How Google’s Display Network uses location information
The Google Display Network is a collection of more than 2 million websites, videos, and apps, including some Google-owned properties such as Gmail and YouTube. These publishers partner with Google to show ads from advertisers.
Location information plays an important role in making your ad experience more relevant and helpful.
How Display Network uses location to show you ads
Ads on the Display Network can be shown to you based on your location. This can include location derived from the device’s IP address or other signals outlined in Google's Privacy & Terms.
Depending on your settings in My Ad Center, you may also be shown ads on Gmail and YouTube based on your activity while signed into your Google Account. This includes Display Network activity stored in your Web & App Activity.
You have control over the data stored in your Google account and you can turn off personalized ads at any time. When personalized ads are turned off, Google doesn't use the data stored in your Google account to show you more relevant ads.
If you've chosen to opt-in to Location History, Google also uses the information to help advertisers measure how an online ad campaign influences visits to physical retail locations. Google only reports aggregate statistics to advertisers by combining your online activity data, such as ad clicks, with Location History information pertaining to an advertiser’s stores. This aggregated information is used to estimate how often users who saw an online ad campaign visited the advertiser’s store. Google doesn't share your Location History or any other identifying information with advertisers.
How Google determines your general location on the Display Network
Google may be provided with different types of location information depending on which products you’re using. This information supports the functionality of Google products and helps make the ads you’re shown more useful for you.
Examples of how Google may learn about your location:
- From the IP address of your Internet connection: IP addresses are used to make the connection between your device and the websites and services you use. IP addresses are roughly based on geography, which means that any website you use may get some information about your general area. Google may consider the IP address assigned to your device by your Internet Service Provider to determine your general location.
- From the website you're browsing or past activity: When you visit a website or app on the Display Network, metadata from the visit, like browser timezone, domain, page content, browser type, and page language, may be used to estimate your country or a general area you're interested in. We may rely on this metadata in addition to location signals we get from your IP address, VPN, proxy service, or other network information. We may also determine a location based on past browsing or app activity.
Learn more about Google’s privacy policy regarding location.