New images for Google Adwords

For years, advertising on Google's search engine was almost entirely text. Today, photography and video sit at the heart of most formats, and knowing how to work with images in Google Ads is decisive for campaign performance. A strong visual asset grabs attention, conveys the value proposition in an instant and improves click-through rate; a weak one wastes budget and drags down ad quality.

In this article we go over where images appear within the platform, which technical specifications you need to respect and how to make the most of them from a business standpoint. It is a practical guide aimed both at those starting out with Google Ads and at those looking to fine-tune campaigns already running.

Where images fit in Google Ads

The system has evolved towards formats that combine several elements and serve them dynamically. Images appear mainly in these contexts:

• Image assets in Search campaigns: they complement text ads with a relevant image next to the result. It is the most direct way to add a visual component without leaving the Search network.
• Responsive display ads: you upload images, logos, headlines and descriptions, and Google combines those image assets into multiple formats across the Display network.
• Performance Max: the format that now concentrates a large share of spend. A single asset group is shown across Search, Display, YouTube, Gmail, Discover and Maps, and the system optimises the combinations automatically.
• Demand Gen: geared towards highly immersive visual formats on YouTube, Discover and Gmail, where image and video lead.

Technical specifications you need to respect

Google works by aspect ratio before exact pixels, because it serves the same asset across thousands of different placements. These are the reference sizes and limits for the most common image assets:

• Landscape (1.91:1): recommended size 1200 × 628 px.
• Square (1:1): recommended size 1200 × 1200 px.
• Portrait (4:5): recommended size 1200 × 1500 px, key for mobile placements on Gmail and Discover.
• Accepted formats: JPG, PNG and static GIF.
• Maximum weight: up to 5,120 KB (5 MB) for responsive display, Demand Gen and Performance Max images. Statically uploaded display formats keep the classic 150 KB limit.

As a general rule, export each image at the highest recommended resolution so that it stays sharp when downscaled. Covering the three aspect ratios (landscape, square and portrait) expands reach without cannibalising formats: portrait alone tends to add mobile coverage you would otherwise lose.

Best practices to make images convert

Meeting the specs is the bare minimum. What makes the difference in performance is how you approach the asset:

• Central, safe focal point: Google crops and reframes depending on the placement, so keep the main element centred so it never ends up out of frame.
• Little embedded text: the message belongs in the headlines and descriptions. An image overloaded with text reads worse and may get less exposure.
• Real variety of assets: upload several different images per group. The system scores each variant and serves the best performers, so the more quality options you give it, the better it optimises.
• Consistency with the landing page: the image must connect with what the user finds after clicking. A mismatch between ad and destination drives up bounce and raises the cost per conversion.
• Review what AI auto-generates: Performance Max can create images automatically to fill gaps. Where brand fidelity matters, replace those assets with your own approved materials.

Remember, too, that you may only use images you hold the rights to. When you upload an asset you confirm to Google that you have those rights.

The visual component, beyond Google

The logic of getting the image right is not limited to the search engine. On platforms such as Meta Ads the visual asset plays an even bigger role, and a coherent digital marketing strategy reuses and adapts those materials across channels to reinforce the message and make the most of production.

That integrated approach (creativity in the service of results) is what we apply to every account we manage: we don't chase flashy ads, we build campaigns that capture better and convert more.

Conclusion

Images in Google Ads have gone from being an extra to forming part of the core of almost every format. Respecting the specifications, covering the aspect ratios and providing a variety of quality assets is what separates a campaign that performs from one that burns budget.

If you would like a specialist team to design and manage your campaigns, our Google Ads agency keeps the focus on profitability. You can also see our SEM service or reach us through contact.