Brand verification lets an application developer verify that they have
accurately represented their identity and intent as specified by [Google's API
Services User Data Policy](https://developers.google.com/terms/api-services-user-data-policy). Brand verification is part of the
[OAuth App verification process](https://support.google.com/cloud/answer/13463073). Completing brand
verification for your Google Cloud project is a prerequisite for applying for
the [Basic access level](https://developers.google.com/google-ads/api/docs/api-policy/access-levels#basic-access) for the Google Ads API.

> [!IMPORTANT]
> **Key Point:** You don't need to complete brand verification to use the [Test
> access level](https://developers.google.com/google-ads/api/docs/api-policy/access-levels#test-account-access) or to apply for the automatic [Explorer
> access level](https://developers.google.com/google-ads/api/docs/api-policy/access-levels#explorer-access) (which supports up to 2,880 operations per day against production accounts). Complete this guide only when you are ready to upgrade your Google Cloud project from Explorer access to [Basic
> access](https://developers.google.com/google-ads/api/docs/api-policy/access-levels#basic-access) (up to 15,000 operations per day) or [Standard
> access](https://developers.google.com/google-ads/api/docs/api-policy/access-levels#standard-access).

This guide provides the step-by-step instructions to complete brand verification
for your Google Cloud project.

## Complete brand verification

> [!NOTE]
> **Note:** This section assumes that you haven't completed brand verification in your Google Cloud project before. If you already completed this process as part of the [OAuth App verification process](https://support.google.com/cloud/answer/13463073), you can skip this section.

1. Go to the [Google Cloud Console](https://console.cloud.google.com) and select your project.
2. From the left menu, go to **APIs \& Services \> OAuth consent screen**.

   ![Left menu](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/0_leftmenu.png)
3. Select the **Overview** tab and click **Get Started** on the **OAuth
   Overview** page.

   ![OAuth Overview](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/1_overview.png)
4. Fill in the project configuration details and click **Create**.

   ![Project configuration](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/2_project-configuration.png)
5. Go to the **Audience** tab and publish your app to production:

   ### If you are a Google Workspace user

   1. If the **User type** is set to **Internal** , click **Make
      external**.

      ![Workspace internal app](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/3b_workspace-internal-app.png)
   2. In the dialog, select **In production** for the **Publishing
      status** and click **Confirm**.

      ![Workspace publish dialog](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/3b_workspace_publish_dialog.png)
   3. If prompted to **Push to Production?** , click **Confirm**.

      ![Push to production dialog](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/3c_push-to-production-dialog.png)

   ### If you are not a Google Workspace user

   For non-Google Workspace accounts, the **User type** is automatically
   set to **External**.
   1. If the **Publishing status** is set to **Testing** , click **Publish
      app**.

      ![Consumer publish app](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/3a_consumer-publish-app.png)
   2. When prompted to **Push to Production?** , click **Confirm**.

      ![Push to production dialog](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/3c_push-to-production-dialog.png)
6. Go to the **Branding** tab, fill in all required branding information, and
   click **Save**.

   ![Branding](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/4_branding.png)
7. In the top-right corner of the **Branding** page, click **Verify Branding**
   under **Verification status**.

   ![Verify Branding](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/5a_start-verification.png)

   The verification process takes a few minutes to complete. If any errors
   occur, the page displays the errors along with steps to address them.

   ![Verification in progress](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/5b_verification-in-progress.png)
8. After verification completes, click **Publish branding**.

   ![Publish verification](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/5c_publish-verification.png)

   The **Branding** page updates to show that your project is brand verified.

   ![Verified](https://developers.google.com/static/google-ads/api/images/brand-verification/5d_verified.png)
9. Return to the [Google Ads API Overview page](https://console.cloud.google.com/google/ads-apis/overview) in the Google Cloud
   Console and [apply for the Basic access level](https://developers.google.com/google-ads/api/docs/api-policy/access-levels#how-to-apply-for-basic-access).

## What if my application targets internal users or isn't published for production use?

Other Google Cloud documentation and UI prompts state that brand verification is
not required when an application's **User type** is set to **Internal** or its
**Publishing status** is set to **Testing** . However, for Google Ads API Basic access
applications, this guide supersedes that guidance: you *must* set your
application's **User type** to **External** and its **Publishing status** to
**In production**.