When a team starts working with more than one Google Ads account, questions about structure, access, and management quickly come up. How does MCC work in Google Ads? What permissions does each user get? Why is monthly invoicing usually available through a manager account structure rather than a standalone ad account? And how many accounts can be linked to one MCC?

Google provides answers to all of these questions in its Help Center, but the information is spread across different sections and written in documentation language. In this article, we have collected the key points about MCC hierarchy, access levels, billing, and Google Ads limits, with figures, explanations, and practical examples of how the system works.

What is a Google Ads manager account and why is it called MCC?

A Google Ads manager account is designed to manage multiple advertising accounts from one place. Unlike a regular Google Ads account, an MCC does not contain its own campaigns, ad groups, or keywords. Its main purpose is to connect client accounts, simplify access management, and allow users to switch between accounts under one login.

MCC stands for My Client Center. This was the former name for the Google Ads manager account format. Although Google now usually uses the term manager account in the interface, the abbreviation MCC is still widely used in Google documentation and within the advertising industry.

So when someone says “give access to the MCC,” they usually mean access to a Google Ads manager account.
An MCC has its own Customer ID, the unique Google Ads account number in the format 123-456-7890. Every Google Ads account has one, including manager accounts.

An MCC is also considered a Google Ads account, so it counts toward the overall limit of up to 20 Google Ads accounts associated with one email address.

Another important point: linking an advertising account to an MCC does not change the client account itself. Campaign history, users, billing, and payment methods remain unchanged unless consolidated billing is configured separately.
In other words, an MCC does not “take over” the account. It simply adds another management layer above it.

Creating a manager account

A manager account makes sense if you manage more than one advertising account: for example, if you are an agency, a team with several media buyers, or a company managing multiple brands.

If you only have one account and manage it yourself, an MCC usually adds little value beyond an extra management layer.

MCC hierarchy in Google Ads: how manager and client accounts are connected

The MCC hierarchy in Google Ads works like a tree.
At the top is a manager account. Below it, you can connect regular Google Ads accounts or other manager accounts, known as sub-manager accounts.

Those child manager accounts can then manage their own client accounts.

MCC account management levels

This structure is useful when advertising accounts need to be separated by project, team, market, or contractor while still keeping centralized control through a single MCC.

Google Ads hierarchy has several limitations that should be considered before building the account structure:
— one Google Ads account can be directly managed by no more than five manager accounts;
— one manager account can be directly managed by only one other manager account;
— the client account hierarchy cannot be more than six levels deep;
— the same advertising account cannot be linked to two manager accounts within the same MCC hierarchy.

The last point often causes problems in complex access structures.
For example, if your MCC is already connected to a contractor’s MCC, both manager accounts cannot directly manage the same client account within the same hierarchy.
In this case, you need to decide in advance which MCC will be the direct manager of that advertising account.

How many advertising accounts can be connected to one MCC?

A Google Ads manager account has two different limits that are often confused: the total number of client accounts and the number of active advertising accounts.

The overall limit for one MCC is up to 85,000 non-manager accounts.
This includes active, inactive, and canceled client accounts. The limit is the same for all Google Ads manager accounts.
Google separately calculates the limit for active advertising accounts.

This limit depends on the total monthly spend across all client accounts over the previous 12 months. Google takes the highest-spend month during that period and uses it to determine how many active accounts can be managed under the MCC.

Manager account limits

Source: Google Help page on manager account limits.
There are two practical conclusions here.

First, a new MCC with no spend automatically receives the base limit of 50 active advertising accounts.
Second, an increased limit remains in place for 12 months after a high-spend month.

That means one strong month can secure a higher active account limit for the following year.
If the active account limit later decreases, Google will not disconnect the accounts that are already linked.

However, you will not be able to create or connect new active advertising accounts until you free up capacity, for example by unlinking unnecessary accounts or canceling some accounts.

List of accounts inside the MCC.

Account switcher in the top navigation bar.

