What is GDN: partner network, ad mechanics and remarketing after the move to Demand Gen

GDN stands for Google Display Network, the network of websites, apps and Google properties such as YouTube and Gmail that carry image and video ads. As of 19 October 2026, the date the Google Ads Help pages were checked for this article, Google is moving the old Display campaign type into Demand Gen. The GDN inventory stays intact; what changes is where you set it up and which controls you get.

This article explains what the GDN is made of, how ads are chosen to show on it, how GDN remarketing and dynamic ads work once they live inside Demand Gen, and when the GDN is the right choice. Pricing and budgets are not the subject here, so they come up only where they affect setup.

What is the GDN, and what is its current status

According to the Google Ads Help page "About Display ads and the Google Display Network", the Display Network helps advertisers reach people while they browse websites, apps and Google-owned properties such as YouTube and Gmail. Put simply, Search shows an ad when someone types a query, while the GDN shows an ad while someone is reading news, watching a clip, playing in an app or checking email. At that moment the user is not looking for your product.

The term GDN used to mean both the network and the Display campaign type in a Google Ads account. Those two now need to be kept apart, because the network remains while the standalone Display campaign type is being folded into Demand Gen. The Help page "Google Display Network integration with Demand Gen" says plainly that Google Display Ads campaigns are moving to Demand Gen as the Google Display Network.

The timeline Google has published (checked 19 October 2026)

• March 2025: Demand Gen gained channel controls, Google video partners inside Demand Gen was renamed GDN, and the GDN opt-in moved from the campaign level to the ad group level.
• April 2025: Image inventory expanded to the GDN. Demand Gen campaigns opted into the GDN with image ads began serving there.
• June 2026: Google began a phased rollout of the migration tool. Eligible advertisers can voluntarily move existing Display campaigns to the GDN on Demand Gen.
• Next step (no date given by Google): New Google Display Ads campaigns can only be created within Demand Gen, and remaining eligible campaigns will be migrated automatically with no action needed.

On the date checked, the Help page still lists those last two steps as future events with no date attached. Accounts that still hold old Display campaigns can keep editing them until they are migrated, but it is unwise to build long-term plans on this campaign type. If you are reading this much later, go back to the Help page "Google Display Ads campaigns have a new home in Demand Gen", because the status may have moved on.

What the migration tool does

The Help page describes five steps.

1. Go to Campaigns, open the filter, choose Attributes and set Campaign type to Display.
2. Tick the campaigns you want to migrate.
3. Open the Edit menu and choose the option to upgrade to Demand Gen.
4. Click Apply. Migration may take a few minutes.
5. Check the results under Tools, then All bulk actions.

Google does not recommend migrating more than 100 campaigns in a single batch, and a migration cannot be reverted. Once migrated, settings and learning carry over to the new campaign, and 42 days of performance history moves with it, which Google says shortens the learning period to about 1 to 2 days. The budget carries over too, but spend earlier on the migration day is not counted. The original campaigns are set to Removed and kept for reporting for up to 5 years.

Migrated campaigns have the Google Display Network opted in by default, and it cannot be unselected during migration. After migration you can add YouTube and Gmail yourself, while newly introduced features default to opted out. In practice, a migrated campaign keeps running mainly on the GDN rather than spreading across every Demand Gen channel at once.

What blocks a migration

The Help page lists items that must be fixed first. If a campaign has any of them, the tool will not migrate it.

• Responsive Display Ads with disclaimers in an unsupported format
• Responsive Display Ads without a logo (the tool can add one)
• Custom promo text or price prefixes
• Click-to-call assets, which need an additional call-to-action (CTA) added to the campaign
• Lead form assets
• Ad group bid modifiers and some ad group exclusions
• Product filters
• Shared budgets, which must become a dedicated campaign budget
• Campaign-level content suitability exclusions, which must move to account level
• Opting out of native formats

What Demand Gen does not support yet

This part matters most for anyone used to the old Display setup, because some familiar methods disappear. The Help page says Demand Gen does not support:

• Bidding: Manual CPC, Viewable Impressions bidding, Pay for conversions, bid adjustments, seasonality adjustments and portfolio bidding.
• Audiences: combined audiences, hard targeting for household income and parental status, and observation settings for non-demographic segments.
• Formats: uploaded HTML5 ads and third-party ads, both planned for late 2026.
• Measurement: Brand Lift and Search Lift for the GDN.

