Maximizing your advertising revenue is not about filling your site with random ads and earning money from clicks or views. Instead, you need to work with a reliable ad network that delivers high-quality ads to publishers. This article will explore the best ad networks for publishers and explain their features and competitive advantages.
What is an ad network?
An ad network is a platform that connects app or website publishers to brands that want to advertise their products and services. The network’s primary function is to aggregate advertising slots from publishers and match them with the advertiser’s demand. It makes it easy for publishers to monetize their websites with ads instead of doing one-on-one sales pitches for potential advertisers, which takes considerable time and effort.
Why are ad networks important?
Ad networks make things easier for both the publisher and the advertiser. Publishers don’t need to stress themselves pitching to advertisers when they can just sign up on an ad network and tap into its inventory. The advertiser doesn’t need to bother about looking for websites they can advertise on because the network takes care of that.
These platforms enable many websites to survive on advertising revenue while offering their content for free.
What should you consider when choosing an advertising network?
Factors to consider to choose the best ad network include:
- Size — It’s wise to choose a network with a significant number of advertisers to guarantee a near-perfect ad placement rate for your app or website. A few hundred advertisers is sufficient, but the more, the better.
- Quality — Seek ad networks that follow all the security and safety requirements for your protected work process. High-quality advertisers may be big or small brands, the main thing for them is to work responsibly. The network should have a formal vetting process for advertisers, enabling you to work with reliable and legitimate businesses.
- Ad formats — Go for a network that supports a large variety of ad formats to give you more room to experiment and maximize your income. The same applies to advertisers to help them experiment with different formats and see which one gets the best results.
- Payment terms — Find a network with clear payment conditions and a variety of payment options, with no risk of personal data leaks.
Adsterra has accumulated the best features to help publishers increase their earnings, with over 15,000 advertisers across many niches. This is the right and secure choice for those who are looking for various user-friendly ad formats and plenty of profit opportunities.
To Contents ↑Types of advertising networks
Advertising networks are differentiated by niche, size, inventory volume, and ad delivery method. Some common types of ad networks include:
1. Premium ad networks
A premium ad network focuses on delivering exclusive, high-paying ads to websites. These networks work with a select group of publishers and often have strict registration requirements. Some demand a minimum traffic volume or work only in a specific niche.
Because of their exclusivity, premium ad networks pay the best for websites. You can earn lucrative amounts by delivering premium ads to your audience, relevant ads to which they’ll likely respond.
2. Vertical ad networks
A vertical ad network focuses on a single niche or industry. Its purpose is to help businesses in that industry advertise to their perfect target audience. By providing this audience to interested advertisers, you can earn hefty sums.
The volume of ads might be lower on a vertical ad network, but they still convert well because of their precise targeting.
3. Horizontal ad networks
Horizontal ad networks have a broad reach, the opposite of vertical networks. They serve many niches and connect publishers to a wide range of advertisers. Here, advertising is not as precisely targeted as with vertical networks, but volume is high, allowing you to fill your ad slots 100%.
4. Affiliate ad network
Affiliate marketing involves publishers promoting products in exchange for commissions. The publisher advertises the product to their audience and collects a commission for each sale or other conversion. Affiliate ad networks give media publishers access to high-paying affiliate offers. They provide reporting tools and training to help affiliates produce better results and earn more money.
The 14 Best Advertising Networks for Publishers in 2024
You can choose from thousands of advertising networks, but not all are worth their weight in gold. Below, we’ll explore the best ad networks for websites across different niches.
1. Adsterra
Adsterra is one of the most popular ad networks as of 2023, with over 35,000 publishers and 15,000 advertisers. Website approval is usually quick. The platform boasts a 100% fill rate, which guarantees revenues for publishers with traffic. It supports various types of ad formats, including Popunders, Native Ads, Banners, and In-Page Push notifications.
The platform has high rates, which is favorable to publishers. You can check out a case study of a blogger who made $1,200 from about 230,000 web visits in roughly two months.
Models: Cost-per-mille (CPM), cost-per-action (CPA).
Minimum traffic: None.
Payout methods: PayPal, wire transfer, and Paxum. The minimum payout is $5.
