5 best Google Ads conferences worth the investment in 2026 and 2027

It’s surprisingly tough to discover a severe Google Adverts convention.

Seek for one and you’ll meet the same old conference-list drawback: normal advertising expos with one paid-search session, occasion pages nonetheless selling final yr’s date, and roundups that deal with a platform keynote, a 200-person practitioner convention and a 40,000-person commerce present as in the event that they have been interchangeable.

They don’t seem to be.

PPC convention ought to inform you one thing you need to use in a stay account. It ought to get past “AI is altering promoting,” as a result of anyone entrusted with an promoting finances has seen. The dear classes present the information, the marketing campaign construction, the business trade-off, what failed and what the speaker would do otherwise subsequent time.

Search Engine Watch has some historical past in these rooms. The primary Search Engine Methods occasion passed off in San Francisco in November 1999, and the collection grew into a global assembly place for each natural and paid search. SEW was publishing about superior paid-search techniques when Google Adverts was nonetheless known as AdWords.

I’ve additionally personally attended SMX Superior and SMX Subsequent. That doesn’t make each SMX version an computerized advice, but it surely does imply I do know the distinction between the popularity of the model and the expertise it’s speculated to ship.

As we put Search Engine Watch back into the industry it covers, I intend to attend extra of those occasions, query the platforms, meet the practitioners doing the work and discover the folks whose data deserves a wider viewers. This information is a part of that involvement. It isn’t a listing assembled from occasion listings.

We checked the official dates, areas, programmes, ticket pages and entry guidelines on August 27, 2026. We determined to say 5 occasion manufacturers that made the ranked listing. If we couldn’t clarify why a paid-search skilled may spend actual time or cash on an occasion, we left it out.

In case your work leans natural, use our broader information to the best SEO conferences in 2026 and 2027. If AI-mediated discovery is the precedence, we preserve a separate listing of GEO, AEO and AI-search conferences.

The quick reply: our prime 5 Google Adverts and PPC conferences

The PPC convention circuit is slim sufficient {that a} ranked shortlist is extra helpful than one other calendar containing all the pieces with “efficiency” on the homepage. Primary means the strongest total proposition based mostly on the proof obtainable at this time. It doesn’t imply the identical occasion is correct for a Canadian freelancer, a European ecommerce staff and a US enterprise advertiser.

Costs exclude journey and lodging. “From” refers back to the least expensive related ticket we might confirm, not an outdated early-bird worth stored alive for adornment. Ticket batches can change inside hours, so deal with the organiser’s checkout as the ultimate authority.

The very best PPC convention is dependent upon what you want

1. ADworld Expertise

October 15–16, 2026 | Bologna, Italy + stay streaming | From €519 + VAT in individual or €349 streaming for 2 days

ADworld Experience is our number-one total selection as a result of its format is constructed round proof.

The 2026 programme comprises 24 actual PPC and CRO circumstances, 14 superior seminars and two stay clinics utilizing individuals’ Google Adverts and Meta Adverts accounts. The in-person version additionally provides thematic focus teams capped at 12 folks. As a substitute of placing a well-known speaker on stage for 45 minutes and hoping one thing helpful occurs, the occasion asks practitioners to point out what they did, what occurred and the way they interpreted the end result.

That appears like an apparent normal for a performance-marketing convention. It isn’t.

The primary day is constructed round superior coaching and stay clinics. The second is dedicated to actual circumstances, usually introduced in 20 minutes adopted by ten minutes of questions. Google Adverts and Meta Adverts are the primary platforms, with Amazon, Microsoft, LinkedIn, TikTok and different networks additionally represented. Two classes run directly, with real-time translation into English.

The organiser says the occasion has accomplished 13 earlier editions and attracted 4,920 individuals in whole. These are organiser-reported figures, however the depth of the general public programme and the archive of previous editions give us extra to guage than a slogan and a speaker wall.

There’s additionally a smart distant choice. When checked, a two-day streaming ticket was €349, or €449 with recordings. In-person two-day entry was €519 plus 22% Italian VAT, or €619 plus VAT with the complete recording package deal. If you recognize you’ll miss one of many parallel classes, the recordings should not a trivial add-on.

Greatest for: PPC specialists, ecommerce advertisers, companies and in-house groups with sufficient account expertise to interrogate a case reasonably than copy its settings.

Skip it if: you might be utterly new to paid promoting, need an executive-level overview or want a convention devoted solely to Google Adverts.

SEW verdict: The mix of observe report, public programme, actual circumstances and distant entry makes this the strongest all-round PPC occasion left in 2026. The case-study promise nonetheless must be earned on stage, however no less than the convention has chosen the suitable take a look at.

2. Hero Conf

September 15–16, 2026 | San Diego, US
April 15–16, 2027 | Brighton, UK

Hero Conf is the dimensions selection. The organiser calls it the world’s largest convention devoted to PPC and paid social, with a number of phases, coaching choices, an expo and a whole bunch of attendees.