If your campaigns rely on Manual CPC or on device and time-of-day bid adjustments, start working out now what will steer results instead: clearer conversion goals, ad groups split by audience, or separate campaigns where you genuinely need separate budgets.

Which partner sites and apps make up the GDN

The GDN has two broad groups of inventory. The first is Google's own properties, such as YouTube and Gmail. The second is third-party websites and apps that join the network to earn revenue from ads, from news sites, blogs and forums to mobile games and utility apps.

The size of the network is a figure Google states itself, and its pages do not agree. The page "Google Display Network integration with Demand Gen" says the GDN reaches over 90% of the global internet population across more than 3 million sites and apps, the page "Google Display Ads campaigns have a new home in Demand Gen" says more than 2 million sites and apps, and the older Display page says Display campaigns can reach people across 35 million websites and apps.

Channels once the GDN sits inside Demand Gen

Inside Demand Gen, the channel picture gets wider. The page "About Demand Gen campaigns" says Demand Gen serves ads on YouTube (including Shorts), Discover, Gmail, Maps and the Google Display Network, all within one campaign, with control at the ad group level through the Channels panel. If you do not want an ad group to show on the GDN, uncheck "Google Display Network". If you want video to run on the GDN but not image ads, put video and image ads in separate ad groups in the same campaign, then turn the GDN off only for the image group.

Google began rolling out channel prioritization progressively from 15 October 2026. In Demand Gen, Google channels such as YouTube, Discover and Gmail are grouped together, and the GDN can be given its own High or Low priority. Demand Gen does not support the channel-level budget allocation that other campaign types get, though. If you want the GDN to be funded second, you can set it to Low priority, but you cannot cap it at a percentage.

How the GDN works

Each time a user opens a web page or app with GDN ad space, the system runs an auction. The ads eligible to compete are those whose targeting matches the user or the context of that page. The system then picks the ad expected to perform best given each campaign's bid and goal. The process breaks down into three layers.

Layer 1: who the viewer is

The main signal is the audience. Demand Gen has a "Your data" group that covers website visitors, app users, YouTube users who engaged with your videos or channel, and customer lists. On top of that there are interest segments, in-market segments, custom segments, and one thing the old Display setup did not have: lookalike segments, which find new users similar to a seed audience such as past buyers, website visitors or people who watched your YouTube channel's videos. Note that lookalike segments cannot be used outside Demand Gen.

Layer 2: where they are and which language they use

Demand Gen lets you set location and language at either the campaign level or the ad group level, never both. If you want to split Bangkok from the rest of the country, or Thai speakers from English speakers, within one campaign, you need to decide from the start to set them at ad group level.

Layer 3: what the ad looks like and how it bids

Demand Gen supports image ads, video ads, carousels (2 to 10 cards) and product feed ads. Images should be prepared in 1.91:1 landscape, 4:5 portrait and 1:1 square. Available bid strategies include Maximize Clicks, Maximize Conversions, Maximize Conversion Value and target-based strategies such as Target CPA. The Demand Gen FAQ suggests moving to tCPA or tROAS after the campaign has received at least 50 conversions, and the About Demand Gen page recommends a daily budget of at least 10 times the Target CPA. All of this needs a correctly installed Google tag that actually records conversions. Where conversions are still too few, Google suggests lighter events such as add to basket or site visits as early optimisation goals.

Frequency is another change. The Demand Gen FAQ says the system controls impression frequency automatically and advertisers cannot set frequency caps. What you can do is review unique reach and impressions at campaign level, then adjust audiences or creatives when frequency starts to look too high.