Five access levels

Access levels are one of the most practical parts of working with Google Ads accounts.
The selected access level determines what a user can do inside the account: view campaigns, change settings, work with billing, manage users, or start advertiser verification.

There are five levels:
Email-only
Billing
Read-only
Standard
Admin

Account Access Levels

Standard users can work with billing
This is often misunderstood.
Many assume that payment information is only available to administrators, but according to Google Help, users with Standard access can view and edit billing information, run billing reports, and work with some payment settings.
However, Standard users cannot manage users, change manager account relationships, or manage product links.

Only Admin users can start advertiser verification
If Google Ads requests advertiser verification, a user with Standard or Billing access cannot independently start and complete the process.
Verification requires an administrator of the advertising account or an administrator of the manager account if ownership is enabled for the MCC.

Read-only access provides more visibility than many expect
Read-only access allows users to view not only campaigns, reports, and planning tools, but also payment information.
Users with Read-only access can also see some information about users and manager accounts and can grant Email-only access.

Billing access is not intended for campaign management
Billing access is designed for financial tasks: viewing and editing payment information, payment methods, invoices, and billing reports.
However, a Billing user cannot view campaigns or work with advertising settings.
This access level is suitable for an accountant, but not for a media buying or advertising contractor.

User list and access levels.

Google Ads manager accounts have their own access logic.
Inside an MCC, an Admin can manage the entire structure, including account hierarchy.

A Standard user can work with most manager account features but cannot manage the hierarchy itself. This means they are not responsible for linking, unlinking, or managing connected accounts.

Google Ads billing inside MCC: how consolidated billing works

Billing is one of the main reasons companies and agencies build their Google Ads structure around a manager account.
When there are many advertising accounts, it is easier to manage payments, invoices, and budgets centrally rather than handling every account separately.

In Google Ads, a payment profile is connected to a specific account, but consolidated billing is configured through a manager account.
In this setup, one MCC becomes the paying manager for a group of child advertising accounts.
This allows the spend from several Google Ads accounts to be combined into a single invoice.

Instead of receiving separate documents for each advertising account, the company receives one consolidated invoice containing the spend of all accounts connected to the same paying manager.

Google Ads monthly invoicing works through MCC
Monthly invoicing is a payment setup in which Google provides the advertiser with a credit line.
You first run advertising and accumulate spend, then receive a monthly invoice and pay it according to the agreed terms, usually within 30 days after the invoice is issued.

Google lists several basic requirements for monthly invoicing:
— the company must have been legally registered for at least one year;
— the active Google Ads account must have been in good standing for at least six months;
— the account must have spent at least $5,000 per month in any three of the previous 12 months;
— the payment information in the account must match the company receiving the credit line;
— the account must be linked to a Google Ads manager account.

Because of these requirements, monthly invoicing is usually not available to a new advertising account from the start.
The account needs to build enough history, remain active for the required period, and meet Google’s spend and account status requirements.

It is also important that monthly invoicing is structurally connected to an MCC.
Google specifically states that an account must be linked to a manager account to use monthly invoicing.
So a standalone advertising account without a manager structure cannot simply enable monthly invoicing as a regular payment method.

Why you need extra room on the credit line
Google Ads monthly invoicing has one less obvious feature: advertising spend continues to accumulate before the first invoice is paid.
If a team spends $20,000 per month, by the time the first invoice is due, the account may already have accumulated spend for the following billing period.

That is why the credit line should be higher than the planned monthly advertising budget.
In practice, you may need enough credit to cover roughly two months of spend.
For example, with a monthly budget of $20,000, the credit line needs to cover not only the first invoice but also the spend accumulated before that invoice is paid.

Otherwise, ad delivery may stop when the credit limit is reached, even if the campaigns are performing normally and the next month’s budget has already been planned.

Google calculates available credit as the difference between the total credit line and the sum of accumulated spend plus unpaid invoices.