To Contents ↑Advantages of Adsterra for publishers
- This ad network guarantees a 100% fill rate. Thus, you can be sure that there will be ads wherever you insert the ad code and earn a steady income.
- There’s no minimum amount of traffic required to sign up on Adsterra. You can monetize a website with little traffic and increase your revenue as you grow. Many rival networks have minimum traffic requirements that are unfavorable to small publishers.
- Adsterra lets you display ads on your site even when a visitor has installed ad-blocking software. This gives you revenue that you would otherwise have lost due to the growing adoption of ad-blocking tools.
- This ad network supports several payout methods. Publishers can receive their income through Paxum, PayPal, or wire transfer. There’s no need to stress because all you need is a bank account or an account on one of the aforementioned payment platforms.
- Adsterra has excellent customer support. Publishers can get in touch with an account manager that’ll help them maximize revenue.
Publishers who monetize with Adsterra highlight its super-friendly platform. You get your website approved in minutes, so nothing stops you from placing ad codes today.
To Contents ↑2. Google AdSense
Pros
- An extensive ad inventory
- Clean and user-friendly interface
- Supports many ad formats
Cons
- Strict restrictions on website content
- High minimum payout ($100)
Google AdSense is the largest ad network, with hundreds of thousands of publishers and advertisers signed up.
This network is the best for generic publishers but doesn’t serve niche ones very well (see alternatives). It offers lower payouts for niche sites than you can get on the alternatives and takes a long time to earn considerable income.
The good thing going for AdSense is that it’s very easy to use. The platform supports a large variety of ad formats. It is widely recognized as one of the best ad networks for bloggers.
Models: CPC, CPM, and CPE (cost-per-engagement).
Minimum traffic: There’s no minimum traffic listed in their requirements, although they may reject websites with little or no traffic.
Payout methods: Wire transfer, check, and electronic funds transfer.
To Contents ↑3. PropellerAds
Pros
- Low payment threshold
- Easy to gain approval
- Detailed analytics and reporting
Cons
- No real-time bidding
PropellerAds is a well-known display and mobile advertising network that claims over 100,000 customers. Advertisers can target over 195 geographical locations (GEOs) with quality ensured by sophisticated anti-ad fraud software. Publishers can sign up easily and start earning revenue once approved. Supported ad formats include popunders, interstitials, and push notifications.
This ad network boasts of delivering over 12 billion ad impressions daily. Advertisers can run campaigns in different formats or even combine multiple formats for a single ad campaign. The multi-format advertising is a boon for publishers because it increases the number of ads they can display.
Models: CPC, CPM, and CPA.
Minimum traffic: None.
Payout methods: PayPal, WebMoney, wire transfer, Skrill, ePayments, and Payoneer.
To Contents ↑4. Amazon Publisher Services
Pros
- High-paying offers
- User-friendly interface
Cons
- Stringent vetting process
Amazon is best known as an online store, but its business encompasses many other areas, including online advertising. Amazon Publisher Services is a marketplace that connects websites with advertisers and charges zero fees.
This ad network gives publishers unlimited access to ad buyers, mostly brands selling on Amazon. It has a simple interface that makes it easy to keep track of your ads and earnings. There’s no minimum traffic required to monetize your website with this network, which is good.
The main drawback is that Amazon has a tough vetting process to accept websites into its network, which discourages most publishers from applying. Yet, you can always give it a shot.
Models: CPC and CPA.
Minimum traffic: None.
Payout methods: Wire transfer, check, and electronic funds transfer.
To Contents ↑5. RevenueHits
Pros
- It supports many advertising formats
- Broad ad niches
- Easy to sign up and use
Cons
- Limited reporting capabilities
Intango (formerly RevenueHits) is a well-known ad network with over 5,000 advertisers and 20,000 publishers registered on it. The company claims a 100% fill rate and supports many ad formats, including sticky ads, in-page push, popunders, display banners, etc.
Signing up on this network is noticeably easy. Once you join, you can start earning revenue from your website’s ad space regardless of your level of traffic. This ad network has competitive rates for publishers. It also offers regular payouts so that publishers can have good cash flow.
