Before applying for a Google Ad Grants,it is essential that your nonprofit organization meets certain eligibility requirements, particularly regarding your website’s compliance.To maximize your chances of receiving the grant, review each of the criteria below to ensure that your organization meets them.

For your website

Google Ad Grants requires compliance with several rules for your website. In most cases of rejection, these criteria are the ones that were not met. Be sure to review them one by one to ensure your compliance. Our detailed explanations will help you fully understand each of these criteria :

Your nonprofit must own the domain associated with your website, which is where users are redirected when they click on your ads.

What to do if your nonprofit has multiple websites? The parent entity (the website using your nonprofit organization’s domain name) must apply for the Google Ad Grants first. Once approved, you can request to add the other websites within your group to your grant.

Your site must be globally accessible during the application process, as checks are often performed outside your country. Your web developer may need to adjust the “htaccess” file to temporarily remove geographic restrictions for verification.

Best practice: We recommend, however, that you reactivate the security once the application is completed. By excluding certain geographical regions not targeted by your services, you reduce the chances of being hacked.

Google must be able to easily understand who your organization is, what its mission is, what it does, and who it serves.

Your website should therefore provide clear, accurate, up-to-date information that is specific to your organization. Content that is too general, incomplete, or does not clearly explain your work may negatively impact your Google Ad Grants application.

1. Clearly Present Your Mission.

Your website should allow a new visitor to quickly understand:

  • who you are;
  • what your mission is;
  • what problem or need you are seeking to address;
  • who your beneficiaries or the communities you serve are;
  • what programs, services, or activities you offer;
  • where you operate, when applicable.

Your mission should not be presented solely as a slogan.

2. Provide Sufficient Information About Your Activities.

Explain clearly how your organization fulfills its mission. Where relevant, include:

  • your main programs;
  • your services;
  • your activities;
  • the people who can benefit from your programs and services;
  • how your programs are delivered;
  • the regions you serve;
  • the results or impact of your activities.

Avoid limiting yourself to a list of programs or a few general statements. Visitors should be able to clearly understand what your organization actually does.

3. Use Content That Is Specific to Your Organization.

The content on your website should reflect your organization rather than a generic template. In particular, make sure that:

  • that your organization’s name is clearly displayed;
  • that the content accurately describes your activities;
  • that your contact information is accurate;
  • that the programs presented are still being offered;
  • that the regions you serve are up to date;
  • that the dates, statistics, and information presented are up to date;
  • that no text from your website template or another organization remains on your site.

Google Ad Grants is designed to support the missions of nonprofit organizations. Your website should therefore primarily focus on your mission, programs, services, and impact, rather than primarily serving to sell products or services or promote third-party businesses.

A commercial activity may still be present if it is related to the organization’s mission and is not the primary purpose of the website.

1. Review Your Commercial Activities.

If your organization sells products or services, make sure this activity is not the primary purpose of the website.

2. Explain How It Supports Your Mission.

If you have commercial activities, clearly explain on your website why they exist and how they support your mission.

3. Check for Advertising and Third-Party Content.

Your website should not primarily serve to display advertisements, promote third-party businesses, or redirect visitors to other websites.

Check in particular:

  • third-party advertisements;
  • advertising banners;
  • affiliate links;
  • promotional content from external businesses;
  • pages whose primary purpose is to redirect visitors elsewhere.

A link to a partner, donation platform, or external resource is not inherently problematic. It can become an issue when third-party content or advertising represents a significant part of the website’s purpose.

Google checks that visitors can easily find the information they are looking for and access the different pages of your website after clicking an ad.

Your website should therefore provide clear, intuitive, and functional navigation, both on desktop and mobile.

1. Check Your Navigation Menu.

Your main menu should allow someone who is unfamiliar with your organization to quickly understand where to find the information they are looking for.

Check that:

  • the main navigation menu is easily accessible on the main pages of the website;
  • the main sections are accessible from the different pages;
  • the names of the sections are clear and easy to understand;
  • each menu item leads to an existing page;
  • no menu item leads to an empty page, a 404 error page, or an “under construction” page;
  • the important pages of your organization are accessible from the menu or through clearly visible links;
  • the menu structure makes it easy to understand how the website’s pages are organized.

2. Test Every Link on Your Website.

A link may appear to be functional but lead to a nonexistent page, an old URL, or a destination that does not match its label. If a link leads to a 404 error, an empty page, a deleted page, or a destination that does not match its label, fix it or remove it.

3. Check Your Buttons and Calls to Action.

The buttons that allow visitors to continue their journey should work properly. Each button should lead to the correct destination or trigger the advertised action correctly.

4. Check Navigation on Mobile Devices. 

Your menu and links should also function properly on mobile devices.

A large proportion of visitors now access websites from a phone or tablet. Google therefore checks that your website remains easy to view and use on mobile devices.

1. Test Your Website on a Mobile Device. 

Do not rely solely on checking how your website looks on a computer. Open it directly on a mobile device and test the main pages.

Check in particular:

  • that the pages display correctly;
  • that the content does not extend beyond the screen;
  • that you do not need to zoom in to read the content;
  • that the text is large enough to be easily read;
  • that the images adapt to the screen size;
  • that videos and other embedded elements display correctly;
  • that no important elements are cut off or hidden.

2. Check Your Mobile Menu. 

Your website’s menu should remain easily accessible on a mobile device.