Google Ads account ownership: linking to an MCC does not mean transferring the account

One common misconception about MCC is that once an advertising account is linked to a manager account, the manager automatically becomes its owner.
That is not how it works.

When an MCC is linked to an existing Google Ads account, the client account remains unchanged.
Campaign history is preserved, existing users continue to log in with the same credentials and permissions, billing access remains available, and payment methods and invoicing do not change.

The exception is when consolidated billing is configured separately through the manager account.
Another important point is that a Google Ads manager account does not automatically receive administrative ownership.
By default, an MCC can be linked to a client account without becoming its owner.

Administrative ownership must be enabled separately in the client account settings.
Without ownership, the MCC administrator can manage campaigns and receive notifications, but does not have full control over the account.

For example, they cannot manage users, change relationships with other manager accounts, or perform certain actions that require ownership rights.

This is why Google requires manager account ownership when applying for a credit line and monthly invoicing.
Without administrative ownership, the MCC does not have the permissions required for those actions.
A separate case is Google Ads accounts created directly from within a manager account.

These accounts are linked to the MCC from the beginning, and the manager account automatically becomes their owner.
This is generally how agency Google Ads accounts are structured: they are created within a manager hierarchy and are owned by that manager account from the start.

What a child account inherits and what it does not

A child Google Ads account inside an MCC can receive some benefits from the manager structure, but it does not inherit everything automatically.

What can be inherited:
— billing structure and payment profile when consolidated billing is enabled;
— access to the credit line;
— MCC-level placement exclusion lists;
— shared audiences and conversions when configured accordingly.

What is not inherited:
— ad quality;
— optimization score;
— policy history for a specific domain;
— landing page reputation;
— reputation of the advertised product.

An account inside an established MCC may start from a more convenient position in terms of billing, payments, and infrastructure.

However, the manager account itself will not fix a weak landing page, a questionable offer, or creatives that fail to meet Google Ads policies.

The main difference between a fresh account and an account inside an MCC is usually related to billing and trust in the payment structure rather than ad quality.

That is why an agency Google Ads account can simplify campaign launch, but it does not replace proper campaign setup and preparation of advertising materials.

Frequently asked questions about MCC in Google Ads

What is the difference between an MCC and a regular Google Ads account?
A regular Google Ads account is used to run campaigns, ads, and keywords.
An MCC, or Google Ads manager account, works differently: it connects client accounts and helps manage access and billing, but does not contain its own advertising campaigns.

How many advertising accounts can be connected to one MCC?
The overall limit is up to 85,000 client accounts, including inactive and canceled accounts.
The active account limit depends on total spend:
— 50 accounts with monthly spend below $10,000;
— 2,500 accounts with monthly spend from $10,000 to $500,000;
— no limit when monthly spend exceeds $500,000.

Can a Google Ads account be moved from one MCC to another?
Yes.
An account can be moved within the hierarchy or unlinked from one manager account and then linked to another.
Campaign history, conversions, and bidding strategy learning are not reset during the process.

Can a manager account see my conversions?
Yes, if the user has the appropriate access.
MCC administrators can receive notifications and manage campaigns in child accounts.
The exact permissions depend on the user’s access level and whether account ownership is enabled.

What happens to an advertising account if the MCC is unlinked?
The advertising account will continue to exist and its campaign history will remain intact.
However, if billing was configured through the MCC, the payment method will need to be set up again.
A credit line connected to the manager account’s payment profile will no longer be available to that advertising account.

In short
MCC in Google Ads is a layer for management, access, and billing rather than a separate advertising account used to run campaigns.
The manager account determines who manages the client accounts, who can see the data, how permissions are structured, and which payment profile is used for billing.
Campaigns, ads, keywords, and advertising quality remain at the child account level.
So MCC helps build the infrastructure, but it does not replace the work required on campaigns, landing pages, and advertising materials.
All figures in this article are based on Google Help documentation available at the time of publication.
Google may change its limits and requirements, so it is always best to check the latest documentation before making decisions.

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