My two leaderboard units are still king but the responsive ad unit starting getting good returns as soon as I implemented them. They are doing very well so far.

CTR really low. Less than 1 click per thousand visits.

For publishers who are using responsive ads, do you switch to all responsive (meaning, you use only responsive ads) on a site where you place them? It seems to me that maybe it's an all-or-nothing thing; if you're displaying ads designed to re-size based on user devices, maybe it doesn't make sense to use fixed-width ads on the same pages.

Your thoughts/experience?

I just use it where I used to use my top center 728x90; the 300x250 renders just fine on a smart phone as-is.

Responsive ads are still beta and will never detect a platform 100% accurately. They sometimes serve very wrong ad sizes, example. 160x600 on desktops in an area that should serve 728x90. Plus you don't get to have control over custom channels for different platforms.

I had to use a combination of server side user-agent detection and responsive ads because I couldn't trust Google with the detection completely. The result serves a specific size and channel in addition to serving a responsive ad with a custom channel this way you can tell which system is detecting the platform wrongly, adsense or the server side user-agent script. Unfortunately nothing is ever perfect and sometimes both get it wrong because of an obscure user-agent. At least this way I can tell whether desktops are getting the correct sizes and what their performance is because they are in different channels from mobile and I don't have to dig into annoying dimensions.

So do I like responsive ads? Not really. Can't trust them fully.
But they are perfect for lazy webmasters and it's the only client-side solution for responsive sites.

But they are perfect for lazy webmasters and it's the only client-side solution for responsive sites.

I too use server side detection and dynamic HTML (though primarily generated from server-side code) on top of a responsive design to control ad display and I use responsive ads exclusively. I assure you, the solution was a result of anything but laziness. I'm not only resizing space at runtime, I'm reshaping it based on available content on the page. Where one article (for lack of a better term) has a list on the bottom of the page, I'll create a square div next to the list for a square ad. When there's no list at the bottom of the page, the same space spreads out across the page to form a banner ad slot. One slot needs to always have a square ad, the other, always a horizontal unit. And then we get to device specifics where the two columns get stacked and a different ad orientation might be better. And so on.

So, beyond your conclusion that Responsive ads are for the "lazy," I'll at least add that they are also for the "creative." These things are very flexible and controllable in capable hands. I'm sure they also do the trick for people who just want to keep it simple...and on that note, don't we all?

My experience so far is all positive with responsive ads. I have had lower CTR with them, but that's due to where I'm placing them on my site's pages, I believe; and that's something I can change easily. Just need to experiment more to get to the right place(s).

For me, I love the fact that the code works "out of the box." It doesn't require me to do any editing or customizing it so that it will display certain sizes on certain devices; honestly, there's too many devices at too many different sizes for me to try to figure all of that out. (Mobile is huge for my site.)

Cost-per-click and earnings seem very healthy, though. Maybe that's just for my topic niche; hard to tell for sure. But I give them two big thumbs up.

The responsive unit by Google didn't come out until just after my peak traffic season last year (we kind of jerry rigged one and got grudging approval from Google to try it)

So far this year my CTR on that ad placement is over twice what it was last year - in fact, it hasn't been this high in years. My EPC is down a few cents, but it's more than made up for by the higher EPC. Most of my traffic is mobile, and depending on viewport, I have it serving either a 728x90, a 468x60 or a 320x100. So far anyway, it's working spectacularly.

On a site on which Google ads were the last non-responsive element, earnings jumped (I cannot remember by how much) and user experience on mobile is MUCH better.

My EPC is down a few cents, but it's more than made up for by the higher EPC.

Long day?

I'm too used to it being the other way around. I meant (obviously) made up for by the higher CTR.

How can I make the code to show ads on my responsive site?

I have created the ad unit for 5 hours now, and no ads have appeared.

Responsive ads are still beta and will never detect a platform 100% accurately. They sometimes serve very wrong ad sizes, example. 160x600 on desktops in an area that should serve 728x90.

The code doesn't detect platforms, it detects the dimensions of the ad unit. It may serve a wrong ad if your page reflows after adsense code runs. That's bad coding on your part.

Just make sure that when the adsense code runs, the ad unit (and its parent element) has the right dimensions, and not resized by a dynamically loaded css or javascript.

They sometimes serve very wrong ad sizes, example. 160x600 on desktops in an area that should serve 728x90.

If you change the following line in the code from

data-ad-format="auto"

to

data-ad-format="horizontal"

You'll always get a horizontal ad unit. This is for smart-sized ads btw.

