A new campaign setting lets advertisers exclude specific household income brackets in Performance Max, offering more audience control without sacrificing automation. The feature could reshape targeting for luxury, finance, and value-focused brands.
Google is quietly introducing a new level of audience targeting to Performance Max campaigns, allowing advertisers to exclude users based on estimated household income. This capability, previously unavailable in PMax, was recently observed in a European campaign and could soon see broader rollout.
The new setting appears within campaign controls, enabling marketers to remove certain income segments from their targeting mix. Available options include the top 10% of household income, 11-20%, 21-30%, 31-40%, 41-50%, lower 50%, and users with unknown income status. This granular approach gives brands the flexibility to refine who sees their ads while still leveraging Google's automated optimization.
For industries where income is a key purchase driver-such as luxury goods, financial services, automotive, or premium home services-these exclusions could help align ad delivery with the most relevant audiences. Conversely, brands focused on affordability or value can opt to exclude higher-income brackets to better reach cost-conscious shoppers.
Paid Search expert Thomas Eccel first reported the update after spotting it in a live campaign. The move signals Google's ongoing efforts to expand advertiser controls within its automated products, a trend also seen as Google expands Demand Gen with business data feeds for non-retail sectors, as detailed in this recent coverage.
If widely released, household income exclusions could become one of the most significant audience controls added to Performance Max, giving advertisers more precision without disrupting the platform's AI-driven campaign management.
