Up to $10,000 a month in free Google search ads
Google gives eligible nonprofits up to $10,000 a month to spend on Google Search ads. Applying is free and takes a few weeks. Here's who qualifies, what to have ready, how the application works today, and the rules that keep the grant active once you have it.
Who qualifies
In the United States, your organization needs to:
- Be a registered charity. For most U.S. organizations that means 501(c)(3) status. If your IRS determination is still pending, wait until it arrives.
- Pass verification by Goodstack, Google's verification partner, through a Google for Nonprofits account.
- Have a working website on your own domain, served over HTTPS, with real content about your mission and programs.
Not eligible: government entities, hospitals and health care organizations, and schools, colleges and universities. Charitable foundations attached to a hospital or school can qualify.
What to have ready
Most delays come from details that don't match. Gather these before you start.
| Item | Why it matters | Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Your legal name, exactly as the IRS has it | Verification matches your application against official records | Copy it from your IRS letter, including punctuation. If your name changed, have the paperwork that shows it. |
| EIN | The main ID used to find your organization in the registry | Nine digits, formatted 12-3456789. |
| Address on file with the IRS | Part of the record match | If you've moved, use the address on your IRS record or update it with the IRS first. |
| Your 501(c)(3) determination letter, as a PDF | Needed if Goodstack can't confirm you from its registry alone | Use a clear, complete copy of the letter itself. |
| A Google account on your organization's email domain | It becomes the admin login for Google for Nonprofits and the grant | A shared address like marketing@yourorg.org survives staff turnover. Avoid a personal Gmail. |
| A secure website with mission content | Google reviews the site before approving the grant | Check that the address starts with https:// and that the main pages load without errors. |
| A short description of your mission and programs | The forms ask what your organization does | Two or three plain sentences is enough. |
How to apply
Google has simplified the process. Older guides mention a pre-qualification form and creating your own Google Ads account. Neither applies now.
1. Check your eligibility and website
Time: about an hour
- Confirm you're a registered charity and not an excluded type of organization.
- Make sure your website uses HTTPS and has substantial content about your work.
- Read Google's Ad Grants website policy and fix anything that doesn't meet it.
2. Request a Google for Nonprofits account
Time: 2 to 14 business days for verification
- Sign in to Google for Nonprofits with your organization's Google account and click Get started.
- Enter your EIN, legal name and address exactly as the IRS has them.
- Goodstack verifies your status. Upload your determination letter if it asks.
- Watch for email from Goodstack, including your spam folder.
3. Activate Google Ad Grants
Time: several business days for Google's review
- In Google for Nonprofits, click Get started under Google Ad Grants.
- Enter the website you'll advertise.
- Watch the short program video and confirm you've watched it.
- Click Submit activation request.
Don't create a Google Ads account yourself at any point. Google provides the grant account when you're approved.
4. Set up the account before you spend
Time: a few hours, then a monthly check
- Set up conversion tracking for meaningful actions such as donations, sign-ups and volunteer forms.
- Build campaigns around specific pages and the phrases people search, not single words.
- Use a conversion-based bid strategy such as Maximize conversions.
- Add at least two sitelinks, and target the area you actually serve.
The rules that keep the grant active
Google can pause an account that falls out of line. Most of these take a few minutes a month to check.
| Rule | What Google requires | If you miss it |
|---|---|---|
| Click-through rate | At least 5% across the account each month | Two months in a row below 5% means a temporary deactivation. Pause keywords with lots of impressions and few clicks. |
| Conversion tracking | Valid tracking that records at least one meaningful conversion a month. Page views and time on site don't count. | Deactivation until tracking is fixed and you request reinstatement. |
| Bidding | A conversion-based Smart Bidding strategy on every campaign | Google may switch the strategy for you. |
| Keywords | No single-word keywords (except your own brand), no overly generic phrases, and no keywords with a quality score of 1 or 2 | Pause or remove them. |
| Account structure | At least two ad groups per campaign, two ads per ad group, and two sitelinks | The account is out of compliance until fixed. |
| Location targeting | Ads shown where people can actually use your services | Wasted spend, and a possible policy issue. |
| Program survey | Complete the survey Google sends to every grantee | Suspension until it's done. Make sure the admin email gets Google for Nonprofits mail. |
Checked against Google's Ad Grants account management policy and compliance guide in October 2026. Google updates these rules from time to time, so confirm the current version on Google's policy page before you rely on a detail.
Where applications get stuck
- The name doesn't match. "Friends of the Park" and "Friends of the Park, Inc." can count as different organizations. Use the exact IRS name.
- The login belongs to one person. When that person leaves, the grant goes with their account. Use a shared organizational address and add a second admin.
- A Google Ads account was created by hand. It isn't the grant account and can cause activation problems.
- Nobody tracks conversions. Without them, smart bidding has nothing to aim for and the account falls out of compliance.
- The account runs on autopilot. Click-through rate drifts down slowly. A 15-minute monthly check catches it early.
Plenty of grant accounts use only a small part of the $10,000. Results come from sending people to specific pages that answer what they searched for, not from sending everyone to the homepage or donate page.
The Google Ad Grant checklist
A two-page PDF you can print or tick off on screen. It covers:
- What to gather before you apply
- Each application step, in order
- Setting up the account in the first 30 days
- A monthly compliance check that takes about 15 minutes
Want help getting it set up?
I've set up Ad Grants for nonprofits including Portland Wheelers, with conversion tracking connected to GA4 so you can see what the ads bring in. Pricing is on a sliding scale, and the first call is free.
Sources: Google for Nonprofits eligibility · Ad Grants activation · Account management policy · Compliance guide. PhilanthroData isn't affiliated with Google.