Check that:

  • that the menu opens correctly;
  • that all the main sections are accessible;
  • that the submenus work properly;
  • that the menu items are sufficiently spaced out to be easily selected;
  • that the menu does not hide or block the page content;
  • that visitors can easily return to the previous page or the homepage.

3. Check Your Buttons and Links.

Interactive elements should be easy to use on a touchscreen.

Test in particular:

  • the buttons;
  • the links;
  • the forms;
  • donation buttons;
  • registration buttons;
  • contact buttons;
  • the calls to action.

Make sure they are large enough and sufficiently spaced apart to be easily selected with a finger.

4. Check Your Forms.

Make sure the fields are easy to select and fill out, that the phone’s keyboard does not hide important information, and that the form can be submitted successfully.

5. Check Pop-Ups and Screen-Blocking Elements.

Some elements can make a website difficult to use on a small screen. Make sure they can be easily closed on mobile and do not obscure important parts of the page.

Google checks that your website loads quickly and provides a smooth experience for visitors. A slow website can make navigation difficult and negatively impact the experience of people who arrive at your site after clicking an ad.

1. Optimize Your Images.

Oversized images can significantly slow down page loading. For your main images, make sure they:

  • are compressed;
  • are not unnecessarily larger than their displayed size;
  • use a web-friendly format, such as WebP, when supported by your website;
  • are not loaded unnecessarily before the visitor needs them.

2. Reduce Unnecessary or Heavy Elements.

Many elements can slow down a page: scripts, videos, animations, interactive maps, fonts, analytics tools, social media plugins, and more. Remove or optimize any elements that are unnecessary.

Pay particular attention to:

  • to videos that play automatically;
  • to heavy animations;
  • to scripts from external services;
  • to non-essential interactive features;
  • to tracking or marketing tools that are no longer in use.

For videos or other heavy content that you want to keep, use an approach that avoids unnecessarily loading the content before the visitor needs it.

3. Check Your Plugins and Caching.

If your website uses WordPress or another content management system, certain plugins or features may slow down your pages.

Ask your developer or web hosting provider to check:

  • unused or redundant plugins;
  • plugins that load resources on every page even though they are only needed on certain pages;
  • the caching configuration;
  • file compression and optimization.

Do not disable an essential plugin without first checking the potential impact on your website.

4. Check Your Hosting.

If your website remains slow despite the previous optimizations, the problem may be related to your server or hosting.

Ask your web hosting provider to check the following in particular:

  • the server response time;
  • the resources available to your website;
  • the limitations of your hosting plan;
  • la configuration de la mise en cache;
  • any potential server performance issues.

You do not necessarily need to switch hosting providers. First, ask your provider to identify the cause of the slowdown.

Google requires websites used with Google Ad Grants to be secured with HTTPS. It encrypts communications between the website and its visitors, particularly when they submit personal information or complete a transaction.

1. Verify That Your Website Uses HTTPS.

Open your website and make sure its address starts with https:// rather than  http://. You should also see a padlock or a secure connection indicator in your browser’s address bar.

2. Verify That the HTTP Version Redirects to HTTPS.

Enter your website address manually, starting with http://. The HTTP version should automatically redirect visitors to the secure https:// version.

3. Verify That Your SSL/TLS Certificate Is Valid.

HTTPS relies on a security certificate (SSL/TLS), which must be valid and not expired. If your browser displays a security warning, such as “Your connection is not private” or “Certificate expired,” contact your web developer or hosting provider to have the issue resolved.

4. Check Your Important Pages and Forms. 

Pay particular attention to pages that allow visitors to submit information, including:

  • contact forms;
  • registration forms;
  • service request forms;
  • volunteer forms;
  • donation forms;
  • payment pages, where applicable.

Make sure these pages are also accessible via HTTPS and that no security warnings appear.

5. Make Sure No Important Elements Are Loaded Insecurely.

A website can display https:// while still containing certain elements loaded over an HTTP connection. If your browser displays a warning about insecure content, ask your developer to check for mixed content and replace HTTP resources with their HTTPS versions.

Charging for consultations or services may contradict the spirit of Google Ad Grants, which supports accessible and inclusive initiatives. This grant aims to help nonprofits maximize their social impact without imposing financial barriers.

By adopting practices aligned with these principles, your nonprofit can strengthen its mission and demonstrate that it remains committed to the public good and equitable access for all.

Ads on your site must not be invasive or interfere with your nonprofit’s primary objective. They must also align with your mission to maintain credibility.

Tips : Although Google allows some exceptions, we recommend removing all ads from your website to maximize your chances of receiving and keeping the Google Ad Grants program.

Google prohibits sites using AdSense or any other program designed to generate direct revenue. Remove all such ads before applying. The goal is to ensure the site stays focused on its nonprofit mission without pursuing profits through ads or commercial partnerships.

For your nonprofit

In addition to meeting the technical criteria for your website, your nonprofit must have a Google for Nonprofits account to apply for the grant. The main eligibility requirements include:

  • Being officially recognized as a nonprofit organization in your country.

  • Having an active website that presents essential information about your nonprofit.

  • overnmental, hospital, healthcare, or educational institutions (unless they have a distinct foundation) are generally not eligible.

  • Comply with additional terms of use applicable to associations by Google.

By following these guidelines, you’ll be ready to receive Google’s support to expand your impact. Need a hand putting them into practice? Our pilots can handle the entire process.