Ad Density

Owned by Barak Broitman
Last updated: Nov 24, 2024
2 min read

Ad density refers to the percentage of the vertical height of a page occupied by advertisements.

Why is Ad Density Important?

Excessive ad density can overwhelm users, diminishing their browsing experience and leading to reduced engagement.

Also, Higher ad density can increase the supply of ad inventory, potentially leading to more revenue. However, excessive ad density can actually decrease demand and lower CPMs, ultimately reducing overall revenue.

Therefore, finding the right balance is crucial for optimizing revenue while maintaining a positive user experience.

The 30% Ad Density Rule

The Coalition for Better Ads has established guidelines to address excessive ad density, particularly on mobile devices.

  • Ad density is calculated by summing the heights of all ads within the main content portion of a mobile page and dividing by the total height of the main content area.
    Or, simply: Ad Density = Height of Ads / Total Height of Main Content Area

  • The main content of a webpage is the core material that serves the page's purpose and fulfills its primary goal. It excludes headers, footers, navigation menus, and related articles.

  • For mobile devices, ad density should not exceed 30% of the vertical height of a page.

This guideline aims to prevent excessive ad clutter that could negatively impact user experience while browsing on mobile devices.

Balance ad density and revenue with Browsi

The Ad Density Threshold setting lets you control the percentage of the page occupied by ads.

When this feature is enabled, it ensures that additional ad requests are stopped once the configured ad density threshold is reached. This prevents ads from taking up too much space on your page.

The feature also evaluates the expected density of any new ad request before sending it. If adding the new ad would exceed the threshold, the request will not be sent. To make this determination, Browsi assumes the largest possible configured ad size for the new request and calculates the resulting ad density accordingly.

 

This setting can be found under the “Browsi Advanced Features” in the layout settings.

Ad density threshold.png

By carefully managing ad density, you can create a better user experience, improve ad performance, and ultimately optimize your revenue potential while maintaining user satisfaction.