How GDN remarketing works after the move to Demand Gen

GDN remarketing means showing ads to people who have already interacted with your business, for example by visiting your site, opening your app or appearing on your customer list. Google Ads now calls these "your data segments". The principle has not changed, but the setup inside Demand Gen has details worth knowing. If you want a team to build this system from the start, see the remarketing service.

Setting up GDN remarketing step by step

1. Install the Google tag on every page and use Tag Assistant to confirm it sends data from every page template, including product pages, the basket and the thank-you page, before you build any segment.
2. Build segments in Audience Manager by behaviour, for example product page viewers, people who added to basket without buying, people who abandoned a form, and existing customers.
3. Set membership duration to match the product's decision cycle. A low-priced product may suit a short window, while a B2B service with a long decision may need a longer one.
4. Add these segments to Demand Gen ad groups and split ad groups by customer stage so each group sees a different message.
5. Exclude people who have already bought from the groups that invite them to buy, so budget is not spent on people who no longer need inviting.

Watch for one thing while building the campaign. The Demand Gen FAQ warns that Audience Manager may show segments that are only usable for Display, because it does not filter by campaign type. If the campaign will not accept a segment you picked, check that first. And because Demand Gen does not support combined audiences, segments built in Display with complex AND/OR conditions need rethinking, for example by splitting them across several ad groups instead.

Remarketing limits to be aware of

With no manual frequency cap, running the same message for too long makes it easy for people in a segment to see the same ad until they tire of it. The practical fixes are to prepare several creative sets and rotate them, keep membership durations no longer than needed, and compare unique reach with impressions regularly. If the ratio of impressions to unique reach keeps rising, the same people are seeing your ads more often.

GDN dynamic ads: dynamic advertising inside Demand Gen

In the old Display setup, dynamic remarketing showed people the products or services they had viewed on your site or app, pulled from a feed. In Demand Gen the same job is done by product feed ads, which pull products from Google Merchant Center and show them automatically as a carousel. Google's system predicts user interest and picks which products to show, supporting Maximize Conversions, Target CPA and Target ROAS goals.

Practical details from the Help pages worth knowing before you start:

• A new feed can take up to 3 days to be approved, so prepare it well before launch day.
• Product filtering during campaign setup supports only one filter type at a time, such as product ID or product type, and uses OR logic.
• Advertisers promoting alcohol cannot use product feeds.
• The Products page in Google Ads shows product stats for Demand Gen campaigns at the campaign level.

For businesses that do not sell individual products, such as services, schools or clinics, dynamic ads may not be needed. Splitting ad groups by the service a user viewed, then using images and copy that match that service, is often simpler and gives more control.

Advantages of running the GDN

• Reach people before they search. Search only reaches people who already know what they want. The GDN reaches people who do not know the brand yet but share the traits or interests of your customers.
• Tell the story with images and video.
• Remarketing brings undecided visitors back. The GDN keeps the brand in view while they decide.
• New tools inside Demand Gen. Lookalike segments, carousel ads and format-level reporting were not available in the old Display setup.
• One place to manage. Images, video, YouTube, Gmail, Discover and the GDN sit in one campaign, which cuts duplicated setup work.

Limitations of running the GDN

• Lower purchase intent than Search. Users are not looking for your product at that moment, and Google advises evaluating Demand Gen against campaign-specific KPIs aligned to your goals and bid strategy.
• Placement quality varies. Check the "Where ads showed" report regularly. Businesses that worry about this should consider extra safeguards such as click fraud protection.
• Placement exclusions move to account level. The Demand Gen FAQ says topic and placement exclusions will not be generally available at campaign or ad group level and are managed on the account-level Content Suitability page. This hits accounts with several brands or products that need different rules.
• Fewer fine-grained controls. There is no Manual CPC, no bid adjustments and no manual frequency cap. Anyone who managed campaigns by hand has to steer through the quality of conversion signals and ad group structure instead.
• Creatives must cover several formats. The Demand Gen FAQ says a campaign that uses only one creative format serves only on inventory eligible for that format.

