You may not know it or have felt it, but 2025 was actually a pretty good year for the U.S. ad economy. At least the way Brian Wieser tells it. But he warns that 2026 will be only about half as good, and will get worse as the year rolls on.
The media industry analyst and principal of the Madison & Wall consultancy, along with managing director Luke Stillman, forecast that U.S. ad revenue will grow 6.6% in 2026 (excluding political ads, which will be significant thanks to midterm elections), following an 11% surge this year, which Stillman termed “one of the best years we have on record… it’s pretty much the best environment we’ve seen in a decade.”
In a recent webinar in which he and Stillman presented their reasons for the projected numbers, Wieser noted that one reason for the strong 2025 is the rise of newer advertisers like dating services, among others. But he pointed out some of the concerns and unknowns for 2026.
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