Social Video Ads Exceed Half of Global Video Ad Market

WARC's Global Ad Spend Forecast Q3 2026 report predicts that global video ad spend will reach $479.1 billion this year, accounting for 35.7% of total global ad spend.

The report stated that social video advertising will account for 51.7% of video spend, surpassing half for the first time, and is expected to rise to 58.6% by 2028 as viewership shifts toward short clips and creator content.

WARC forecasted social media ad spend to grow by 21.3% to $394.6 billion, significantly higher than the overall ad market growth expected at 11.9%. Its projections indicated that Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta will capture 59.7% of global ad spend outside China.

It added that the combination of social ads, search, and retail media will represent 66.4% of total global spend, reflecting the concentration of budgets across a few platforms. The report described this shift as a transition to a "clip economy," where brands compete for user attention in short, frequent clips rather than long-form videos.

What do these terms mean?

Video Ad Spend: The amount brands pay to display visual ads before, during, or after content, including television and digital platforms.

Social Video: Short or long video clips published and viewed within social platforms, relying more on recommendations and creator content than traditional broadcasting.

Retail Media: Advertising space sold by retailers and e-commerce platforms to advertisers within their websites and apps, where users are close to making a purchase decision.