# Google Ads Transparency Center Scraper (`umararshad2/google-ads-transparency-scraper`) Actor

Google Ads Transparency Center scraper and ad library export: every Search, Display & YouTube ad a brand, domain or advertiser ID runs. Creative ID, format, first/last shown, days active, landing domain, optional per-country reach. No login. $0.80/1k ads.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/umararshad2/google-ads-transparency-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [Umar Arshad](https://apify.com/umararshad2) (community)
- **Categories:** Marketing, SEO tools, Lead generation
- **Stats:** 3 total users, 2 monthly users, 75.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $0.50 / 1,000 ads

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

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

## Google Ads Transparency Scraper: competitor ads by brand, domain or advertiser ID

Export the ads any company runs on Google Search, Display, YouTube and Shopping, taken from Google's public **[Ads Transparency Center](https://adstransparency.google.com/)**. You don't need a login, cookies or a browser. **You pay $0.80 per 1,000 ads**, with no start fee.

### What you can do with it

- **Spy on competitors' ads:** see every creative a brand is running right now and how long each one has been live.
- **Find long-running ads:** filter on `daysActive`. An ad that has run for years is usually one that converts.
- **Lead generation:** check which domains advertise on Google, and in which countries.
- **Monitor ads:** schedule a daily run and diff the `creativeId` values to spot new ads.

### Input

| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| `searchQueries` | Brand names, e.g. `nike`. Each name is matched to the advertiser account running the most ads. Use `maxAdvertisersPerQuery` to include more accounts. |
| `domains` | Landing domains, e.g. `hubspot.com`. Returns ads from every advertiser that points to that domain. |
| `advertiserIds` | Exact `AR…` IDs copied from an Ads Transparency Center URL. |
| `region` | Country filter, 59 countries or `anywhere`. |
| `adFormat` | `all`, `text`, `image` or `video`. |
| `maxAdsPerTarget` | Maximum ads per name, domain or ID. Defaults to 40; the form is prefilled with 10 for a quick test. |
| `includeDetails` | Optional add-on: legal advertiser name, the countries each ad was shown in (with last-shown date) and variation previews. |

```json
{ "domains": ["hubspot.com"], "region": "GB", "maxAdsPerTarget": 10 }
```

### Output (real row from a test run on 2026-10-15)

```json
{
  "advertiserId": "AR10072600183532683265",
  "advertiserName": "Hubspot, Inc.",
  "creativeId": "CR06539725940300185601",
  "format": "TEXT",
  "targetDomain": "hubspot.com",
  "firstShown": "2022-01-24T08:00:00.000Z",
  "lastShown": "2026-10-15T04:41:53.000Z",
  "daysActive": 1726,
  "imageUrl": "https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/archive/simgad/5761541662725347022",
  "adUrl": "https://adstransparency.google.com/advertiser/AR10072600183532683265/creative/CR06539725940300185601?region=GB",
  "region": "GB",
  "searchType": "domain",
  "searchInput": "hubspot.com"
}
```

With `includeDetails` turned on (real values from a Nike, Inc. video ad):

```json
{ "legalAdvertiserName": "Nike, Inc.", "shownInRegions": [{ "region": "US", "lastShown": "2026-10-14" }], "regionCount": 1, "variationCount": 5 }
```

You can export results as JSON, CSV, Excel or HTML, or pull them through the Apify API. A run summary with per-target counts is saved as `RUN_SUMMARY` in the key-value store.

### Pricing (pay per event)

| Event | FREE | BRONZE | SILVER | GOLD+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ad | $0.0008 | $0.0007 | $0.0006 | $0.0005 |
| Creative details add-on (only when turned on and returned) | $0.0012 | $0.0010 | $0.0009 | $0.0008 |

There's **no Actor start fee**. If Google blocks the run or returns nothing, nothing is charged and the run reports why.

#### How it compares (Apify Store, FREE-tier prices, checked 2026-10-14)

| Actor | Price per 1,000 ads | Extra |
|---|---|---|
| **This Actor** | **$0.80** | details $1.20/1k, no start fee |
| scrapesage/google-ads-transparency-scraper | $2.00 | details $3.00/1k |
| solidcode/ads-transparency-scraper | $1.50 | + start fee |
| s-r/google-ads-transparency | $1.50 | |
| memo23/google-ad-transparency-scraper-cheerio | $2.00 | + $0.005 per start |
| xtech/google-ad-transparency-scraper | $20.00 | |

### Tips and limits

- Big brands often run several advertiser accounts (one per country or reseller). Raise `maxAdvertisersPerQuery`, or use `domains` to catch all of them.
- Some text and video ads come with a `previewUrl` (Google's render script) instead of a static `imageUrl`. Open `adUrl` to see the ad itself.
- The data is only what Google publishes in the Transparency Center. Spend and impressions are not public outside political ads.
- This Actor is not affiliated with Google. It reads only public, company-level ad data, with no personal data.

# Actor input Schema

## `searchQueries` (type: `array`):

Advertiser or brand names, e.g. "nike". Each name is matched to the closest verified advertiser(s) in the Transparency Center.

## `domains` (type: `array`):

Domains the ads point to, e.g. "nike.com". Returns ads from every advertiser that runs ads for that domain.

## `advertiserIds` (type: `array`):

Exact advertiser IDs starting with AR, taken from an adstransparency.google.com/advertiser/AR... URL.

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

Only ads shown in this country. "Anywhere" returns ads from all regions. Also accepts a country name (e.g. "United Kingdom") or "UK"; unknown values fall back to all regions.

## `adFormat` (type: `string`):

Filter by creative format.

## `maxAdsPerTarget` (type: `integer`):

Stop after this many ads for each input target. Keep it small for a quick test.

## `maxAdvertisersPerQuery` (type: `integer`):

How many matching advertiser accounts to scrape per brand name (big brands often have several, e.g. one per country).

## `includeDetails` (type: `boolean`):

Adds the legal advertiser name, the list of countries each ad was shown in (with last-shown date) and all variation preview links. Charged as an extra 'ad-details' event only when details are returned.

## `proxyConfiguration` (type: `object`):

Usually not needed. Turn on Apify Proxy only if you see blocked requests.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "searchQueries": [
    "nike",
    "shopify",
    "notion"
  ],
  "domains": [
    "nike.com",
    "hubspot.com"
  ],
  "advertiserIds": [
    "AR06641858037806006273"
  ],
  "region": "anywhere",
  "adFormat": "all",
  "maxAdsPerTarget": 10,
  "maxAdvertisersPerQuery": 1,
  "includeDetails": false,
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": false
  }
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `overview` (type: `string`):

No description

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

No description

## `runSummary` (type: `string`):

No description

# 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 = {
    "searchQueries": [
        "nike"
    ],
    "maxAdsPerTarget": 10
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("umararshad2/google-ads-transparency-scraper").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 = {
    "searchQueries": ["nike"],
    "maxAdsPerTarget": 10,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("umararshad2/google-ads-transparency-scraper").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 '{
  "searchQueries": [
    "nike"
  ],
  "maxAdsPerTarget": 10
}' |
apify call umararshad2/google-ads-transparency-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,umararshad2/google-ads-transparency-scraper"
        }
    }
}
```

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/amzHGQ4kILdKvzhGw/builds/UlDKpG14JDCQ3zcEQ/openapi.json