Who the GDN suits, and when to choose it

The GDN suits businesses with enough site traffic to support remarketing, products that communicate well through images, or a goal of building awareness within a clearly defined audience. A new business with a very tight budget is usually better off starting with Search, which reaches people with clearer demand, then adding the GDN once there are enough visitors to build remarketing segments.

Another common question is whether to use the GDN or buy programmatic media through other platforms. The two differ in where the inventory comes from and in the controls available. If you need inventory outside Google's network, or direct deals with publishers, see the overview of programmatic advertising.

Google Display Network examples

The examples below are hypothetical scenarios that illustrate setup. They are not real client cases and carry no results figures.

An online store with hundreds of products

A fashion e-commerce store connects Merchant Center to a Demand Gen campaign and uses product feed ads to show a carousel to people who viewed product pages without buying. A separate ad group uses lookalike segments built from the existing buyer list to find new customers, and recent buyers are excluded from both groups.

A B2B company with a long decision cycle

An enterprise software company builds a segment of people who downloaded a document but have not contacted sales, sets a long membership duration to match its decision cycle, and shows short videos and images that answer the concerns common at that stage, with a demo booking form as the conversion goal.

A local service business

A clinic in Bangkok sets location at ad group level with one ad group per branch, uses 4:5 portrait images for mobile, and sends users to each branch's Thai-language service page. This setup requires deciding from the start to set location at ad group level, because Demand Gen does not allow both levels at once.

Checklist before migrating Display campaigns to Demand Gen

1. Export all placement exclusions, app exclusion lists and content suitability settings and keep a copy.
2. Move campaign-level exclusions to account level, since they block migration.
3. Replace shared budgets with dedicated campaign budgets.
4. Add logos to Responsive Display Ads that lack them, add a call-to-action where click-to-call assets are used, and remove lead form assets.
5. Plan how automated strategies with clear conversion goals will replace Manual CPC and bid adjustments.
6. Prepare a full set of 1.91:1, 4:5 and 1:1 images.
7. Migrate in batches of no more than 100 campaigns and check the results under All bulk actions.
8. Monitor closely for the first several days, since Google notes that performance often fluctuates in that period.

What this means for the Thai market

Accounts that set up the GDN with Manual CPC and frequency caps lose both methods in Demand Gen. The work to start now is making conversion measurement accurate enough for automated bidding to learn from, for example checking that contact forms, call buttons and chat buttons are counted correctly as conversions.

Thai-language creative needs more preparation too. Test readability on a real phone screen before uploading, and if the brand communicates in both Thai and English, decide at the campaign structure stage at which level languages will be split.

For businesses that want the GDN to generate leads, sending people to a Thai-language landing page with a short form and fast load time matters as much as campaign setup.

FAQ

Does the GDN still exist after Display moves to Demand Gen?

Yes, the Google Display Network still exists. What is being folded into Demand Gen is the standalone Display campaign type, and inside Demand Gen you can still choose to show ads on the GDN at the ad group level.

Do I have to migrate my old Display campaigns myself right now?

As of 19 October 2026 it is not mandatory, but you can if your account is eligible for the migration tool that began rolling out in June 2026. Google says remaining campaigns will be migrated automatically in a later step. Migrating yourself first lets you fix blockers and review the settings rather than waiting for the system to move them.

Can I set a frequency cap for GDN remarketing in Demand Gen?

No, you cannot. The Demand Gen FAQ says the system controls frequency automatically. What you can do is track unique reach and impressions at campaign level, rotate creatives and set sensible membership durations for your segments.

Can I undo a migration?

No, a migration cannot be reverted. Once migrated, the original campaign is set to Removed but kept for reporting for up to 5 years, and the new campaign receives the settings, learning and 42 days of performance history.

Summary

The GDN is still the same network that reaches people while they read, watch and use apps, but the way you buy it has moved into Demand Gen, which adds new tools such as lookalike segments and removes some manual controls. If you want to plan campaigns that use the GDN alongside Search and other Google Ads channels, see the Google Ads management service, or for a team to handle the migration and set up image advertising specifically, see Google Display advertising services.