Google Ads Scraper — Live Search Sponsored Ads

What is Google Ads Scraper — Live Search Sponsored Ads?

Google Ads Scraper is an Apify Actor for people who need live Google Search sponsored-ad data by keyword, country, language, location, and device. It accepts one or more search keywords and returns one record per paid ad, with fields such as advertiser, title, description, display URL, landing URL, position, rank within the ad block, sitelinks, extensions, phone, rating, and scrape context. The outcome is a structured dataset of the sponsored ads currently shown for each query, ready for analysis, reporting, or downstream automation. It is also usable through Apify MCP.

Best fit and connected workflows

This Actor fits workflows where the question is, "Which paid ads are visible right now for this search term in this market?"

It is a strong match for:

• PPC competitive monitoring across keywords, countries, and devices
• ad copy research based on live search results
• share-of-voice checks across a tracked keyword set
• geo-specific monitoring with country and optional city targeting
• desktop-versus-mobile comparisons for the same query
• AI agent workflows that need sponsored-ad records from Apify MCP

For adjacent Google workflows, pair it with:

• Use Google Ads Transparency Scraper - Creatives & Run Dates when the next step is advertiser creative history from the Transparency Center
• Use Google AI Overviews Scraper when the next step is AI Overview content for the same search context
• Use Google Maps Reviews Scraper when the next step is collecting public reactions tied to a returned business or place record

Practical scenario

Maya, a PPC analyst, starts with the keyword list ["car insurance", "crm software"]. She sets the country to us, language to en, and device to desktop so the search surface matches her reporting view.

The dataset returns fields such as:

• advertiser
• title
• description
• displayUrl
• finalUrl
• position
• rankInBlock
• sitelinks
• extensions

From that output, Maya compares which advertisers appear in the top ad slots and reviews the landing pages and sitelinks. Her next action is to group the records by advertiser and keyword, then compare the same keywords on mobile for a second view.

Input fields

Field	Type	Description
queries	array	Search keywords to run on Google. One ad becomes one record. Required.
countryCode	string	Two-letter ISO country code used for geo-targeting, such as us, gb, or de.
languageCode	string	Two-letter ISO language code for the Google interface and results, such as en or fr.
locationName	string	Optional canonical city location in City,Region,Country form for city-level targeting.
device	string	desktop or mobile.
maxAdsPerQuery	integer	Cost cap per keyword. Range 1-100.
maxPagesPerQuery	integer	Number of Google result pages to fetch per keyword. Range 1-5.
includeBottomAds	boolean	Capture sponsored ads shown at the bottom of the page as well as the top block.
includeSummaryRows	boolean	Also add one free advertiser share-of-voice row per advertiser to the dataset. Defaults to false.
engine	string	Fetching mode: auto (recommended), managed search API, or browser first.
serpApiKey	string	Optional own key for the managed search API, to use your own quota. Leave blank to use the built-in key.

Focused input example

{
  "queries": ["car insurance", "plumber near me"],
  "countryCode": "us",
  "languageCode": "en",
  "locationName": "New York,New York,United States",
  "device": "desktop",
  "maxAdsPerQuery": 10,
  "maxPagesPerQuery": 1,
  "includeBottomAds": true,
  "includeSummaryRows": true,
  "engine": "auto"
}

Output fields

Each ad row (recordType: "ad") represents one sponsored ad and bills one ad-found event.

Field	Type	Description
recordType	string	ad for a sponsored ad, advertiserSummary for a free share-of-voice row.
query	string	Keyword that produced the ad.
advertiser	string	Advertiser domain or name captured from the ad.
title	string	Ad headline.
description	string	Ad body copy.
displayUrl	string	Vanity URL shown in the ad.
finalUrl	string	Landing page URL.
position	string	Ad block position, such as top or bottom.
rankInBlock	integer	Rank within the ad block.
sitelinks	array	Sitelink objects attached to the ad.
extensions	array	Additional ad extensions captured when present.
phone	string or null	Call extension phone number when shown.
rating	string or null	Rating value when shown.
countryCode	string	Country used for the search.
languageCode	string	Language used for the search.
device	string	Device surface used for the search.
locationName	string or null	City location used for targeting, when provided.
page	integer	Google result page number.
searchUrl	string	Search URL used for the scrape.
scrapedAt	string	ISO timestamp for the record.