Models: CPA, CPI, CPC, CPL, and CPM.
Minimum traffic: None.
Payout methods: Wire transfer, PayPal, and Payoneer.
To Contents ↑6. TrafficStars
Pros
- High-paying ads
- Supports plenty formats
- No minimum traffic requirements
Cons
- Limited advertising niches
TrafficStars is a self-serve ad platform that supports various ad formats, including sliders, interstitials, video pre-roll, banners, and push. One of the unique things about this platform is that it supports real-time bidding (RTB), wherein advertisers can bid for publishers’ ad slots in real time. RTB enables advertisers to maximize outcomes and publishers to get more value from their ad space with competitive bidding.
Models: CPM, CPA, and CPC.
Minimum traffic: None.
Payout methods: Bank transfer, digital currency, ePayService, Paxum, and others.
To Contents ↑7. Publift
Pros
- High fill rates
- First-rate customer service
- Extensive integrations with other ad networks
Cons
- Very selective criteria for publishers
Publift is one of the top ad networks for publishers because it enables them to personalize their ad strategy to earn as much as they can. It works for both websites and apps and supports ad formats like sticky ads, banners, vignettes, and multiplex.
Publift delivers its own ads and ads from ad network partners like AdSense, Xandr, and Amazon Publisher Services.
Models: CPM, CPC, CPA, CPI, and CPL.
Minimum traffic: Already earning at least $2,000 per month.
Payout methods: Bank transfer.
Unlike many ad networks, there’s no minimum traffic for publishers to sign up on Adsterra. You can join when you’re small and grow your revenue alongside your site.
To Contents ↑8. Adcash
Pros
- Access to relevant, targeted ads
- User-friendly platform
Cons
- Lower CPM rates than competitors
Adcash is an Estonian online advertising platform. It serves publishers around the world, supporting many ad formats, including popunders, banners, interstitials, and autotag. The platform offers dedicated account managers to help publishers maximize their revenue.
Models: CPM, CPC, and CPA.
Minimum traffic: None.
Payout methods: Wire transfer, PayPal, and cryptocurrency.
To Contents ↑9. Clickadu
Pros
- Multiple payment methods
- Near-perfect ad fill rate
- Access to high-paying ads
Cons
- High minimum payout
Clickadu is an ad network with over 3,300 publishers registered that generate over 4 billion daily impressions. It’s known for its high pay and a near-perfect fill rate for different ad formats like videos, popunders, and in-page push.
The hindrance of Clickadu for publishers is its high minimum traffic requirement.
Models: CPC, CPM, and CPA.
Minimum traffic: At least 5,000 visits daily.
Payout methods: Wire transfer, WebMoney, Paxum, and PayPal.
To Contents ↑10. PopAds
Pros
- Real-time reporting
- No minimum traffic requirements
- Access to creative popunder ads
Cons
- Limited reporting capabilities
- Supports only one ad format
PopAds is an ad network specializing in Popunder ads, the type that appears beneath an active browser window. Popunders tend to pay more than other types of ad formats and are a good way to reach people that use ad-blocks. The platform has advertisers in over 40 countries and claims an average revenue of $4 for 1,000 unique U.S. visitors.
Models: Cost-per-mille (CPM).
Minimum traffic: None.
Payout methods: Payoneer, PayPal, and wire transfer.
To Contents ↑11. ExoClick
Pros
- High fill rates
- A broad range of advertisers
- Real-time bidding to help maximize your revenue
Cons
- High minimum payout ($200)
ExoClick is one of the leading ad networks globally. It enables publishers to monetize their traffic from every GEO and get paid either weekly or monthly. Publishers can see detailed statistics about the ads served on their site in real time and know where to adjust to maximize their revenue.
This network incorporates an RTB system that’s good for both publishers and advertisers. It supports various ad formats (banners, video, native, etc.) so publishers can monetize all their inventory. There’s also a tool that lets publishers circumvent ad-blocking software from their visitors and earn more revenue.
Models: CPM, CPC, and CPV.
Minimum traffic: None.
Payout methods: Wire transfer, Paxum, and BitPay.
