Google Ads for Cannabis, Peptides, and Crypto Brands: What's Actually Allowed in 2026

By Joseph Coello, Founder · Updated September 2026 · 8 min read

Quick answer: Google Ads bans cannabis advertising outright, with no exception for state-legal dispensaries anywhere in the world. Peptides and research chemicals fall under Google's Unapproved Substances policy and get disapproved on a case-by-case basis. Crypto exchanges and wallets can advertise, but only with a Google certification and a real regulatory license in each targeted country. Med spas are the one vertical here that runs on Google Ads with only standard healthcare restrictions. If your product is cannabis, most peptides, or an unlicensed crypto offer, Meta plus a compliant bridge funnel is the workable path, not Google.

We get asked some version of this every month by brands already running with us on Meta: why not just run Google Ads too, since it's intent-based traffic and the buyer is already searching. Google's restricted-content rules are built differently from Meta's, and for three of our four core verticals they are stricter, not looser.

Can Cannabis and Dispensary Brands Advertise on Google Ads?

No. Google's Dangerous Products or Services policy lists recreational drugs as a category that cannot be advertised anywhere, and it defines that category as any substance that alters mental state for the purpose of recreation or induces a "high." Marijuana falls squarely inside that definition, and Google does not carve out an exception for state or national legality the way Meta's Advertising Standards increasingly do for licensed cannabis brands in approved markets.

There is exactly one narrow opening: topical, hemp-derived CBD products with 0.3% THC or less can be advertised, but only after Google approves an application, and only targeting California, Colorado, and Puerto Rico. That covers a small slice of the CBD category. It does not cover flower, edibles, vape products, dispensary delivery, or anything with psychoactive THC, regardless of state license status.

Ads for pill presses, encapsulating machines, and instructional content about producing or purchasing recreational drugs are also banned outright, which closes off most creative workarounds brands try.

What Does Google's Unapproved Substances Policy Mean for Peptides and Supplements?

This is the policy most peptide and nutraceutical brands run into without realizing it exists. Google's Healthcare and Medicines policy prohibits ads for herbal and dietary supplements that contain active pharmaceutical or dangerous ingredients, products that imply they work as well as a prescription drug or controlled substance, and anything on Google's non-exhaustive list of unapproved pharmaceuticals and supplements.

Most research peptides sit in a grey zone under this rule. They aren't FDA-approved for the uses they're often marketed for, and any copy that frames a peptide as a treatment, a weight-loss solution, or a performance enhancer starts to look like exactly what the policy targets. Google also restricts the use of specific prescription drug terms in ads, landing pages, and even keywords, which matters for peptide brands whose product names reference or resemble regulated compounds like semaglutide or tirzepatide.

Nutraceutical brands with clean, non-drug-adjacent positioning (a general wellness supplement, not a "get the effects of a prescription drug" pitch) have a real shot at approval, but every claim gets reviewed individually. There's no blanket yes or no the way there is for cannabis.

Can Crypto and Finance Brands Run Google Ads?

Selectively, and only with certification. Google splits crypto content into three tiers. Educational content and businesses that don't sell crypto directly (mining hardware, tax and legal services, blockchain infrastructure) can run without any special application. Initial coin offerings, DeFi trading protocols, and any ad promoting the direct purchase, sale, or trade of a token are banned everywhere, with no application process that unlocks them.

Cryptocurrency exchanges, software wallets, and coin trusts sit in the middle: restricted content that requires both a Google certification and a real regulatory license in every country you target. In the United States that means FinCEN registration as a Money Services Business plus a state money transmitter license, or a bank charter. In the United Arab Emirates, where we run campaigns for finance and crypto clients out of our Dubai market, it means a license from either the Financial Services Regulatory Authority or the Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority. We cover the broader UAE regulatory picture, including VARA, in our guide to Meta ads for restricted brands in the UAE.

If your crypto brand doesn't hold one of those licenses yet, Google Ads isn't an option regardless of budget or creative quality. That's a real regulatory floor, not a policy Google can waive for a good applicant.

Are Med Spas and Aesthetic Brands Restricted on Google Ads Too?

Less than the other three verticals, but not unrestricted. Med spa services (facials, non-injectable treatments, general aesthetic consultations) run on Google Ads under the same standard healthcare rules that apply to any local medical business: no exaggerated claims, no implying a guaranteed outcome, no using a prescription drug's brand name in ways that suggest Google or the manufacturer endorses the ad.

Injectables are where it gets tighter. Products like Botox and prescription weight-loss injections are restricted drug terms in Google's system, and depending on the ad's landing page and the location targeted, ads referencing them by name can get held for review or disapproved until the language is adjusted. This is the vertical where Google Ads is viable for us, which is why med spa clients in our stable typically run search alongside Meta rather than instead of it.

Google Ads vs Meta Ads for Restricted Verticals: Which Actually Works?

The pattern holds across every client conversation we have on this: Meta built a policy path for legal, licensed restricted brands. Google mostly didn't. Its ad network reaches a different mix of publishers and legal jurisdictions than Meta's, and its risk tolerance is set accordingly.

What Happens If a Restricted Brand Runs Google Ads Anyway?

Some of these violations carry an early warning. Google states that most Dangerous Products or Services and Cryptocurrency violations get a warning at least 7 days before any account suspension. Others don't. Unauthorized pharmacy content and a handful of other categories are treated as egregious violations, meaning Google can suspend the account on detection with no warning and, in serious cases, bar the advertiser from the platform permanently.

Either way, a suspended Google Ads account doesn't just cost you that channel. It creates a paper trail, a policy strike tied to your business name, website, and payment method, that can complicate future advertising applications across other platforms that check advertiser history. We treat account health as a single asset to protect, not something to gamble on a channel that was never built for the vertical in the first place.

Our own numbers back the approach: across the client and owned brands we run in these verticals, we've put up 300+ compliant campaigns at about 100% approval with 0 account bans, all on Meta, none on Google. See the results in our MetroBud case study and our Prime Peptides case study.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources: Google Ads Dangerous Products or Services policy; Google Ads Unapproved Substances policy; Google Ads Cryptocurrencies and Related Products policy; Meta's Advertising Standards. This article is educational information, not legal advice, and platform policies can change without notice.