Targeting

This guide explains how to provide targeting information to an ad request.

To see ad targeting in action, download the iOS API Demo app in Objective-C or Swift.

Download API Demo

Prerequisites

Complete the Get Started guide.

GADRequestConfiguration

GADRequestConfiguration is an object that collects targeting information to be applied globally via the GADMobileAds shared instance.

It can be accessed via the following piece of code:

Swift

let requestConfiguration = GADMobileAds.sharedInstance.requestConfiguration

Objective-C

GADRequestConfiguration requestConfiguration = GADMobileAds.sharedInstance.requestConfiguration;

Child-directed setting

For purposes of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), there is a setting called tagForChildDirectedTreatment.

As an app developer, you can indicate whether you want Google to treat your content as child-directed when you make an ad request. When you indicate that you want Google to treat your content as child-directed, we take steps to disable IBA and remarketing ads on that ad request. The setting options are as follows:

• Set tagForChildDirectedTreatment to YES to indicates that you want your content treated as child-directed for purposes of COPPA.
• Set tagForChildDirectedTreatment to NO to indicate that you don't want your content treated as child-directed for purposes of COPPA.

• Do not set tagForChildDirectedTreatment if you do not wish to indicate how you would like your content treated with respect to COPPA.

Swift

GADMobileAds.sharedInstance.requestConfiguration.tag(forChildDirectedTreatment: true)

Objective-C

[GADMobileAds.sharedInstance.requestConfiguration tagForChildDirectedTreatment:YES];

By setting this tag, you certify that this notification is accurate and you are authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the app. You understand that abuse of this setting may result in termination of your Google account.

Users under the age of consent

You can mark your ad requests to receive treatment for users in the European Economic Area (EEA) under the age of consent. This feature is designed to help facilitate compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Note that you may have other legal obligations under GDPR. Please review the European Union’s guidance and consult with your own legal counsel. Please remember that Google's tools are designed to facilitate compliance and do not relieve any particular publisher of its obligations under the law. Learn more about how the GDPR affects publishers.

When using this feature, a Tag For Users under the Age of Consent in Europe (TFUA) parameter will be included in all future ad requests. This parameter disables personalized advertising, including remarketing, for that specific ad request. It also disables requests to third-party ad vendors, such as ad measurement pixels and third-party ad servers.

The setting can be used with all versions of the Google Mobile Ads SDK by calling the tagForUnderAgeOfConsent method on the GADMobileAds.requestConfiguration object and passing in YES.

• Set tagForUnderAgeOfConsent to YES or true to indicate that you want ad requests to be handled in a manner suitable for users under the age of consent.
• Not setting tagForUnderAgeOfConsent indicates that you don't want ad requests to be handled in a manner suitable for users under the age of consent.

The following example indicates that you want TFUA included in your ad request:

Swift

GADMobileAds.requestConfiguration.tagForUnderAgeOfConsent(true);

Objective-C

[GADMobileAds.requestConfiguration tagForUnderAgeOfConsent:YES];

The tags to enable the Child-directed setting and tagForUnderAgeOfConsent should not both simultaneously be set to true. If they are, the child-directed setting takes precedence.

Note: This tagForUnderAgeOfConsent parameter is currently NOT forwarded to ad network mediation adapters. It is your responsibility to ensure that each third-party ad network in your application serves ads that are appropriate for users under the age of consent per GDPR.

Ad content filtering

Apps can set a maximum ad content rating for all ad requests using the maxAdContentRating property of GADRequestConfiguration. This setting applies to all future ad requests for the remainder of the session. The possible values for this property are based on digital content label classifications, and should be one of the following constants:

• GADMaxAdContentRatingGeneral
• GADMaxAdContentRatingParentalGuidance
• GADMaxAdContentRatingTeen
• GADMaxAdContentRatingMatureAudience

The following code configures all ad requests to specify that ad content returned should correspond to a Digital Content Label designation no higher than GADMaxAdContentRatingGeneral.

Note: Content rating filter settings specified via the SDK will override any settings configured using the AdMob UI.

Swift

GADMobileAds.requestConfiguration.maxAdContentRating =
  GADMaxAdContentRatingGeneral

Objective-C

GADMobileAds.requestConfiguration.maxAdContentRating =
  GADMaxAdContentRatingGeneral;

GADRequest

The GADRequest object collects targeting information to be sent with an ad request.

Location

If a user has granted your app location permissions, location data is automatically passed to the SDK. The SDK uses this data to improve ad targeting without requiring any code changes in your app. You can, of course, enable or disable location data for ads.

Autopopulated location information is not forwarded to mediation networks and it may also be disabled entirely. Therefore, the SDK provides the ability to set location manually.

After getting the user's location, you can specify location-targeting information in the GADRequest as follows:

Swift

let request = GADRequest()
if let currentLocation = locationManager.location {
  request.setLocationWithLatitude(CGFloat(currentLocation.coordinate.latitude),
      longitude: CGFloat(currentLocation.coordinate.longitude),
      accuracy: CGFloat(currentLocation.horizontalAccuracy))
}

Objective-C

GADRequest *request = [GADRequest request];
CLLocation *currentLocation = locationManager.location;
if (currentLocation) {
  [request setLocationWithLatitude:currentLocation.coordinate.latitude
                         longitude:currentLocation.coordinate.longitude
                          accuracy:currentLocation.horizontalAccuracy];
}

Out of respect for user privacy, Google asks that you only specify location if that information is already used by your app.

Content URL

When requesting an ad, apps may pass the URL of the content they are serving. This enables keyword targeting to match the ad with the content.

For example, if your app is requesting an ad while showing content from https://www.example.com, you can pass this URL to target relevant keywords:

Swift

let request = GADRequest()
request.contentURL = "https://www.example.com"

Objective-C

GADRequest *request = [GADRequest request];
request.contentURL = @"https://www.example.com";

Load an ad with targeting

Once all of your request targeting information is set, call loadRequest on GADBannerView with your GADRequest instance.

Swift

let request = GADRequest()
request.contentURL = "https://www.example.com"
adView.loadRequest(request)

Objective-C

GADRequest *request = [GADRequest request];
request.contentURL = @"https://www.example.com";
[self.adView loadRequest:request];

See the AdMob Ad Targeting example for an implementation of ad targeting in the iOS API Demo app.

Objective-C Swift

FAQ

Can I release my app with request.testDevices?

Yes. Test ads are only shown on specific devices that you specify, so all of your users will still receive production ads.

What targeting gets used when an ad automatically refreshes?

On ad refresh, the previously specified GADRequest object is used for targeting again. To set new targeting, explicitly call loadRequest on GADBannerView with a new GADRequest object.

How do I pass extra targeting parameters to mediation networks?

See Mediation to find out how to send targeting to mediation networks.