Liam Walsh
Liam is a Co-Director at Intelligency and heads up the agency's Digital Intelligence & Paid Social activity. Over the last decade, he has worked with brands from the world of sports such as Premier League clubs to entertainment such as Channel 4 and Disney.
Google has announced a significant update to its Google Ads API release schedule. From 2026, the API will move to a monthly release cycle, giving advertisers and developers faster access to new features, fixes and improvements.
More Frequent Releases and Longer Support
Currently, Google releases around three major versions of the API each year. Starting in 2026, this will increase to four major releases per year, complemented by several smaller “minor” updates in between.
Major releases will deliver more substantial changes and now remain supported for a full year after launch, reducing the number of version migrations required.
Minor releases will introduce smaller, non-breaking features and fixes more frequently, allowing teams to benefit from ongoing improvements without disruption.
This approach provides a steadier flow of enhancements and more predictable planning for advertisers and developers.
Tentative 2026 Release Roadmap
Google’s provisional schedule (dates subject to change):
- V23 (Major) – January 2026
- V24 (Major) – April 2026
- V25 (Major) – July 2026
- V26 (Major) – October 2026
Each major version will be followed by one or two minor updates, such as V23_1 in February and V23_2 in March. Older versions will gradually sunset: V19 in February 2026, V20 in June, V21 in August and V22 in October.
Why This Matters for Advertisers and Developers
If you use the Google Ads API – whether through in-house systems or third-party platforms – this change brings clear benefits:
- Faster access to new features
- More predictable support windows
- Less disruption from upgrades
Overall, the move to a monthly release cycle should make campaign management more efficient and give teams the confidence to adopt new capabilities as soon as they’re launched.
