Why does Google Ads Editor reject placements, and how do you fix each error?
Part of Google Ads placements
The short answer
Google Ads Editor rejects placement rows for four kinds of reasons: the file itself (XLS format, wrong encoding, unmapped headers), the match to the account (names that do not exist, duplicates), the destination (campaign types that refuse placements), and the account (limits, removed items, an outdated Editor). Each has a documented fix, checked before posting.
Key takeaways
- A row whose campaign and ad group names match nothing in Editor creates a new item instead of failing, so stray names are the quietest import error.
- A blank cell tells Editor to change nothing, while a pair of square brackets erases the existing value.
- Editor matches each row to an existing item by its identifying columns; a match is processed as an edit, not a duplicate.
- Editor may accept a placement URL or video ID that Google Ads rejects at posting, so the posting report is the final test.
- After an Editor upgrade, refresh account data and rebuild the CSV template from a fresh export before the next import.
Why does Google Ads Editor reject placements?
Editor errors on a placement file appear at two stages. Some show at import, when Editor reads the CSV and proposes changes. Others only show at posting, when Google Ads validates the changes on its servers. Google's glossary of Editor errors and issues (opens in a new tab), which it says covers the most common error messages, lists both kinds; the table keeps the entries that affect placement files.
| What you see | Stage | Cause Google gives | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Garbled accented characters in placement or ad group names | Import | The CSV was not saved in the right format | Save from the spreadsheet with UTF-16 Unicode Text encoding and import again |
| The file will not open in the import dialog | Import | Editor doesn't import XLS files | Save as CSV, or as Unicode Text from Excel |
| Values land in the wrong fields | Import | Incorrect or unexpected column contents: the CSV columns don't match Editor columns | Confirm the column mapping in the first step of the import |
| A new campaign or ad group appears in the tree | Import | No existing item matched the row's identifying columns, so Editor created one | Reject the proposed changes, correct the names in the sheet and import again |
| A red icon on a placement row | Check changes | An error Editor must see fixed before it can check or post the item | Select the row, read the instructions under the edit panel, then fix or request an exception |
| Post will cause you to exceed account limits | Posting | An item exceeds a Google Ads account limit | Turn on diagnostic logging, post again and search network_log for EntityCountLimitExceeded |
| Get recent changes recommended | Posting | The local copy of the account is out of date, for example an item was removed online | Get recent changes; remaining unposted edits become additions to review |
| Fatal error | Posting | An unexpected API response, for example from a deprecated or unavailable feature | Remove the deprecated item and post again |
How do you fix a column mismatch in Editor?
A column mismatch means Editor read a column as something other than what the planner meant, such as a Notes column read as the placement. Google's CSV column reference (opens in a new tab) says headers must be in English for automatic recognition, though capitalization and spaces don't matter. The same page lists Placement, Website URL and Website as names for the placement column.
Five fixes for a mismatched column
- Rename headers to Editor's English names. Use Campaign, Ad group, Placement and Type, or the documented alternates, rather than in-house labels such as Site or Domain.
- Fix the mapping in the preview. Google's import page (opens in a new tab) has you review each column header and pick the correct one from the drop down when Editor guesses wrong.
- Delete columns Editor should ignore. Notes, scores and client comments belong in a separate tab, so no stray column is mapped onto a real field.
- Check blanks and brackets. Google says a blank field tells Editor to make no change, while a pair of square brackets erases the existing value; a column of [] can wipe every bid it touches.
- Re-import rather than patch. Reject the proposed changes, fix the sheet and import again, so the sheet stays the true record of the load.
Definition
- Identifying columns
- The set of columns Editor uses to decide whether an imported row edits an existing item or creates a new one. Google's example: keywords are distinguished by campaign, ad group, keyword text and match type.
What happens to duplicate placements on import?
Google's column reference explains how Editor treats a row that repeats something already in the account: "If an item exists with the same values in these identifying columns, then the imported row is processed as an edit." A placement that already sits in the target ad group is therefore updated, not added twice. If no existing item matches, Editor creates it, and the planner reviews it before posting. With the setting Include original columns in CSV/ZIP exports turned on, exports carry #Original columns, and Editor uses those values to decide which existing item a row matches.
Duplicate check before every import
- Placements are deduplicated per ad group after trimming spaces, trailing slashes and http or https prefixes.
- No placement appears both as a target and as a Negative in the same ad group.
- The count of unique rows per ad group is written down before import.
- The proposed changes show edits for placements already in the account and additions only for new ones.
Why do some placements fail for certain campaign types?
