Local Service Ads Are Moving Into Google Ads: What HVAC Contractors Should Do
Google has started moving Local Service Ads into Google Ads. Its help page on the change says Local Services Ads are becoming Performance Max campaigns with pay-per-lead goals, and that the first phase began in August 2026 for select home and storefront service advertisers in the United States, with HVAC named on the list.
This guide covers what Google says is changing, what it means for a contractor, and what to do this month. It reflects Google’s page as of September 2026. Google can revise it, so check the source before you act on any detail.
What Google says is changing
- Management moves from the separate Local Services dashboard into Google Ads.
- Budgets: “Your historical average weekly budget is automatically divided by 7 to determine your daily average budget.”
- Bidding: “Manual bidding (such as setting a maximum cost-per-lead) is no longer supported in Google Ads.” Vertical-level Target CPA is not supported either.
- Reports: “Because your historical campaign performance reports won’t carry over, you should save your performance data before migrating.”
- Callouts: BBB callouts are no longer supported. Google asks you to select at least 6 other structured callouts in the campaign’s assets tab, such as business hours, specialties or accepted payment methods.
What does not change
The pay-per-lead model continues, so you are still charged for valid leads rather than clicks. Google’s separate How leads work page describes which leads are charged and how poor-quality ones can be credited.
What this means for an HVAC contractor
This section is our reading, not something Google states. Two changes matter most.
First, the loss of manual bidding. A maximum cost per lead used to be a ceiling you could set and leave. Without it, budget and lead quality are the levers that remain. A full system replacement is worth far more than a repair call, so it becomes more important to know which leads turn into installs, not just which leads arrive.
Second, weekly budgets becoming daily averages. HVAC demand does not spread evenly across a week. A cold snap can put most of a week’s demand into two or three days. Watch how your daily budget paces in the first weeks after migration and adjust it against how many jobs your crews can take on.
What to do this month
- Check whether your account has migrated. Look in Google Ads for a Performance Max campaign with a pay-per-lead goal. If you cannot find one, you are probably still in the Local Services dashboard.
- Save your performance data now. Google says historical reports will not carry over, so export lead history, call volume and spend by week before you migrate.
- Set your daily budget on purpose. Google will divide your average weekly budget by 7. Check that figure against how many jobs your crews can handle on a peak day.
- Replace BBB callouts. Add at least 6 other structured callouts, such as business hours, specialties and accepted payment methods.
- Set business hours to match reality. Google’s lead page lists leads received outside business hours among the situations where it will not credit a lead. If you take emergency calls at night, your hours should say so.
- Keep reporting poor-quality leads. Google says charged leads are reassessed and may be credited automatically, and that you can report poor-quality leads through the feedback survey. It says it may occasionally credit those reports. The page states no time limit, but reporting promptly is the safer habit.
The short version
The mechanics are moving, but the job stays the same: answer the phone, track which leads become installs, and put the budget where the installs come from. If you want a second opinion on your account before or after migration, our Local Service Ads page explains how we manage it.