Popular Online Advertising Networks

Searching for the best ad networks for publishers and bloggers?

If you want to effectively monetize your content, you can’t rely on selling ads directly to businesses – you need the aid of an ad network to help you effectively fill your ad inventory and maximize your CPMs (the amount you earn per 1,000 visitors).

As you’d expect, there are plenty of networks that are itching to help you do this. And in this post, we’ve collected 15 of the best options for bloggers and publishers of all sizes.

All of these companies can help you monetize your content in different ways. Some go the traditional display advertising route, while others can help you insert contextual advertising links, share paid content recommendations, and more.

Additionally, we tried to include options that will work for both big publishers and small bloggers, though some of these ad networks do have varying levels of minimum traffic requirements.

Let’s dig in…

1. Ezoic

Ezoic is the best advertising solution for most publishers. It’s a monetization platform that easily integrates with top affiliate networks such as Media.net and Google AdSense.What sets Ezoic apart is that it’s an AI-led machine learning platform that is designed to help you increase advertising earnings.Ezoic uses machine learning to constantly test different ads, placements, etc. to find the highest earning configurations. You can use drag-and-drop to set up testing locations. Then, you can choose goals and run your tests (e.g. maximizing revenue vs improving user experience, or striking the perfect balance).In terms of ads themselves, you can actually connect to some of the other ad networks on this list to test ads from different sources – for example, Media.net or Google AdSense (the next option on our list).Ezoic is accessible to join. Originally, you’d need 10,000 sessions per month to join. However, anyone can now join via their Access Now program. It works with all content verticals and the minimum payout is also just $20.

2. Media.net

Media.net is one of the largest contextual advertising networks on the Internet. That fact makes it one of the most popular Google AdSense alternatives, but it’s also just plain a quality ad network for publishers and bloggers in its own right.You can automatically serve up both text and display ads, including an option to dynamically let Media.net figure out the optimal sizes for your site. Media.net also has a programmatic platform that you can use if you prefer that approach.The minimum payout at Media.net is $100.

3. Monumetric

Monumetric is a publisher-friendly ad network that helps you monetize your site without harming your user experience.In a nutshell, you sign up with Monumetric and list the ad inventory that you have available.  Then, Monumetric will help you fill out the inventory with the highest CPM offers available. If you don’t want to display ads from a certain company or industry, Monumetric will also make sure that content doesn’t show up on your site.To get started with Monumetric, you’ll only need 10,000 page views per month. But if your site is under 80,000 monthly page views, Monumetric will charge you a one-time $99 setup fee (this fee is waived if your site has above 80,000 page views).

4. AdThrive

AdThrive is an ad network that focuses primarily on bloggers and publishers in lifestyle areas such as food, home, travel, parenting, DIY, etc. While you don’t have to be in those niches to join, those are the types of advertisers that will thrive with AdThrive.AdThrive offers all the popular display ad dimensions and even guarantees payouts — so even if AdThrive doesn’t get paid by an advertiser, they’ll still pay you. This is part of their “creator-first” mission.AdThrive is looking primarily for US-based traffic, so it might not be the best option if you have a lot of global visitors. Additionally, you’ll need Google Analytics installed and at least 100,000 monthly page views to apply.

5. Mediavine

Mediavine

Like AdThrive, Mediavine is another well-regarded ad network that’s popular with lifestyle content creators such as those in niches like food, home, travel, parenting, etc. Again, you aren’t necessarily required to be in those niches to join, but those are the types of sites that do well with Mediavine.

Also like AdThrive, Mediavine wants to build a “creator first” approach. In fact, the team behind Mediavine is also a popular publisher with properties such as The Hollywood Gossip and Food Fanatic.

Mediavine is slightly easier to get into than AdThrive – the minimum traffic requirement is just 50,000 visits per month.

6. Google AdSense

Google AdSense probably needs no introduction – it’s the most popular and well-known display advertising program on the Internet.However, we’re still including it because no list of the best ad networks for publishers could be complete without mentioning AdSense.All you do is add AdSense to your site and Google will serve up contextual ads – you can even let Google experiment to find the most optimal ad placement locations on your site without you lifting a finger.The minimum payout at AdSense is $100.

7. Taboola

Taboola helps you monetize your site with content suggestions that appear after your site’s content – you’ve probably seen this type of monetization with many big publishers and online magazines.You know the type of content – “You’ll never believe how this teacher saves money” or “10 foods that can make you live longer”.Taboola is a popular option for content recommendation ads, but you’ll need at least 500,000 visitors per month to get in. We’ll also share some similar types of networks in this post, some of which have lower traffic limits.

8. PropellerAds

PropellerAds is a popular ad network for publishers that can help you monetize your content in several different ways including:“Traditional” display adsSmart links that automatically take visitors to relevant offersOnclick ads (AKA popunders)InterstitialsBrowser push notifications (a fairly unique option)With so many options, you have a good amount of control over how aggressive (or not) you want to be with your monetization strategy.PropellerAds also makes it super easy to get paid – the minimum payment is just $5 and you can get weekly payouts.

9. Adversal

Adversal is another popular ad network for bloggers that lets you monetize your site with content recommendations, much like Outbrain and Taboola. In addition to these native ads, Adversal also offers video and display ads.Overall, Adversal aims to be a “set it and forget it” solution to monetizing your website’s content.To join Adversal, you’ll only need 50,000 page views per month.

10. BuySellAds

BuySellAds lets you list your ad inventory in the BuySellAds marketplace for advertisers to directly purchase ad space on your site.For example, you could list one or more spots in your sidebar. Then, advertisers can purchase that inventory right through BuySellAds – no direct interaction needed.You also have the option to specify “fallback” ads that you can display if an inventory spot hasn’t been filled yet, which helps you make sure you’re never missing out on revenue. For example, you could add high-performing affiliate products in that spot until you sell an ad.In order to work with BuySellAds, though, you’ll need to have at least 100,000 page views per month.

~ Iyre Renee