Microsoft Advertising ad specs and text limits
Microsoft Advertising crops the same image to several ratios, so which ratios it is cropped to matters as much as the minimum size. Responsive search ad text limits, Audience and Performance Max images, and video requirements are here.
Responsive search ad · text
- Headline
- Up to 30 characters
- Description
- Up to 90 characters
- Path (each)
- Up to 15 characters
- Domain and both paths
- Up to 67 characters
The limit applies to the final text after dynamic text is filled in; an ad over it does not display or falls back to default text. With double-width characters such as Korean, Japanese, Chinese and emoji, the limits are 15 for a headline, 45 for a description and 7 for a path.
Audience ad · image
- File type
- .JPEG, .PNG
- Recommended size
- 1.91:1 · ≥ 1200 × 628 px
- Minimum size
- 703 × 368 px
- Maximum size
- No maximum
- File size
- No maximum
- Cropped to
- 2.01:1 · 2:1 · 1.91:1 · 1.69:1 · 1.53:1 · 1.24:1 · 1.20:1 · 1:1
The image is cropped to each of these ratios, and Microsoft asks for no text or logo on top of it.
Audience ad · text and logo
- Short headline
- Up to 40 characters
- Long headline
- Up to 90 characters
- Description
- Up to 90 characters
- Square logo
- 1:1 · ≥ 128 × 128 px
- Landscape logo
- 4:1 · ≥ 512 × 128 px
Up to 15 short headlines, 5 long headlines, 5 descriptions and 5 logos; every ad needs at least one short headline, one long headline and one description.
Performance Max · images and logo
- Required image
- 1.91:1 · ≥ 703 × 368 px
- Recommended size
- 1.91:1 · 1200 × 628 px
- Square
- 1:1 · ≥ 300 × 300 px
- Vertical
- 1:2 · ≥ 470 × 940 px
- Number of images
- ≤ 20
- Logo
- ≥ 128 × 128 px
The image is also cropped to 4:1, 1.24:1, 1.53:1, 1.69:1 and 2.01:1; to show in a ratio it must meet that ratio's minimum size. Up to 5 logos can be added; Performance Max does not support video right now.
Performance Max · text
- Short headline
- Up to 30 characters
- Long headline
- Up to 90 characters
- Description
- Up to 90 characters
- Search theme
- Up to 80 characters
You can add up to 15 short headlines, 5 long headlines, 5 descriptions and 50 search themes.
Video ad
- Duration
- 6–90 seconds
- Video format
- MP4, MOV and other formats such as WEBM, MKV, AVI and WMV
- Bitrate
- ≥ 2500 kbps
- Recommended file size
- ≤ 2 GB
- Recommended ratio
- 4:3 · 9:16 · 16:9
- Vertical
- 360 × 640 · 540 × 960 · 720 × 960 · 720 × 1280 · 1080 × 1920 px
- Horizontal
- 640 × 360 · 960 × 720 · 1280 × 720 · 1440 × 1080 · 1920 × 1080 px
The resolution must be one of the listed sizes. These are the requirements of the lowest quality level (one star); higher levels reach more placements. Two stars need, among other things, MP4 or MOV, at least 8000 kbps and a length of 15, 30, 45, 60, 75 or 90 seconds.
Preparing search and Audience ads together?
Mecrio writes headlines to these limits, prepares the images and sets the campaign live.
Opening an account takes a couple of minutes.
Reading this table
- The responsive search ad character limits come from Microsoft's developer documentation; the advertiser help center only gives the number of headlines and descriptions for this ad.
- The two sources differ on counts: the developer documentation says 3–15 headlines and 2–4 descriptions, while the help center asks for 5–15 headlines and up to 4 descriptions when you enter them yourself, and at least 3 headlines and 2 descriptions with autogenerated assets on.
- Microsoft's general asset guidelines list different video limits: 6–120 seconds, up to 10 GB and any ratio from 16:9 to 9:16 (1:1 included). The table follows the video ads page: 6–90 seconds, a recommended maximum of 2 GB and 4:3, 9:16, 16:9; the creative specs page also gives 2 GB as the maximum.
- The same asset guidelines also accept non-animated GIF images; the Audience ad image page lists only JPEG and PNG, and the table follows it.
- Other types, such as App Install, Dynamic Search, Multimedia and Product ads and ad extensions, follow their own rules and are not mixed in here.
Specs for the other platforms
About Microsoft Advertising
How long can a responsive search ad headline be?
30 characters; descriptions get 90 and each path 15. The limit applies to the final text after dynamic text is filled in. With double-width characters such as Korean, Japanese, Chinese and emoji, headlines get 15 and descriptions 45.
What is the minimum size for an Audience ad image?
At least 703 × 368 px; 1200 × 628 px or larger at 1.91:1 is recommended. There is no maximum file size or dimension. Because the image is cropped to several ratios, keep text and logos off it.
Can I add video to Performance Max?
Not right now: Microsoft says Performance Max campaigns don't support video assets. For video, use a video ad in an Audience campaign; its requirements are in the table.
Where the numbers on this page come from
All of them from the platform's own documentation. Follow the link and read the same line yourself.
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