LSA Migration to Google Ads Single Dashboard: 2026 Guide

Google has officially announced that Local Services Ads (LSAs) are moving out of their separate standalone dashboard and into the main Google Ads platform. If you run LSA campaigns for your local service business — whether plumbing, HVAC, roofing, pest control, or any eligible category — this change affects you directly. It is rolling out in phases starting August 2026, and there is no opt-out.

The good news: the pay-per-lead model is not going away. Your ad placements on Google Search and Google Maps stay exactly the same. What is changing is where you manage everything, how budgets and bidding work, and a handful of features that are being retired. This guide covers all of it clearly, including the official FAQs straight from Google's support page, so you know exactly what to expect and what to do right now.

Why Google Is Making This Change

The LSA dashboard was always a separate tool sitting alongside Google Ads rather than inside it. Billing and user access already lived in Google Ads, but campaign management, lead review, budgets, and verification all required jumping to a different interface. This migration brings everything under one roof, giving advertisers a single dashboard to manage both traditional Google Ads campaigns and Local Services campaigns together.

Internally, LSA campaigns are being converted into a specialised type of Performance Max campaign built specifically for the pay-per-lead model. Despite the Performance Max name, these campaigns do not expand onto YouTube, Gmail, or the Google Display Network. They continue to serve only on Google Search and Google Maps, just as LSAs always have.

What Is NOT Changing

Before covering the changes, here is what Google has confirmed stays exactly the same after migration:

• Pay-per-lead model: You still only pay for valid leads such as phone calls and messages, not for ad clicks.
• Ad placements: Your ads continue showing at the very top of Google Search and on Google Maps, in the same positions as before.
• Keywordless targeting: Your campaign stays keywordless — targeting is based on your service categories and service areas, not keyword lists.
• Google Verified badge: Your verification status and badge transfer automatically. No re-verification is required.
• Lead history: Past customer leads, contact details, message history, and call recordings all carry over to the new Lead Manager inside Google Ads.
• Licence and insurance re-verification: Annual re-verification of expired documents is being removed. Initial verification still applies for new accounts.

What IS Changing

Here is a clear breakdown of every change coming with this migration:

1. A Single Dashboard for Everything

The standalone Local Services Ads dashboard is being retired. Once your account migrates, logging into the old LSA interface will automatically redirect you to your campaign overview inside Google Ads. All campaign management — budgets, targeting, lead review, photos, and callouts — moves into Google Ads.

2. Budgets Switch from Weekly to Daily

LSAs currently use an Average Weekly Budget. Google Ads uses a daily budget model. At migration, your weekly budget is automatically divided by 7 to set your daily average. Monthly spend is capped at your daily budget multiplied by 30.4, so your overall monthly billing does not increase. Daily spend may fluctuate on busier days, but the monthly ceiling holds firm.

3. Manual Bidding Is Being Retired

The ability to manually set a maximum cost-per-lead is being deprecated. If you were running different Target CPL amounts for separate verticals under one campaign, a unified campaign-level Target CPA will be calculated and applied across all verticals. To maintain separate economics for different service categories after migration, you will need to run separate campaigns per vertical.

4. Where Your Leads Now Live

Lead management moves to a new location inside Google Ads. To access your leads, navigate to Goals > Conversions > Leads. This replaces the LSA lead inbox with all the same features: lead status, lead type (call, message, booking), lead feedback, and the option to download leads for import into your CRM. If message leads are active for your vertical, you can read and reply to them directly from inside Google Ads.

5. Better Business Bureau Callouts Are Removed

BBB callouts are no longer supported. If your profile was using a BBB rating as a Business Bio callout, that will be removed at migration. Google recommends adding at least 6 structured callouts from the available options — things like business hours, specialties, or accepted payment methods — to help your listing stand out.

6. Real-Time Phone Number Editing

Previously, changing the phone number your LSA calls route to required contacting LSA support directly. After migration, advertisers can update this instantly inside Google Ads at the click of a button — no support call needed.

7. Google Business Profile Sync

Your business name, physical address, and standard hours will sync automatically from your Google Business Profile to Google Ads. This sync runs one direction only — from GBP to Google Ads. Significant changes to your business name or address will trigger a verification review that typically takes 24 to 48 hours, during which your campaign may temporarily pause. Service areas, ad schedules, and photos can be customised independently inside Google Ads.

8. Historical Performance Reports Do NOT Carry Over

This is the most time-sensitive item on the entire list. Once your account migrates, you will no longer be able to access historical performance reports from the old LSA dashboard. Impressions, click data, weekly spend history, and ad-level reports will not transfer to Google Ads. You must download and save these reports before your migration date arrives.

The Migration Timeline: 3 Phases

Google is rolling this out in a phased approach rather than migrating every account at once. Here is the full timeline confirmed by Google:

Phase 1 — August 2026

The first phase covers select home and storefront service advertisers in the United States. Eligible verticals in this phase include: Plumbing, HVAC, Electrical, Appliance Repair, House Cleaning, Lawn Care, Roofing, Pest Control, and Moving.

Phase 2 — Late 2026

The migration expands to broader advertiser groups, including service-area businesses without physical storefronts and accounts with custom bidding or booking configurations.

Phase 3 — 2027

Non-US accounts and all remaining business categories not included in the 2026 migration will transition to Google Ads in 2027.

