How to Install Google Ads Editor on Ubuntu Linux

Intro

Google Ads is an amazing platform to run digital advertisements online.

Being able to test various ad-copies makes it the preferred tool used by many digital marketers.

Another tool that any marketer can add to their arsenal is the Google Ads Editor; an amazing application that lets you edit campaigns and ad-groups in a flash.

Although navigating through the Google Ads interface is intuitive, it can sometimes be sluggish if needing to copy various things around. That’s where the editor comes in.

It would be great if you can use it on Ubuntu, but there is no official package available.

Many people don’t believe it can be installed, but fear not! A great little tool such as Wine will let us install the Windows-based application in no time!

When did this become possible?

I used this technique before Wine v5.0 was released. Sadly, it has given me numerous errors.

I thought you would have to troubleshoot endlessly just to even get any Windows-based application to open up.

Also, there are database forums that save ratings on how well the AdWords Editor has executed successfully throughout Wine’s lifespan.

Previous versions seem to have run poorly regardless of Wine’s progression.

But nonetheless, this did not discourage me from delving at it again.

Once I saw Wine v5.0 release, I decided to install the AdWords Editor again.

And presto; the application opened without any errors, and I can easily download my MCC account easily.

Is there any catch to doing this?

Surprisingly, there is no catch.

I ran Google Ads Editor without having to:

I was able to run the latest version of the editor just fine.

I’m surprised that everything worked out-of-the-box after installing the base packages of Wine.

Usually, most people would decide on using the development or staging branch since it gives you the latest Wine version, but I wanted to be on the safe side.

By not having to worry about breakage, choosing the stable branch was a no-brainer.

Does it crash at all?

So far, it has been working perfectly, just as if I am running a fully-supported version meant for Ubuntu.

Downloading accounts and posting changes hasn't resulted in anything usual happening.

I prefer running Wine applications through an individual window.

Cramming them all in a virtual window isn’t a pleasant solution since it cannot resize in real-time.

But neither option should worsen the chance of the editor working.

I won’t keep you waiting anymore. Get to see how it’s installed:

Resources

Commands (Ubuntu 20.04)

1. Install the wine repository

sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386 
wget -nc https://dl.winehq.org/wine-builds/winehq.key
sudo apt-key add winehq.key

2. Install winehq-stable branch and winetricks

sudo add-apt-repository 'deb https://dl.winehq.org/wine-builds/ubuntu/ focal main'
sudo apt install --install-recommends winehq-stable

3. Configure wine to "Windows 7", install AdWords Editor

winecfg
wine GoogleAdsEditorSetup.exe

Optional but recommended: Install and configure DXVK:

Delete wine

1. Delete all files with winetricks (shown in video)

2. Remove all wine-related packages and repositories

sudo apt remove winehq-stable* winetricks*
sudo apt-add-repository --remove 'deb https://dl.winehq.org/wine-builds/ubuntu/ focal main'
sudo apt update; sudo apt autoremove; sudo apt autoclean; sudo apt clean

Conclusion

Once everything is done above, you should have the AdWords Editor installed successfully with Wine.

If only this were reproducible with Bing Ads Editor, but it ends up crashing consistently.

Nonetheless, this application is a great tool to use and will help you work with your accounts quickly without breaking a sweat.

Linux use to be a laughing stock when it came to being used by professionals, but now, it has gained more support for business-oriented programs than ever before.

If the day ever comes, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Adobe, or other software conglomerates, start offering Debian-based installations of their products.

We are not close to that yet, but perhaps in a few decades, Linux support will become a commodity.