For NGOs · Google Ad Grants · India

Google Ad Grants for Indian NGOs.

Google gives eligible nonprofits up to $10,000 a month in free search ads. Most Indian NGOs never claim it. Here's who qualifies, how to apply, what gets accounts suspended — and how we set it up and keep it running.

The Ad Grant is real, and it is large. Up to $10,000 USD per month — around ₹8 lakh — in free Google Search advertising for registered nonprofits. Over a year that's close to ₹1 crore in ad value you never invoice for. The catch isn't the offer; it's that the account has to be earned, kept compliant, and worked every month, or Google switches it off. This page is the honest version of what that takes.

$10,000 / month

Free Google Search ads for eligible nonprofits. Search text ads only — not YouTube, Display, or Gmail. The budget doesn't roll over: whatever you don't use each month is gone.

What Google Ad Grants actually is.

Ad Grants is Google's nonprofit version of Google Ads. Your ads show in Google Search results the same way paid ads do, but the spend comes from Google's grant, not your bank account. The trade-offs that come with "free": a hard $2.00 maximum cost-per-click, ads limited to Search only, and a stricter rulebook than paying advertisers face. Used well, it sends people already searching for what you do — "tree plantation NGO", "donate for girls education", "80G donation" — straight to your site.

Who's eligible in India.

The eligibility bar is specific, and this is where most Indian NGOs fall out — usually on process, not merit:

  • 01A registered nonprofit — a Society, Public Charitable Trust, or Section 8 Company. You must hold valid registration; a mission alone isn't enough.
  • 02Validated through Google for Nonprofits, which uses TechSoup India as its verification partner. You register with TechSoup, get a validation token, and use it to enrol. This is the step most NGOs never finish.
  • 03A website you own — a real domain, real content, running HTTPS. A one-page placeholder or a free subdomain won't pass review.
  • 04Not an excluded org. Government entities, hospitals and healthcare groups, and schools/universities are not eligible for Ad Grants (Google runs separate programs for some of them).
Why so many Indian NGOs miss it: not because they don't qualify — most do. They stall on the TechSoup validation, assume the paperwork is harder than it is, or apply, get the account, and lose it within two months because nobody knew about the 5% click-through rule. Eligibility is the easy part. Keeping the account is the work.

How to apply.

  • 01Register with TechSoup India and complete nonprofit validation. Have your registration certificate, PAN, and 12A/80G details ready.
  • 02Enrol in Google for Nonprofits using your TechSoup validation token, from a Google account on your own domain.
  • 03Activate Google Ad Grants inside Google for Nonprofits and complete the eligibility form and website check.
  • 04Build a compliant account — campaigns, ad groups, conversion tracking, and landing pages that meet the rules below before you go live.
  • 05Submit for review and launch. Once approved, ads can start serving against the grant budget.

The rules that get accounts suspended.

Ad Grants accounts are held to tighter standards than paid Google Ads. Break these and Google pauses or deactivates the account — often quietly:

  • A$2.00 max CPC. You can't bid above two dollars per click — unless you switch to a smart bidding strategy that optimises for conversions, which is the sanctioned exception and the only way to compete for higher-value keywords.
  • B5% click-through rate minimum. Your account must keep CTR above 5% each month. Miss it two months running and the account is suspended. This is the single most common reason Indian NGO accounts die.
  • CValid conversion tracking. Accounts must track meaningful conversions — a donation, a sign-up, a form. Fake or trivial conversions to game the rules are a violation.
  • DNo single-word keywords and no overly generic ones ("free", "videos", "today"). Keywords must be specific and relevant, and low-quality-score keywords (below 2) must be paused.
  • EAccount structure minimums. Each campaign needs at least two ad groups; each ad group needs at least two active ads; the account needs at least two sitelink extensions. Skimp on structure and you fail review.
  • FGeo-targeting and a live monthly check. Campaigns must target real locations, and someone has to log in monthly and act — Google expects the account to be actively managed, not parked.

How OIAS sets it up and manages it.

We handle the whole path: TechSoup validation, Google for Nonprofits enrolment, and a compliant account built to the rules above — real conversion tracking, a keyword set specific to your cause, ad groups and sitelinks that pass review, and landing pages that give the click somewhere useful to land.

Then we manage it, and we're honest that this is ongoing work — not set-and-forget. Every month someone keeps CTR above 5%, clears disapprovals, refreshes keywords and ad copy, watches quality scores, and reports the conversions that actually matter to you. An Ad Grant left alone gets suspended; an Ad Grant worked well quietly becomes one of the cheapest acquisition channels a nonprofit can have.

What we won't promise: specific traffic or donation numbers. Results depend on your cause, your search demand, and your site. What we will promise: an account that stays compliant and live, worked every month, with every asset owned by you — see what else we build for NGOs.

"The offer is free. Keeping the account alive is the work — and that's the part we do."

Where to start.

Tell us whether you're already registered with Google for Nonprofits or starting from zero. The first conversation is free and specific: you'll leave knowing if you're eligible, what your validation looks like, and what the first campaign should target — whether you hire us or run it yourself.

Talk to OIAS about Ad Grants → · See what we build for NGOs →