Microsoft Ads import from Google Ads: stop the overwrites

Microsoft Ads import from Google Ads keeps copying your Google settings on a schedule, and by default that includes campaign status, budgets and bids. So a campaign you paused in Microsoft can switch back on at the next import, unless you pause the schedule or untick those updates.

SpendCanary only works with Google Ads, so it can’t see your Microsoft account. Everything below is done in Microsoft Advertising.

What does a scheduled Google import change in Microsoft Ads?

Microsoft’s import can run once, or on a schedule: daily, weekly, monthly, or “Auto”, which Microsoft runs “on a varying schedule”. Microsoft says most import options are on by default. One of them is Updates to existing items, which brings previously imported campaigns back in line with Google Ads. Under it, these are all on by default:

• campaign, ad group, ad and keyword status;
• campaign budgets, bids and bid strategies;
• ad distribution (where ads show);
• location targets and other targeting;
• AI Max settings.

Two more defaults can raise spend. Bids and budgets below Microsoft’s minimums are raised to them, and Microsoft notes “the amount of money you spend overall may increase”. An import can also be set to adjust budgets and bids up or down against Google’s figures.

New kinds of items join existing schedules on their own. Microsoft says there’s no option to exclude future item types, and scheduled imports include them until you opt out.

Why did my paused Microsoft Ads campaign turn back on?

Usually because a scheduled import copied the campaign’s status from Google Ads, where it’s still enabled. Microsoft’s own troubleshooting covers this case, “Paused Google Ads campaigns still running”: automated imports keep reactivating campaigns and setting them back to what they are in Google Ads, including the budget. Advertisers have reported it on Microsoft’s Q&A forum, in one 2026 case with invoices arriving months after they had paused.

Here’s what that can cost. Say your Google Search campaign runs at $40 a day. You copy it to Microsoft, test it for two weeks, then pause it in Microsoft and lower its budget to $5. The weekly import still runs with the defaults. Microsoft says scheduled imports pick up items that changed in Google Ads since the last run, so the next edit you make to that campaign in Google can set the Microsoft copy back to active at $40 a day. If you only notice on next month’s invoice, that’s up to about $1,200 of budget it could spend.

Automated rules can switch campaigns back on too, so if the import isn’t the cause, check Tools, then Bulk actions, then Automated rules.

How do I stop a scheduled import or change what it updates?

1. In Microsoft Advertising, go to Import, then Import schedule & history, then Scheduled imports. If the table is empty, no schedule is set.
2. To pause an import, select it, then Edit, then Pause. To delete it, choose Delete instead.
3. To keep the schedule but stop the overwrites, choose Edit in the Action column. Under What to import, open the advanced options next to Updates to existing items and untick what you manage in Microsoft, such as campaign status and budgets.

The same page shows each run’s history: what was added, updated, or couldn’t be imported. Microsoft says the update count can be higher than the real number of changes, so use change history to see what actually changed.

How do I import Google Ads to Microsoft Ads without overwrites?

1. Choose to customise the import rather than the quick option, and open the advanced settings.
2. Tick Pause newly imported campaigns (it’s off by default), then review each campaign before turning it on.
3. Under Updates to existing items, untick status for anything you’ll pause in Microsoft, and untick budgets, bids and bid strategies if you’ll set them in Microsoft.
4. Untick Ad distribution if you’ll narrow where ads show in Microsoft, and check Location targets and AI Max settings.
5. Check the options that raise bids and budgets to Microsoft’s minimums, and any budget or bid adjustment.
6. Pick a one-time import unless you really want an ongoing sync.
7. Afterwards, open Import schedule & history and check the scheduled imports table shows only what you expect.

Check the import options again every few months, because new item types join existing schedules. And avoid Run now after making changes in Microsoft: it re-imports items to match Google Ads, overwriting those changes.

Should I use a scheduled import or a one-time import?

Use a scheduled import only if Google Ads is your single source of truth and every change, including pausing, is made in Google. Use a one-time import, or a schedule with status, budget, bid and ad distribution updates unticked, if you’ll pause or change budgets in Microsoft, if Microsoft is a test, or if someone else manages your Google account.

To take Microsoft offline completely, pause or delete the schedule first, then pause the campaigns. Pausing in Google Ads instead pauses both, as long as the import copies status; see how to stop a Google Ads campaign.

What else does Microsoft Ads turn on by default?

• The Microsoft Audience Network on Search campaigns. A Microsoft support specialist said on Microsoft’s Q&A forum (August 2026) that advertisers can’t opt out themselves. Setting ad distribution to “Microsoft sites and select traffic” and excluding websites removes most of it, not all.
• Location intent. The default shows ads to people in, searching for, or viewing pages about your target location, so someone in Florida searching for London hotels can see an ad aimed at London. Choose “People in” to stop that. Google Ads has the same default; see presence or interest.
• Search partners. Google’s search partners map to Microsoft’s syndicated search partners when you import; see Google search partners.

Sources

• Microsoft Advertising (Microsoft Learn): Import options, Google Ads import guide, Import campaigns from Google Ads, What gets imported, Show ads to your target audience.
• Microsoft Q&A: Auto import reactivated paused campaigns (2026), Stopping imports from re-enabling campaigns (2020), Audience Network opt-out (2026), Audience Network share of Search spend (2026).
• The $40-a-day example and the decision rule are our own illustration and advice.