Free tool
Google Ads Preview Tool: Responsive Search Ad Mockup
Type your headlines, descriptions and display path and see a desktop and a phone mockup of the responsive search ad, with a live character count against Google's limits: 30 per headline, 90 per description, 15 per path. The preview shows one combination of your first three headlines and two descriptions. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
Ad preview
Preview Your Responsive Search Ad
Fill in the domain, paths, three headlines and two descriptions. Counters turn red over the limit, and the preview shows the full text with a warning instead of cutting it. The form opens with an example ad you can replace.
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How Google builds the ad
What a Responsive Search Ad Is
A responsive search ad is a Search ad built from parts rather than written as one fixed unit. You supply up to 15 headlines and 4 descriptions, and Google Ads, in the words of its help page, "assembles the text into multiple ad combinations in a way that avoids redundancy." Each time the ad serves, at least one headline and one description are chosen and arranged, and over time Google tests the promising combinations and learns which ones fit which searches.
Three things follow. Any headline can appear next to any other, so each one has to make sense alone and in any order. The ad in the preview above is one combination, and Google states that the second and third headlines and the second description are not guaranteed to appear. And text that must show every time, such as a legal line, has to sit in Headline 1 or Description 1, or be pinned there.
The same page notes that Google can shorten text with an ellipsis in some placements and that a call asset's button can take space from the ad text. This tool shows the full text and warns instead, so you decide what to cut.
Enter
A final URL, two optional paths, 3 to 15 headlines and 2 to 4 descriptions.
YouAssemble
For each search, Google picks at least one headline and one description and arranges them.
GoogleLearn
Combinations are tested over time; the asset report shows which headlines and descriptions served most.
Weeks
The limits
Responsive Search Ad Character Limits
The counters above use these limits, taken from Google Ads Help in October 2026. A field over its limit cannot be saved in Google Ads, so the tool marks it red and shows the overflow rather than trimming it for you.
| Field | Limit | How many | Google's note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Headline | 30 characters | 3 required, up to 15 | Up to 3 show in the top position, in any order. Headline text can also open the description. |
| Description | 90 characters | 2 required, up to 4 | Description 1 usually shows every time; Description 2 shows when predicted to perform or when there is room. |
| Display path | 15 characters each | 2, optional | Shown after the domain in the display URL. They describe the page and need not match real folders. |
| Final URL | The page the click opens | 1 per ad | Its domain is what the ad displays. Google recommends a unique final URL per responsive search ad in an ad group. |
| Double-width characters | Count as 2 | Any field | Korean, Japanese and Chinese characters each take two of the allowed characters. The counters here follow that rule. |
Google's wording, from About responsive search ads: "The headline fields for responsive search ads support up to 30 characters. The description fields support up to 90 characters each, and the path fields support up to 15 each. Every character in a double width language like Korean, Japanese, or Chinese counts as 2 characters." The same page sets the minimum at 3 headlines and 2 descriptions and the maximum at 15 and 4.
Control versus reach
Pinning Headlines: When It Is Worth It
Pinning fixes a headline or description to one position, so it shows there every time the ad serves. Google's help page says pinning "isn't recommended for most advertisers and can affect ad strength," because every pin removes combinations Google could test. Use it when text has to appear: a disclaimer, a brand name, a price you must state. Google notes that assets pinned to Headline position 1, Headline position 2 or Description position 1 always show, while content pinned to Headline position 3 or Description position 2 is not guaranteed to.
If you pin, Google suggests pinning two or three different headlines to the same position so it can still test between them. The preview here pins nothing. It shows your first three headlines in the order you typed them, which is also how Google suggests you draft them: "Try writing the first 3 headlines as if they'll appear together in your ad."
What the preview cannot show
- Other combinations. Google may show one or two headlines, reorder them, or place headline text at the start of the description.
- Assets. Sitelinks, callouts, images, business name and logo change the layout and can take room from the text.
- Shortening. In some formats Google cuts text with an ellipsis; wide letters make that more likely.
- Bold matches. Words that match the search can appear in bold in the live ad.
Writing the parts
Headlines That Read Well in Any Order
Write each headline as a complete thought that could stand first; one that only works after another ("And Free Shipping") breaks whenever Google leads with it. Give each a different job: what you offer, the proof, the offer, the next step. Google's Ad Strength feedback calls out repeated words, phrases and ideas.