To Contents ↑12. Ezoic
Pros
- Access to high-quality ads
- Multiple payment methods
- Complementary tools to optimize your site
Cons
- Complicated interface
- Difficult setup process
Ezoic is a popular ad-tech platform known for relatively high rates and high-quality ads. Note that Ezoic isn’t a typical ad network. Instead, it aggregates ads from different networks and offers them to publishers. The high pay occurs because of the competition from various networks for ad space on the publisher’s site.
Ezoic offers both advertisements and tools to help publishers optimize their sites for better revenue, e.g., SEO, speed booster, etc. It incorporates artificial intelligence to help decide the best position to place ads on a website to earn maximum income.
This network is best suited for publishers with large traffic who want to monetize it as much as they can.
Models: CPM, CPC, and CPA.
Minimum traffic: None.
Payout methods: Direct bank transfer (Payoneer).
To Contents ↑13. Xandr
Pros
- Excellent customer service
- Access to premium, lucrative ads
Cons
- Very high minimum traffic requirements (most publishers don’t qualify)
- Stringent website vetting process
Xandr (formerly known as AppNexus) is an advertising network owned by Microsoft. It gives publishers access to a network of premium brands that want to advertise their products.
It claims over 193,000 advertisers and 1,500+ direct publishers. The relatively small number of publishers compared to advertisers gives a hint that Xandr is an exclusive ad network to get into. It has a minimum traffic requirement of 10 million monthly page views, which shuts out most publishers.
This network offers some of the highest rates that publishers can get for their ads. But, as we’ve mentioned, getting in is the tough part. To do that, you’ll need to contact the company and provide details about your website. Then, they’ll provide feedback and guide you on integrating your site with the network if you get accepted.
Models: CPC and CPA.
Minimum traffic: 10 million page views monthly.
Payout methods: Wire transfer.
To Contents ↑14. TrafficForce
Pros
- Real-time bidding
- Real-time reporting
- Customized payout schedules
Cons
- High minimum payout
TrafficForce is a premium advertising network offering high-paying ads to publishers. This network supports real-time bidding, empowering publishers to earn more revenue as advertisers compete for limited ad slots. It supports a wide range of ad formats for desktops and mobile phones, with advanced targeting that allows publishers to get the perfect ads for their audience.
A unique feature of this network is that you can choose your payout period: weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly. You also get real-time statistics about your ads and monitor their performance rigorously.
Models: CPC and CPM.
Minimum traffic: None.
Payout methods: Cheque, Wire Transfer, Paxum, and PayPal.
To Contents ↑Best ad networks — FAQs
The top advertising networks differentiate themselves by their quality of ads, analytics, targeting capabilities, and payouts. They offer high-paying ads and use sophisticated algorithms to match websites with the perfect ads for their audience. As a publisher, you’ll likely make more money from a top ad network than an average one because of a wider variety of ads and access to reputable, high-paying brands.
The future of advertising networks is a greater reliance on artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to match publishers with the best ads for their websites. AI has made it easier to analyze vast amounts of data and find patterns – AI-assisted ad networks can help publishers find the best ads for their target audience and maximize their revenue.
Affiliate marketing is also poised to become a bigger part of global advertising networks because of its effectiveness. It’s the fastest-growing segment of digital advertising. For more information, see our article on affiliate marketing trends in 2024.
Advertising networks curate ads from brands and deliver them to publishers. They provide an extensive ad inventory; publishers can sign up to tap from this inventory. Thanks to ad networks, publishers don’t have to stress themselves negotiating ad deals directly with different brands. The ad network handles the negotiation, and publishers provide the required audience to earn money.
Conclusion
We’ve shown you the best advertising networks you can choose in 2024. These networks empower publishers to maximize their earnings with high-quality ads and creative formats. Each one has its unique advantages and characteristics, which we delved into.
Before choosing an ad network, ensure that it offers creative ad formats, a high fill rate, detailed analytics, and access to high-paying ads in your niche. You’re free to make any choice, but we’ll recommend Adsterra because of its high-quality advertisers and support for many ad formats. Adsterra also provides a unique Partner Care program to ensure a smooth onboarding process and help you across every step of your advertising journey.
