# Google Ads Transparency Scraper - Competitor Ads (`aolmo/google-ads-transparency`) Actor

Every Google ad (search, display and YouTube) of any advertiser or website from the Google Ads Transparency Center: format, first and last shown dates, ad image or preview and link, filtered by country. Search by brand name, domain or advertiser id. $0.0005 per ad; new ads flagged.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/aolmo/google-ads-transparency.md
- **Developed by:** [Antonio del Olmo Tena](https://apify.com/aolmo) (community)
- **Categories:** Marketing, SEO tools
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $0.50 / 1,000 ad scrapeds

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

See every Google ad your competitors run. Type a website (`nike.com`), a brand (`Coca-Cola`) or an advertiser id, and the Actor returns one row per ad from Google's Ads Transparency Center: search, display and YouTube ads with their format, the dates they were first and last shown, the ad image or preview, the advertiser and the link to the ad. Filter by country to see exactly what is running in your market, and schedule it to be told when a competitor launches new ads.

No browser, no Google account, no API key: the Actor uses the same public endpoints as adstransparency.google.com. You pay $0.0005 per ad returned.

### What you get

One Dataset row per ad:

- `advertiserName`, `advertiserId`, `domain` (the website the ad promotes).
- `format`: `text` (search ads), `image` (display) or `video` (YouTube).
- `firstShownAt` and `lastShownAt`: when Google first and last served the ad.
- `imageUrl`: the ad as archived by Google (text and image ads), `previewUrl`: Google's preview for text and video ads.
- `adUrl`: the ad page in the Ads Transparency Center, `creativeId`.
- `search`, `query`, `region`: where the row comes from.
- `isNew`: `true` when the ad was not in the previous run of that search.

A search with no ads returns no rows and is not charged.

### How to use it

1. Open the **Input** tab.
2. In **Advertisers or websites** type one per line. A website such as `nike.com` gives every ad pointing to it, from any advertiser. A brand name such as `Coca-Cola` picks the advertiser whose name matches it with the most ads. An advertiser id (`AR...`) or an Ads Transparency URL gives exactly that advertiser.
3. Set **Country** (`US`, `ES`, `GB`...) to see only ads shown there, or leave it empty for all countries.
4. Set **Max ads** (default 100) and click **Start**. Export the rows as JSON, CSV or Excel.
5. To watch competitors, schedule the Actor daily or weekly; new ads come with `isNew: true`.

### Input

```json
{
  "searches": ["nike.com", "Adidas", "AR18378488041124659201"],
  "region": "ES",
  "maxAds": 200
}
```

| Field | Description |
|-------|-------------|
| `searches` | Websites, advertiser names, advertiser ids or Ads Transparency URLs. Up to 50 per run. |
| `region` | Two-letter country code, empty for all. |
| `maxAds` | Per search, 1 to 2,000. Default 100. |

### Output example

```json
{
  "search": "https://adstransparency.google.com/?region=US&domain=nike.com",
  "query": "nike.com",
  "region": "US",
  "creativeId": "CR14441826716756213761",
  "advertiserId": "AR16735076323512287233",
  "advertiserName": "Nike, Inc.",
  "domain": "nike.com",
  "format": "text",
  "firstShownAt": "2024-04-23T15:12:10.000Z",
  "lastShownAt": "2026-10-07T18:47:35.000Z",
  "imageUrl": "https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/archive/simgad/12633512426132284716",
  "previewUrl": null,
  "adUrl": "https://adstransparency.google.com/advertiser/AR16735076323512287233/creative/CR14441826716756213761?region=US",
  "isNew": false,
  "timestamp": "2026-10-07T20:00:00.000Z"
}
```

### Pricing

Pay per event, no subscription:

- **Ad scraped**: $0.0005 per ad row. 1,000 ads cost $0.50.
- **New ad**: $0.001 per ad flagged as new in a scheduled run.

Searches that return no ads are free. Compare with Google Ads scrapers at $0.90 per 1,000 ads.

### Use it as an API

```bash
curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/aolmo~google-ads-transparency/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=YOUR_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"searches": ["booking.com"], "region": "GB", "maxAds": 100}'
```

You can also call it from AI agents through the Apify MCP server.

### FAQ

**Does it show ad spend or impressions?** No. Google publishes spend and impressions only for political ads; the Transparency Center shows the ads themselves and when they ran.

**Why are most ads "text"?** Search ads are text ads; brands usually run many variations of them. Display ads come as `image` and YouTube ads as `video`.

**Can I see the ad text of search ads?** Use `imageUrl` (Google's rendered snapshot of the ad) or open `adUrl`.

**Which countries are supported?** The main markets in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific by two-letter code. Leave **Country** empty for worldwide.

**Where is the data stored between runs?** In a Key-Value Store of your account named `micro-saas-state-google-ads-transparency`, one key per search. Delete it to start fresh.

# Actor input Schema

## `searches` (type: `array`):

One per line: a website (nike.com), an advertiser name (Coca-Cola), an advertiser id (AR18378488041124659201) or an Ads Transparency URL (https://adstransparency.google.com/advertiser/AR...).

## `region` (type: `string`):

Two-letter country code (US, ES, GB, DE, FR, MX, BR, IN...) to get only ads shown there. Empty for all countries.

## `maxAds` (type: `integer`):

Also caps what you pay per search.

## `product` (type: `string`):

Internal. Leave as is.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "searches": [
    "nike.com"
  ],
  "region": "US",
  "maxAds": 100,
  "product": "google-ads-transparency"
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

Dataset items: url, changed, events, data, timestamp and error (when the target failed).

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "searches": [
        "nike.com"
    ],
    "region": "US"
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("aolmo/google-ads-transparency").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "searches": ["nike.com"],
    "region": "US",
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("aolmo/google-ads-transparency").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "searches": [
    "nike.com"
  ],
  "region": "US"
}' |
apify call aolmo/google-ads-transparency --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,aolmo/google-ads-transparency"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/wJYrRFmdB8QLTvNdS/builds/2B1C2EMQcxyvgtu4c/openapi.json