Example ad row

A subset of a real row from a recent run (car insurance, United States, desktop):

{
  "recordType": "ad",
  "query": "car insurance",
  "advertiser": "GEICO",
  "title": "Get GEICO® Auto Insurance | Free Online Quotes 24/7",
  "description": "GEICO®'s Car Insurance Quotes Are Personalized For You. Get a Quote Now.",
  "displayUrl": "https://www.geico.com",
  "finalUrl": "https://www.geico.com/landingpage/go558/",
  "position": "top",
  "rankInBlock": 2,
  "sitelinks": [
    { "title": "Get A Quote", "url": "https://www.geico.com/landingpage/go503/?soa=48312" },
    { "title": "Auto Coverage Calculator", "url": "https://www.geico.com/coverage-calculator/?soa=48134" }
  ],
  "extensions": [],
  "phone": null,
  "rating": null,
  "countryCode": "us",
  "languageCode": "en",
  "device": "desktop",
  "locationName": null,
  "page": 1
}

Advertiser share of voice

Every run also builds a free share-of-voice summary from the ads it saved. It is always written to the OUTPUT and RUN_SUMMARY records under shareOfVoice, and with includeSummaryRows: true it is also added to the dataset as one advertiserSummary row per advertiser. Summary rows are never billed.

Field	Description
advertiser	Advertiser domain, normalised (lowercase, no www.).
ads	Sponsored ads saved for this advertiser in the run.
adShare	Share of all saved ads (0-1).
keywordsWithAds	Number of requested keywords where the advertiser appeared.
keywordShare	Share of requested keywords where the advertiser appeared (0-1).
topOfPageAds / bottomOfPageAds	Ads in the top and bottom ad blocks.
topOfPageShare	Share of the advertiser's ads shown in the top block (0-1).
avgTopRank	Average rank inside the top block (1 = first ad), or null.
keywords	The keywords where the advertiser appeared.

Share of voice reflects only the ads saved in this run, so it depends on the keywords, country, device and the maxAdsPerQuery cap you chose.

Outcome codes

The OUTPUT record has an outcome field:

• COMPLETE: every requested keyword page was fetched.
• VALID_EMPTY: the pages loaded but Google showed no sponsored ads; nothing is charged for ads.
• PARTIAL: some keyword pages failed or the run charge limit was reached; the ads already saved are kept.
• INVALID_INPUT: no usable keywords (or no key for the forced managed engine); nothing is charged for ads.
• UPSTREAM_FAILED: every route failed and no ads were collected. The run is marked failed.

How it works

This Actor follows the live Google Search results page for the keywords you provide and extracts sponsored ads from the visible ad blocks. The contract shows support for:

• top and bottom sponsored-ad detection
• sitelink parsing
• extension parsing
• geo targeting through country and optional city location
• desktop and mobile targeting
• multi-strategy fallback selectors
• managed search API route with a residential-proxy browser fallback
• per-ad pay-per-event billing

The output dataset stores one record per paid ad, and the key-value store includes a run summary record.

Pricing

This Actor uses Pay per event, plus Apify platform usage.

The primary charged event is Sponsored ad, billed for each sponsored Google Search ad extracted. There is also an Actor Start event that applies when a run begins, with the amount tied to Actor memory usage. The input includes a per-keyword cost cap through maxAdsPerQuery, and your total event volume is bounded by the number of keywords multiplied by that cap.

