On June 1, 2026, Google Ads deleted older historical reporting data across several report types as part of an updated data retention policy. Many advertisers did not receive a prominent notification and are now discovering missing data when they attempt to access historical performance.
This post explains exactly what happened, which reports are affected, what data cannot be recovered, and what steps to take now to avoid losing more data in the future.
What Google Changed on June 1, 2026
Google Ads updated its data retention policy for several reporting categories. The change reduced the lookback window for certain report types. Data older than the new retention limit was permanently deleted.
Affected areas include:
- Detailed search term reports -- data older than 18 months is no longer accessible in the Google Ads interface or via the API.
- Auction insights historical data -- access reduced to a 13-month rolling window.
- Placement and content data -- detailed URL-level placement reports are now limited to a 24-month window.
- Custom column historical data -- columns built on deleted underlying data may return errors or blank cells for older date ranges.
The deletion was announced in the Google Ads policy center and help documentation, but without a prominent in-product alert. Many advertisers using automated reporting or third-party dashboards did not see the notice in time to export data before the June 1 deadline.
What Is Gone: Data You Cannot Recover
If you did not export the affected data before June 1, 2026, the following cannot be recovered:
Search term data older than 18 months. If your account has been running since 2024 or earlier, search term reports for 2024 and early 2025 are no longer accessible. This affects historical keyword research, negative keyword management, and performance trend analysis.
Auction insights data beyond 13 months. Competitive share of voice data from 2024 is gone. This affects competitive analysis and benchmarking if you relied on historical auction insights.
Placement data beyond 24 months. For Display and Video campaigns, site-level performance data older than the 24-month window is deleted.
Historical custom column outputs. Any custom column that referenced now-deleted underlying data will no longer function for historical date ranges.
If you have previously downloaded or exported these reports to a spreadsheet or external database, that exported data remains accessible -- the deletion only affects data stored in Google Ads itself.
What Still Remains
The following data is not affected by the June 1 change:
- Campaign, ad group, keyword, and ad performance data -- no change to retention windows for these core metrics. You can still access clicks, impressions, cost, and conversion data for the full retention window as before.
- Conversion tracking data -- conversion events are retained according to your account's conversion tracking settings, not the reporting data policy.
- Audience lists and remarketing data -- not affected by this reporting data change.
- Google Analytics 4 data -- GA4 has its own separate data retention settings, unaffected by the Google Ads reporting change.
If your reporting relied only on campaign-level and keyword-level metrics -- clicks, impressions, conversions, cost -- you are likely not affected.
How to Export What Remains Before Further Deletions
The current retention windows are now fixed at the new limits. To preserve data that is still accessible, export reports for the full available window before the retention window advances further.
Priority exports:
- Search terms report -- export all available data (current lookback window: 18 months from today) in CSV format. Download monthly or quarterly snapshots.
- Auction insights -- export for the full 13-month window by campaign and ad group. This data will continue rolling forward, losing the oldest month each month.
- Placement reports -- for Display and Video, export the full 24-month placement report now.
For ongoing protection, schedule automated report exports via Google Ads scripts or connect your account to BigQuery via the Google Ads data transfer if you need permanent retention of historical data beyond Google's in-platform windows.
How Google Ads Data Retention Works Going Forward
After the June 1 change, the new retention windows are:
| Report Type | Retention Window |
|---|---|
| Search terms | 18 months rolling |
| Auction insights | 13 months rolling |
| Placement (URL-level) | 24 months rolling |
| Campaign/keyword/ad | Unchanged (full history) |
"Rolling" means the oldest data is removed as new data is added. Each month, the data from 18 months ago drops off the search terms report.
The practical implication: if you need year-over-year analysis of search term performance comparing June 2026 to June 2025, you have until June 2027 to access June 2025 data. After that, it will fall outside the 18-month window.
What to Do Now
Check your reporting tools. If you use Looker Studio, Data Studio, or third-party dashboards connected to Google Ads, test whether older date ranges return complete data or show gaps.
Export historical benchmarks. Even if you cannot use the deleted data for live reporting, export and store search term benchmarks, auction insights competitive baselines, and placement performance for records purposes.
Set up ongoing exports. Implement a monthly or quarterly export routine for search terms and auction insights. A Google Ads script that automatically emails or saves a CSV of these reports prevents future data loss.
Review BigQuery transfer settings. If your account is linked to BigQuery via the Google Ads data transfer, verify that the transfer includes the affected report types and that historical data loaded before June 1 was retained in BigQuery.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Google delete this data without a clear warning?
Google published the change in its help documentation and policy center, but did not send in-platform notifications to affected accounts. Many advertisers monitoring only campaign metrics did not notice the announcement.
Can I contact Google Ads support to recover deleted data?
No. Once data is deleted under the retention policy, Google does not retain copies for recovery. Support cannot restore deleted reporting data.
Does this affect Google Analytics data?
No. GA4 and Universal Analytics data retention is controlled separately. The June 1 Google Ads change applies only to data stored within the Google Ads platform.
If I download data via the Google Ads API, is the retention window the same?
Yes. The API returns data from the same underlying storage as the Google Ads interface. Data beyond the retention window is not accessible via the API either.
Will Google change data retention windows again in the future?
Google has changed retention windows several times in the past. To protect against future changes, set up BigQuery data transfer or regular export automation rather than relying on in-platform historical access.