Ad-tech

Native ad

An ad designed to look like editorial content within a publisher.

A native ad is a paid placement that visually matches the surrounding content. Taboola, Outbrain, MGID, RevContent are the dominant native-ad networks; their ads appear under articles ('You may also like…'). Native ads are sold mostly on a CPC basis and have lower CPMs than display banners but higher CTRs and very different audience signals.

Example

Article-end widget on USA Today shows three Taboola units styled to match the publisher's font and image ratio — only the small 'Sponsored' label distinguishes them.

Related terms

Taboola
The largest native ad network globally.
Outbrain
The second-largest native ad network globally.
MGID
A native ad network with strong Tier-2 and Tier-3 inventory.
Advertorial
An ad designed to read like an editorial article.
Content recommendation
The native-ad inventory format — 'You may also like' style widgets.