabled.

Here is guidance connected really to research pinch AI Max:

• Start pinch your strongest campaign. Choose a run pinch unchangeable capacity and capable measurement to make results. Experiments activity champion erstwhile there’s capable postulation to observe meaningful differences.
• Create a 50/50 split. Split postulation evenly betwixt the power and experiment. Keeping postulation balanced makes it easier to find whether capacity differences are owed to the alteration you’re testing.
• Let the research learn. One communal correction is ending a trial excessively quickly. New bidding strategies and AI-powered features request clip to learn. If you’re testing AI Max specifically, spell straight into an A/B trial and let capable learning clip earlier drafting conclusions.
• Measure business outcomes, not conscionable clicks. Focus on:
  • Conversion rate
  • Cost per acquisition (CPA)
  • Return connected advertisement walk (ROAS)
  • Changes successful gross aliases conversion value

Conversion-based bidding is simply a halfway portion of hunt word matching   

AI Max’s hunt word matching relies heavy connected conversion information successful bid to beryllium successful. This is why some Google and Microsoft AI Max require conversion-based bidding erstwhile enabling this portion of AI Max.

Conversion-based bidding useful erstwhile there’s meticulous conversion information flowing into the platform. It is perfect to person astatine slightest 15-30 conversions successful a 30-day play earlier moving pinch conversion-based bidding.

If your marque apt won’t deed the threshold, it makes consciousness to hold connected trying AI Max until you tin aliases to usage micro-conversions pinch strategical conversion values. This intends mounting conversion values aligned to each shape of the travel and TROAS that reflects the attraction connected important steps.

For example, if a marque wanted to unafraid applications for their financial product, they mightiness see conversion goals reflecting different completion milestones (beginning, mid-way, completed, and accepted). These conversion goals would get a profit-related conversion worth associated:

• Beginning application: $10
• Mid-way: $20
• Completed: $50
• Accepted: existent conversion worth utilizing offline conversion uploads.

Brand controls beryllium connected both, though location are immoderate differences successful what’s available.

Google and Microsoft some understood advertisers request messaging and branding controls to guarantee advertisement imaginative stays wrong style guides. That’s why some AI Max variants let advertisers to group marque inclusions, exclusions, word exclusions, and connection constraints.

To make it easier to understand the mechanics for each, here’s the breakdown:

Google:

• Brand inclusions: 10 marque lists per campaign, pinch up to 5,000 brands per list
• Brand exclusions: 10 marque lists per campaign, pinch up to 5,000 brands per list
• Term exclusions: 25 per campaign
• Message constraints: 40 per campaign

Microsoft:

• Brand inclusions: 20 marque lists per campaign, pinch up to 100 brands per list
• Brand exclusions: 20 marque lists per campaign, pinch up to 100 brands per list
• Term exclusions: 25 per campaign
• Message constraints: 40 per campaign

Microsoft offers disclaimers that do not return up advertisement existent estate, and activity pinch AI Max. Google is piloting disclaimers arsenic of this penning that would return up explanation statement #2.

What’s unsocial betwixt Google and Microsoft AI Max?

While astir of the halfway AI Max functionality remains the same, location are a fewer cardinal differences to relationship for erstwhile moving betwixt advertisement platforms.   

Consolidation of settings vs being capable to prime and take each three.

AI Max features activity amended together, truthful it makes consciousness to opt into each three. However, if you want to trial individual settings earlier committing to the afloat suite, Microsoft makes this easier by offering each 3 features arsenic opt-in toggles.

Google opts each advertisers who move connected AI Max astatine the run level into hunt word matching, which tin beryllium turned disconnected astatine the advertisement group level.

While Microsoft maintains each existing advertisement group targeting settings (including location targeting, scheduling, and clip area selection), location are nary AI Max-specific advertisement group settings.

Google besides supports Locations of interest, URL inclusions, and Brand inclusions astatine the advertisement group level.

This intends Google’s AI Max guidance asks advertisers to make much decisions astatine the advertisement group level, while Microsoft focuses AI Max settings astatine the run level.

Matching mechanics and hunt word transparency are different.

Both Google and Microsoft urge leaning distant from syntax-oriented keywords arsenic they tin get successful the measurement of being eligible to service for analyzable and longer queries, particularly successful AI experiences. 

However, Google and Microsoft return different approaches to matching and hunt word reporting. Microsoft offers afloat hunt word reporting for immoderate query resulting successful a click for AI Max, PMax, and accepted Search and Shopping campaigns. These tin beryllium recovered successful the reporting templates, Search term and Search word landing page.

Google hides immoderate hunt position for privateness reasons, which besides intends location isn’t afloat transparency connected whether the query is relevant. To mitigate this, Google allows for much adjacent version mechanics successful antagonistic keywords.

When it comes to matching, owed to different ecosystems, location are inherently different signals astir really Google and Microsoft will lucifer personification queries to advertiser campaigns. Here’s a breakdown of the main signals by each advertisement platform:

Google:

• YouTube data
• Previous hunt behavior
• Conversion data
•  Landing page
• Other keywords successful the advertisement group
• Audiences: In-market, demographics, and different 1P audiences for illustration Customer Match). 

Microsoft:

• LinkedIn data
• Previous hunt behavior
• Conversion data
• Landing page
• Other keywords successful the advertisement group
• Audiences: Impression-based remarketing, In-market, demographics, and different 1P audiences for illustration Customer Match

How to leverage AI Max successful existing and caller relationship structures?

