Set up Prebid Stack in your GAM

Last edited: 2024/06/24

Prebid Stack requires implementation in Google Ad Manager. This includes:

• Creating Orders and Line Items or enabling Header Bidding trafficking (GAM 360 & limited number of Bidders only)
• Creating key values (Old platform only)

Why is this needed?

Prebid Stack transmits bid information, including price, to the ad server's tag on the page. This information is then passed to the ad server as query string parameters. The ad server has line items that target these bid parameters. If Prebid Stack is determined to be the winner by the ad server, a signal is returned to Prebid Stack. This signal instructs the library to display the winning creative on the website.

How to do Prebid Stack setup in GAM

The GAM setup differs between GAM360 and GAM Small Business version.

In theory, you can use GAM Small Business type of setup if you have GAM360, but cannot use GAM360 type of setup if you use Small Business version.

Implementation when using GAM 360

1. Enable Header Bidding Trafficking in your GAM. How to do it is explained in Google Ad Manager documentation (link). Alternatively, you can refer to Prebid documentation (link).


Attention: Not all bidders are supported in Header Bidding Trafficking. Before you proceed with this type of implementation, please verify if all the Bidders you want to implement are currently supported. The list is available here.

If not all Bidders you want to use are available with Header Bidding Trafficking, please follow the implementation explained for GAM Small Business and create Orders/Line items for implementation.

2. The necessary key values will be implemented by Yieldbird (you don’t have to take any actions).

Implementation when using GAM Small Business

GAM Small Business does not support Header Bidding Trafficking, hence the setup has to be done in a “classic way” - by creating Advertiser, Orders and Line items.

To do it, we created a script that does that automatically. It can be triggered wither by you, or you can ask Yieldbird to do that on your behalf.

The process that we execute is basically a full automation of what is explained in the Prebid documentation. For more information please refer to Prebid’s step by step guide to GAM setup.

Publisher setting up Prebid in GAM independently

1. Go to: Your profile in the top right corner > Workspace: Connection to GAM > ‘Connect’
2. Select the account that is to be used in setting up Prebid Stack in your GAM and allow yieldbird.com to access this Google Account This account needs to have all the permissions connected with viewing and editing: Advertisers, Orders, Line items, Creatives.

In the process of setting up Prebid Stack in your GAM Yieldbird Platform will use the login token of this account to perform the actions explained in this documentation. We do not permanently store any login information associated with this account.
3. The New connection menu will appear:
1. Network code (contains the list of GAM accounts that the account you used in step 2 has access to): select the GAM account that you want to connect to (where you want to create Prebid Stack Orders, Line items, advertiser… )
2. Currency: select the currency that is the main currency in your GAM
3. Optionally:
1. add template ID for Banner & outstream video
2. add Instream and customize if needed the parameters associated with Instream video
3. add Native and template ID for Native Creatives

Google Ad Manager documentation on Creative templates: link
4. Click ‘Run’ and wait for the process to finish

This procedure can last up to one hour. During setup of the connection do not make any changes to your GAM and make sure you did not reach the account limits for line items, orders, and key values.
5. When the process is complete, Approve the created Orders in GAM:
1. Sign in to your GAM and go to Delivery > Orders
2. Filter:
1. All orders
2. Name containing “QuickWrap”

You shall see a list similar to this one (can differ in currency shown):


3. Approve each Draft order:
1. Click on the name of the Order to see its details
2. Click Approve button:

6. Done! ✅

Yieldbird setting up Prebid Stack in GAM on Publisher’s behalf

In order for Yieldbird to be able to handle the connection for you, you have to update the permissions given to the GAM user: benchmarks@yieldbird.com and grant it admin role. The admin permission can be revoked and the user can return to the regular permissions, necessary for functioning of other products.

See the article GAM user: benchmarks@yieldbird.com for more information.

What exactly is created in your GAM?

The process that we execute is basically a full automation of what is explained in the Prebid documentation. For more information please refer to Prebid’s step by step guide to GAM setup.

Creating an Advertiser

Firstly, we create an advertiser, because all line items and creatives must be associated with an advertiser. An advertiser named “QuickWrap” is created to associate the necessary elements with it.

Creating Prebid Orders

Due to the limit of 450 line items per order the script creates 6 orders in total (2079 line items in total are necessary).

When it comes to Start and End date, you typically do not include an end date in your line items. That’s why our bot sets the End date to “Unlimited” in GAM, and the Start date is set to begin immediately.

Creating Prebid Line items

Line items must cover all yb_hb_pb values (2079). One line item per one yb_hb_pb value.

• Line item priority - because header bidding partners return prices, set the line item type to price priority to enable them to compete on price
• Line item creative placeholders - all sizes you are using on your websites
• Rate - same as yb_hb_pb values
• Line item currency - the same as specified in Prebid Stack
• Set display creatives to one or more since we’ll have one or more creatives attached to this line item

Creating key-values

Name	Public Knowledge Base description	Public: Sample values
qw	Indicates if Prebid Stack was enabled on a given ad request.	1: if Prebid Stack was enabled on a given ad request
qw_ver	Used to identify the configuration version when A/B testing is running on a domain.	1, 2, 3, …, 100
yb_hb_bidder	Indicates which Bidder won Prebid Auction on a given ad request.	Equal to Bidder Code (Bidder Alias) name.
yb_hb_format	Indicates the Media Type that won in Prebid Auction.
yb_hb_pb	Indicates the value of a line item triggered by Prebid Stack. Applies only to implementations that don’t use Header Bidding Trafficking.	Equal to line item value.
yb_hb_source	Indicates if the Prebid auction was won by a client-side or server-to-server bid.	client: if the winning bid was from client-side s2s: if the winning bid was from server-to-server
yb_psmode	Indicates if Prebid Stack was enabled on an ad request and specifies the auction mode used.	CS: Ad request with Prebid Stack working in Client Side mode only S2S: Ad request with Prebid Stack working in Server2Server mode only Hybrid: Ad request with Prebid Stack working in both Client Side and Server2Server modes

On this page:

• Set up Prebid Stack in your GAM
• Why is this needed?
• How to do Prebid Stack setup in GAM
• Implementation when using GAM 360
• Implementation when using GAM Small Business
• Publisher setting up Prebid in GAM independently
• Yieldbird setting up Prebid Stack in GAM on Publisher’s behalf
• What exactly is created in your GAM?