For example, ten keywords with a cap of twenty ads per keyword can charge at most 200 Sponsored ad events. Share-of-voice summary rows are free. See the Pricing tab for current event prices.

Free Apify plan

Runs started from a free Apify plan return up to 40 results per run, with every input mode and output field available. Paid Apify plans have no per-run limit, so your usual result settings apply.

Use with AI agents (MCP)

This Actor is available through Apify MCP as a tool for retrieving live Google Search sponsored-ad records.

Actor identity: khadinakbar/google-ads-scraper

Tool description: accept a keyword list and targeting options, then return one dataset record per sponsored ad with advertiser, headline, copy, landing URL, rank, and search context.

Find the live sponsored ads for these keywords in the United States on desktop. Return one record per ad, keep the query and rank fields, and include the search URL so I can trace each result back to the source search.

When an agent reads the output, the dataset items are the ad records. The ads output link points to the dataset items endpoint, and runSummary points to the key-value store record for the run summary. For large keyword sets, pagination and cost scale with the number of keywords and the maxAdsPerQuery cap, so agent prompts work best when they specify a focused query list and target surface. The output link returns the OUTPUT record with the run outcome and the advertiser share-of-voice table.

API example

import { ApifyClient } from "apify-client";

const client = new ApifyClient({
  token: process.env.APIFY_TOKEN,
});

const input = {
  queries: ["car insurance", "crm software"],
  countryCode: "us",
  languageCode: "en",
  device: "desktop",
  maxAdsPerQuery: 10,
  includeBottomAds: true,
  engine: "auto",
};

const run = await client.actor("khadinakbar/google-ads-scraper").call(input);

const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();

console.log(items);

Best results and outcome guidance

Use the smallest input that answers the immediate question. A focused keyword list keeps the dataset easier to review and keeps the event count aligned with the ads you want to analyze. For city-level comparisons, provide locationName in the exact City,Region,Country form. For market-by-market research, keep countryCode and languageCode aligned with the audience and the Google interface language used in that market. If you want to compare search surfaces, run the same keywords on both desktop and mobile.

Continue the workflow

• Use Google Ads Transparency Scraper for an advertiser's creative history and run dates from the Transparency Center.
• Use Meta Ad Library Scraper when the brief also covers Facebook and Instagram ads.

Design note

Google injects many search ads with JavaScript, so a browser page that shows no ad blocks is not trusted as "no ads" on its own: when a search API key is available, the same keyword page is re-checked through the managed search API before the run reports zero ads. Ad rows are billed only after they are saved, and the per-keyword cap is enforced before each charge.

FAQ

Is this Actor for live Google Search ads or Transparency Center data?

This Actor returns live sponsored ads from Google Search results pages. For advertiser creative history and run dates, use the Google Ads Transparency Scraper instead.

What is one record in the dataset?

One record is one paid ad returned for one keyword on one search surface, with its advertiser, creative text, landing page, and targeting context.

Can I compare desktop and mobile ads?

Yes. The device field supports both desktop and mobile, so you can run the same keywords on each surface and compare the resulting ad sets.

Can I target a specific city?

Yes. Provide locationName in the exact City,Region,Country format to add city-level targeting on top of countryCode.

How do I measure advertiser share of voice?

Run your tracked keyword set and read shareOfVoice in the OUTPUT record, or set includeSummaryRows: true to get one free summary row per advertiser in the dataset. It shows each advertiser's share of ads, share of keywords and top-of-page share.

How should AI agents use the output?

Agents can read the dataset items endpoint for the ad records and use the run summary record for run-level context. The most useful fields for downstream routing are query, advertiser, title, finalUrl, position, rankInBlock, and searchUrl.

Responsible use

Use this Actor to collect publicly visible sponsored-ad data from Google Search and handle the results in line with applicable laws, Google's terms, and your own data governance practices. Keep keyword sets and targeting choices aligned with the research question, and treat the output as search-surface data for analysis, monitoring, and workflow automation.