What to Expect During Your Migration

Google automates the entire migration process. Here is exactly what happens and when:

• 14 days before your migration date: Your account administrator receives an advance email notification and a warning banner appears inside your current LSA dashboard.
• 7 days before: A reminder email is sent to your account administrator.
• Migration day: Your entire campaign setup transfers automatically to Google Ads — targeted locations, service types, business categories, budget, ad schedule, and business photos all move over with no manual input required from you.
• After migration: You receive a final confirmation email once the migration is successfully completed.
• Allow up to two weeks: Google advises allowing up to 14 days for campaign performance to ramp back to stable levels after migration.

Managing Your Campaigns in Google Ads After Migration

When you first log into Google Ads after migration, check your settings to confirm everything carried over correctly. Here is where to find the key management areas:

• Campaign performance: View real-time data in your Google Ads campaign dashboard. Key metrics to watch are Conversions (total charged leads), Cost (total ad spend), and Cost per Conversion (average cost per lead).
• Budgets and bidding: Go to Settings within the Campaigns menu, select your pay-per-lead campaign to review and adjust your daily budget and Target CPA.
• Targeting settings: In the Settings tab for your Campaigns page, select your campaign to review service areas, ad schedules, and business categories.
• Pausing and resuming: Navigate to Campaigns > Settings, select your campaign, and toggle the campaign status between Paused and Enabled.
• Lead Manager: Go to Goals > Conversions > Leads to review, download, rate, and manage all your leads.
• Message leads: Click on any individual lead to open the communication panel and reply to message leads directly inside Google Ads.
• Ad assets: Navigate to the Assets page to upload additional business photos (up to 100) and manage your structured callouts (up to 6 per category).

What This Means Strategically for Local Service Businesses

For businesses already using our Google LSA management service, we will handle migration monitoring and post-migration settings review on your behalf. For anyone managing their own account, the most urgent action right now is downloading historical performance data before your migration date arrives.

The removal of manual CPL bidding and the shift to campaign-level Target CPA means the account relies more heavily on being configured correctly from the start. Job types, service areas, and bidding targets need to be accurate upfront because correction mechanisms are now more limited. If you are running multiple service verticals under one LSA campaign and want to maintain different cost-per-lead targets for each, you will need to split these into separate campaigns after migration.

The direction Google is moving here — from manual correction to automated optimisation — is consistent with broader changes to the Google Ads campaign management ecosystem. Accounts configured precisely and maintained consistently will perform best in this new environment.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

These are the official FAQs from Google's support page on the LSA migration, answered in full:

How do I know when my business is migrating?

You will receive a dedicated advance email 14 days before your scheduled migration date, and a prominent banner notification will appear inside your current Local Services Ads dashboard. On transition day, trying to log into the LSA dashboard will automatically redirect you to Google Ads.

Can I create a new campaign with pay-per-lead goals in Google Ads?

You cannot create new campaigns with pay-per-lead goals directly inside Google Ads at this time. If you need to set up additional campaigns or local accounts, continue to visit g.co/localservices. Campaign creation inside Google Ads will become available at a later date.

How do campaigns with pay-per-lead goals differ from standard Performance Max campaigns?

Despite using the Performance Max structure, these campaigns differ significantly from standard PMax. You only pay for valid qualified leads such as phone calls, message leads, or bookings — not for clicks. Ads serve exclusively on Google Search and Google Maps, not on YouTube, Gmail, or the Display Network. The campaigns are completely keywordless, using your Google Business Profile and service settings instead of keyword lists. Eligible businesses can display the Google Verified badge. And onboarding is simpler, using automatic profile pre-population from your Google Business Profile.

Will my campaign performance reports carry over to Google Ads?

No. Your previous campaign-level performance metrics — including past impressions, clicks, weekly spend history, and ad-level reports — will not migrate to Google Ads. You must download and export your data from your original Local Services Ads dashboard before migrating. Follow the steps at the View reports on Local Services Ads page on Google's support site to back up your reports before your migration date.

Will my past customer leads carry over?

Yes. Your past customer lead history — including customer contact details, back-and-forth message history, and older call recordings — will automatically transfer to Google Ads and remain fully accessible within the new Lead Manager interface under Goals > Conversions > Leads.

Why was my weekly budget changed to a daily average budget?

Google Ads manages campaign spend using daily averages rather than weekly averages. Your historical average weekly budget is automatically divided by 7 to determine your daily average budget. This change does not affect your monthly spend, which is capped at your daily average budget multiplied by 30.4. Daily spend may vary on high-demand days, but your monthly billing will not exceed this limit.

What happens if my business details change on my Google Business Profile?

Google Ads runs a daily sync with your Google Business Profile. Minor changes such as business hours, phone number, and small business name updates sync automatically within 24 hours. Significant changes to your business name, storefront address, or primary category require a verification review, which typically takes 24 to 48 hours. During this review, your campaign may temporarily pause.

Do I need to re-verify my licences and insurance after migration?

No. Annual re-verification of insurance and licences is being removed as part of this migration. Existing verified accounts will not be required to reverify when their previously submitted licence and insurance documents expire. Initial verification requirements still apply when setting up a brand new LSA campaign.

What happens to my Google Verified badge during migration?

Your verified status and Google Verified badge transfer automatically to Google Ads. No action is required on your part. If any additional business-level checks are ever required in the future, you will see a notification inside your Google Ads account.

Can I still dispute an invalid lead after migration?

Manual lead disputes are no longer available. Google uses an automated model that reviews charged leads and applies credits within approximately 72 hours for leads it identifies as invalid, with credits appearing on the account within 30 days. You can still rate individual leads inside the Lead Manager, and marking a lead as unsatisfactory with a specific reason may trigger a credit review where the automation missed something. Note that automated lead credits are not available for healthcare verticals, tax specialists, or advertisers in EMEA regions.