The San Diego version runs on the San Diego Conference Heart alongside BrightonSEO on September 15 and 16. A Hero Conf ticket additionally provides entry to the BrightonSEO programme, which makes the journey unusually sensible for a staff whose obligations cross paid and natural search. It could additionally develop into a distraction. A big mixed agenda rewards preparation and punishes anybody who decides the place to go whereas standing within the hall.

The US ticket web page provided a complimentary one-day cross by request and a assured two-day “Buddy” cross for $950 when checked. It additionally mentioned paid costs would rise on August 27, the day of our guide assessment. Test the stay quantity reasonably than counting on ours.

The extra fascinating head begin is Hero Conf UK 2027. For the primary time, the UK version is transferring into its personal devoted venue on the Hilton Brighton Metropole as an alternative of working merely because the PPC part of BrightonSEO. The organiser is promising two days dedicated to PPC, paid social and efficiency advertising, with a devoted expo and coaching obtainable round the primary occasion.

The launch worth was solely £150 for each days when checked. That’s extraordinarily aggressive for a specialist convention, even earlier than the 2027 agenda is printed. Additionally it is a restricted introductory fee, so it shouldn’t be handled because the occasion’s everlasting worth.

Hero Conf covers Google Adverts, Meta, LinkedIn, TikTok, Amazon Promoting, Apple Adverts and different paid channels. That breadth is a characteristic for a head of paid media and a compromise for any individual looking for two uninterrupted days of superior Search campaigns.

Greatest for: paid-media groups, company leads, practitioners who worth networking scale and combined groups that may use the BrightonSEO entry in San Diego.

Skip it if: you dislike multi-track selection, need a small operator room or want each session to be about Google Adverts.

SEW verdict: Hero Conf is the most secure massive specialist advice. The standalone UK venue in 2027 might make Brighton extra centered than earlier editions, however the programme nonetheless must show that promise.

3. SMX Superior

September 29–October 1, 2026 | Berlin, Germany
March 17–19, 2027 | San Diego, US
September 20–22, 2027 | Boston, US

SMX Superior ranks third as a result of it’s not a pure PPC convention, but it surely is among the few broad search occasions that may nonetheless justify the phrase “superior.”

I’ve attended each SMX Superior and SMX Subsequent. My cause for protecting SMX excessive will not be nostalgia. It’s that the higher editions assume the viewers already understands the vocabulary, which permits audio system and attendees to spend extra time on selections and fewer time defining the channel.

SMX Advanced Europe runs two convention days in Berlin on September 29 and 30, adopted by a Deep Dive Day on October 1. The organiser describes the occasion as vendor-agnostic and designed for knowledgeable search entrepreneurs. The general public programme helps that positioning: superior bidding, Google Adverts scripts, incrementality, measurement, automation, inventive intelligence and the connection amongst PPC, web optimization, GEO and AI search.

The Deep Dive Day contains full-day classes on Google Adverts scripting and AI and on promoting past Search. That’s the type of matter the place a number of uninterrupted hours might be price greater than six convention talks, offered the workshop matches an energetic drawback in your account.

The substantial caveat is worth. Two convention days price €1,695 plus 19% German VAT when checked. All three days price €2,495 plus VAT. At that stage, “we must always keep present” will not be a enterprise case. Establish the precise classes, audio system and friends that justify the spend earlier than reserving.

The US collection has already introduced two 2027 editions: San Diego from March 17 to 19 and Boston from September 20 to 22. That’s genuinely helpful planning data, however charges and programmes weren’t but public. Deal with each as confirmed dates, not completed buying selections.

Greatest for: skilled paid-search leads, enterprise groups, technical advertisers and other people liable for bringing paid, natural, analytics and AI-search work into one technique.

Skip it if: you want a reasonable introduction, a PPC-only programme or can not establish a direct use for the premium workshops.

SEW verdict: Costly, broad and credible. SMX Superior earns its place when the complexity across the account issues as a lot because the controls inside it.

4. The PPC Summit

September 24–25, 2026 | LX Manufacturing facility, Lisbon, Portugal | Final-chance ticket €750 when checked

The PPC Summit has chosen a a lot narrower thesis for 2026: what turns into of the Google Adverts specialist when AI absorbs extra of the routine execution?

That’s extra particular than a convention that merely provides “AI” to each observe. Day one examines the way forward for Google Adverts administration, together with judgement, profitability, inventive work and the altering business worth of a specialist. Day two turns that argument into workshops: auditing how time is used, delegating work to AI, systemising duties and reconsidering how an company or advisor costs the worth it creates.

The room can also be deliberately small. The organiser reported greater than 200 attendees and restricted ticket stock after we checked. Earlier allocations at €395, €495 and €595 have been offered out; seven €750 last-chance tickets remained. Lunch, drinks, workshops and post-event networking have been included.