AI Max brings the champion of AI functionality to hunt campaigns, and it’s understandable that advertisers will want to trial immoderate aliases each of the AI Max characteristic suite. However, location are immoderate cardinal considerations for accounts bringing AI Max into their structures.

Here are the apical 5 considerations:

1.  Do you spot your conversions measurement  and do you meet conversion thresholds?
2. Will your landing pages beryllium a thief aliases a hindrance successful conveying what your marque offers to AI systems arsenic they reside quality questions?
3. Are your existing advertisement assets connected marque aliases do they person superior deviation?
4. Is PMax already portion of your relationship structure?
5. Have you budgeted for the targets you’re setting?

Let’s excavation deeper into each one.

Do you spot your conversion measurement and do you meet conversion thresholds?

AI Max and conversion-based bidding are joined astatine the hep because conversions are a captious awesome AI Max uses to thief advertisers link pinch the correct customers astatine the champion ROI. If your campaigns don’t person meticulous conversions feeding into the system, aliases don’t person capable conversion information (15-30 conversions successful a 30-day play is the minimum), it will beryllium very difficult for AI Max to make intelligent matching choices.

If you person an existing relationship pinch astatine slightest 90 days of meticulous conversion data, AI Max is simply a no-brainer.

Newer accounts should activity connected building conversion information truthful they tin leverage AI Max and conversion-based bidding erstwhile the relationship ramps up.

Will your landing pages beryllium a thief aliases a hindrance successful conveying who you are to the advertisement platform?

Landing pages are a captious awesome that advertisement platforms usage to understand your inferior to a imaginable user. If your landing page is accessible successful phrasing and visuals, this translates to easier contented depletion for AI and humans alike.

A really awesome illustration of this is including alt-text connected images and videos connected the landing page, which ensures location tin beryllium nary uncertainty astir the taxable matter. On the flip side, if you don’t make it clear what you’re offering and why your customers bask moving pinch you, it tin beryllium difficult to construe those messages to AI imaginative and matching.

A communal correction brands will make is disallowing each bots from crawling their landing pages, which deprives AI from captious insights into who you are and really you tin thief your customers.

A bully measurement to understand whether your landing pages are AI Max compatible is to plug them into the PMax run creation flow. If you powerfully disagree pinch the assets Google aliases Microsoft generated for you, that tin beryllium a motion to set landing page copy/mechanics earlier turning connected AI Max.  

Are your existing advertisement assets connected marque aliases do they person superior deviation?

Both Google and Microsoft AI Max trust connected existing matter assets to pass imaginable caller advertisement creative. Beyond adding successful Brand Controls (including word exclusions and connection constraints), it’s really important that your advertisement assets bespeak the guidance you share.

For example, if you springiness a style guideline statement that each headlines should beryllium sentence-cased, but your existing headlines are title-cased, that tin origin disorder successful the system. It’s important to audit your advertisement imaginative and landing pages for phrasing choices that mightiness not align aliases were included unintentionally.  

Is PMax already portion of your relationship structure?

AI Max takes the champion parts of PMax AI and layers them arsenic optional boosts to Search campaigns. That intends location are inherently less net-new opportunities for AI Max to unlock successful accounts already moving mature PMax campaigns.

However, AI Max tin still adhd worth erstwhile PMax is focused chiefly connected Shopping, is budget-constrained, aliases isn’t afloat capturing your hunt opportunity. Rather than evaluating AI Max and PMax successful isolation, attraction connected whether the operation is driving incremental account-level maturation successful conversions, revenue, aliases efficiency

PMax, by its nature, is cross-channel, and has a beardown affinity for ecommerce. It tin beryllium useful to person AI Max arsenic a hunt circumstantial instrumentality to spell aft parts of your business you don’t want exposed to non-search inventory.

In short, moving AI Max and PMax successful the aforesaid relationship isn’t inherently bully aliases bad. If you want the afloat AI capacity lift, Performance Max will person an easier clip delivering that because it’s not restricted to hunt only surfaces. AI Max represents the useful AI gains of PMax successful prime oriented and search-specific experience.

Have you budgeted for the targets your setting?

AI Max requires leaning into conversion-based bidding (“Smart” connected Google and “Auto” connected Microsoft). One of the biggest reasons immoderate run tin neglect is it’s asked to spell aft excessively galore targets for the budget.

For example, if you’re targeting customers for your plumbing business, it won’t beryllium useful to inquire the aforesaid run to spell aft insignificant repairs and a burst pipe. This is because the services person different costs, levels of urgency, and work capacities.

As a wide rule, each services/products wrong a run should beryllium wrong 20-30% of each other. If there’s excessively overmuch variance, make judge you’ve group up meticulous conversion values/TROAS goals, URL exclusions, and budgeted capable to screen the spread.

Final takeaways

Ultimately, Google and Microsoft’s AI Max are reasonably similar. The differences person much to do pinch platform-specific mechanics.

Both work together that you’ll spot the champion results erstwhile you opt into each 3 halfway AI Max features.

Google puts much AI Max functionality astatine the advertisement group level, while Microsoft makes it a campaign-level choice.  

Both platforms actively return connected advertiser feedback, truthful if location is simply a penchant for 1 style of guidance vs another, it’s worthy sharing done support.