Why it happens
The page is gone or erroring
The page is gone or erroring
A 404, a 500 or a timeout when Microsoft crawled it. Usually a migration, a renamed product page or an expired promo URL still sitting in the ad.
The site blocks the crawler
A firewall, bot protection, a geo block or a robots rule that turns away Bingbot. You see the page fine; Microsoft sees an error.
Redirects that leave the domain
A tracking template or a redirect that lands on a different domain from the display URL. Microsoft wants the final page on the domain the ad shows.
The page does not match the ad
A homepage for a product ad, or an offer the page never mentions. Microsoft treats relevance between ad and page as part of the same review.
Pop-ups or a page you cannot leave
Entry pop-ups, interstitials or pages that break the back button get flagged under the same landing page rules. Google runs the same check: see Google Ads destination not working.
How to fix it, step by step
Read the exact reason
In Microsoft Advertising, hover over Campaigns and select Ads & extensions, then Ads. Hover over the Disapproved status in the Delivery column to see the reason and the part of the ad that triggered it.
Load the final URL like a stranger
Open the final URL in a private window, on mobile, and from outside your office network. Check it returns a working page on your own domain without a chain of redirects.
Let Bingbot in
Ask whoever runs the site to allow the Bingbot and Microsoft Advertising crawlers through the firewall or bot protection, and to remove any robots rule that blocks them.
Edit the ad to a working page
From the Ads table, hover over the ad, select the pencil icon, update the final URL to a live page that matches the ad, and select Save. Saving sends the ad back to editorial review.
Request an exception if the page was fine
If the page worked all along, select the ad, then Edit, then Request exception, and say the page is live. Most reviews finish within 48 hours.
Steps checked against Microsoft Advertising Help: Fix a Disapproved or Approved Limited status; Microsoft Advertising Help: How do I challenge a disapproval?; Microsoft Advertising Help: Delivery status; Microsoft Advertising policies: Relevance and quality.
Sprites fixes this
Or let Sprites fix it
Sprites finds every disapproved ad in the account and repoints them to a page that works.
What Sprites does
- Reads the editorial status of every ad and keyword, so you see each disapproval across campaigns in one list instead of one Delivery column at a time.
- Rewrites the final URL, headlines and display paths of a disapproved ad, and you approve every change before it goes live.
- Reads the ad back after the edit, so you know it saved and went back into review.
What it doesn't do
- It does not read the reason code Microsoft gives for the disapproval. You read that in the Delivery column.
- It does not fix your site, your firewall or your redirects. If the page itself is broken, that is a job for whoever runs the site.
- It does not file an exception request for you.
Questions
Why was my Microsoft ad disapproved when the page works for me?
Microsoft crawls from its own servers. Bot protection, a firewall, a geo block or a slow server can show its crawler an error your browser never sees.
How long does Microsoft take to review an edited ad?
Most editorial reviews finish within 48 hours. If an ad is still under review after two business days, contact Microsoft Advertising support.
Can I appeal a destination URL disapproval?
Yes. Select the ad, then Edit, then Request exception, and explain that the page is live. If it is disapproved a second time, the decision is final unless support overturns it.
Does Approved limited mean my ad is running?
Partly. Approved limited means the ad is approved in at least one targeted location and pending or disapproved in another. Hover over the status to see which locations.
Do my Google Ads and Microsoft Ads disapprovals line up?
Often, if you imported campaigns from Google. A broken final URL fails review on both. The policies differ in detail, so check each platform separately.
Let Sprites fix it
Connect the account. Sprites finds the cause, stages the change and waits for your approval.