This isn’t a impartial survey of the promoting market. The occasion is co-hosted by PPC Mastery and ProfitMetrics.io, and its thesis sits naturally beside their academic, group and business pursuits. That doesn’t invalidate the programme. It does imply attendees ought to separate a helpful working mannequin from the concept that one mannequin suits each firm, account or profession.

The agenda seems notably related to company homeowners, consultants and senior specialists whose worth can not be defined because the variety of guide adjustments they make in an account. It’s much less clearly helpful to a junior practitioner who nonetheless must study the basics that AI is supposedly taking up.

Greatest for: skilled Google Adverts specialists, consultants and company homeowners rethinking supply, automation and pricing.

Skip it if: you need a broad paid-media programme, platform-neutral analysis or a low-cost entry ticket.

SEW verdict: One of many sharpest occasion propositions within the class. It ranks beneath the established leaders as a result of the thesis is slim and commercially located, not as a result of the room is small.

5. Inside Google Adverts Stay

October 29, 2026 | Maple Leaf Cinema on the CN Tower, Toronto | CA$199 together with HST

If the question is interpreted actually, Inside Google Ads Live is the cleanest reply on this web page.

The brand new full-day occasion is 100% about Google Adverts. There isn’t a web optimization observe, no paid-social detour and no want to review an enormous agenda to search out the 4 related classes. Founder Jyll Saskin Gales has introduced 12 Canadian audio system, together with practitioners and model leaders, with a rule that sponsored talks should not permitted.

The printed lineup contains Duane Brown, Dana DiTomaso, Ameet Khabra, Julia Vyse, Esma Odobasic, Waqas Khokhar, Whit Norrad and Raihan Masroor alongside Saskin Gales. The occasion runs from 9 a.m. to five p.m. on the CN Tower, and the general public ticket worth was CA$199 with HST included.

That may be a robust worth proposition for any individual already in Toronto. The organiser’s personal line, “Don’t guide a flight. Simply take the TTC,” can also be good recommendation. This can be a first version with no attendee observe report, and a centered regional convention shouldn’t be was an costly worldwide journey merely as a result of the platform match is ideal.

The occasion is organised round Saskin Gales’ Inside Google Adverts schooling and media enterprise. Her six years working at Google present helpful context, however ex-platform expertise needs to be a place to begin for scrutiny, not an alternative to it. Probably the most helpful day will mix platform understanding with practitioners prepared to problem what automation hides, not merely clarify what Google needs advertisers to undertake subsequent.

The ticket coverage says purchases are remaining and non-refundable. Test whether or not switch choices exist earlier than paying in case your schedule is unsure.

Greatest for: Canadian in-house advertisers, companies and skilled Google Adverts practitioners who need a full day on one platform.

Skip it if: you want a longtime occasion historical past, a cross-platform paid-media programme or could be travelling internationally just for this present day.

SEW verdict: The purest Google Adverts convention on the confirmed 2026 calendar. We’re rewarding its focus whereas being sincere that the primary version nonetheless has to ship.

Why Google Advertising Stay will not be ranked as a convention

Google Marketing Live is probably the most consequential Google Adverts product occasion of the yr. It isn’t the very best impartial convention for studying how these merchandise behave within the fingers of advertisers.

Google controls the stage, the entry and the story. The occasion is designed to announce and clarify Google’s promoting path throughout Search, YouTube, measurement, commerce, apps and artistic instruments. That makes the keynote important viewing. It doesn’t make it an alternative to practitioners evaluating what automation gained, what visibility it eliminated and the place the platform’s incentives differ from the advertiser’s.

The 2026 version has already taken place and the official recordings and product summaries can be found. Google had not introduced a 2027 date when this information was checked. We’ll add it to the calendar when it does, however we’ll hold it exterior the impartial rating.

The helpful sequence is easy:

1. Watch Google Advertising Stay to grasp what Google is launching and the way Google frames it.
2. Learn impartial reporting to establish what was not answered.
3. Use practitioner conferences and your individual accounts to check what the adjustments really do.

Platform data is important. Platform distance is important too.

How we’ll preserve this information

Search Engine Watch has lined paid search, its platforms and its convention circuit for many years. That historical past provides us authority, but it surely additionally provides us a accountability to not publish an extended listing just because an extended listing seems to be complete.

We’ll recheck organiser pages, change expired costs, transfer unconfirmed occasions to the watchlist and alter the rating when the proof adjustments. New occasions don’t must flatter us to be included. Established ones don’t obtain everlasting positions due to their names.

I anticipate to attend a number of search and PPC occasions as we rebuild SEW’s direct involvement with the trade. If you’ll be in one in all these rooms, connect with me on LinkedIn and inform me the place. I need to meet the practitioners doing unusually good work, hear what the platforms should not explaining clearly and perceive what Search Engine Watch ought to examine subsequent.

Occasion particulars change. Earlier than buying a ticket or non-refundable journey, confirm the present date, venue, worth, entry guidelines and cancellation coverage on the linked organiser web page.