# Read Google's bid and budget simulations

> Tier: recipe. Operating recipe: real tool sequence, core rules, known traps.

The simulation curves, read out as decisions: volume available, at what marginal cost.

**Intent.** What Google's own counterfactuals say a change would trade.

## When to use

- Before target or budget changes on meaningful campaigns.

## When not to use

- On fresh or tiny campaigns: no volume, no simulation worth reading.

## Sources

Required: Google Ads

## Preconditions

- The account is ticked in the dashboard, confirmed via list_accounts.

## Inputs

- `window`: Analysis window. Default: last 30 days.

## Procedure

1. Pull available simulations for the scope. — tools: `google_ads_get_simulations`
2. Translate each curve into its decision: what +X budget or ±Y target buys.

## Decision rules

- **When** The curve shows flat conversions beyond the current spend point → **conclude** More budget buys impressions, not results: quote the plateau.

## Evidence requirements

- Every figure carries its account, metric and window.
- Anything below a readable sample size is reported as unjudged, not as zero.

## Human approval boundary

- The readout changes nothing. Any change it motivates goes through Safe Writes: preview, human confirmation, then apply.

## Failure modes

- Simulations expire fast and assume the current auction: never quote one older than the market it measured.

## Output

- **Readout**: The figures, with windows and accounts named.
- **Flags**: What deserves a deeper skill or a human decision.

## Related

- Skill: [bid-strategy-review](https://www.getmcpads.com/skills/bid-strategy-review.md)