Copying a Google Ads campaign to another account, or within the same account, can save you a lot of time, especially when you need to launch many campaigns across several accounts at once for one client. Instead of building every campaign and ad from scratch, follow this article.
Update (10/2026): The screenshots in this article were taken in 2020. The Google Ads web interface and Google Ads Editor have changed since then, so some buttons and menus may look different or sit in a different place, but the copy and paste logic is still the same.
Copying in Google Ads: the basics
What can you duplicate in your Google Ads account?
You can duplicate campaigns, ad groups, ads, keywords, placements, and topics in your ad account.
Can you copy a Google Ads campaign to another account?
You can copy a Google Ads campaign to another account using Google Ads Editor.
How many ways are there to copy Google Ads campaigns and ads?
There are two. Method 1 copies the campaign directly in the web interface, but only within the same account. Method 2 uses the Google Ads Editor software, which lets you copy a campaign to another account or within the same one.
Anything to watch out for when publishing a copied campaign?
Identical campaigns may compete with each other, so edit the landing page and targeting before you publish the copy. It’s also best to copy campaigns whose settings are already well optimized. For example, with GDN, you can exclude all apps from GDN ads once, and next time just copy that campaign to save time.
Are there rules for copying ads?
You can only paste an ad into a campaign of the matching type. For example, display ads can only be copied into display campaigns. One exception: you can copy a search ad into a display campaign, where it will show as a text ad.
Duplicate an ad campaign with Google Ads Editor
Download Google Ads Editor and install it on your computer. Then open it and follow the steps below to copy a campaign or ad.
Step 1: The first time you open Google Ads Editor, you need to add your Google Ads accounts. Click the Add button.
Step 2: Click the Open browser button to sign in. Note that the browser should be signed in to the Gmail account that owns this Google Ads account.
Step 3: When the web page opens, select the Gmail account linked to the Google Ads account you want to add to Google Ads Editor.
Step 4: Click the Allow button.
Step 5: Switch back to Google Ads Editor. Since May 1, 2022, Google Ads Editor no longer asks for an authorization code, so once you click Allow the sign-in finishes on its own and the account list appears. (In 2020, when I took these screenshots, you still had to copy a code from the browser and paste it into Ads Editor.)
Step 6: Select and download the accounts you want to edit. In this example, I select two accounts and click OK.
Leave All campaigns selected and click OK.
Once the accounts have finished downloading, select them and click the Open…account button.
Step 7: Copy the campaign, ad group, or ad in Google Ads Editor.
- In the left column: In the upper part, click the account that holds the campaign or ad you want to copy. In the lower part, choose campaign, ad group, or ad depending on what you want to copy.
- In the middle: Right-click the campaign, ad group, or ad you want to copy and select Copy. You can also press [Ctrl] [C].
Step 8: Select the other account in the left column and paste the copied item. You can also press [Ctrl] [V].
After pasting, the new item appears in bold, which means it hasn’t been posted to Google Ads yet.
Step 9: Post the changes to upload the copied item to the new account.
You can also duplicate campaigns, ad groups, and ads within the same account. Just remember to rename the copied campaign before posting it.
Copy a Google Ads campaign in the web interface
In the web interface, you can only copy a campaign within the same Google Ads account. Follow the steps below. The column layout described here is from the 2020 interface; in the current Google Ads menu, look for the same Campaigns, Ad groups, and Ads pages.
Step 1: Open your Google Ads account and go to Campaigns, Ad groups, or Ads depending on what you want to copy. Select the item, click Edit, and choose Copy from the small menu that appears. You can also press [Ctrl] [C].
Step 2: Paste the copied item following the rules below. There are two columns on the left, which I’ll call column A and column B.
- Paste a campaign: Select Campaigns in column B.
- Paste an ad group: Select the campaign in column A, then select Ad groups in column B.
- Paste an ad: Select the campaign and ad group in column A, then select Ads in column B.
A window asks you to confirm where to paste. Click Done.
Then click the Paste button.
When the new item appears in the list, the copy was successful.
Conclusion
If you only need a copy inside the same account, the web interface is the quickest option. To move campaigns between accounts, Google Ads Editor is the tool to use, and it also lets you review everything offline before posting. Either way, remember to rename the copy and check its budget, targeting, and landing page so it doesn’t compete with the original campaign. If you have any questions, leave a comment below.