Some rows fail because the destination cannot take that placement at all, however clean the file. Google's placement targeting page (opens in a new tab) limits placement targeting to ad groups in Video and Display campaigns, and each of those has its own exceptions. The table lists the documented refusals as Google described them on October 22, 2026.
| Destination | What fails | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Video campaigns that drive conversions | Content targeting, including placements, removed from them from early 2023 | Contextual targeting (opens in a new tab) |
| Video campaigns | App and app category placements are not supported | Video campaign targeting (opens in a new tab) |
| Video Action campaigns | Editor 2.13 removed support for creating new ones; active campaigns were migrated to Demand Gen | Editor version 2.13 (opens in a new tab) |
| Performance Max | Placement rows have no ad group to land in; Performance Max respects account level and manager account level placement exclusions | Brand suitability in Performance Max (opens in a new tab) |
| Search Partner Network exclusions | Exclusions for subdomains, subsites and subpages do not work there | Exclude specific webpages and videos (opens in a new tab) |
| Any site exclusion | Multi level subdomains such as www.placement.example.com are not recommended and exclude only that subdomain | Exclude specific webpages and videos (opens in a new tab) |
Display campaigns are a moving target. Google began a phased rollout of a migration tool that moves Display campaigns to Demand Gen in June 2026, and says remaining eligible campaigns will be migrated automatically and migrated campaigns can't be reverted, per its migration page (opens in a new tab). A placement file built for a Display ad group may meet a Demand Gen campaign by the time it is imported, so confirm the campaign type in the account the day of the load.
What does an import error hunt look like on a real brief?
Fictional example
A Pennsylvania band instrument rental shop's placement file, fixed in three passes
A fictional shop that rents trumpets, clarinets and violins to school band families in Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, approves 52 English websites on music education, parenting and local school news for a back to school Display campaign. The agency's sheet uses the headers Site, Group and Exclude.
First pass: Editor maps Site and Group correctly after the buyer picks Placement and Ad group in the preview, but leaves Exclude unmapped, so seven intended exclusions arrive as targets. The buyer rejects the changes, renames the column Type and enters Negative on those rows.
Second pass: the proposed changes show a new ad group called Parent News beside the real Parents News, because one row dropped a letter. The buyer fixes the name and removes three duplicate sites pasted from an older list.
Third pass: Check changes is clean, but posting rejects one misspelled domain. The ad group stays in bold until the buyer corrects it, posts again and files the posting report with the approved list.
What do PlacementGraph's Google Ads Editor files state?
What should happen when Editor's format changes?
Editor changes through numbered releases, and each can add or retire features that a placement file touches. Google's upgrade page (opens in a new tab) says Editor checks for updates on startup and periodically while running, that some account data may need to be refreshed after an update, and that you can migrate local unposted changes to the new version. Google's recent releases page (opens in a new tab) listed version 2.13, a 2026 release, as the newest when checked on October 22, 2026.
Releases do retire things. Version 2.11 (opens in a new tab), a 2025 release, added account level placement exclusions and removed several legacy ad types, including Display ads, which can still be paused or deleted but no longer created. Version 2.13 removed creating new Video Action campaigns. Google's error glossary adds that running an outdated version raises its own error, and that a deprecated feature can raise a fatal error at posting.
After every Editor upgrade, before the next placement import
- The release notes for the new version were read for placement, CSV, exclusion and campaign type changes.
- Unposted local changes were migrated or posted before the upgrade, not left behind.
- Account data was refreshed with Get recent changes for every campaign the file will touch.
- A fresh CSV export from one target ad group replaced the old template.
- A small test import of five rows was kept, checked and posted before the full file.
Frequently asked questions
Does Editor keep a record of which placement rows failed to post?
Yes. Google's posting page says Editor shows a report of the post, including any errors, and that you can copy the report into a separate document as a record. Save it beside the approved list version so a later audit can see which rows were corrected and when.
How many placements can be added at one time?
Google's targeting limits page says the Google Ads interface adds at most 5,000 placements at one time and the API 20,000. It does not give a figure for Editor. The same page caps exclusions at 128,000 per ad group across account, list, campaign and ad group levels.
Why does a placement show a different approval status in Editor than online?
Google's error glossary says the approval status may have changed since the campaign was last downloaded. Run Get recent changes and choose More data (slower) to include current approval information, or check the status in the Google Ads interface itself.
Can Editor post placement changes to several accounts at the same time?
Google's posting page says you can post more than one account at the same time from the accounts manager. Its error glossary says only one account at a time may be edited, so prepare and check each account's file on its own.
Sources
- Fix Google Ads Editor errors and issues (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Editor Help
- CSV file columns (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Editor Help
- Prepare a CSV file (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Editor Help
- Import a CSV file (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Editor Help
- Error and warning checks (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Editor Help
- Post changes to Google Ads (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Editor Help
- Create and edit TrueView video campaigns (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Editor Help
- Upgrade to the latest version (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Editor Help
- Recent releases (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Editor Help
- Google Ads Editor version 2.13 (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Editor Help
- Google Ads Editor version 2.11 (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Editor Help
- About placement targeting (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Help
- Contextual targeting (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Help
- Add targeting to your Video campaigns (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Help
- How to use brand suitability features in Performance Max (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Help
- Exclude specific webpages and videos (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Help
- Google Display Ads campaigns have a new home in Demand Gen (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Help
- Google Ads targeting limits (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Help
Researched and written by PlacementGraph Research. Read how we research, source and update these pages. Corrections: diana@placementgraph.com.