Don't trust preview tool

Reporting an interesting defect in the Google Adsense Preview Tool

[mr27]

I am based in the UK and publish a website, with Google Adsense ads, aimed at readers in the USA.

I have been using the Google Adsense Preview Tool, set to the United States option, to see what ads are being served to my readers in the USA. The preview tool has been showing, to my surprise, that at least half the ads are for UK websites (with .co.uk domain names).

For a reality check, I phoned a relative living in New York City, and he kindly viewed six of my pages. He found that all the adsense ads being served in the USA were USA websites (ie with .com domain names).

This was reassuring. However the lesson I have learned (which I thought I should pass on) is that you can't trust the preview tool in these circumstances.

[netmeg]

Haven't trusted it or used it in years.

[martinibuster]

We understand that the tool only shows a small sample but if it's supposed to show samples of U.S. then it shouldn't show UK ones. Sounds like the tool needs freshening.

[rajivatre]

In this tool click the link "Tool Options" under that check geo target. Is it UK or AUTO? You need to set it to USA to see the ads from USA.

My 2 cents.

Thanks
Rajiv