A developer token from Google lets your app connect to the Google Ads API. This is a 22-character long alphanumeric string, and is listed under the API Center page of your Google Ads manager account.
Each developer token is assigned an access level which controls the number of API calls you can make per day with the token, as well as the environment to which you can make calls.
Should I sign up for a developer token?
Whether you should sign up for a new developer token or not depends on a few factors. A few common scenarios are listed below.
Scenario |
Next steps |
| My company has never used the Google Ads API before and want to develop our own apps | Sign up for a new developer token. Learn more |
| My company is actively using or has used the Google Ads API in the past | Google usually grants one developer token per company, so if your company already uses the Google Ads API, then you should reuse your existing developer token. Learn more |
| My company already uses the Google Ads API but is also developing a new product or tool | If you're certain that you cannot use your existing developer token, then you can apply for a new one explaining your use case when signing up for the API. For the rest of this guide, you can use your existing developer token. Learn more |
| My company uses a third-party app | You need a developer token only if you're developing your own app. If you use a third-party app or service, then the developer of that app needs to get a developer token for the app. If you're unclear about your case, contact the API compliance team. |
How do I apply for a developer token?
There are two steps when signing up for a developer token.
Step 1: Select or create a Google Ads manager account
If you have a manager account, we recommend selecting it when applying for the token. If this manager account is not already linked to your other accounts, we recommend putting it at the root of your account hierarchy to ease the token review process and simplify account management later on.
If you don't have a manager account, you can follow the Help Center instructions to create one.
Step 2: Apply for access to the Google Ads API
Sign up for Google Ads API access through your manager account.
Sign in then navigate to TOOLS & SETTINGS > SETUP > API Center. The API Center option appears only for Google Ads manager accounts.
Next,
Complete the API Access form and accept the Terms and Conditions.
Ensure that your information is correct and your company's website URL is functioning. If the website is not live, Google might not be able to process your application and reject it.
Ensure that the API contact email you provide leads to a regularly monitored inbox. Google's API compliance team might reach out to this email address during the review process for clarifications. If you can't be reached, Google might not continue with your application.
You can edit your API contact email in the API Center.
We strongly encourage you to keep this information up-to-date, even after the application process, so Google can send you important service announcements.
After you've completed the signup process, the developer token shows up in your API Center with a Pending Approval status. Your developer token now has Test access level and you can start making API calls against test accounts.
After you've obtained your developer token, note its value as you'd need this when making your first API call.
Where can I find my developer token?
An existing developer token can be found on the API Center page of your Google Ads manager account.
Sign in then navigate to TOOLS & SETTINGS > SETUP > API Center. The API Center option appears only for Google Ads manager accounts. Note the developer token and its Access level.