Also as levo hints at, the constraints of your ad's container (preferably a div element) will serve to control the dimensions of your ad as well. Adsense first came out with a media query solution to responsive ads and that's what I used at first. I find the smart-sized version more flexible though and, with a bit of creativity, quite versatile. It's different ad code so you have to get the right code to do it but that's a tiny concern for the flexibility involved. Once you've got your hands on a smart-size ad, you can use data-ad-format and container divs to achieve just about anything you want on any device.

And yes, the device isn't the issue here, it's available screen space or viewport size that matters where responsive ads are concerned.

If you change the following line in the code from

data-ad-format="auto"

to

data-ad-format="horizontal"

You'll always get a horizontal ad unit. This is for smart-sized ads btw.

This solution will not work for displaying ads for both horizontal and rectangle units based on platform in the same area. In my case I want a horizontal ad for desktop and 300x250 for mobile. The best way to do this is through user-agent detection and serving customized AdSense code. You could use JavaScript for platform detection but it's faster on the server side.

Yes the situation you describe can't be solved with data-ad format alone. I use a combination of device detection, container sizing and the data-ad-format property to achieve various results. I also use various conditions to reshape the container div at run-time and that is enough in some cases to cause the "auto" format to give me what I want.

Example: Two divs, 50% wide floated side by side. If there's no content available for the left div on a given page then don't generate that div. Instead just show the right one and make it's width 100%. With the auto setting, this will give me a square when both divs are showing but a horizontal banner when just the one div is showing. It also gives me a square on a phone but a horizontal unit on desktop and tablet (when one div is showing).

I'll admit, responsive design requires some maneuvering where ad placement and sizing is concerned. I think Adsense does offer some distinct advantages though over other programs out there.

Is it possible to dig into adsense stats to find out what one particular responsive unit has served?

e.g.
responsive unit 500 clicks
-- leaderboard 100 clicks
-- 468 100 clicks
-- 250x250 200 clicks
-- skyscraper 100 clicks

Is it possible to dig into adsense stats to find out what one particular responsive unit has served?

Unfortunately, not that I know of. Just like it's not possible to know if a regular (non-responsive) large rectangle actually served a smaller unit.

that's a shame.

I have a new responsive design and the only hair-raising moment in testing was when a div that had width:234;height:60 served up a lovely skyscraper that disappeard out the bottom of the div!

I added max-height and max-width to the div css, put data-ad-format="horizontal" (instead of "auto" in the adsense code and haven't seen it since.

Yea I've been digging around in every report they offer trying to get that specific size served in the responsive units, and I can't find it. All I can do is extrapolate about how much traffic I serve to each platform. But it's only a little less than a shot in the dark.

Is it possible to dig into adsense stats to find out what one particular responsive unit has served?

e.g.
responsive unit 500 clicks
-- leaderboard 100 clicks
-- 468 100 clicks
-- 250x250 200 clicks
-- skyscraper 100 clicks

Yes. But you have to have a channel setup for that unit otherwise it will be account wide under creative sizes.

Performance reports > Select Channel > Add Dimension > Creative Sizes

You'll probably see Dynamic alot, but it's the best you'll get without more advanced javascript or server size coding.

I have all kinds of channels on each ad unit, but I still have nothing but tens of thousands of "Dynamic" which doesn't do me a lot of good.

Actually, after a bit more investigation. If you look at the Creative Sizes dimension in your reports, it is possible to get some information about this. Here's what I think the catch is.

Let's say you have a dynamic-sized unit that can get larger than the largest standard-sized unit because your container div allows it. Just for sake of discussion, let's say your container div is 400 x 400. The max size ad that can fit in that space is a 400 x 400 text ad and this is going to register as dynamic.

But, if a standard sized display unit (for example a 336 x 225 unit is shown in that space, then it has fixed dimensions and those impressions do appear to register in the Creative sizes report as fixed size units.

So, here's a theory. Perhaps I'll test it later...

Limit the size of your container space so that it maxes out at a standard size. This should keep the responsive unit from rendering in a non-standard size (e.g. Dynamic) larger than the max-standard size that fits your container. Of course, your max-container size is likely to be smaller when a tablet or phone is involved so you may get a "dynamic" size in those situations anyway but this should help show more details when the desktop is involved. You'll probably still get a lot of "Dynamic" in your reports but perhaps you'll get a bit more detail as well.

Moral of this tale, If you want more detail in Responsive Ad Unit reports, keep the unit from expanding larger than the largest standard-sized unit that will fit into your container.