Google is retiring call-only ads. Since February 2026 no advertiser can create a new call-only ad through the UI, Google Ads Editor, or the API, and in February 2027 every existing call-only ad will stop serving. Google confirmed the timeline in its call-only ads sunset announcement, directing advertisers to rebuild phone-lead campaigns as responsive search ads with call assets. If you leave call-only ads in place until the deadline, they simply stop delivering — there is no automatic conversion to the new format, so the migration is on you.
For most B2B SaaS advertisers this is a smaller change than it sounds, because pure call-only ads were always a poor fit for a considered, multi-stakeholder purchase. But sales-led SaaS, agencies running client accounts, and any team that leaned on click-to-call for inside sales need a concrete migration plan that preserves conversion tracking and, ideally, upgrades the setup rather than just replacing it like-for-like. This guide covers what is changing, why the replacement format is usually better for SaaS, how to rebuild without losing your call conversion history, and how to make sure the calls you buy actually turn into pipeline.
What is changing and when
A call-only ad is a Search ad whose single call to action is a phone call — there is no landing-page click, the whole unit is built to dial your number on a mobile device. Google is removing that ad type on a two-stage schedule. The first gate has already passed: as of February 2026, the create path is closed everywhere, so you cannot spin up a new call-only ad even if you want to. The second gate is the hard stop — in February 2027, existing call-only ads stop receiving impressions and go dark. Between now and then they keep running, which is exactly the trap: the campaigns look healthy in the interface right up until the cutoff, and teams that treat February 2027 as a distant problem discover their phone-lead volume vanishing overnight.
The replacement is not a new bespoke format but the standard responsive search ad with a call asset attached — the component Google previously called a call extension. Rather than an ad that can only be called, you run an RSA that shows headlines, a description, and a URL, with a call option layered on top for mobile searchers. Google frames this as consolidation: instead of maintaining a separate call-only build, phone promotion becomes an asset on the ad format you are already running for everything else. The practical upshot is that migration means moving spend and messaging into RSAs, confirming your call assets are attached and eligible, and retiring the old call-only ads before they retire themselves.
Why the replacement is usually an upgrade for SaaS
Call-only ads force a single action — dial now — which is the wrong default for how B2B SaaS gets bought. A buyer evaluating software rarely wants to phone a stranger as their first step; they want to see pricing, read a comparison, or book a demo on their own schedule, often after looping in colleagues. By moving to an RSA with a call asset, you stop forcing the phone call and instead offer it alongside a landing-page path. The high-intent minority who genuinely want to talk to sales can tap to call, while everyone else clicks through to a demo-booking or trial page. You capture both pools instead of filtering out the larger one.
This also lets you apply the full RSA toolkit that call-only ads never supported well: more headline and description assets for Google to test, sitelinks and other assets, and a properly optimised landing page that you control. For the copy side of that rebuild, the same principles that govern any B2B SaaS search ad apply — see our guide to writing RSA ad copy for B2B SaaS. If phone contact is central to your motion, pair the RSA with a strong call setup rather than treating it as an afterthought; our guide to call tracking for B2B SaaS covers the forwarding-number and conversion mechanics you will carry into the new format.
The migration, step by step
Start by inventorying every call-only ad in the account. Filter your ads by type, list the campaigns and ad groups that contain call-only units, and note the phone number, forwarding settings, and call conversion action on each. This inventory is your migration checklist — anything on it needs an RSA equivalent before February 2027. For each call-only ad group, build a responsive search ad that carries the same offer and intent, then attach a call asset with the same phone number and call reporting settings. Attach the call asset at the ad-group or campaign level where it makes sense so it applies consistently, and confirm it is approved and eligible before you pause the old ad.
Do not delete the call-only ads the moment the RSA goes live. Run them in parallel for a short window so you can confirm the RSA is serving, the call asset is showing on mobile, and calls are still being recorded against your conversion action. Once you have a few days of clean data proving the new ad is delivering calls and clicks, pause and then remove the call-only originals. Because call assets can be scheduled, set them to show during your sales team's staffed hours — there is no point inviting a call at 2am if no one answers, and a missed call is a wasted, high-intent click. If your team's hours are the main constraint, our guide to ad scheduling for SaaS covers how to align delivery with coverage.
Where lead forms fit as an alternative
Not every phone lead needs to stay a phone lead. For a meaningful slice of B2B SaaS demand, the reason a buyer called was simply that calling was the fastest way to start a conversation — and a lead form asset can serve that same want without tying up a sales rep on a live call. A lead form lets a searcher submit their details directly from the ad or landing page, which your team then works on their own cadence. This is often a better fit for demand that arrives outside staffed hours, or for buyers who would rather not talk until they have to. Migrating some call-only spend into an RSA plus lead form, rather than an RSA plus call asset, can lift total captured demand.
The trade-off is lead quality. A caller has self-selected as high-intent by picking up the phone; a form fill is cheaper to generate but noisier, so it needs tighter qualification before it reaches sales. If you go this route, gate the form with qualifying questions and feed the downstream CRM outcome back into bidding so Google learns which submissions become pipeline. Our guide to Google lead forms for B2B SaaS covers the qualification and follow-up mechanics. The right mix depends on your motion: a sales-led team with staffed phones may keep most of its budget on call assets, while a leaner team may prefer forms that queue rather than ring.
Measuring calls as pipeline, not volume
The most important thing to fix during migration is measurement, because call-only ads encouraged a bad habit: optimising to call count. A raw call is not a conversion worth bidding on — a wrong number, a support query, or an existing customer counts the same as a qualified buyer unless you tell Google otherwise. The fix is offline conversion import. Capture the GCLID or use enhanced conversions for leads to tie each call back to the click that drove it, then push the CRM outcome — qualified, opportunity, closed-won — back into Google Ads once your team has worked the lead. Smart Bidding then optimises toward calls that produce pipeline instead of calls that merely connect.
Set a minimum call duration as a coarse first filter — a call under, say, 60 seconds is rarely a real sales conversation — but treat that as a floor, not the real quality signal. The real signal is what the CRM says weeks later, and wiring that back is what separates a phone-lead program that scales from one that quietly funds junk calls. For the full plumbing of getting sales outcomes back into the platform, see our offline conversion stack for B2B SaaS. Handled this way, the call-only sunset becomes an opportunity: you rebuild on a format that captures more demand and, at the same time, upgrade the measurement so every call is judged on the pipeline it creates. Sales-led teams especially should treat this as a chance to align the whole build — see our guide to Google Ads for sales-led B2B SaaS.