Getting Started

Follow these steps below to get started with AdSense.

1. Get an AdSense account, if you don't already have one.
2. Sign in to your account.
3. Get familiar with your account to take advantage of the many features we offer.
4. Learn our program policies to keep your account in good standing.
5. Put AdSense on your site so you can start generating earnings.
6. Set up your account for payments so that we can send your payments in a timely manner.
7. Subscribe to the Inside AdSense blog to keep up to date on our latest news, tips, and product updates.
8. Join the AdSense Help Forum to be a part of the AdSense community and learn from other users.

Learn More

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Earnings & Expectations How much can you expect to earn with AdSense?
Ad Formats With AdSense for content, you can choose from many different ad formats and options, including text ads, image ads, video ads, and link units.
Filtering Ads Are you unhappy with a particular ad appearing on your site? Do you find your competitor's ads on your pages? Use the Competitive Ad Filter to keep unwanted ads from reappearing on your pages.
Channels Do you want more reporting options? Use URL channels to track the performance of each of your webpages or sites separately.
AdSense for Search Add a Google search box to your site and you can earn revenue while your users search the web.
Optimization Tips Maximize your earnings by optimizing the performance of your Google ads.
Ad Targeting Find out how Google matches ads to the content of your pages -- and what you can do to help.

References

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Program Policies Publishers participating in the AdSense program are required to adhere to these policies.
Ad Formats View all the available ad formats, including text, image, video, link units, referral buttons, and themed units.
Glossary Unfamiliar with some of the terms we use? Find their definitions here.
Webmaster Guidelines Following these guidelines will help Google find, index, and rank your site.
Terms & Conditions Participation in the Google AdSense Online Program indicates that you accept these Terms and Conditions.
Privacy Policy Google's Privacy Policy, which applies to all of the products, services and websites offered by Google.

5 Steps to getting paid

You must complete all the steps below to get your account set for your first AdSense payment. Keep in mind that you will need to earn $10 before you can provide your tax details, select a form of payment, and enter your PIN or phone verification number.

1. Check your address

Since payments and PINs, which we'll describe below, are sent to the mailing address in your account, it's important to confirm the accuracy of your payment address and payee name. Keep in mind, especially, that checks and Western Union payments are made out to the payee name exactly as entered in your account.

If you need to correct any information, follow the instructions in our Help Center.

2. Provide your tax information

We're required to collect tax-related information from all AdSense publishers, including publishers who are based outside of the U.S. , and we're unable to send payment to you until your information has been submitted.

You can submit your tax information within your account by clicking the Tax Information link from the My Account tab. An easy-to-use wizard interface will help guide you to the appropriate online forms. You're able to submit most forms online, and we'll give you instructions on submitting any other forms that may be required.

3. Select your form of payment

Depending on your payment address, there may be a number of payment options available to you, including checks, Electronic Funds Transfer, and Western Union Quick Cash. We suggest you review the available forms of payment to learn about each option. Once you've decided how you'd like to be paid, click the Payment Information [edit] link from the My Account tab of your AdSense account. Follow the instructions on that page to select your form of payment.

4. Enter your PIN and phone verification number

When you've earned $10 in earnings, we'll mail a Personal Identification Number to the payment address in your account. You'll need to enter this PIN into your account before we can send any payments to you. Your PIN will be sent by standard post and will take 2-3 weeks to arrive.

Depending on your location, you may also be asked to verify your phone number. As part of this process, our system will call you at a pre-arranged time, and you'll be required to dial in a verification number that appears in your AdSense account.

5. Generate $100 in earnings

When your total unpaid earnings reach $100, we'll send you a payment at the end of the next month. For example, if your total unpaid earnings reached $100 during January and you completed the 4 steps above, we would send you a payment at the end of February.

If your total unpaid earnings haven't yet reached $100, they'll roll over to the next month and accrue until they meet the $100 threshold.

Payment is disbursed within approximately 30 days of the end of the month — to see the timeline of our payment cycle, read the Payment Timelines section below.

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Tracking Earnings

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You can track your AdSense performance and earnings from the Reports tab of your account. The Reports tab includes two important sub-tabs: Overview and Advanced Reports, which will display day-to-day details about how much your earning from AdSense. There's also important information included in the Payment History page, which is linked from the Overview as well as the My Account tab.

The Payment History page tracks the status of previously issued payments, as well as monthly account calculations. You can click the Earnings details link for any month to view your total earnings, as well as any adjustments made to your account. Once you've qualified for a payment, and your payment has been made, you'll see it listed on this page as Payment issued. Click on the link to see the payment details as well as the exchange rate used to calculate your local currency payment, if applicable.

Payments Guide

Are you wondering when your AdSense check or Electronic Funds Transfer will arrive? Or if you're going to be paid this month, or next month? We've put together this guide to explain our payment process - from the 5 critical steps to setting up your account, to an overview of the life of a payment, everything you need to know is here.

1. 5 Steps to Getting Paid
2. Tracking Earnings
3. Payment Timelines or, "When am I paid?"
4. Holding Payments

Which ad format should I use?

As a rule of thumb, wider ad formats tend to outperform their taller counterparts, due to their reader-friendly format. Readers absorb information in thought units (that is, several words at a time). The wider format lets them comfortably read more text at a glance without having to skip a line and return to the left margin every few words as they would be forced to do with a narrower ad. The wider ad format also lessens the likelihood of readers leaving the ad unit altogether.

If positioned well, these ad formats can increase your earnings significantly. The formats we've found to be the most effective are the 336x280 Large Rectangle, the 300x250 Medium Rectangle, and the 160x600 Wide Skyscraper. Keep in mind that while these ad formats typically perform well, you should use the format that best complements your pages.

Tip for making the most of a little ad space: Try one of our streamlined link unit formats, shown below. These formats are lean, mean, and versatile enough to fit in locations normal ads don't.