Why it happens
A redirect lands on another domain
A redirect lands on another domain
The final URL redirects to a different domain: a regional store, a booking tool, a moved site.
A tracking template sends the click elsewhere
A click tracker that does not end on the final URL, or a template that rewrites the destination.
Mixed domains in one ad group
Ads in the same ad group point to different domains, so the display domain cannot match them all.
A shared or unclear subdomain
A subdomain on a shared platform that does not identify your business clearly.
How to fix it, step by step
Find the mismatched ads
Go to Campaigns, then Ads, and hover over Disapproved in the Status column. Add the Final URL column and the Policy details column.
Follow the click
Load each final URL with the tracking template applied and record the domain that finally loads. Every hop counts, including www to non-www and http to https.
Point the ad at the real destination
Final URLs cannot be edited in place, so create a new ad with the final URL on the landing domain and pause the old one.
Clean up tracking
Make sure tracking templates end on the final URL, using the lpurl parameter, and never redirect to a different domain.
Appeal if needed
New ads are reviewed on their own. For edited ones, go to Tools, then Troubleshooting, then Policy manager and select Appeal.
Steps checked against Google Ads Advertising Policies Help: Destination mismatch; Google Ads Advertising Policies Help: Destination requirements; Google Ads Help: About tracking in Google Ads.
Sprites fixes this
Or let Sprites fix it
Sprites finds every mismatched ad and replaces each one with a clean final URL on your domain.
What Sprites does
- Reads the approval status and policy topics on every ad and lists each Destination mismatch.
- Lists the final URLs in the account and flags the ones off your own domain.
- Clones each affected ad with the corrected final URL, keeps its copy, and pauses the original.
- You approve every change before it goes live.
What it doesn't do
- It does not follow redirects on your server or change redirects on your site.
- It does not file the appeal.
Questions
What is destination mismatch in Google Ads?
The domain your ad displays does not match the domain the visitor reaches, after all redirects.
Can I edit the final URL of an existing ad?
No. Google does not allow final URL edits on an existing ad. Create a new ad with the right URL and pause the old one.
Do tracking templates cause destination mismatch?
They can. A template that sends the click through a tracker and ends anywhere other than the final URL domain triggers it.
Is a subdomain a mismatch?
Not by itself. A subdomain of your own domain is fine. A subdomain on a shared platform that does not clearly identify you can be flagged.
Let Sprites fix it
Connect the account. Sprites finds the cause, stages the change and waits for your approval.