The Australian internet advertising market grew 11.5% to $18.4 billion in 2025, according to IAB Australia’s Internet Advertising Revenue Report (IARR).
The report, prepared by PwC Australia, shows video advertising continues to be the strongest performing segment, growing 19.8% to $5.4 billion.
Search advertising expanded 11.5% to $8 billion in 2025, a new annual high.
Classifieds were up 5% to $2.9 billion, and display advertising, excluding video, 1.9% to $2.1 billion.
Audio advertising was up 8.2% to $339 million with podcasting growth outpacing steaming audio.
“The 2025 results show a market that is growing, but selectively," said Gai Le Roy, CEO of IAB Australia.
"Overall investment increased strongly, driven primarily by video and search, while other display environments saw more modest movement. Social video and podcasting continue to outperform the market.
“While the large media agencies remain important drivers of scale, we’re also seeing strong investment from independent agencies, high-growth brands managing their own media, and SMEs.
"Established advertisers continue to expand in-house capability, and we’re seeing increased investment from Chinese and other international brands seeking to connect with Australian audiences."
Video contributed the largest share of growth within display advertising during 2025, with social video increasing its share of total video expenditure.
Social video accounted for 40% of total video investment for the calendar year, increasing 35.1% year-on-year, alongside continued investment across BVOD and other video environments.
Video’s share of the overall online advertising market continues to increase and now represents 29% of total online advertising expenditure.
Across buying methods for content publishers’ display inventory, agency buying via insertion order increased its share during 2025, while programmatic buying lost share during the peak Australian sporting season period.
Connected TV continued to increase its share of content publishers’ video inventory during 2025, reaching a new peak, supported by high-demand viewing environments associated with major sporting events.
Retail remained the leading industry category for reported general display advertising for content publishers and media owners for the fifth year, followed by automotive and entertainment and media.
Financial products and services, including insurance, experienced the largest increase in share during the year, while home products entered the top five industry categories for the first time.
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