Digital ad spending to top $1.08T by 2030

By AI, Created 2:36 PM UTC, May 21, 2026, /AGP/ – The Business Research Company projects global digital advertising spending will reach $1.078 trillion in 2030, with Asia-Pacific as the largest region and the U.S. the largest country. Social media ads are expected to remain the biggest format as marketers keep shifting budgets toward measurable, data-driven and mobile-first campaigns.

Why it matters: - Digital advertising is on track to be a roughly $1.08 trillion market by 2030, making it a major slice of the broader media industry. - The forecast underscores where ad budgets are moving: toward platforms and formats that can target users, measure performance and support e-commerce. - Asia-Pacific and the U.S. are expected to anchor growth, which points to a market led by both scale and mature digital infrastructure.

What happened: - The Business Research Company released its Digital Advertising (AD) Spending Global Market Report 2026 with a forecast covering 2026 to 2035. - The report estimates the global digital advertising spending market will surpass $1,078 billion in 2030. - The report says digital advertising will represent nearly 29% of the broader media industry, which is projected to reach $3,708 billion by 2030. - The report says Asia-Pacific will be the largest region in 2030, at $411 billion. - The report says the U.S. will be the largest country in 2030, at $197 billion. - The report identifies social media as the largest ad-format segment in 2030, with 25% of the market, or $273 billion. - The report pegs the market’s expected compound annual growth rate at 9% leading up to 2030. - A free sample of the report is available online. - The full report is also available online.

The details: - Asia-Pacific’s digital advertising market is expected to grow from $248 billion in 2025 to $411 billion in 2030, a 19% CAGR. - The report links Asia-Pacific growth to smartphone and internet adoption, e-commerce expansion, social media engagement, and investment in programmatic and AI-driven ads. - The U.S. market is expected to grow from $161 billion in 2025 to $197 billion in 2030, a 4% CAGR. - The report ties U.S. growth to major technology platforms, advanced analytics, omnichannel marketing and programmatic and AI-driven advertising. - The digital advertising market is segmented by ad format into display ads, social media, native advertising, search ads, video ads and other formats. - The market is segmented by platform into mobile, laptop and desktop. - The market is segmented by end user into retail, healthcare, automotive, media and entertainment, education, transport and tourism, and IT and telecom. - Social media ads are expected to benefit from higher user engagement, creator-led marketing, AI-powered targeting, mobile internet growth, social commerce features and demand for measurable performance outcomes. - The report says the biggest growth opportunities will come from social media, search ads, video ads, display ads and native advertising. - Those five segments are projected to contribute more than $370 billion in market value by 2030. - The display ads market is projected to add $84 billion from 2025 to 2030. - The social media market is projected to add $95 billion. - The native advertising market is projected to add $28 billion. - The search ads market is projected to add $84 billion. - The video ads market is projected to add $65 billion. - The other ad format market is projected to add $14 billion.

Between the lines: - The forecast suggests digital ad growth is becoming more concentrated in channels that combine reach with precision targeting. - Social media’s lead reflects the continued shift from broad awareness campaigns to performance-driven advertising. - The report’s growth drivers point to a market shaped by mobile usage, e-commerce competition and automation in ad buying. - The projections are estimates from the report, not guarantees, and the report notes its findings are based on primary and secondary research.

What’s next: - Advertisers are likely to keep shifting spending toward social, search and video as those channels absorb more of the forecast growth. - Asia-Pacific is positioned to remain the fastest-growing large region through 2030. - E-commerce, mobile advertising and AI-enabled targeting are expected to keep expanding as core demand drivers. - The Business Research Company says it offers continuous and custom research services, including market entry, competitor tracking and supplier and distributor packages.

The bottom line: - Digital advertising spending is heading toward trillion-dollar scale, with social media and Asia-Pacific set to capture a large share of the next wave of growth.