Put the keyword inside one headline, whole. Google counts a keyword toward keyword relevance only when it fits within a single headline, and suggests moving a keyword longer than 30 characters into a description. If the keyword is water heater repair, one headline should say Water Heater Repair, and the ad group should contain only keywords that headline serves; the keyword grouping tool sorts a list that way.
Use the descriptions for sentences, not lists of headlines: 90 characters holds a claim and its proof, or an offer and its condition. The Quality Score guide explains why the ad and the landing page must say the same thing, and the CTR calculator shows what a better headline is worth in clicks.
Click Here Today
Works only as a last line, names nothing, and repeats what the button already says.
Tracking Fixed Before Spend
27 characters, a specific promise, and it reads fine first, second or third.
Water Heater + Repair Near Me
The keyword split across two headlines, so it counts for neither and may serve apart.
Water Heater Repair Near Me
27 characters, the whole keyword in one headline, matched to a water heater landing page.
The rating
Ad Strength, as Google Describes It
Google defines Ad Strength as a measure of "the relevance, quality, and diversity of your ad assets," rated Incomplete, Poor, Average, Good or Excellent. It is feedback on the inputs, not a score of results: Google states it "doesn't determine whether your ad is eligible to serve" and "isn't used to calculate Ad Rank, Quality Score, or auction wins." Google's own best practice is at least two responsive search ads rated Good or Excellent per ad group. Its help page lists four factors.
Keyword relevance
Headlines and descriptions that contain the ad group's keywords, each keyword whole inside one headline.
Quantity
More of the 15 headline and 4 description slots filled means more combinations for Google to assemble and test.
Diversity
Unique headlines and descriptions that each say something different, without repeated words, phrases or ideas.
Sitelinks
Six or more sitelinks across the account, campaign or ad group level, which Google names as a factor in the rating.
Mistakes we see in audits
Responsive Search Ad Mistakes to Avoid
Each of these passes the character counters. None of them passes a reader.
- Headlines that only work in one order. If a headline needs the one before it to make sense, Google will eventually show it alone.
- Three headlines that say the same thing. Vary the angle: what you do, the proof, the offer, the next step.
- A keyword split across two headlines. It counts for keyword relevance only when it sits whole inside one headline.
- Pinning every slot. Each pin removes combinations. Pin what must show, and pin two or three variants to that slot.
- Ad and page that disagree. The headline promises water heater repair and the final URL is the home page. Match them.
- Treating the preview as the ad. After a week, open the asset report and read which headlines Google served and rated.
Ads come after tracking and structure in the Google Ads management work we do. If you would rather have us read the account first, the free audit covers ads, keywords, match types and tracking with view-only access.
Questions
Google Ads Preview Questions
Does the Google Ads preview tool store my ad text?
No. The tool runs in your browser. Nothing you type is sent to us or anyone else, and nothing is saved when you leave the page.
What are the character limits for a responsive search ad?
Google Ads Help states 30 characters per headline, 90 per description and 15 per display path, with 3 to 15 headlines and 2 to 4 descriptions per ad. Every character in a double-width script such as Korean, Japanese or Chinese counts as 2.
Why does the preview show only three headlines and two descriptions?
Google shows up to three headlines in the top position of a Search ad and the mockup uses your first three headlines and first two descriptions as one combination. The other headlines and descriptions you add in Google Ads rotate through combinations that this page does not render.
Should I pin headlines in a responsive search ad?
Only when text has to appear every time, such as a disclaimer or a brand name. Google says pinning is not recommended for most advertisers and can lower Ad Strength, because each pin removes combinations it can test. If you pin, pin two or three different assets to the same position.
Does Ad Strength affect Quality Score?
No. Google states that Ad Strength is not used to calculate Ad Rank, Quality Score or auction wins. It rates the relevance, quality and diversity of the assets you entered. Quality Score is a separate keyword-level diagnostic.
Why does Google Ads reject a headline that fits the counter?
Character count is one of several checks. Google's policy review also looks at punctuation, capitalization, symbols, trademarks and the claims you make. If the text passes the counters and the ad is still disapproved, read the policy reason shown in Google Ads and edit the asset it names.
How many responsive search ads should an ad group have?
Google's stated best practice is at least two responsive search ads with Good or Excellent Ad Strength per ad group, each with a unique final URL. One well-built ad is where most new accounts start; the second ad gives Google a comparison.
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