Q1 2024 Digital Market Index: Digital Advertising Spend Climbs Double-Digits Across Top Markets

As we approach the halfway point of 2024 it is clear that digital advertising continues to help brands seize new digital opportunities and drive business growth. According to Sensor Tower’s Digital Market Index report, the digital advertising market is larger than ever and shows no signs of slowing. In the United States, digital ad spend across mobile, desktop, and OTT surpassed $25 billion in Q1 2024 with 3.3 trillion impressions. While ad spend was down 13% compared to the previous quarter during the holiday season, it still showed strong growth over the past year, up 16% year-over-year. This is a great sign that the digital advertising economy will continue to set new records later this year.

The digital advertising rise is not isolated to the US – other markets also had healthy growth. New Zealand, Australia, Canada, and Mexico all saw ad spend rise by more than 30% vs. Q1 2023. Please note that the ad channels included vary by market.

The Travel Boom Continues into 2024

United States digital ad spend on Shopping and Consumer Packaged Goods remained strong in Q1 2024, climbing 4% and 14%, respectively. Meanwhile, Travel & Tourism has also maintained its momentum over the past few years, with ad spend up 25% YoY. This is all the more impressive when accounting for the rapid growth we’ve seen over the past few years as the tourism industry bounced back from the COVID-19 pandemic. The digital ad market for Travel has grown far past where it was even before the pandemic – for example, Travel & Tourism ad spend on Facebook in the US was 51% higher in Q1 2024 than it was in Q1 2019.

Another breakout category was Software, achieving the highest growth in US ad spend and breaking into the top 10. Six software advertisers had higher ad spend in Q1 2024 than any software advertiser had in Q1 2023, including Shopify, Adobe Creative Cloud, and Grammarly. AI also helped boost interest in software — Microsoft Copilot ranked among the top five software advertisers by US ad spend.

In contrast, Media & Entertainment and Gaming declined in the US in Q1 2024. The drop off was not unique to the US, with Media & Entertainment ad spend also falling in Brazil, Canada, Germany, Mexico, and the UK. This points to some stabilization in the streaming battle following several new competitors emerging over the past five years, including Disney Plus and Paramount Plus. Still, the competition for new streaming users remains fierce. Several OTT streaming services ranked among the top 15 brands by US ad spend in Q1 2024 including Peacock TV (#4), Max (#8), Paramount Plus (#9), and Disney Plus (#14).

An Advertising Spike for Tax Services is Expected in Q1 – But What About Vacation Rentals?

Some of the breakout advertisers are easily explained by seasonal trends. For example, TurboTax (#1) H&R Block (#3), and Intuit (#7) began running their main campaigns leading into tax season in the US. Still, these brands invested even more in their digital advertising strategies than they had in previous years. The top five tax preparation & planning brands spent 38% more on digital advertising in Q1 2024 than a year prior. 

Want to see how these top tax brands adjusted their campaigns this year? Subscribers to Pathmatics by Sensor Tower can explore what ad channels and creatives helped fuel this growth.

Interestingly, vacation rentals & homestays competition also heated up in Q1 2024 despite the first quarter not coinciding with peak travel season in the US. This increase was almost entirely isolated to the two largest players in the US – VRBO and AirBnb. Expedia, the #2 advertiser by ad spend growth, invested more in its brand VRBO, and AirBnb also moved up more than 50 spots to rank 34th by ad spend in Q1 2024.

Want More Insights on the Digital Economy? Read the Full Report

Read the Q1 2024 Digital Market Index report highlighting the market leaders in mobile and digital advertising, spanning 21 markets in a dynamic, interactive format covering:

• Top Markets - strong growth in Japan as North America and Europe show growth opportunities for publishers

• Top Categories - Consumer spend increases in ALL top app categories with many seeing 30% growth

• Top Apps - TikTok still leads by global consumer spend, but falls in downloads

• Top Mobile Games - Monopoly GO! breaks records in Q1

• Digital Advertising - US digital ad spend up 16% YoY

• Retail Media Networks - Walmart and Target dominate Retail Media Networks by impressions