Last updated: September 25, 2026. We refresh this page quarterly.
Performance Max is now the dominant Shopping campaign type, but not the only one. Among advertisers running both campaign types, PMax accounts for about 67 percent of Shopping spend and 68 percent of Shopping-attributed sales, according to Tinuiti's Q1 2026 benchmark report. Most advertisers run it alongside other campaign types rather than on its own: an Optmyzr study of more than 9,000 accounts found 82 percent do. Google Shopping spend overall is still growing, up 18 percent year over year in Q1 2026 per Tinuiti. And since 2024, Google has steadily added controls and reporting that make PMax far more transparent than it was at launch.
Every statistic below names its source. Where a figure comes from practitioners rather than a formal study, we say so.
Performance Max adoption and market share
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| PMax accounts for ~67% of Shopping spend and ~68% of Shopping-attributed sales among advertisers running both PMax and Standard Shopping | Tinuiti, Q1 2026 Digital Ads Benchmark Report |
| 82% of advertisers run PMax alongside other campaign types rather than alone | Optmyzr Performance Max study (9,199 accounts, 24,702 campaigns) |
| Google has said more than one million advertisers use Performance Max |
What it means: PMax is the default for ecommerce, but the market has settled on hybrid structures, not PMax alone. Our PMax vs Standard Shopping guide covers how to build one.
Google Shopping spend and performance trends
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| Google Shopping ad listing spend grew 18% year over year in Q1 2026, up from 16% growth in Q4 2025 | Tinuiti benchmark data, reported by Marketing Brew (April 2026) |
| In Q2 2026, PMax conversions grew about 5% with costs up about 4.5%, while Standard Shopping conversions declined about 5% | Smarter Ecommerce market observer data |
What it means: Shopping spend is still rising, and PMax continues to take conversion share from Standard Shopping. Costs rising almost as fast as conversions is a reminder that growth in the channel is not free, which makes feed quality and structure more important, not less.
Channel mix inside Performance Max
| Benchmark | Source |
|---|---|
| Feed-based Shopping placements typically take 60 to 80% of PMax spend in healthy ecommerce accounts | Practitioner benchmark reported by ecommerce PPC agencies including Growth Engines and Store Growers |
This is a practitioner range, not a Google figure. It is still the most useful single check you can run on a PMax campaign: if Shopping takes well under half your spend and your goal is direct sales, something is pulling budget into Display or YouTube. Our PMax reporting guide shows where to find the channel split and what to change.
Timeline of major Performance Max control and reporting updates
| Date | Update |
|---|---|
| 2023 | Brand exclusions available for PMax, covering Search and Shopping inventory |
| October 2024 | PMax no longer automatically prioritized over Standard Shopping for the same products. Ad Rank decides |
| 2025 | Campaign-level negative keywords rolled out for PMax |
| April to November 2025 | Channel performance report introduced, then rolled out across accounts |
| January 2026 | Channel-level PMax reporting added to the Google Ads API |
| March 2026 | Google announced first-party audience exclusions, budget reporting, expanded audience reporting and placement reporting segmented by network |
| 2026 | Total campaign budgets for fixed periods, useful for promotions, and more video assets per asset group, as reported by agencies tracking the rollout |
What it means: PMax in 2026 is a different product from PMax at launch. Many of the reasons advertisers avoided it, such as no search term visibility, no negatives and no channel reporting, no longer apply. Our brand exclusions guide covers one of the most important controls.
Practical thresholds practitioners use
These are working rules of thumb from PPC practice, not official Google requirements:
| Rule of thumb | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| ~30+ conversions a month per campaign for stable Smart Bidding | Below this, bidding has too little signal and swings |
| Two to four weeks before structural changes on a new campaign | Early results are volatile during learning |
| Budget increases of ~15 to 20% at a time | Large jumps trigger new volatility |
| Target changes in 10 to 20% steps, a week apart | Aggressive targets throttle spend |
For budget math specific to smaller stores, see how much a small Shopify store should spend on PMax, or use the PMax budget calculator.
How should I use these benchmarks?
Compare structure, not just results. Your ROAS depends on margins, prices and category, so comparing it to an industry average means little. The channel mix and hybrid adoption figures are more useful, because they describe how healthy accounts are built.
Watch the trend in your own account. The market data shows costs rising almost as fast as conversions. Track your own cost per conversion quarter over quarter against those numbers.
Use the timeline as a checklist. If you set up PMax before 2025 and have not revisited it, you may be missing brand exclusions, negatives, channel reporting and the chance to run Standard Shopping alongside it.
Sources
Tinuiti, Q1 2026 Digital Ads Benchmark Report, and Tinuiti benchmark data reported by Marketing Brew, April 2026. Smarter Ecommerce market observer data, 2026. Optmyzr, Performance Max study covering 9,199 accounts and 24,702 campaigns. Google Ads announcements on Performance Max reporting and controls, 2023 to 2026. Practitioner benchmarks from Growth Engines and Store Growers.
Want your account benchmarked?
7SEA Marketing audits Performance Max accounts for Shopify brands against these benchmarks, starting with channel mix, brand share and structure. See our Google Ads management service, or start with our Performance Max guide.
Frequently asked questions
What share of Google Shopping spend goes to Performance Max?
According to Tinuiti's Q1 2026 benchmark report, among advertisers running both campaign types, Performance Max accounts for about 67 percent of Shopping spend and 68 percent of Shopping-attributed sales.
How many advertisers run Performance Max with other campaign types?
An Optmyzr study of 9,199 accounts and 24,702 campaigns found that 82 percent of advertisers run Performance Max alongside other campaign types rather than on its own.
Is Google Shopping ad spend still growing in 2026?
Yes. Tinuiti data reported by Marketing Brew showed Google Shopping ad listing spend up 18 percent year over year in Q1 2026, up from 16 percent growth in Q4 2025.
What percentage of Performance Max spend should go to Shopping?
Ecommerce PPC practitioners commonly treat 60 to 80 percent of PMax spend on Shopping placements as healthy for direct-response accounts. This is a practitioner benchmark, not a Google figure.
When did Performance Max stop taking priority over Standard Shopping?
In October 2024. Since then, when both campaign types can serve the same product in the same account, Ad Rank determines which one serves.
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