A high-quality, functional website is essential for participating in the Google Ad Grants program. Our website policies are designed to ensure that organizations provide a positive experience for users who click on their ads and that the website accurately reflects the nonprofit's mission. This guide provides detailed information and actionable steps to help you understand and meet these requirements.
Domain ownership policy
Your nonprofit must own the domain(s) your ads point to.
Administrative control
What it means: "Own" means you have administrative control over the website's content, structure, and technical settings. The domain you submit must directly host your organization's website. It cannot automatically redirect visitors to a different web address, a third-party platform (like a donation portal), or a social media page.
While many nonprofits use .org domains, it is not a strict requirement for Ad Grants. You can use other top-level domains (like .com, .ngo, .foundation, etc.) as long as your organization fully owns and controls the website hosted on that domain.
High-quality website policy
Your website needs to offer visitors significant value and be easy to use.
Substantial and unique content
- What it means: Your site must have a significant amount of original content that is directly related to your nonprofit's mission and activities. It should provide real value to visitors seeking information about your cause or services.
- Common pitfalls:
- Very little text content ("thin content").
- Content primarily copied from other sources without adding significant original value.
- Pages that are mostly links to other websites or embedded content (like video playlists) without supporting text.
- Many pages "Under Construction" or containing primarily placeholder text.
- Relying heavily on PDF documents instead of HTML web pages for core information.
- Action: Ensure your key pages (Homepage, About Us, Mission, Programs/Services, Contact) are well-developed with detailed, unique text. Consider adding a blog, news section, or resources page to demonstrate ongoing activity and provide value.
Clear mission and activities
- What it means: Your website must clearly state your nonprofit's mission and describe its activities or services. Visitors should easily understand what your organization does and who it serves.
- Common pitfalls: Mission statement is vague, buried deep in the site, or missing entirely. It's difficult for a new visitor to quickly grasp the organization's purpose or nonprofit status.
- Action: Feature your mission statement prominently, often on the homepage or a dedicated "About Us" page. Clearly describe your main programs, services, and impact. Include your physical address, nonprofit registration number (EIN, tax ID) and/or an annual report.
Easy navigation and functionality
- What it means: Users must be able to easily find information on your site. All links should work correctly.
- Common pitfalls: Confusing menu structure, disorganized pages, broken internal or external links ("404 errors"), placeholder social media icons in website templates that link to nowhere, links that lead to empty pages, broken donation buttons.
- Action: Use a clear and logical navigation menu (e.g., header or sidebar). Organize content intuitively. Regularly check your site for broken links using online tools (search for "broken link checker"). Ensure all buttons, especially donation links, lead to the correct, functional pages.
Fast loading speed
- What it means: Your website pages should load quickly for users on various devices and connection speeds. Slow websites lead to poor user experience and high bounce rates.
- Why it matters: Users expect pages to load quickly. Slow sites frustrate visitors and can negatively impact your ad performance. Google considers page speed as part of the overall website quality.
- Common pitfalls: Large, unoptimized image files; complex website themes or excessive plugins/widgets; large amounts of custom scripts (JavaScript/CSS); inadequate web hosting (even if it seems fast locally, it might be slow for others globally or on mobile networks).
- Action:
- Test your site speed using Google's PageSpeed Insights tool. This tool provides specific recommendations.
- Optimize images for the web (compress them, use appropriate formats like WebP or JPG/PNG).
- Use a well-coded, lightweight theme.
- Minimize the use of plugins and scripts that aren't essential.
- Enable browser caching and compression on your web server.
- Consider upgrading your hosting plan if necessary.
- Pay attention to the "Mobile" score in PageSpeed Insights, as many users will visit from mobile devices.
Mobile-friendly design
- What it means: Your website must display and function correctly on smartphones and tablets.
- Action: Use a responsive website design that automatically adjusts to different screen sizes. Test your site using Google's Mobile-Friendly Test tool.
Technical requirement policy
Your website must be secure.
Secure connection (HTTPS)
- What it means: Your entire website must be served over HTTPS, providing a secure, encrypted connection.
- Common pitfalls: Not having an SSL certificate installed; having an expired SSL certificate; having "mixed content" errors (where the main page is HTTPS, but some elements like images or scripts load over HTTP).
- Action: Install an SSL certificate on your web server (many hosts offer certificates). Ensure your website automatically redirects all HTTP traffic to HTTPS.
Content and website behavior policy
Your website must comply with Ad Grants policies regarding commercial activity, advertising, and prohibited content.
Commercial activity
- What it means: Generally, your site should focus on your mission. Limited commercial activity (like an online store selling mission-related items) may be acceptable, but it shouldn't be the primary focus. You must clearly disclose how those proceeds directly support your nonprofit programs. Financial information must be clearly presented. Your site cannot host excessive third-party ads (e.g., Google AdSense) or primarily function to send traffic to other websites via affiliate links. Donation links must work and go to a secure page dedicated to donations.
- Action: Don't display AdSense ads on your website. Ensure your donation process is clear, secure (HTTPS), and functional.
Note: Any account found in violation of program policies is subject to automatic suspension without notification. Google reserves the right to grant or deny an organization's application or participation at any time, for any reason, and to supplement or amend these eligibility guidelines at any time.
Understanding website rejections
The review process checks for compliance across all these areas. If your application was rejected or your account suspended due to website issues, carefully review your site against all the points in this guide.
Here are some of the most common reasons websites fail to meet Ad Grants policy requirements and how to fix them:
| Rejection reason | What it means | Corrective action |
| Insufficient unique content | The site relies heavily on PDFs, single-page designs, or copied text. | Add detailed, original text describing your programs, events, and services. |
| Unclear mission | Visitors cannot easily identify what your organization does. | Add a prominent mission statement, physical address, and Charity or Tax ID. |
| Poor navigation / broken links | The site contains broken links, empty pages, or non-working buttons. | Run a link audit, fix all 404 errors, and test all donation and contact buttons. |
| Slow load speed | Pages load slowly, especially on mobile networks. | Optimize images and review suggestions in Google PageSpeed Insights. |
| Not secure (no HTTPS) | SSL certificate is missing, expired, or triggering mixed-content alerts. | Install an SSL certificate and redirect all traffic to HTTPS. |
| Disallowed commercial activity | Excessive advertising, Google AdSense tags, or lack of commercial sales disclosure. | Remove third-party ad networks and clearly explain how shop proceeds support your mission. |
| Domain redirect | The submitted domain forwards to a social network or separate portal. |
Ensure your ads land on a site directly hosted on your owned domain. |
Action after rejection: Use the list above as a checklist. Thoroughly audit your website against every requirement detailed in this guide. Utilize the recommended tools (PageSpeed Insights, Mobile-Friendly Test, Broken Link Checkers).
Requesting an additional domain
Before submitting a new domain for consideration, you must ensure it meets all of our website policy qualifications. Once confirmed, your organization may request approval through the additional website domain(s) request form. Please note that requests submitted via the form will be reviewed within 3-5 business days.
