“View-through conversions” is a column in your Google Ads account that shows people who saw your ad, did not click or interact with it, and later completed a conversion on your site. Your other conversion columns count people who first interacted with an ad.
What should count at all is covered in my guide to what counts as a conversion in Google Ads. Here the question is narrower: what to do with a column that contains no clicks.
What it means
Google Ads records the ad impression. If the person did not interact with the ad but completed a conversion action within the window you set, the action is logged as a view-through conversion. On the Display Network and in video, the last impression before the conversion gets the credit. Anyone who interacted with your other ads is excluded automatically. And conversions from browsers that block cross-site cookies are not reported.
An impression is not the same as a video view. A view counts when someone watches the whole ad, at least 30 seconds of it, or clicks on a part of it. A view that leads to a conversion lands in the “Conversions” column. The details are in Google’s help page on view-through conversions.
How to read and set it
The answer depends on the campaign type.
| Campaign type | Do view-through conversions occur | What to do with them |
|---|---|---|
| Display Network | Yes, the last impression before the conversion gets the credit | Reporting only, not in “Conversions”. Read as a reach signal, not as enquiries. |
| Video campaigns | Yes, on the same principle | Reporting only. A video view that led to a conversion is already in “Conversions”. |
| Demand Gen, YouTube only | Yes | Optimization on them can be switched on and is off by default. Turn it on deliberately. |
| App campaigns (Android) | Yes, 24-hour lookback by default | A separate optimization exists for them. Not relevant if you have no app. |
| Performance Max | For store-sales goals they can count in “Conversions” | Check whether you run such a goal. If not, it is reporting only. |
| Search Network | The help page on this column does not describe Search campaigns | Do not make bidding decisions from it. Rely on conversions after a click. |
The window for these conversions is set per conversion action. The default is 1 day, and you can choose anything from 1 to 30 days or from 1 to 4 weeks. A longer window usually increases the number of view-through conversions. In my view it inflates the column without adding proof that the ad is what brought the person in.
What to do
- Open Campaigns and use the Columns icon above the table to add “View-through conversions” next to “Conversions” and “All conversions”.
- See whether your key campaigns show any numbers. Zero means nothing to decide.
- Check the window: Goals, Conversions, Summary, then the action, Edit settings, the Settings tab, and the “View-through conversion window” section.
- Do not add them to your enquiry count or match them to your CRM.
- To see which view-through conversions bidding already uses, open Campaigns, click Segments, hover over “Conversions” and choose Ad event type. They show as “Impression”.
- Base bidding and budget decisions on “Conversions”. How that column differs from “All conversions” is explained in my piece on the two conversion columns in Google Ads.
What not to do
- Report view-through conversions as enquiries to your boss or client. There was no click.
- Set a long window to “get more conversions”. The column grows, but it does not explain why.
- Switch on Demand Gen view-through optimization without realising that bidding now learns from people who never clicked.
- Treat the impression as the cause of the conversion. The help only records that the impression came before the action.
There is an opposing view. According to Measured, a measurement vendor, in a 2026 post based on incrementality tests since January 2025, view-through conversions in the account reflect more than 80% of what YouTube and Demand Gen placements actually do, and in-platform reporting can understate the value of YouTube by as much as four times. That is the estimate of a company that sells such tests, and it concerns YouTube and Demand Gen, not Search. So judge video and Demand Gen with this column in mind, and judge Search on clicks. The full text is on Measured’s site.
When this does not apply
- In a Search campaign. The help page on this column does not describe it, so do not build decisions on it.
- When the visitor uses a browser that blocks cross-site cookies. Their view-through conversion will not be reported, so the column undercounts.
- Right after changing the window. The new value applies from that day forward, and past data is not recalculated.
The step-by-step version of reading and setting this in your own account is in my book on Google Ads for business owners. For the gap between first contact and an enquiry, see the conversion cycle.
My e-book “19 Google Ads Secrets”: how to get the most out of Google Ads without draining your budget, drawn from real campaigns and tests.
See the book →Questions and answers
Are view-through conversions part of “All conversions”?
Yes. They are counted in the “View-through conversions” and “All conversions” columns. They are not in “Conversions”, except for App and Demand Gen campaigns and Performance Max store-sales goals.
Why did the number change after I changed the window?
A longer window usually produces more view-through conversions. The change applies only to future conversions, so figures from different periods are not comparable.