Google Ads conversion parameter reference
Most Google Ads conversion problems aren't tags at all — they're conversion action settings that nobody read. Counting set to every on a lead form turns one repeat submitter into three conversions. Several actions marked primary split what bidding optimizes toward. An attribution window left at default silently disagrees with every other platform. These settings are free to change and they change your numbers more than most tag work does.
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Google Ads conversions · what breaks
Where teams get this wrong — Google Ads conversions
- 01
Counting set to every on a lead form
One person submitting three times becomes three conversions, and bidding goes looking for more repeat submitters.
- 02
Several actions marked primary
Bidding splits its attention and optimizes toward an average of things you value differently.
- 03
Flat conversion values
Bidding can't distinguish a small sale from a large one, so it finds you small ones.
Google Ads conversions · the fix
What a correct implementation looks like — Google Ads conversions
One primary action per campaign objective
Everything else secondary.
Counting matched to the conversion type
One for leads, every for ecommerce.
Real values, not placeholders
From the order or CRM record.
Attribution window set deliberately
And documented, so cross-platform gaps are explainable.
Google Ads conversions · architecture
The settings that change your numbers — Google Ads conversions
Each of these is free to change and each one moves your reported conversions. Google's own documentation is the authority on current options.
- 1
Counting: every vs one
Every counts each conversion; one counts a single conversion per click. Leads want one; ecommerce wants every.
- 2
Primary vs secondary
Primary drives Smart Bidding. Secondary reports only. Several primaries is the most common cause of odd bidding.
- 3
Conversion value
Real revenue where you can get it. A flat value teaches bidding that every conversion is identical.
- 4
Click-through attribution window
Configurable. Different windows across platforms are most of why the platforms disagree.
- 5
Conversion action status
An inactive action stops feeding bidding. Google's notice arrives 30 days after the last hit.
- 6
Enhanced Conversions
Improves matching on an existing web conversion. Verify it in the diagnostics report, not by the toggle.
Google Ads conversions · diagnose
Common mistakes and how to validate each — Google Ads conversions
Ordered by how often we find them. Each one has a specific check rather than a general instruction to be careful.
- 01
Counting left at the default
Open the action and read the setting. On lead forms it's the single most common inflation source.
- 02
Multiple primaries
List your actions and count how many are primary. More than one per objective is a problem.
- 03
Values missing entirely
Check whether a value arrives on a live conversion. Many accounts send none at all.
- 04
An action inactive for weeks
Check the last-received date on every action, not just the main one.
- 05
Native and imported GA4 conversions for the same thing
Both feeding one action double-counts. Check the source of each.
Google Ads conversions · prove
How to prove your implementation is right — Google Ads conversions
Against your own records and a live payload, not against a preview screen.
Source of truth
your own order or CRM records, matched per record
- Counting and primary status read and documented per action.
- Values confirmed arriving on a live conversion.
- Last-received date checked on every action.
- Conversion count reconciled against your own records for a closed month.
- Checked on a live conversion, not in preview mode.
- Reconciled over a fully closed window, matched per record.
- Re-checked 30 days later.
Google Ads conversions · free audit
What we check in the free audit
- Counting left at the default
- Multiple primaries
- Values missing entirely
- An action inactive for weeks
- Native and imported GA4 conversions for the same thing
Checked against
your own order or CRM records, matched per record
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Google Ads conversions · when not to buy
What this reference deliberately leaves out — Google Ads conversions
Stated openly, because a reference that's silent about its own gaps is the dangerous kind.
- Google's conversion action settings change and new options appear. Verify against current documentation before relying on any of this for a build.
- This covers settings rather than the tag implementation, which is a separate problem with separate failures.
- Attribution model selection interacts with all of this and is covered separately.
- Vendor documentation is the authority, not this page. Where the two disagree, the vendor is right and we'd like to know so we can correct it.
- Parameter names and behaviour change. Anything here is accurate as we last verified it; verify against the current documentation before you rely on it for a build.
Google Ads conversions · what we deliver
The checklist — Google Ads conversions
Counting setting reviewed per action
Every versus one. Wrong on lead-gen accounts more often than not.
Exactly one primary action per objective
Check the conversion actions list, not your memory of it.
Values sent per conversion
Not a fixed placeholder.
Attribution window recorded
So platform disagreements can be explained rather than argued about.
No action left inactive
Google flags inactivity 30 days late, after a month of blind bidding.
Pricing
Pick the package that fits your ad spend
Browser-side starter
$400One-time fee · lifetime ownership
Repairs and verifies your existing browser-side setup against this reference, on a live conversion.
- Implementation checked against the spec
- Verified on a live conversion
- Reconciled against your own records
- Written handover
1st-party server-side
Recommended$800One-time fee · most popular
Money events sent from your own records through a first-party container on your subdomain, built to this specification.
- First-party server container on your own subdomain
- Events from your records, not the browser
- Deduplicated on a shared event ID at every destination
- First-party cookies beyond Safari's 7-day cap
- 95%+ accuracy and 8+ Meta EMQ, guaranteed in writing
Full 1st-party stack
$1,800One-time fee · lifetime ownership
Every paid channel server-side plus the offline loop, documented to this standard.
- Everything in 1st-party server-side
- Pinterest, Snapchat, Reddit and LinkedIn CAPI
- CRM and offline conversion loop
- Refunds and cancellations corrected wherever each platform allows it
- Monitoring so the next break surfaces in days
FAQ
Google Ads conversions questions, answered
One for lead generation — otherwise repeat submitters inflate the count. Every for ecommerce, where a second purchase is a second sale.
One per campaign objective. Several competing primaries is among the most common causes of bidding that behaves strangely.
It affects what gets attributed and therefore what bidding learns from. Set it deliberately and write down what you chose.
It flags 30 days after the last recorded hit. By then a month of budget has run against a missing signal, which is why last-received dates are worth checking monthly.
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