Google Ads Transparency (via Apify)

io.github.retracnv1.0.0Updated Oct 5, 2026

Competitors' Google ads for AI agents: every ad a brand runs, with dates and ad text.

VerifiedStreamable HTTPWeb executableWeb Search & ScrapingBusiness & Commerce

Overview

AI-generated overview

Lets an assistant pull competitors' Google ads — text, format, dates and images — via Apify's hosted Google Ads Transparency scraper.

What it does
Wraps an Apify Actor that queries Google's Ads Transparency Center and returns one row per ad: advertiser, ad ID, format, first and last shown dates, days running, headline and ad text, images, landing page, YouTube video, preview and link. Advertisers can be looked up by name, domain or ID, filtered by 50+ countries and by format. Results cover Search, YouTube, Display and Shopping placements.
When to use it
Useful for competitive ad research: seeing which creatives a brand or domain is running, how long campaigns have been live, and how messaging differs by country or format. Worth adding when an assistant needs ad-copy or campaign-timing data rather than general web search.
Requirements
Remote MCP endpoint at mcp.apify.com, or a local run via npx with the Apify actors MCP server. Requires an Apify API token sent as an Authorization header (Bearer token); a free Apify account is enough to obtain one. Usage is billed per ad returned.
Before you install
The Authorization header carries an Apify API token, so treat it as a secret and avoid exposing it in shared configs. Runs are billed at about $1 per 1,000 ads returned, so large advertiser lists or high per-advertiser limits can cost money. Ad data is fetched from Google's public Ads Transparency Center through Apify, a third party. Spend and targeting figures are not available except for political ads.

Installation

In SourceWeft

  1. Open Google Ads Transparency (via Apify) in the dashboard and add it to a workspace.
  2. Enable the server for the chats that should use its tools.

Web executable via Streamable HTTP. Remote servers run from the web runtime once configured in a workspace.

Other MCP clients

Add this to your client's mcpServers config.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "google-ads-transparency": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=automationnation/google-ads-transparency-scraper"
    }
  }
}

README

Google Ads Transparency Scraper & API: competitors' ads

[Run on Apify]

Google Ads Transparency Scraper is an Apify Actor that returns every ad an advertiser or domain runs on Google Search, YouTube, Display and Shopping, from Google's Ads Transparency Center: format, first and last shown dates, days running, ad text and images, preview and a link to each ad, filtered by country and format, at $1 per 1,000 ads.

Price: $1 per 1,000 ads ($0.80 on Gold and above) · Run it: https://apify.com/automationnation/google-ads-transparency-scraper · Guide: https://retracn.github.io/automationnation-actors/google-ads-transparency-scraper/

Quick facts

  • One row per ad: advertiser, ad ID, format, first and last shown, days running, headline and texts, images, landing page, YouTube video, preview and link.
  • Look up advertisers by name, domain or ID; filter by 50+ countries and format.
  • Price: $1 per 1,000 ads with ad text included.

Example input

json
{  "advertisers": [    "nike.com"  ],  "region": "us",  "maxAdsPerAdvertiser": 100}

Run it from code

REST API

bash
curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/automationnation~google-ads-transparency-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=$APIFY_TOKEN" \  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \  -d '{"advertisers": ["nike.com"], "region": "us", "maxAdsPerAdvertiser": 100}'

Python — see examples/python_example.py

python
# pip install apify-clientfrom apify_client import ApifyClient
client = ApifyClient("YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN")run = client.actor("automationnation/google-ads-transparency-scraper").call(run_input={  "advertisers": [    "nike.com"  ],  "region": "us",  "maxAdsPerAdvertiser": 100})for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():    print(item.get("advertiserName"), item.get("format"), item.get("headline"), item.get("daysShown"))

JavaScript — see examples/node_example.mjs

js
// npm install apify-clientimport { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';
const client = new ApifyClient({ token: 'YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN' });const run = await client.actor('automationnation/google-ads-transparency-scraper').call({  "advertisers": [    "nike.com"  ],  "region": "us",  "maxAdsPerAdvertiser": 100});const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();for (const item of items) console.log(item.advertiserName, item.format, item.headline, item.daysShown);

Use it with AI agents (MCP)

Hosted MCP server URL (Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and other clients with remote MCP support):

https://mcp.apify.com?tools=automationnation/google-ads-transparency-scraper

Local config for Claude Desktop / Cursor — mcp/claude_desktop_config.json:

json
{  "mcpServers": {    "google-ads-transparency-scraper": {      "command": "npx",      "args": [        "-y",        "@apify/actors-mcp-server",        "--tools",        "automationnation/google-ads-transparency-scraper"      ],      "env": {        "APIFY_TOKEN": "YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN"      }    }  }}

FAQ

What is Google's Ads Transparency Center? A public Google tool listing the ads verified advertisers run on Search, YouTube, Display and Shopping. This Actor turns it into data.

Can I see ad spend? No: Google publishes spend and targeting only for political ads.

More from AutomationNation

This repository holds usage examples. The scraper itself runs on the Apify platform; you need a free Apify account and API token. Examples are MIT licensed.

Source: README.md at commit f5dec26

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Version history

1
  1. v1.0.0LatestOct 5, 2026